Statius; with an English translation by J.H. Mozley

THE LOEB CLASSICAL LIBRARY

EDITED BY

T. E. PAGE, LiTT.D.
E. CAPPS, PH.D., LL.D. W. H. D. ROUSE, litt.d.

STATIUS
II

^cfi

f

STATIUS

WITH AN ENGLISH TRANSLATION BY

J. H. MOZLEY, M.A.

SOMETIME SCHOLAR OF KING S COLLEGE, CAMBRIDGE

USCTDEER IN CLASSICS AT EAST LONDON COLLEGE, UNIVERSITY

OF LONDON

J.

IN TWO VOLUMES ^

II
THEBAID V-XII • ACHILLEID

LONDON : WILLIAM HEINEMANN LTD
NEW YORK: G. P. PUTNAM'S SONS

MCMXXVIII

;

Printed in Great Britain

CONTENTS OF VOLUME II

THEBAID

PAGE

Book V.

2

Book VI.

60

Book VII.

132

Book VIII.

•, V- >c .

194

Book IX.

252

Book X.

320

Book XI.

390

Book XII.

ACHILLEID

446

Book I. .

. 508

Book II.

582

THEBAID

BOOKS V-XII

VOL. 11

THEBAIDOS

LIBER V

Pulsa sitis fluvio, populataque gurgitis altum^
agmina linquebant ripas amnemque minorem ;
acrior et campum sonipes rapit et pedes arva
implet ovans, rediere viris animique minaeque
votaque, sanguineis mixtum ceu fontibus ignem 5
hausissent belli magnasque in proelia mentes.
dispositi in turmas rursus legemque severi
ordinis, ut cuique ante locus ductorque, monentur
instaurare vias. tellus iam pulvere primo
crescit, et armorum transmittunt fulgura silvae. 10
qualia trans pontum Phariis depvensa serenis
rauca Paraetonio deeedunt agmina Nilo,
quo^ fera cogit hiemps : illae clangore fugaei,
umbra fretis arvisque, volant, sonat avius aether,
iam Borean imbresque pati, iam nare solutis 15

amnibus et nudo iuvat aestivare sub Haemo.

Hie rursus simili procerum vallante corona
dux Talaionides, antiqua ut forte sub orno

^ altum P : alvum w (Z) mith alveum written over).
^ quo Vollmer : cum Pa,-.

" i.e., cranes, cf. Virg. Aen. x. 264..

* The epithet is taken from a town named Paraetonium,
on the Libyan coast west of the Delta.
2

THEBAID

BOOK V

Their thirst was quenched by the river, and the
army haWng ravaged the water's depths was lea\"ing
the banks and the diminished stream ; more briskly
now the galloping steed scours the plain, and the
infantrj' swarm exultant over the fields, inspired
once more by courage and hope and warlike temper,
as though from the blood-stained springs they had
drunk the fire of battle and high resolution for the
fray. Marshalled again in squadrons and the stern
disciphne of rank, they are bidden renew the march,
each in his former place and under the same leader
as before. Already the first dust is rising from the
earth, and arms are flashing through the trees. Just
so do flocks of screaming birds," caught by the
Pharian summer, wing their way across the sea
from Paraetonian '' Nile, whither the fierce ^vinter
drove them ; they fly, a shadow upon the sea and
land, and their cry follows them, filling the pathless
heaven. Soon will it be their delight to breast the
north \^ind and the rain, soon to swim on the melted
rivers, and to spend the summer days on naked
Haemus.

Then the son of Talaus, ringed round once more
by a band of chieftain peers, as he stood by chance

3

STATIUS

stabat et admoti nixus Polynicis in hastam :
" at tamen,oquaecumque es "ait," cui — gloria tanta —
venimus innumerae fato^ debere cohortes, 21

quern non ipse deum sator asp'ernetur honorem,
die age, quando tuis alacres absistimus undis,
quae domus aut tellus, animam quibus hauseris astris?
die, quis et ille pater ? neque enim tibi numina longe,
transierit fortuna licet, maiorque per ora 26

sanguis, et adflicto spirat reverentia vultu."

Ingemit, et paulum fletu cunctata modesto
Lemnias orsa refert : " immania vulnera, rector,
integrare iubes, Furias et Lemnon et artis 30

arma inserta toris debellatosque pudendo
ense mares ; redit ecce nefas et frigida cordi
Eumenis. o miserae, quibus hie furor additus ! o nox 1
o pater ! ilia ego nam, pudeat ne forte benignae
hospitis, ilia, duces, raptum quae sola parentem 35
occului. quid longa malis exordia necto ?
et vos arma vocant magnique in corde paratus.
hoc memorasse sat est : claro generata Thoante
servitum Hypsipyle vestri fero capta Lycurgi."

Advertere animos, maiorque et honora videri 40
parque operi tanto ; cunctis tunc noscere casus
ortus amor, pater ante alios hortatur Adrastus :

^ fato MS. at Peterhouse, Camb. : fatum Poj.

" If "fatum" of most mss. is kept =" our lives," then
" honorem," etc., must be in a kind of apposition to the
preceding sentence, e.g., " to owe our lives, an honour
which . . ." In any case " venimus debere " is doubtful
Latin, and the line has been variously emended.

* i.e., where were you born ?

4.

THEBAID, V. 19-42

beneath an aged ash-tree, and leaned on Polynices'
spear hard by him, thus spoke : " Nay, tell us, thou,
whoe'er thou art. to whom — such is thy glory — fate "
has brought our countless cohorts owing thee such
high honour as the Sire of the gods himself would
not despise — tell us, now that we are departing in
all speed from thy waters, what is thy home or
native land, from what stars didst thou draw thy
life ? ^ And who was that sire thou spakest of ? For
heaven is not far to seek in thy descent, though
fortune may have been traitorous ; a nobler birth is
in thy looks, and even in affliction thy countenance
breathes majesty."

The Lemnian sighed, and, stayed by shamefast
tears awhile, then makes reply : " Deep are the
wounds, O prince, thou biddest me revive, the tale
of Lemnos and its Furies and of murder done even
in the bed's embrace, and of the shameful sword
whereby our manhood perished ; ah I the ^Wcked-
ness comes back upon me, the freezing Horror grips
my heart ! Ah ! miserable they, upon whom this
frenzy came ! alas, that night ! alas, my father I for
I am she — lest haply ye feel shame for your kindly
host — I am she, O chieftains, who alone did steal
away and hide her father. But why do I weave
the long prelude to my woes ? Moreover battle
summons you and your hearts' high enterprise.
Thus much doth it suffice to tell : I am Hypsipyle,
born of renowned Thoas, and captive thrall to your
Lycurgus."

Close heed they gave her then, and nobler she
seemed and worthy of honour, and equal to such a
deed ; then all craved to learn her story, and father
Adrastus foremost urged her : "Ay, verily, while

STATIUS

" immo age, dum primi longe damus agmina vulgi —
nee facilis Nemee latas evolvere vires,
quippe obtenta comis et ineluctabilis umbra — 45
pande nefas laudesque tuas gemitusque tuorum,
unde lios advenias regno deiecta labores."

Dulce loqui niiseris veteresque reducere questus.
incipit : " Aegaeo premitur circumflua Nereo
I^emnos, ubi ignifera fessus respirat ab Aetna 50

Mulciber ; ingenti tellurem proximus umbra
vestit Athos nemorumque obscurat imagine pontum ;
Thraces arant contra, Thracum fatalia nobis
litora, et inde nefas. florebat dives alunmis
terra, nee ilia Samo fama Delove sonanti 55

peior et innumeris quas spumifer adsilit Aegon.
dis visum turbare domos, nee pectora culpa
nostra vacant : nullos Veneri sacravimus ignis,
nulla deae sedes ; movet et caelestia quondam
corda dolor lentoque inrepunt agmine Poenae, 60
ilia Paphon veterem centumque altaria linquens
nee vultu nee crine prior solvisse iugalem
ceston et Idalias procul ablegasse volucres
fertur. erant certe, media quae noctis in umbra
divam alios ignes maioraque tela gerentem 05

Tartareas inter thalamis volitasse sorores
vulgarent, utque implicitis arcana domorum
anguibus et saeva formidine nupta replesset^
limina nee fidi populum miserata mariti.

^ nupta replesset P : cuncta replevit w.

" Some explain " with oracles," but the more likely mean-
ing is "with dashing waves," as in the next line.

* i.e., the Aegean Sea.

' lit., " not as she previously was in respect of ... " Cf.
xi. 459, " non habitu, quo nota prius, non ore sereno."

6

THEBAID, V. 43-69

we set in long array the columns of our van — nor
does Nemea readily allow a broad host to draw
clear, so closely hemmed is she by woodland and
entanghng shade — tell us of the crime, and of thy
praiseworthy deed and the sufferings of thy people,
and how cast out from thy realm thou art come to
this toil of thine."

Pleasant is it to the unhappy to speak, and to
recall the sorrows of old time. Thus she begins :
" Set amid the encircUng tides of Aegean Nereus
lies Lemnos, where Mulciber draws breath again from
his labours in fiery Aetna ; Athos hard by clothes the
land with his mighty shadow, and darkens the sea
with the image of his forests ; opposite the Thracians
plough, the Thracians, from whose shores came our
sin and doom. Rich and populous was our land, no less
renowned than Samos or echoing " Delos or the other
countless isles against which Aegon * dashes in foam.
It was the will of the gods to confound our homes,
but our own hearts are not free from guilt ; no
sacred fires did we kindle to Venus, the goddess had
no slirine. Even celestial minds are moved at last
to resentment, and slow but sure the Avenging
Powers creep on. She, leaving ancient Paphos and
her hundred shrines, with altered looks and tresses,*^
loosed, so they say, her love-alluring girdle and
banished her Idalian doves afar. Some, 'tis certain,
of the women told it abroad that the goddess,
armed with other torches and deadlier weapons,
had flitted through the marriage chambers in the
darkness of midnight with the sisterhood of Tartarus
about her, and how she had filled every secret
place with twining serpents and our bridal thresh-
olds with dire terror, pitying not the people of her

7

STATIUS

protinus a Lemno teneri fugistis Amores, 70

mutus Hymen versaeque faces et frigida iusti
cura tori ! nullae redeunt in gaudia noetes,
nullus in amplexu sopor est, Odia aspera ubique
et Furor et medio recubat Discordia lecto.
cura viris tumidos adversa Thracas in ora 75

eruere et saevam bellando frangere gentem.
cumque domus contra stantesque in litore nati,
dulcius Edonas^ hiemes Arctonque prementem
excipere, aut tandem tacita post proelia nocte
fractorum subitas torrentum audire ruinas. 80

illae autem tristes — nam me tunc libera curis
virginitas annique tegunt — sub nocte dieque
adsiduis aegrae in lacrimis solantia miscent
conloquia, aut saevam spectant trans aequoraThracen.
Sol operum medius summo librabat Olympo 85
lucentes, ceu staret, equos ; quater axe serene
intonuit, quater antra dei fumantis anhelos
exseruere apices, ventisque absentibus Aegon
motus et ingenti percussit litora ponto :
cum subito horrendas aevi matura Polyxo 90

tollitur in furias thalamisque insueta relictis
evolat. insano veluti Teumesia thyias
rapta deo, cum sacra vocant Idaeaque suadet
buxus et a summis auditus montibus Euhan :
sic erecta genas aciemque ofFusa^ trementi 95

sanguine desertam rabidis clamoribus urbem
exagitat, clausasque domos et limina pulsans

^ Edonas Servius, Schol. on Lucan, edd. : edonias Poj.
* oflFusa Barth, Heinsius : effusa Pw.

" i.e., Vulcan, who dwelt in Lemnos.
* i.e., Theban> from Teumesus, a mountain of Boeotia.

8

THEBAID, V. 70-97

faithful spouse. Straightway fled ye from Lemnos,
ye tender Loves : Hymen fell mute and turned
iiis torch to earth ; chill neglect came o'er the
la\\-ful couch, no nightly return of joy was there,
no slumber in the beloved embrace, everywhere
reigned bitter Hatred and Frenzy and Discord
sundering the partners of the bed. For the men were
bent on overthrowing the boastful Thracians across
the strait, and warring down the savage tribe. And
in despite of home and their children standing on
the shore, sweeter it was to them to bear Edonian
winters and the brunt of the cold North, or, when at
last still night followed a day of battle, to hear the
sudden outburst of the crashing mountain torrent.
But the women — for I at that time was sheltered by
care-free maidenhood and tender years — sad and sick
at heart sought tearful solace in converse day and
night, or gazed out across the sea to cruel Thrace.

" The sun in the midst of his labours was poising his
shining chariot on Olympus' height, as though at
halt ; four times came thunder from a serene sky,
four times did the smoky caverns of the god " open
their panting summits, and Aegon, though the winds
were hushed, was stirred and flung a mighty sea
against the shores : when suddenly the crone Polyxo
is caught up in a dire frenzy, and deserting un-
wontedly her chamber flies abroad. Like a Teume-
sian * Thyiad rapt to madness by the god, when the
sacred rites are calling and the boxwood pipe of Ida '^
stirs her blood, and the voice of Euhan is heard upon
the high hills : even so with head erect and quivering
bloodshot eyes she ranges up and down the lonely
city wildly clamouring, and beating at closed doors
' The Phrygian mountain, where Cybele was worshipped.

9

STATIUS

concilium vocat ; infelix comitatus eunti

haerebant nati. atque illae non segnius omnes

erumpunt tectis, summasque ad Pallados arces 100

impetus : hue propere stipamur et ordine nullo

congestae ; stricto mox ense silentia iussit

hortatrix scelerum et medio sic ausa profari :

' rem summam instinctu superum meritique doloris,

o viduae — firmate animos et pellite sexum ! — 105

Lemniades, sancire paro ; si taedet inanes

aeternum servare domos turpemque iuventae

flore situm et longis steriles in luctibus annos,

inveni, promitto, viam — nee numina desunt —

qua renovanda Venus : modo par insumite robur 1 10

luctibus, atque adeo primum hoc mihi noscere detur.

tertia canet hiemps ; cui conubialia vincla

aut thalami secretus honos ? cui coniuge pectus

intepuit ? cuius vidit Lucina labores,

dicite, vel iustos cuius pulsantia menses 115

vota tument ? qua pace feras volucresque iugari

mos datus. heu segnes ! potuitne ultricia Graius

virginibus dare tela pater laetusque dolorum

sanguine securos iuvenum perfundere somnos :

at nos volgus iners ? quodsi propioribus actis 120

est opus, ecce animos doceat Rhodopeia coniunx,

ulta manu thalamos pariterque epulata marito.

nee vos immunis scelerum securave cogo :

plena mihi domus atque ingens, en cernite, sudor.

" Danaus, c/, iv. 133 n.

* Procne, wife of Tereus, kinj^ of Tlirace ; she set before
him the flesh of his son Itys. Khodope, a mountain in
Thrace.
10 •

THEBAID, V. 98-124

and thresholds suxnmons us to council ; her children
clinging to her bear her woeful company. No less
eagerly do all the women burst from their houses
and rush to the citadel of Pallas on the hill-top :
hither in feverish haste we press and crowd dis-
orderly. Then with drawn sword she commands
silence, and prompting us to crime dares thus to speak
among us : ' Inspired by heaven and our just anger,

0 widowed Lemnians — steel now your courage and
banish thought of sex ! — I make bold to justify a
desperate deed. If ye are weary of watching homes
for ever desolate, of watching your beauty's flower
blight and wither in long barren years of weeping,

1 have found a way, I promise you — and the Powers
are with us I — a way to renew the charm of Love ;
only take courage equal to your griefs, yea, and of
that assure me first. Three winters now have
whitened — which of us has known the bonds of wed-
lock, or the secret honours of the marriage chamber ?
Whose bosom has glowed with conj ugal love ? Whom
has Lucina beheld in travail : Whose ripening hope
throbs in the wom.b as the due months draw on r
Yet such permission is granted to beasts and birds
to unite after their manner. Alas ! sluggards that
we are ! could a Grecian sire " give avenging weapons
to his daughters, and with treacherous joy drench in
blood the bridegroom's careless slumber ? And are
we then to be but a spiritless mob } Or if ye would
have deeds nearer home, lo I let the Thracian wife *
teach us courage, who with her own hand avenged
her union and set the feast before her spouse. Nor
do I urge you on, guiltless myself or -without care : full
is my OMTi house, and huge — ay, look '^ — the struggle.

' She points to her four children, whom it is hard to slay.

11

STATIUS

quattuor hos una, decus et solacia patris, 125

in gremio, licet amplexu lacrimisque morentur,
transadigam ferro saniemque et vulnera fratrum
miscebo patremque simul spirantibus addam.
ecqua tot in caedes animum promittit ? '

Agebat
pluribus ; adverse nituerunt vela profundo : 130

Lemnia elassis erat. rapuit gavisa Polyxo
fortunam atque iterat : ' superisne vocantibus ultro
desumus ? ecce rates ! deus hos, deus ultor in iras
adportat coeptisque favet. nee imago quietis
vana meae ; nudo stabat Venus ense, videri 135

clara mihi somnosque super " quid perditis aevum ? "
inquit " age aversis thalamos purgate maritis.
ipsa faces alias melioraque foedera iungam."
dixit, et hoc ferrum stratis, hoc, credite, ferrum
imposuit. quin o miserae, dum temp us agi^ rem, 140
consulite ; en validis spumant eversa lacertis
aequora, Bistonides veniunt fortasse maritae.'
hinc stimuli ingentes, magnusque advolvitur astris
clamor. Aniazonio Scythiam fervere tumultu
lunatumque putes agmen descendere, ubi arma 145
indulget pater et saevi movet ostia Belli,
nee varius fremor aut studia in contraria rapti
dissensus, ut plebe solet : furor omnibus idem,
idem animus solare domos iuvenumque senumque

^ agi Heinsius : agit Poi, prob. from Aen. v. 638.
12

THEBAID, V. 125-149

Behold these four together, the pride and comfort
of their sire ; though they should stay me ^ith
embraces and tears, even here in my bosom I will
pierce them with the sword, and unite the brothers
in one heap of wounds and blood, and set their
father's corpse on their yet breathing bodies I Who of
you can promise me a spirit for slaughter so great ? '
"Yet more was she urging, when yonder out at sea
white sails shone — the Lemnian fleet ! Exultant,
Polyxo seizes the moment's chance and cries again :
' The gods themselves in\"ite us — do we fail them :
See, there are the ships ! Heaven, avenging heaven,
brings them to meet our wrath, and favours our
resolve. Not vain was the vision of my sleep :
Avith naked sword Venus stood over me as I slumbered,
plain to my sight, and cried : " Why do ye waste
your hves ? Go, purge your chambers of the
husbands who have lost their love ! I myself will
light you other torches and join you in worthier
unions." She spoke, and laid this sword, this very
sword, beheve it, on my couch. Take heed then,
unhappy ones, whilst there is time to act. Lo I the
waters churn and foam beneath the strong arms
of the rowers — perchance Thracian brides come vvith
them ! ' At this all are vvTought to highest pitch,
and a loud clamour rolls upward to the skies. One
would think it was Scythia swarming vvith tumultuous
bands of Amazons, trooping to the fight yyith crescent
bucklers, when the Father gives rein to armed
conflict and flings wide the gates of savage War.
Their uproar held no varying voices, nor did dissension
cleave into opposing factions, as is the wont of a
crowd ; one frenzy, one purpose inspires all ahke,
to lay desolate our homes, to break life's thread for

13

ST ATI us

praecipitare colos plenisque adfr anger e parvos 150
uberibus ferroque omnes exire per annos.
tunc viridi luco^ — lucus iuga celsa Minervae
propter opacat humum niger ipse, sed insuper ingens
mons premit et gemina pereunt caligne soles —
hie sanxere fidem, tu Martia testis Enyo 155

atque inferna Ceres, Stygiaeque Acheronte recluso
ante preces venere deae ; sed fallit ubique
mixta Venus, Venus arma tenet, Venus admovet iras.
nee de more cruor : natum Charopeia coniunx
obtulit, accingunt sese et mirantia ferro 160

pectora congestisque avidae simul undique dextris
perfringunt, ac dulce nefas in sanguine vivo
coniurant, matremque recens circumvolat umbra,
talia cernenti mihi quantus in ossibus horror,
quisve per ora color ! qualis cum cerva cruentis 165
circumventa lupis, nullum cui pectore molli
robur et in volucri tenuis fiducia cursu,
praecipitat suspensa fugam, iamiamque teneri
credit et elusos audit concurrere morsus.

Illi aderant, primis iamque ofFendere carinae 170
litoribus, certant saltu contingere terram
praecipites, miseri, quos non aut horrida virtus
Marte sub Odrysio, aut medii inclementia ponti
hauserit ! alta etiam superum delubra vaporant
promissasque trahunt pecudes : niger omnibus aris 175
ignis, et in nuUis spirat deus integer extis.

^ viridi luco P : vlridis late w.
14

THEBAID, V. 150-176

young and old, to crush babes against the teeming
breasts, and with the sword to make havoc through
every age. Then in a green grove — a grove that
darkens the ground hard by the lofty hill of Minerva,
black itself, but above it the mountain looms huge,
and the sunlight perishes in a twofold night — they
pledged their solemn word, and thou wast witness,
Martian Enyo, and thou, Ceres of the underworld,"
and the Stygian goddesses came in answer to their
prayers ; but unseen among them everywhere was
Venus, Venus armed, Venus kindling 'vvrath. Un-
wonted was the blood, for the wife of Charops made
offering of her son, and they girded themselves,
and at once all greedily stretched forth their right
hands and mangled with the sword his marvelling
breast, and made common oath in impious joy upon
the living blood, while the new ghost hovers about
his mother. What horror struck my limbs when I
beheld so dire a sight ! What colour came upon my
cheeks ! As when a deer is surrounded by savage
wolves, and no strength is left in her tender breast
and scanty confidence in speed of foot, she darts
away in fearful flight, and each moment believes that
she is taken, and hears behind her the snap of
baffled jaws.

" They were come, and already the keels grated on
the edge of the strand, and they leap ashore in
emulous haste. Unhappy they, whom their stark
valour 'neath Odrysian Mars'' destroyed not, nor
the rage of the intervening sea ! And now they
fill with smoke of incense the high shrines of the
gods, and drag their promised victims ; but murky
is the fire on every altar, and in no entrails breathes

' i.e., Proserpine. ' i.e., in Thracian warfare.

15

STATIUS

tardius umenti noctem deiecit Olympo
luppiter et versum miti, reor, aethera cura
sustinuit, dum fata vetat, nee longius umquam
cessavere novae perfecto sole tenebrae. 180

sera tamen mundo venerunt astra, sed illis
et Paros et nemorosa Thasos crebraeque relucent
Cyclades ; una gravi penitus latet obruta caelo
LemnoSjin hanc tristes nebulae, etplaga caeca superne
texitur, una vagis Lemnos non agnita nautis. 185

iam domibus fusi et nemorum per opaca sacrorum
ditibus indulgent epulis vacuantque profundo
aurum immane mero, dum quae per Strymona pugnae,
quis Rhodope gelidove labor sudatus in Haemo,
enumerare vacat. nee non, manus impia, nuptae 190
serta inter festasque dapes quo maxima cultu
quaeque iacent ; dederat mites Cytherea suprema
nocte viros longoque brevem post tempore pacem
nequiquam et miseros perituro adflaverat igni.
conticuere chori, dapibus ludoque licenti 195

fit modus et primae decrescunt murmura noctis,
cum consanguinei mixtus caligine Leti
rore madens Stygio morituram amplectitur urbem
Somnus et implacido^ fundit gravia otia cornu
secernitque viros. vigilant nuptaeque nurusque 200
in scelus, atque hilares acuunt fera tela Sorores.
invasere nefas, cuncto sua regnat Erinys
pectore. non aliter Scythicos armenta per agros
Hyrcanae clausere leae, quas exigit ortu
^ implacido Pco : implicito iV.

" The god shows his will in the yet living ("spirat")
entrails, just as he speaks in the cry of birds; to be favour-
able the entrails must be perfect ("integer"), and every
slight imperfection was given some meaning by the " harus-
pices."

16

THEBAID, V. 177-204

the god unimpaired." Slowly did Jupiter bring down
the night from moist Olympus, and with kindly
care held back, I ween, the turning sky, and stayed
the fates, nor ever, the sun's course finished, did the
new shadows longer delay their coming. Yet at
last the late stars shone in heaven, but their light
fell on Paros and woody Thasos and the myriad
Cyclades : Lemnos alone lies under a heavy sky's
thick pall of darkness, gloomv fogs descend upon it
and above is a woven belt of night, alone is Lemnos
unmarked of wandering mariners. And now, stream-
ing forth from their homes and through the shade of
sacred groves, they sate themselves in sumptuous
feasting and drain vast golden goblets of the brimming
wine, and tell at their leisure of battles on the Stry-
mon, of sweat of war on Rhodope or frozen Haemus.
Nay more, their wives, unnatural consorts, recline
among the garlands and by the festal tables, each
in her choicest raiment ; on that last night Cytherea
had made their husbands gracious toward them,
and given a brief moment of vain bliss after so long
a time, and breathed into the doomed ones a passion
soon to perish.

" The choirs fell silent, a term is set to banqueting
and amorous sport, and as night deepens the noises
die away, when Sleep, shrouded in the gloom of his
brother Death and dripping with Stygian dew,
enfolds the doomed city, and from his relentless
horn pours hea\y drowse, and marks out the men.
Wives and daughters are awake for murder, and
joyously do the Sisters sharpen their savage weapons.
They fall to their horrid work : in the breast of each
her Fury reigns. Not otherwise on Scythian plains
are cattle surrounded by Hyrcanian lionesses, whom

VOL. n c 17

STATIUS

prima fames, avidique implorant ubera nati. 205

quos tibi nam, dubito, scelerum de mille figuris
expediam casus. ^ Elymum temeraria Gorge
evinctum ramis altaque in mole tapetum
efflantem somno crescentia vina superstans
vulnera disiecta rimatur veste, sed ilium 210

infelix sopor admota sub morte refugit.
turbidus incertumque oculis vigilantibus hostem
occupat amplexu, nee segnius ilia tenentis
pone adigit costas, donee sua pectora ferro
tangeret. is demum sceleri modus ; ora supinat 215
blandus adhuc oculisque tremens et murmure Gorgen
quaerit et indigno non solvit* bracchia collo.
non ego nunc volgi quamquam crudelia pandam
funera, sed propria luctus de stirpe recordor :
quod te, flave Cydon, quod te per colla refusis 220
intactum, Crenaee, comis, quibus ubera mecum
obliquumque a patre genus, fortemque, timebam
quem desponsa, Gyan vidi lapsare cruentae
vulnere Myrmidones, quodque inter serta torosque
barbara ludentem fodiebat Epopea mater. 225

flet super aequaevum soror exarmata Lycaste
Cydimon, heu similes perituro in corpore vultus
aspiciens floremque genae et quas finxerat auro
ipsa comas, cum saeva parens iam coniuge fuso
adstitit impellitque minis atque ingerit* ensem. 230
ut fera, quae rabiem placido desueta magistro

^ Other edd. read (nam dubito) . . . casus ?

^ non solvit Pw : solvit sua ^V.

* ingerit P (in margin) : inserit Pw.

" For similar scenes see x. 273 sq.
18

THEBAID, v. 205-231

hunger drives forth at sunrise and greedy cubs
implore for their udders' milk. Of a thousand
shapes of guilt I hesitate what to tell thee that
befell." Bold Gorge stands over chaplet-crowned
Elymus. who on high-piled cushions pants out in
his sleep the rising fumes of wine, and probes in
his disordered garments for a vital blow, but his
ill-omened slumber flees from him at the near
approach of death. Confused and half- awake he
seizes his foe in his embrace, and she, as he holds
her, straightway stabs through his side from, behind,
till the point touches her own breast. There at
last the crime had ending : his head falls back, but
still with quivering eyes and murmur of endearing
words he seeks for Gorge, nor looses his arms from
her unworthy neck. I ^\^ll not now tell of the
slaughter of the multitude, cruel as it was, but I
will recall the woes of my own family : how I beheld
thee, fair-haired Cydon, and thee, Crenaeus, with
thy unshorn locks streaming o'er thy shoulders—
my foster-brothers these, born of another sire —
and brave Gyas, my betrothed, of whom I stood in
awe, all fallen beneath the blow of bloodthirstv
Myrmidone ; and how his savage mother pierced
Epopeus as he played among the garlands and the
couches, Lycaste, her weapon flung away, is
weeping over Cydimus, her brother of equal years,
gazing alas ! upon his doomed body, his face so like
her own, the bloom upon his cheeks and that hair
which she herself had decked in gold, when her
cruel mother, her spouse already slain, stands over
her, and threatening drives her to the deed, and
thrusts the sword upon her. Like a wild beast,
that under a soothing master has unlearnt its madness

19

STATIUS

tardius arma movet stimulisque et verbere crebro
in mores negat ire suos, sic ilia iacenti
incidit undantemque sinu conlapsa cruorem
excipit et laceros premit in nova vulnera crines. 235
ut vero Alcimeden etiamnum in murmure truncos
ferre patris vultus et egentem sanguinis ensem
conspexi, riguere comae atque in viscera saevus
horror iit : meus ille Thoas, mea dira videri
dextra mihi ! extemplo thalamis turbata paternis 240
inferor, ille quidem dudum — quis magna tuenti
somnus ? — agit versans secum, etsi lata recessit
urbe domus, quinam strepitus, quae murmura nocti'^,
cur fremibunda quies ? trepido scelus ordine pando,
quis dolor, unde animi : ' vis nulla arcere furentes ; 245
hac sequere, o miserande ; premunt aderuntque mo-

ranti,
et mecum fortasse cades.' his motus et artus
erexit stratis. ferimur per devia vastae
urbis et ingentem nocturnae caedis acervum
passim, ut quosque sacris crudelis vespera lucis 250
straverat, occulta speculamur nube latentes.
hie impressa toris ora exstantesque reclusis
pectoribus capulos magnarum et fragmina trunca
hastarum et ferro laceras per corpora vestes,
crateras pronos epulasque in caede natantes 255

cernere erat, iugulisque modo torrentis apertis
sanguine permixto redeuntem in pocula Bacchum.
hie iuvenum manus et nullis violabilis armis
20

THEBAID, V. 232-258

and is slow to make attack, and in spite of goadings
and many a blow refuses to assume its native temper,
so she falls upon him as he lies, and sinking down
gatliers the welling blood in her bosom, and staunclies
the fresh wounds with her torn tresses. But when
I beheld Alcimede carry her father's head still
murmuring and his bloodless sword, my hair stood
erect and fierce shuddering horror swept through
my frame ; that was my Thoas, methought, and
that my own dread hand ! Straightway in agony
I rush to my father's chamber. He indeed long
while had pondered — what sleep for him whose
charge is great } — although our spacious home lay
apart from the city, what was the uproar, what the
noises of the night, why the hours of rest were
clamorous. I tell a confused story of the crime,
what was their grievance, whence their passionate
wrath. ' No force can stop their frenzy ; follow
this way, unhappy one ; they are pursuing, and ^^ill
be on us if we linger, and perchance we shall fall
together.' Alarmed by my words he sprang up
from the couch. We hurry through devious paths
of the vast city, and, shrouded in a covering of mist,
everywhere behold great heaps of nocturnal carnage,
wheresoe'er throughout the sacred groves the cruel
darkness had laid them low. Here could one see
faces pressed down upon the couches, and sword-
hilts projecting from breasts laid open, broken
fragments of great spears and bodies with raiment
gashed and torn, mixing-bowls upset and banquets
floating in gore, and mingled wine and blood stream-
ing back like a torrent to the goblets from gaping
throats. Here are a band of youths, and there old
men whom no violence should profane, and children

21

STATIUS

turba senes, positique patrum super ora gementum
semincccs pueri trepidas in limitie vitae 260

singultant animas. gelida non saevius Ossa
luxuriant Lapitharuni epulae, si quando profundo
Nubigenae caluere mero ; vix primus ab ira
pallor, et impulsis surgunt ad proelia mensis.

Tunc primum sese trepidis sub nocte Thyoneus 265
detexit, nato portans extrema Thoanti
subsidia, et multa subitus cum luce refulsit.
adgnovi : non ille quidem turgentia sertis
tempora nee flava crinem destrinxerat uva :
nubilus indignumque oculis liquentibus imbrem 270
adloquitur : " dum fata dabant tibi, nate, potentem
Lemnon et externis etiam servare timendam
gentibus, baud umquam iusto mea cura labori
destitit : absciderunt tristes crudelia Parcae
stamina, nee dictis, supplex quae plurima fudi 275
ante lovem frustra, lacrimisque avertere luctus
contigit ; infandum natae concessit honorem.
adcelerate fugam, tuque, o mea digna propago,
hac rege, virgo, patrem, gemini qua bracchia muri
litus eunt : ilia, qua rere^ silentia, porta 280

stat funesta Venus ferroque accincta furentes
adiuvat — unde manus, unde haec Mavortia divae
pectora ? — : tu lato patrem committe profundo.
succedam curis." ita fatus in aera rursus
solvitur et nostrum, visus arcentibus umbris, 285

mitis iter longae claravit limite flammae.
^ rere P : rara w.

" The Centaurs ; the epithet is sometimes explained by
regarding them as a personification of mountain-torrents ;
cf. Theb. i. 365.

22

THEBAID, V. 259-286

half-slain flung o'er the faces of their moaning
parents and gasping out their trembling souls on
the threshold of life. No fiercer are the banquet-
revellings of the Lapithae on frozen Ossa, when the
cloud-born ones " grow hot with wine deep-drained ;
scarce has wrath's first pallor seized them, when
overthrowing their tables they start up to the affray.
" Then first Thyoneus ^ beneath night's cover
revealed himself to us in our distress, succouring his
son Thoas in his hour of need, and shone in a sudden
blaze of light. I knew him : yet he had bound no
chaplets round his swelling temples, nor yellow
grapes about his hair : but a cloud was upon him,
and his eyes streamed angry rain as he addressed
us : ' While the fates granted thee, my son, to
keep Lemnos mighty and feared still by foreign
peoples, never failed I to aid thy righteous labours ;
the stern Parcae have cut short the relentless threads,
nor have my prayers and tears, poured forth in vain
supplication before Jove, availed to turn away this
woe ; to his daughter hath he granted honour
unspeakable.'^ Hasten ye then your flight, and thou,

0 maiden, worthy offspring of my race, guide thy sire
this way where the wall's twin arms approach the
sea ; at yonder gate, where thou thinkest all is quiet,
stands Venus in fell mood and aids the furious ones ;
— whence hath the goddess this violence, this heart
of Mars ? Trust thou thy father to the broad deep :

1 will take thy cares upon me.' So speaking he
faded into air again, and since the shadows barred
our vision lit up our road with a long stream of fire,

" Bacchus.

* i.e., to Venus, to whom he has granted the awful privi-
lege of destroying the Lemnians.

23

STATIUS

qua data signa, sequor ; dein curvo robore clausum
dis pelagi Ventisque et Cycladas Aegaeoni
amplexo commendo patrem, ncc fletibus umquam
fit^ modus alternis, ni iam dimittat Eoo 290

Lucifer astra polo, tunc demum litore rauco
multa metu reputans et vix confisa Lyaeo
dividor, ipsa gradu nitente, sed anxia retro
pectora, nee requies, quin et surgentia caelo
flamina et e cunctis prospectem collibus undas. 295
exoritur pudibunda dies, caelumque retexens
aversum Lemno iubar et declinia Titan
opposita iuga nube refert. patuere furores
nocturni, lucisque novae formidine cunctis,
quamquam inter similes, subitus^ pudor ; impia terrae
infodiunt scelera aut festinis ignibus urunt. 301

iam manus Eumenidum captasque refugerat arces
exsaturata Venus ; licuit sentire, quid ausae,
et turbare comas et lumina tingere fletu.
insula dives agris opibusque armisque virisque, 305
nota situ et Getico nuper ditata triumpho,
non maris incursu, non hoste, nee aethere laevo
perdidit una omnes orbata excisaque fundo^
indigenas : non arva viri, non aequora vertunt,
conticuere domus, cruor altus et oblita crasso 310
cuncta rubent tabo, magnaeque in moenibus urbis
nos tantum et saevi spirant per culmina manes,
ipsa quoque arcanis tecti in penetralibus alto
molior igne pyram, sceptrum super armaque patris
inicio et notas regum velamina vestes, 315

^ fit Pa; : sit Gronovius.

^ subitus Bentley : habitus Pw.

' fundo Bentley ( from a ms.) : mundo Pw.

24

THEBAID, V. 287-315

in kindly succour. I follow where the signal leads,

and anon entrust my sire, hidden in a vessel's

curving beams, to the gods of the sen and the winds

and Aegaeon who holds the Cyclades in his embrace ;

nor set we any limit to our mutual grief, were it not

that Lucifer is already chasing the stars from the

eastern pole. Then at last I leave the sounding

shore, in brooding fear and scarce trusting Lvaeus'

word, resolute in step but casting anxious thoughts

behind me ; nor rest I but must fain watch from

ever\' hill the breezes rising in heaven and the ocean

waves. Day rises shamefast, and Titan opening

heaven to view turns aside his beams from Lemnos

and hides his averted chariot behind the barrier of

a cloud. Night's frenzied deeds lay manifest, and

to all the new terrors of the day brought sudden

shame, though all had share therein ; thev bury in

the earth their impious crimes or burn with hurried

fires. And now the Fury band and ^'enus sated to

the full had fled the stricken city ; now could the

women know what they had dared, now rend their

hair and bedew their eyes with tears. This island,

blest in lands and wealth, in arms and heroes,

famed for its site and enriched of late by a Getic

triumph, has lost, not by onslaught of the sea or of

the foe or by stroke of heaven, all her folk together,

bereft and ravaged to the uttermost. No men are

left to plough the fields or cleave the waves, silent

are the homes, swimming deep in blood and stained

red v\ith clotted gore : we alone remain in that

great city, we and the ghosts that fiercely hiss about

our rooftops. I, too, in the inner courtyard of my

house build high a flaming pile and cast thereon my

father's sceptre and arms and well-known royal

25

STATIUS

ac prope macsta rogum confusis ignibus adsto
ense cruentato, fraudenique et inania busta
plango metu, si forte premant, cassumque parent!
omen et hac dubios Icti precor ire timores.
his niihi pro nieritis, ut falsi criminis astu 320

parta fides, regna^ et solio considere patris —
supplicium ! — datur. anne illis obsessa negarem ?
accessi, saepe ante decs testata fidemque
immeritasque manus ; subeo — pro dira potestas ! —
exsangue imperium et maestam sine culmine Lemnon.
iam magis atque magis vigiles dolor angere sensus,
et gemitus clari, et paulatim invisa Polyxo, 327

iam meminisse nefas, iam ponere manibus aras
concessum et multum cineres iurare sepultos.
sic ubi ductorem trepidae stabulique maritum, 330
quem penes et saltus et adultae gloria gentis,
Massylo frangi stupuere sub hoste iuvencae,
it truncum sine honore pecus, regemque peremptuni
ipse ager, ipsi amnes et muta armenta queruntur,

Ecce autem aerata dispellens aequora prora 335
Pelias intacti late subit hospita ponti
pinus ; agunt Minyae, geminus fragor ardua canet
per latera, abruptam credas radicibus ire
Ortygiam aut fraetum pelago decurrere montem.
ast ubi suspensis siluerunt aequora tonsis, 340

mitior et senibus cygnis et pectine Phoebi

^ regna P : regno a;.

« She weeps from fear lest they suspect the fraud, and
prays that it may not be an evil omen to her father, and that
she may escape death.

'' i.e., a lion, often called Massylian, i.e., African.

^26

THEBAID, V. 316-341

raiment, and sadly do I stand by the blazing welter
of the pyre with blood-stained sword, and lament
the feigned deed and empty funeral in fear, should
they perehanee accuse me, and pray that the omen
may be void of harm towards my sire and that so
my doubting fears of death may come to nought."
For these deserts — since the ruse of my pretended
crime wins credence — the throne and kingdom of my
father are given me — punishment indeed I Was I
to deny their urgent pressure ? I submitted, having
oft called heaven to ■v^^itness my innocence and to
give protection ; I succeed — ah I ghastly sovereignty
— to power's pale image and to a Lemnos sad without
its chief. And now ever more and more do they
writhe in wakeful anguish, now openly lament, and
little by little grow to hate Polyxo ; now is it
permitted to remember the crime, and to set altars
to the dead and adjure with many prayers their
buried ashes. Even so when the frightened heifers
behold in horror their leader and sire of the stall,
to whom belonged the pastures and the glory of the
grown herd, lying mangled beneath the Massylian
foe,* leaderless and dejected goes the herd, and the
ver}' fields and rivers with the mute cattle mourn
the monarch slain.

'• But lo ! dividing the waters with brazen prow
the Pelian pinewood bark draws nigh, stranger to
that wide unadventured sea : the Minyae are her
crew ; the twofold splashing wave runs white along
her towering sides : one would think Ortygia moved
uprooted or a sundered mountain sailed upon the
deep. But when the oars stayed poised in air and
the waters fell silent, there came from the vessel's
midst a voice sweeter than dying swans or quill of

27

STATIUS

vox media de puppe venit, maria ipsa carinae
accedunt. post nosse datum est : Oeagrius illic
acclinis malo mediis intersonat Orpheus
remigiis tantosque iubet nescire labores. 345

illis in Scytliicum Borean iter oraque primi
Cyaneis artata maris, nos Thracia visu
bella ratae vario tecta incursare tumultu,
densarum pecudum aut fugientum more volucrum.
heu ubi nunc furiae ? portus amplexaque litus 350
moenia, qua longe pelago despectus aperto,
scandimus et celsas turres ; hue saxa sudesque
armaque maesta virum atque infectos caedibus enses
subvectant trepidae ; quin et squalentia texta
thoracum et voltu galeas intrare soluto 355

non pudet ; audaces rubuit mirata catervas
Pallas, et averso risit Gradivus in Haemo.
tunc primum ex animis praeceps amentia cessit,
nee ratis ilia salo, sed divum sera per aequor
iustitia et poenae scelerum adventare videntur. 360
iamque aberant terris, quantum Cortynia currunt
spicula, caeruleo gravidam cum luppiter imbri
ipsa super nubem ratis arm amenta Pelasgae
sistit agens ; inde horror aquis, et raptus ab omni
sole dies miscet tenebras, quis protinus unda 30.1

concolor ; obnixi lacerant cava nubila venti
diripiuntque fretum, nigris redit umida tellus
verticibus, totumque notis certantibus^ aequor
pendet et arquato iamiam prope sidera dorso
frangitur, incertae nee iam prior impetus alno, 370

^ certantibus P : portantibus w, v. i. 293.

" Cretan, i.e., arrows, for which Crete was famous.

^ This phrase can be explained by inversion, " all the
sunlight taken from the day," or by translating " dies " as
" light " (c/. 421), with hypallage of " omni."

28

37#
THEBAID, V. 342-270

Phoebus, and the seas themselves drew nigh the
ship. Thereafter did we learn 'twas Orpheus, son
of Oeagrus, who leaning against the mast sang thus
amid the rowers and bade them know such toils no
more. Towards Scythian Boreas were they voyaging
and the mouth of the unattempted sea that the
Cyanean rocks hold fast. We at the sight of them
deemed them Thracian foes, and ran to our homes
in wild confusion like crowding cattle or fluttering
birds. Alas ! where now is our frenzied rage .'
We man the harbour and the shore-embracing
walls, which give a far \iew over the open sea, and
the lofty towers ; hither in excited haste they bring
stones and stakes and the arms that mourn their lords,
and swords stained with slaughter ; nay, it shames
them not to don stiff woven corselets and to fit
helms about their wanton faces ; Pallas blushed and
marvelled at their bold array, and Gradivus laughed
on the far slopes of Haemus. Then first did our
headlong madness leave our minds, nor seemed it a
mere ship on the salt sea, but the gods' late-coming
justice and vengeance for our crimes that drew nigh
o'er the deep. And already were they distant from
the land the range of a Gortynian" shaft, when
Jupiter brought a cloud laden with dark rain and
set it over the very^ rigging of the Pelasgian ship ;
then the waters shudder, all its light is stolen from
the sun ^ and the gloom thickens, and the wave
straightway takes the colour of the gloom ; warring
winds tear the hollow clouds and rend the deep,
the wet sand surges up in the black eddies, and the
whole sea hangs poised between the conflict of the
winds, and with arching ridge now all but touching
the stars falls shattered ; nor has the bewildered

29

STATIUS

sed labat exstantem rostris modo gurgite in imo,
nunc caelo Tritona ferens. nee roboi-a prosunt
semideiim heroum, puppemque insana flagellat
arbor et instabili procumbens pondere eurvas
raptat aquas, remique cadunt in pectus inanes. 375
nos quoque per rupes murorumque aggere ab omni,
dum labor ille wis fretaque indignantur et austros,
desuper invalidis fluitantia tela lacertis — -
quid non ausa manus ? — Telamona et Pelea contra
spargimus, et nostro petitur Tirynthius arcu. 380

illi — quippe simul bello pelagoque laborant —
pai-s clipeis munire ratem, pars aequora fundo
egerere ; asfc alii pugnant, sed inertia motu
corpora, suspensaeque carent conamine vires,
instamus iactu telorum, et ferrea nimbis 385

certat hiemps, vastaeque sudes fractique molares
spiculaque et multa crinitum missile flamma
nunc pelago, nunc puppe cadunt, dat operta fragorem
pinus, et abiunctis regemunt tabulata cavernis.
talis Hyperborea viridis nive verberat agros 390

luppiter ; obruitur campis genus omne ferarum,
deprensaeque cadunt volucres, et messis amaro
strata gelu, fragor inde iugis, inde amnibus irae.
ut vero elisit nubes love tortus ab alto
ignis et ingentes patuere in fulmine nautae, 395

deriguere animi, manibusque horrore remissis
arma aliena cadunt, rediit in pectora sexus.

" For this meaning of " flagello " cf. ill. 36, x. 169.
* i.e., so that they act as a sort of bulwark.

30

THEBAID, V. 371-397

vessel its former motion, but pitches to and fro, with
the Triton on its bows now projecting from the
waters' depths, now borne aloft in air. Nor aught
avails the might of the heroes half-divine, but the
demented mast makes the vessel rock and sway,"
and falling forward ^vith overbalancing weight smites
upon the arching waves, and the oars drop fruitlessly
on the rowers' chests. We, too, from rocks and
every walled rampart, while they thus toil and rage
against the seas and the southern blasts, with weak
arms shower down wavering missiles — what deed
did we not dare ? — on Telamon and Peleus, and
even on the Tirynthian we bend our bow. But
they, hard pressed both by storm and foe, fortify,
some of them, the ship with shields,'' others bale
water from the hold ; others fight, but the motion
makes their bodies helpless, and there is no force
behind their reehng blows. We hurl our darts more
fiercely, and the iron rain \ies -vsith the tempest, and
enormous stakes and fragments of millstones and
javehns and missiles trailing tresses of flame fall now
into the sea, now on the vessel : the decking of the
bark resounds and the beams groan as the gaping
holes are torn. Even so does Jupiter lash the green
fields ^^ith Hj'perborean snow ; beasts of all kinds
perish on the plains, and birds are overtaken and
fall dead, and the harvest is blasted with untimely
frost ; then is there thundering on the heights,
and fury in the rivers. But when from on high
Jove flung his brand with shock of cloud on cloud,
and the flash revealed the mariners' mighty forms,
our hearts were frozen fast, our arms dropped
shuddering and let fall the unnatural weapons, and
our true sex once more held sway. We behold the

31

STATIUS

cernimus Aeacidas murisque immane minantem
Ancaeum et longa pellentem cuspide rupes
Iphiton ; attonito manifestus in agmine supra est 400
Amphitryoniades puppemque alternus utrimque
ingravat et medias ardet descendere in undas.
at levis et miserae nondum mihi notus lason
transtra per et remos impressaque terga vironim
nunc magnum Oeniden, nunc ille hortatibus Idan 405
et Talaum et cana rorantem aspargine ponti
Tyndariden iterans gelidique in nube parentis
vela laborantem^ Calain subnectere malo
voce manuque rogat ; quatiunt impulsibus illi
nunc freta, nunc muros, sed nee spumantia cedunt 410
aequora, et incussae redeunt a turribus hastae.
ipse graves fluctus clavumque audire negantem
lassat agens Tiphys palletque et plurima mutat
imperia ac laevas dextrasque obtorquet in undas
proram navifragis avidam concurrere saxis, 415

donee ab extremae cuneo ratis Aesone natus
Palladios oleae, Mopsi gestamina, ramos
extulit et socium turba prohibente poposcit
foedera ; praecipites vocem involvere procellae.
tunc modus armorum, pariterque exhausta quierunt
flamina, confusoque dies respexit Olympo. 421

quinquaginta illi, trabibus de more revinctis,
eminus abrupto quatiunt nova litora saltu,
magnorum decora alta patrum, iam fronte sereni
noscendique habitUjpostquamtumor^iraquecessit 425

^ laborantem Pw : laboranti Bentley.
^ tumor Bentley : timor Pu.

" i.e.. Castor or Pollux. * i.e., Boreas.

" Apparently a reminiscence of Aen. vi. init.

32

THEBAID, V. 398-425

sons of Aeacus, and Ancaeus threatening mightily
our walls, and Iphitus with long spear warding off
the rocks ; clear to \'iew among the desperate band
the son of Amphitryon outtops them all, and
alternately on either hand weighs down the ship
and burns to leap into the midst of the waves. But
Jason — not yet did I know him to my cost — leaping
nimbly over benches and oars and treading the backs
of heroes, calls now on great Oenides, now on Idas
and Talaus, now on the son of Tyndareus" dripping
with the white spume of the sea, and Calais stri\ing
aloft in the clouds of his frosty sire ^ to fasten the
sails to the mast, and with voice and gesture again
and again encourages them. With vigorous strokes
they lash the sea and shake the walls, but none the
more do the foaming waters yield, and the flung
spears rebound from our towers. Tiphys himself
wearies by his labours the hea\y billows and the
tiller that will not hear him, and pale with anxiety
oft changes his commands, and turns right- and
leftward from the land the prow that would fain
dash itself to shipwreck on the rocks, until from the
vessel's tapering bows the son of Aeson holds forth
the ohve-branch of Pallas that Mopsus bore, and
though the tumult of his comrades would prevent
him, asks for peace ; his words were swept away
by the headlong gale. Then came there a truce to
arms, and the tempest hkewise sank to rest, and day
looked forth once more from the turbid heaven.
Then those fifty heroes, their vessels duly moored,"
as they leap from the sheer height shake the stranger
shores, tall comely sons of glorious sires, serene of
brow and known by their bearings, now that the
swelhng rage has left their countenances. Even so

VOL. II D 33

STATIUS

vultibus. arcana sic fama erumpere porta
caelicolas, si quando domos litusque rubentum
Aethiopum et mensas amor est intrare^ minores ;
dant Fluvii Montesque locum, turn Terra superbit
gressibus et paulum respirat caelifer Atlans. 430

Hie et ab adserto nuper Marathone superbum
Thesea et Ismarios, Aquilonia pignora, fratres,
utraque quis rutila stridebant tempora pinna,
cernimus, hie Phoebo non indignante priorem
Admetum et durae similem nihil Orphea Thracae, 435
tunc prolem Calydone satam generumque profundi
Nereos. ambiguo visus errore lacessunt
Oebalidae gemini ; chlamys huic, chlamys ardet et illi,
ambo hastile gerunt, umeros exsertus uterque,
nudus uterque genas, simili coma fulgurat astro. 440
audet iter magnique sequens vestigia mutat
Herculis et tarda quamvis se mole ferentem
vix cursu tener aequat Hylas Lernaeaque tollens
arma sub ingenti gaudet sudare pharetra.

Ergo iterum Venus et tacitis corda aspera flammis
Lemniadum pertemptat Amor, tunc regia luno 446
arma habitusque virum pulchraeque insignia gentis
mentibus insinuat, certatimque ordine cunctae
hospitibus patuere fores ; tunc primus in aris
ignis, et infandis venere oblivia curis ; 450

tunc epulae felixque sopor noctesque quietae,

^ intrare Pw : iterare Schroder, cf. Lactantius frequenter
epulatur Jupiter . . . frequenter eos revisunt.

" Homer describes the gods as visiting the Aethiopians
and banqueting with them (//. i. 423).

* One of the exploits of Tlieseus was to slay a wild bull
that ravaged the fields of Marathon.

' i.e., Thracian, Northern, sons of the north wind.

34

THEBAID, V. 426^51

the denizens of heaven are said to burst forth from
their mystic portals, when they desire to lasit the
homes and the coast and the lesser banquet of the
red Aethiopians " : rivers and mountains yield them
passage, Earth exults beneath their footsteps and
Atlas knows a brief respite from the burden of the
sky.

" Here we behold Theseus, lately come in triumph
from setting Marathon free,* and the Ismarian "
brethren, pledges of the North Wind's love, with
red >A-ing-feathers whirring loud on either temple ;
here, too, Admetus, whom Phoebus was content to
serve, and Orpheus, in nought resembling barbarous
Thrace ; then Calydon's offspring and the son-in-law
of watery Nereus. The twin Oebalidae ^ bewilder
our vision ^vith puzzling error : each wears a bright
red mantle and wields a spear, bare are the shoulders
of each and their faces yet unbearded, their locks
are aglow with the same starry radiance. Young
Hylas bravely marching follows great Hercules
stride for stride, scarce equalling his pace, slow-
though he bear his mighty bulk, and rejoices to
carry the Lemaean arms and to sweat beneath the
huge quiver.

"So once more \'enus and Love try with their
secret fires the fierce hearts of the Lemnian women.
Then royal Juno instils into their minds the image
of the heroes' arms and raiment, and their signs of
noble race, and all fling open their doors in emulous
welcome to the strangers. Then first were fires lit
on the altars, and unspeakable cares were forgotten,
then came feasting and happy sleep and tranquil

'' Castor and Pollux ; Oebalus was their grandfather, a
king of Sparta.

35

STATIUS

nee superum sine mente, reor, placuere fatentes.
forsitan et nostrae fatum excusabile culpae
noscere cura, duces, cineres furiasque meorum
testor : ut externas non sponte aut crimine taedas 455
attigerim — scit cura deum — etsi blandus lason
virginibus dare vincla novis : sua iura cruentum
Phasin habent ; alios, Colchi, generatis amores.
iamque exuta gelu tepuerunt sidera longis
solibus, et velox in terga revolvitur annus. 460

iam nova progenies partusque in vota soluti,
et non speratis clamatur Lemnos alumnis.
nee non ipsa tamen thalami monimenta coacti
enitor geminos, duroque sub hospite mater
nomen avi renovo ; nee quae fortuna relictis 465

nosse datur, iam plena quater quinquennia pergunt,
si modo fata sinunt aluitque rogata Lycaste.

Detumuere animi- maris, et clementior Auster
vela vocat : ratis ipsa moram portusque quietos
odit et adversi^ tendit retinacula saxi. 470

inde fugam Minyae, sociosque appellat lason
efFerus, o utinam iam tunc mea litora rectis
praetervectus aquis, cui non sua pignora cordi,
non promissa fides ; certe stat fama remotis
gentibus : aequorei redierunt vellera Phrixi. 475

ut stata lux pelago venturumque aethera sensit
Tiphys et occidui rubuere cubilia Phoebi,

^ adversi P : adsueti w : asserti D.
36

THEBAID, V. 452-477

nights, nor without heaven's will, I ween, did they
find favour, when they confessed their crime. My
fault, too, my fated pardonable fault, perchance ye
would hear, O chieftains : by the ashes and avenging
furies of my people I swear, innocent and unwilling
did I hght the torch of alien wedlock — as Heaven's
Providence doth know — though Jason be wily to
ensnare young maidens' hearts : laws of its own
bind blood-stained Phasis, and you, ye Colchians,
breed far different passions. And now the skies
have broken through the bonds of frost and grow
warm in the long sunlit days, and the swift year
has wheeled round to the opposite pole. A new-
progeny is brought to birth in answer to our prayers,
and Lemnos is filled with the cries of babes un-
hoped-for. I myself also bear twin sons, memorial
of a ra\ished couch, and, made a mother by my
rough guest, renew in the babe his grandsire's name ;
nor may I know what fortune hath befallen since I
left them, for now full twenty years are past, if the
fates but suffer them to live and Lycaste reared
them as I prayed her.

"The boisterous seas fell tranquil and a milder
southern breeze invites the sails : the ship herself,
hating to tarry in the quiet haven, strains with her
hawsers at the resisting rock. Then would the
Minyae fain begone, and cruel Jason summons his
comrades — would he had ere that sailed past my
shores, who recked not of his own children, nor of
his sworn word ; truly his fame is known in distant
lands : the fleece of seafaring Phrixus hath returned.
When the destined sun had sunk beneath the sea
and Tiphys felt the coming breeze and Phoebus'
western couch blushed red, once more alas ! there

37

STATIUS

heu iterum gemitus, iterumque novissima nox est.

vix reserata dies, et iam rate celsus lason

ire iubet, primoque ferit dux verbere pontum. 480

illos e scopulis et sunimo vertice montis

spumea porrecti dirimentes terga profundi

prosequimur visu, donee lassavit euntes

lux oculos longumque polo contexere visa est

aequor et extremi pressit freta margine caeli. 485

Fama subit portus, vectum trans alta Thoanta
fraterna regnare Chic, mihi crimina nulla,
et vacuos arsisse rogos ; freniit impia plebes,
sontibus accensae stimulis facinusque reposcunt.
quin etiam occultae vulgo increbrescere voces : 490
" solane fida suis, nos autem in funera laetae^ ?
non deus haec fatumque ? quid imperat urbe ne-

fanda ? "
talibus exanimis dictis — et triste propinquat
supplicium, nee regna iuvant — vaga litora furtim
incomitata sequor funestaque moenia linquo, 495

qua fuga nota patris ; sed non iterum obvius Euhan,
nam me praedonum manus hue adpulsa tacentem^
abripit et vestras famulam transmittit in oras."

Talia Lernaeis iterat dum regibus exsul
Lemnias et longa solatur damna querella, 500

immemor absentis — ^sic di suasistis ! — alumni,
ille graves oculos languentiaque ora comanti

^ laetae Pw : Garrod conj. nostra autem in funera laeta est ?
" tacentem Pw : iacentem latentem edd. : licentum Oarrod.

" "euntes" expresses the "travelling" of the sight as it
follows the ships out to sea.

" i.e., our deed was ordained by heaven and fate ; in dis-
obeying them she is " nefanda."

88

THEBAID, V. 478-502

was lamentation, once more the last night of all.
Scarce is the day begun, and already Jason high
upon the poop gives the word for saiUng, and strikes
as chieftain the first oar-stroke on the sea. From
rocks and mountain height we follow them with our
gaze as they cleave the foamy space of outspread
ocean, until the hght wearied our roaming ** \'ision
and seemed to interweave the distant waters with
the sky, and made the sea one with heaven's
extremest marge.

"A rumour goes about the harbour that Thoas has
been carried o'er the deep and is reigning in his
brother's isle of Chios, that I am innocent and the
funeral pyre a mockery ; the impious mob clamours
loud, maddened by the stings of guilt, and demands
the crime I owe them. Moreover, secret murmurings
arise and increase among the folk : ' Is she alone
faithful to her kindred, while we rejoiced to slay ?
Did not heaven and fate ordain the deed ? why then
bears she rule in the city, the accursed one ? ' ^
Aghast at such words — for a cruel retribution draws
nigh, nor does queenly pomp delight me — I wander
alone in secret on the winding shore and leave the
deadly walls by the road of my father's flight, well
known to me ; but not a second time did Euhan
meet me, for a band of pirates putting in to shore
carried me speechless away and brought me to your
land a slave."

While thus the Lenmian exile recounts her tale to
the Lemaean princes and by a long plaint consoles
her loss, forgetful — so ye gods constrained her ! —
of her absent charge,*^ he, with hea\-y eyes and

' Le., Opheltes, the infant, cf. iv. 742, 787,

39

STATIUS

mergit humo, fessusque diu puerilibus actis
labitur in somnos, prensa manus haeret in herba.

Interea campis, nemoris sacer horror Achaei, 505
terrigena exoritur serpens, tractuque soluto
immanem sese vehit ac post terga relinquit.
livida fax oculis, tumidi stat in ore veneni
spuma virens, ter lingua vibrat, terna agmina adunci
dentis, et auratae crudelis gloria fronti 510

prominet. Inachii^ sanctum dixere Tonanti
agrieolae, cui cura loci et silvestribus aris
pauper honos ; nunc ille dei circumdare templa
orbe vago labens, miserae nunc robora silvae
atterit et vastas tenuat complexibus ornos ; 515

saepe super fluvios geminae iacet aggere ripae
continuus, squamisque incisus adaestuat amnis.
sed nunc, Ogygii iussis quando omnis anhelat
terra dei trepidaeque latent in pulvere Nymphae,
saevior anfractu laterum sinuosa retorquens 520

terga solo siccique nocens furit igne veneni.
stagna per arentesque lacus fontesque repressos
volvitur et vacuis fluviorum in vallibus errat,
incensusque siti^ liquiduni nunc aera lambit
ore supinato, nunc arva gementia radens 525

pronus adhaeret humo, si quid viridantia sudent
gramina ; percussae calidis adflatibus herbae,
qua tulit ora, cadunt, moriturque ad sibila campus :
quantus ab Arctois discriminat aethera plaustris
Anguis et usque Notos alienumque exit in orbem ; 530

^ Inachii Mueller : Inachio Poj.
^ incensusque siti Schroder : incertusque sui Poj.

" i.e., Bacchus, patron deity of Thebes.

* I have adopted Schrader's emendation ; " incertusque
sui " seems hardly to justify Klotz's explanation " mentis
non compos," i.e., " in a fury."

40

THEBAID, V. 503-530

drooping head and wearied by his long childish play,
sinks to slumber, deep buried in the luxuriant earth,
while one hand holds the grass tight-clutched.

Meanwhile an earth-born serpent, the accursed
terror of the Achaean grove, arises on the mead, and
loosely dragging his huge bulk now bears it forward,
now leaves it behind him. A li\id gleam is in his
eyes, the green spume of foaming poison in his fangs,
and a threefold quivering tongue, with three rows of
hooked teeth, and a cruel blazonry rises high upon
his gilded forehead. The Inachian countrymen held
him sacred to the Thunderer, who has the guardian-
ship of the place and the scant worship of the wood-
land altars ; and now he glides with trailing coils
about the shrines, now grinds the hapless forest oaks
and crushes huge ash-trees in his embrace ; oft lies
he in continuous length from bank to bank across the
streams, and the river sundered by his scales swells
high. But fiercer now, when all the land is panting
at the command of the Ogygian god " and the Nymphs
are hurrying to the hiding of their dusty beds, he
twists his tortuous writhing frame upon the ground,
and the fire of his parched venom fills him with a
baneful rage. Over pools and arid lakes and stifled
springs he winds his way, and wanders in the riverless
valleys, and consumed by burning thirst * now flings
back his head and laps the liquid air, now brushing
o'er the groaning fields cleaves downward to the
earth, should there be any sap or moisture in the
grasses ; but the herbage falls stricken by his hot
breath, whereso'er he turns his head, and the mead
shrivels at the hissing of his jaws ; vast is he as the
Snake that divides the pole from the Northern Wain
and passes even unto the Southern winds and an

41

STATIUS

quantus et ille sacri spiris intorta movebat
cornua Parnassi, donee tibi, Delie, fixus
vexit harundineam centeno volnere silvam.

Quis tibi, parve, deus tarn magni pondera fati
sorte dedit ? tune hoe vix prima ad limina vitae 535
lioste iaees ? an ut inde sacer per saeeula Grais
gentibus et tanto dignus morerere sepulcro ?
oeeidis extremae destrietiis verbere eaudae
ignaro serpente puer, fugit ilicet artus
somnus, et in solam patuerunt lumina mortem. 540
cum tamen attonito moriens vagitus in auras
exeidit et ruptis immutuit ore querellis,
qualia non totas peragunt insomnia voces,
audiit Hypsipyle, facilemque negantia eursum
exanimis genua aegra rapit ; iam certa malorum 545
mentis ab augurio sparsoque per omnia visu
lustrat humum quaerens et nota vocabula parvo
nequiquam ingeminans : nusquam ille, et prata re-

centes
amisere notas. viridi piger aeeubat hostis
coUectus gyro spatiosaque iugera complet, 550

sic etiam obliqua cervicem expostus in alvo.
horruit infelix visu longoque profundum
ineendit elamore nemus ; nee territus ille,
sed iaeet. Argolicas ululatus flebilis aures
impulit ; extemplo monitu ducis advolat ardens 555
Areas eques causamque refert. tunc squamea demum
torvus ad armorum radios fremitumque virorum
eolla movet : rapit ingenti conamine saxum,

" He means the snake (Draco) that winds between the
two Bears {cf. Virg. G. i. 244), but his expression is difficult ;
nor does Draco go anywhere near the southern hemisjiherc-

42

I

THEBAID, V. 531-558

alien sky," or as he that shook the horns of sacred
Parnassus, twining his coils among them, until
pierced by a hundred wounds he bore, O Delian, a
forest of thy arrows.*

What god appointed for thee, little one, the
burden of so dire a fate ? Scarce on thy life's earliest
tlireshold, art thou slain by such a foe ? Was it that
thus thou mightest be sacred for ever to the peoples
of Greece and dying merit so glorious a burial ?
Thou diest, O babe, struck by the end of the un-
witting serpent's tail, and straightway the sleep left
thy limbs and thine eyes opened but to death alone.
But when thy frightened dying wail rose upon the
air and the broken cry fell silent on thy lips, like the
half-finished accents of a dream, Hypsipyle heard it
and sped with faint and failing limbs and stumbling
gait ; her mind forebodes sure disaster, and with
gaze turned to every quarter she scans the ground
in search, vainly repeating words the babe would
know ; but he is nowhere, and the recent tracks are
vanished from the meadows. Gathered in a green
circle lies the sluggish foe and fills many an acre
round, so lies he with his head slantwise on his bellv.
Struck with horror at the sight the unhappy woman
roused the forest's depths with shriek on shriek; yet
still he lies unmoved. Her sorrowful wail reached
the Argives' ears : forthwith the Arcadian knight "
at his chief's word flies thither in eager haste and
reports the cause. Then at last, at the glint of
armour and the shouting of the men he rears his
scaly neck in wTath : with a vast effort tall Hippo-

though Statius may have been thinking of either Hydra or

Serpens, which do, and confused them somehow with Draco.

" Python, slain by Apollo at Delphi. ' Parthenopaeus.

43

STATIUS

quo discretus ager, vacuasque impellit in auras
arduus Hippomedon, quo turbine bellica quondam 560
librati saliunt portarum in claustra molares.
cassa ducis virtus : iam mollia colla refusus
in tergum serpens venientem evaserat'^ ictum.
dat sonitum tellus, nemorumque per avia densi
dissultant nexus. " at non mea vulnera " clamat 565
et trabe fraxinea Capaneus subit obvius " umquam
effugies, seu tu pavidi ferus incola luci,
sive deis, utinamque deis, concessa voluptas,
non, si consertum super haec mihi membra Giganta
subveheres." volat hasta tremens et hiantia monstri
ora subit linguaeque seeat fera vincla trisulcae, 571
perque iubas stantes capitisque insigne corusci
emicat, et nigri sanie perfusa cerebri
figitur alta^ solo, longus vix tota peregit^
membra dolor, rapido celer ille volumine telum 575
circuit avulsumque ferens in opaca refugit
templa dei ; hie magno tellurem pondere mensus
implorantem animam dominis adsibilat aris.
ilium et cognatae stagna indignantia Lernae,
floribus et vernis adsuetae spargere Nymphae, 580
et Nemees reptatus ager, lucosque per omnis
silvicolae fracta gemuistis harundine, Fauni.
ipse etiam e summa iam tela poposcerat aethra
luppiter, et dudum nimbique hiemesque coibant,

^ evaserat Barth {from a ifs.), Baehrens : exhauserat Pu.
^ alta w : hasta P : acta Heinsius.
' peregit Pw : peredit Lachmann.

" Statius loses no opportunity of emphasizing Capaneus's
hostlHtj' to the gods.

* The Giants were said to have snakes for legs, cf. Ov. F.
44

THEBAID, V. 559-684

medon seizes a stone, the boundary mark of a field,
and hurls it through the empty air ; ^^ith such a
whirlwind do the poised boulders fly forth against the
barred gates in time of war. \'ain was the chief-
tain's might, in a moment had the snake bent back
his supple neck and foiled the coming blow. The
earth re-echoes and in the pathless woods the close-
knit boughs are rent and torn. " But never shalt
thou escape my stroke," cries Capaneus, and makes
for him with an ashen spear, "whether thou be the
savage inmate of the trembling grove, or a delight
granted to the gods — ay, would it were to the
gods ! " — never even if thou broughtest a Giant to
battle with me upon those limbs.^ " The quiver-
ing spear flies, and enters the monster's gaping
mouth and cleaves the rough fastenings of the triple
tongue, then through the upright crest and the
adornment of his darting head it issues forth, and
fouled with the brain's black gore sinks deep into
the soil. Scarce has the pain run the length of his
whole frame, with lightning speed he twines his coils
around the weapon, and tears it out and carries it to
his lair in the dark temple of the god ; there measur-
ing his mighty bulk along the ground he gasps and
hisses out his life at his patron's shrine. Him did
the sorrowing marsh of kindred Lerna mourn, and
the N}'mphs who were wont to strew him with vernal
flowers, and Nemea's fields whereon he crawled ;
ye too, ye woodland Fauns, bewailed him in every
grove with broken reeds. Jupiter himself had already
called for his weapons from the height of air, and
long had clouds and storms been gathering, had not

V. 37 " mille manus illis dedit et pro cruribus angues." Or
•' super haec membra " may be " over these (slain) limbs."

45

STATIUS

ni minor ira deo gravioraque tela mereri 585

servatus Capaneus ; moti tamen aura cucurrit
fulminis et summas libavit vertice cristas.

lamque pererratis infelix Lemnia campis,
liber ut angue locus, modico super aggere longe
pallida sanguineis infectas roribus herbas 590

prospicit. hue magno cursum rapit efFera luctu
agnoscitque nefas, terraeque inlisa nocenti
fulminis in morem non verba in funere primo,
non lacrimas habet : ingeminat misera oscula tantum
incumbens animaeque fugam per membra tepentem
quaerit hians. non ora loco, non pectora restant, 596
rapta cutis, tenuia ossa patent nexusque madentes
sanguinis imbre novi, totumque in vulnere corpus,
ac velut aligerae sedem fetusque parentis
cum piger umbrosa populatus in ilice serpens, 600
ilia redit querulaeque domus mirata quietem
iam stupet^ impendens advectosque horrida maesto
excutit ore cibos, cum solus in arbore paret
sanguis et errantes per capta cubilia plumae.

Ut laceros artus gremio miseranda recepit 605

intexitque comis, tandem laxata dolori^
vox invenit iter, gemitusque in verba soluti :
" o mihi desertae natorum dulcis imago,
Archemore, o rerum et patriae solamen ademptae
servitiique decus, qui te, mea gaudia, sontes 610

exstinxere dei, modo quern digressa reliqui
lascivum et prono vexantem gramina cursu ?
heu ubi siderei vultus ? ubi verba ligatis

^ iam stupet P : stat super w.
^ dolori Bentley, Heinsius : dolore Pw.
46

THEBAID, V. 585-613

the god allayed his wrath and Capaneus been pre-
served to merit a direr punishment ; yet the wind
of the stirred thunderbolt sped and swayed the
summit of his crested helm.

And now the unhappy Lemnian, wandering o'er
the fields when the place was rid of the serpent,
grows pale to behold on a low mound afar the
herbage stained with streams of blood. Thither
frantic in her grief she hastens, and recognizing the
horror falls as though lightning-struck on the offend-
ing earth, nor in the first shock of ruin can find
speech or tears to shed ; she only bends and showers
despairing kisses, and breathlessly searches the yet
warm limbs for traces of the vanished life. Nor face
nor breast remain, the skin is torn away and the
frail bones are exposed to view, and the sinews are
drenched in fresh streams of blood : the whole body
is one wound. Even as when in a shady ilex-tree
a lazy serpent has ravaged the home and brood of a
mother bird, she, returning, marvels at the quiet of
her clamorous abode, and hovers aghast, and in wild
dismay drops from her mouth the food she brings,
for there is nought but blood on the tree and feathers
shed about the plundered nest.

When, poor woman, she had gathered the mangled
limbs to her bosom and covered them in her tresses,
at length her voice released gave passage to her grief
and her moans melted into words : " Archemorus,
sweet image of my babes in my lonely plight, solace
of my woes and exile, and pride of my thraldom,
what guilty gods have slain thee, O my joy, whom,
when I lately parted from thee, I left froUcking and
crushing the grasses in thy crawl ? Alas, where is
that star-bright face } Where are thy half-formed

4.7

STATIUS

imperfecta sonis risusque et murmura soli
intellecta mihi ? quotiens tibi Lemnon et Argo^ 615
sueta loqui et longa somnum suadere querella !
sic equidem luctus solabar et ubera parvo
iam materna dabam, cui nunc venit inritus orbae
lactis et infelix in vulnera liquitur imber.
nosco deos : o dura mei praesagia somni 620

nocturnique metus, et numquam impune per umbras
attonitae mihi visa Venus ! quos arguo divos ?
ipsa ego te — quid enim timeam moritura fateri ? —
exposui fatis. quae mentem insania traxit ?
tantane me tantae tenuere oblivia curae ? 625

dum patrios casus famaeque exorsa retracto
ambitiosa meae — pietas haec magna fidesque ! —
exsolvi tibi, Lemne, nefas ; ubi letifer anguis,
ferte, duces, meriti si qua est mihi gratia duri,
si quis honos dictis, aut vos exstinguite ferro, 630
ne tristes dominos orbamque inimica revisam
Eurydicen, quamquam baud ilU mea cura dolendo
cesserit. hocne ferens onus inlaetabile matris
transfundam gremio ? quae me prius ima sub umbras
mergat humus ? " simul haec terraque et sanguine
voltum 635

sordida magnorum circa vestigia regum
vertitur, et tacite maerentibus imputat undas.

Et iam sacrifici subitus per tecta Lycurgi
nuntius implerat lacrimis ipsumque domumque,
ipsum adventantem Persei vertice sancto 640

^ Argo Gronovius : Argos Pw.

" Eurydice, wife of Lycurgus, was the mother of the babe
Opheltes, whom Hypsipyle had been nursing.

* i.e., blames them for the disaster, of which the stream
was the cause, by separating her from the babe.

48

THEBAID, V. 614-640

words and tongue-tied utterance, those smiles, and
mutterings that I alone could understand ? How often
used I to talk to thee of Lemnos and the Argo, and
with my long sad tale soothe thee to sleeping ! For
so indeed did I console my griefs, and gave the babe
a mother's breasts, where now in my bereavement
the milk flows in vain and falls in barren drops upon
thy wounds. 'Tis the gods' work, I see : O cruel
presage of my dreams and nightly terrors ! ah !
Venus, who never appeared in the darkness to my
startled vision but ill befell ! But why do I blame
the gods ? Myself I exposed thee to thy fate — for
why should I fear to confess, so soon to die ? What
madness carried me away ? Could I so utterly forget
a charge so dear ? While I recount the fortunes of
my country and the boastful prelude of my own
renown — what true devotion, what loyalty ! — I have
paid thee, Lemnos, the crime I owed. Take me
then, ye princes, to the deadly snake, if ye have any
gratitude for the service that has cost so dear, or
any respect to my words ; or slay me yourselves
with the sword, lest I see again my sorrowing masters
and bereaved Eurydice,now made my foe" — although
my grief comes not short of hers. Am I to carry
this hapless burden and cast it on a mother's lap ?
nay, what earth may sooner engulf me in its deepest
shades ? " Thereupon, her face befouled with dust
and gore, she turns to follow the mighty chieftains,
and secretly as they grieve lays the waters to their
charge.*

And now the news, sweeping sudden through the
palace of devout Lycurgus, had brought full measure
of tears to himself and all his house— himself, as he
drew nigh from the sacred summit of Perseus' moun-

voL. II E 49

STATIUS

montis, ubi averse dederat prosecta Tonanti,
et caput iratis rediens quassabat ab extis.
hie sese Argolicis immunem servat ab armis
baud animi vaeuus, sed templa araeque tenebant.
needum etiam responsa deum monitusque vetusti 645
exciderant voxque ex adytis accepta profundis :
" prima, Lycurge, dabis Dircaeo funera bello."
id cavet, et maestus vicini pulvere Martis
angitur ad lituos periturisque invidet armis.

Ecce — fides superum ! — laceras comitata Thoantis
advehit exsequias, contra subit obvia mater, 651

femineos coetus plangentiaque agmina ducens.
at non magnanimo pietas ignava Lycurgo :
fortior ille malis, laerimasque insana resorbet
ira patris, longo rapit arva morantia passu 655

vociferans : " ilia autem ubinam, cui parva cruoris
laetave damna mei ? vivitne ? impellite raptam,
ferte citi comites ; faxo omnis fabula Lemni
et pater et tumidae generis mendacia sacri
exciderint." ibat letumque inferre parabat 660

ense furens rapto ; venienti Oeneius heros
impiger obiecta proturbat pectora parma,
ac simul infrendens : " siste hunc, vesane, furor em,
quisquis es ! " et pariter Capaneus acerque reducto
adfuit Hippomedon rectoque Erymanthius ense, 665
ac iuvenem multo praestringunt lumine ; at inde

° Cf. iii. 460 ; apparently the same mountain is meant.

"> "prosecta," lit. that which is cut out for ofi'ering, i.e.,
the entrails.

" Tydeus. " Erymanthian," below = Arcadian, i.e., Par-
thenopaeus.
50

THEBAID, V. 641-666

tain,** where he had offered sacrifice * to the angry
Thunderer, and was shaking his head as he returned
from the ill-omened entrails. Here he abides with-
out share in the Argolic war, not lacking in courage,
but the temples and the altars kept him back ; nor
had the gods' response and ancient warning yet
faded from his mind, nor the words received from the
innermost shrine : " In the Dircaean war, Lycurgus,
the first death shall be thine to give." Of that he is
afraid, and, saddened by the dust of neighbouring
armies, he is tortured at the trumpets' sound, and
envies the doomed hosts.

But lo ! — so the gods keep faith I — the daughter
of Thoas accompanies the mangled infant's funeral
train, and his mother comes to meet her, leading a
band of women and troops of mourners. But not
sluggish was the devotion of great-souled Lycurgus :
grief emboldened him, the father's mad rage thrust
back the tears, and with long strides he covers the
fields that stay his wTath, and cries aloud : " Where
now is she, who recks little or is glad of the shedding
of my blood ? Lives she ? Then seize her, comrades,
and bring her speedily ! I will make her insolence
forget all her tale of Lemnos and her father and her
lies about a race di\ine ! " He advanced and pre-
pared to deal the death-blow, his sword dra\vn in
rage ; but as he came, the Oeneian hero," quick to
act, thrust his shield against his breast and barred
the way, with stem rebuke : " Abate thy fury,
madman, whoe'er thou art ! " and Capaneus likewise
and brave Hippomedon, with sword drawn back, and
the Erymanthian, with levelled blade, were there to
succour, and the prince is dazzled by their flashing
swords : but on the other side the rustic bands

51

STATIUS

agrestum pro rege manus. quos inter Adrastus
mitius et sociae veritus commercia vittae^
Amphiaraus ait : " ne, quaeso ! absistite ferro,
unus avum sanguis, neve indulgete furori, 670

tuque prior." sed non sedato pectore Tydeus
subicit : " anne dueem servatricemque cohortis
Inachiae ingratis coram tot milibus ausus^
mactare in tumulos — quanti pro funeris ultor !—
cui regnum genitorque Thoas et lucidus Euhan 675
stirpis avus ? timidone parum, quod gentibus actis
undique in arma tuis inter rapida agmina pacem
solus habes ? habeasque, et te victoria Graium
inveniat tumulis etiamnum haec fata gementem."

Dixerat, et tandem cunctante modestior ira 680
ille refert : " equidem non vos ad moenia Thebes
rebar, at^ hostiles hue advenisse catervas.
pergite in exscidium, socii si tanta voluptas
sanguinis, imbuite arma domi, atque haec inrita

dudum
templa lovis — quid enim haud hcitum ? — ferat impius
ignis, 685

si vilem, tanti premerent cum pectora luctus,
in famulam ius esse ratus dominoque ducique.
sed videt haec, videt ille deum regnator, et ausis
sera quidem, manet ira tamen." sic fatus, et arces
respicit. atque illic alio certamine belli 690

tecta fremunt ; volucres equitum praeverterat alas

1 vittae BQ2 : vitae PDNQ.

• ausus P : audes w : ausis Kohlmann.

» at Barth : et Pw.

■ Lycurgus had just been sacrificing, and would be
wearing the fillets ; Amphiaraus as a soothsayer wore them
habitually.

52

THEBAID, V. 667-691

protect their king. Between them Adrastus in
gentler mood and Amphiaraus, fearing the strife of
kindred fillets," cry : " Not so, I pray you, unhand
the sword I Our sires are of one blood, give not vent
to rage ! Thou first disarm I " But Tydeus, his spirit
not assuaged, rejoins : " Daredst thou then slay
upon the grave — and in revenge for what a death ! — *
and before so many thankless thousands the guide
and preserver of the Inachian host, who was once a
queen, and has Thoas for her sire and shining Euhan
for her ancestor ? Is it too little for thy cowardice
that, when on all sides thy folk are speeding to war,
thou alone keepest peace among the hurrying caval-
cades ? Keep it then, and let the Grecian triumph
find thee still groaning at this tomb."

He spoke, and the other, now more controlled as
anger ebbed, replied : " Indeed I thought your
troops were bound, not for the walls of Thebes, but
hither with hostile intent. March on then to destroy,
if kindred murder so delights you, flesh first your
arms at home, ay, and let impious fire — what indeed
is not la\\-ful ? — devour Jove's temple that but
now I sought in vain, if I thought, oppressed by
bitter grief, that I had power upon a worthless
slave, who am her king and lord I '^ But the ruler
of the gods beholds it, yea he beholds it, and his
wrath, though late it fall, awaits your daring deeds."
So speaking he looks back toward the city. And lo !
there another armed affray is raging from house to
house ; recent Fame had outstripped the horsemen's

* Ironically spoken : it was only a babe's death.

' This too is ironical : let Jove's temple be destroyed, if
he was so impious as to. think he had power over his own
slave !

5S

STATIUS

Fama recens, geminos alis amplexa^ tumultus :
illi ad fata rapi atque illi iani occumbere leto,
sic meritam Hypsipylen iterant, creduntque, nee irae
fit mora, iamque faces et tela penatibus instant, 695
vertere regna fremunt raptumque auferre Lycurgum
cum love cumque aris ; resonant ululatibus aedes
femineis, versusque dolor dat terga timori.

Alipedmn curru sed enim sublimis Adrastus
secum ante ora virum fremibunda Thoantida portans
it medius turmis, et " parcite, parcite ! " clamat, 701
" nil actum saeve, meritus nee tale Lycurgus
excidium, gratique inventrix fluminis ecce ^ ! "
sic ubi diversis maria evertere procellis
hinc Boreas Eurusque, illinc niger imbribus Auster,
pulsa dies regnantque hiemes, venit aequoris alti 706
rex sublimis equis, geminusque ad spumea Triton
frena natans late pelago dat signa cadenti,
et iam plana Thetis, montesque et litora crescunt.

Quis super um tanto solatus funera voto 710

pensavit lacrimas inopinaque gaudia maestae
rettulit Hypsipylae ? tu gentis conditor, Euhan,
qui geminos iuvenes Lemni de litore vectos
intuleras Nemeae mirandaque fata parabas.
causa viae genetrix, nee inhospita tecta Lycurgi 715
praebuerant aditus, et protinus ille tyranno
nuntius exstinctae miserando vulnere prolis.

^ alis amplexa Pw : agilis complexa Lachmann : aulis
Garrod, who brackets volucres . . . recens as a parenthesis.
Certainly the repetition of alas . . . alis is odd, but a char-
acteristic of Statins.

* ecce Pw : haec est Phillimore.

54

THEBAID, V. 692-717

flying squadrons, with twofold tumults gathered
beneath her wings ; some repeat that Hypsipyle is
being dragged to death, some that she is even now
meeting her fate, and is deserving of it : they be-
lieve, nor stay their anger, and already brands and
javelins fly against the palace, cries are raised to
overturn the kingdom, and to seize and carry away
Lycurgus with Jove and all his shrines ; the houses
re-echo with female shrieks, and routed grief flees
before panic ten'or.

But Adrastus, aloft upon his car of wing-footed
steeds and bearing with him the daughter of Thoas
in the sight of the raging warriors, di'ives in amongst
the ranks and cries : " Give o'er, give o'er ; no cruel
deed has been done, nor has Lycurgus deserved to
perish thus, and lo ! here is the discoverer of the
welcome stream ! " So when yriih opposing blasts
Boreas and Eurus from one quarter, and from another
Auster black with rain has upheaved the sea, when
day is banished and the hurricanes hold sway, high
on his chariot comes the ruler of the deep, and twy-
formed Triton s>vimming by the foaming bridles
gives signal far and wide to the subsiding main ;
Thetis is smooth again, and hills and shores emerge.

Which of the gods consoled her loss, and by grant-
ing her heart's desire brought joys unhoped-for to sad
Hypsipyle and recompense for tears ? Thou, Euhan,
author of her race, who didst convey the tvrin youths "
from Lemnos' shore to Nemea, and wert preparing
a wondrous destiny. In search of their mother
they came, and not inhospitably had the palace of
Lycurgus given them entry, when forthwith came that
message to the monarch of his offspring's piteous
" Their names were Thoas and Euneus.

55

STATIUS

ergo adsunt comites — pro fors et caeca futuri

mens hominum ! — regique favent ; sed Lemnos ad

aures
ut primum dictusque Thoas, per tela manusque 720
inruerant, matremque avidis complexibus ambo
diripiunt flentes alternaque pectora mutant,
ilia velut rupes immoto saxea visu
haeret et expertis non audet credere divis.
ut vero et vultus et signa Argoa relictis 725

ensibus atque umeris amborum intextus lason,
cesserunt luctus, turbataque munere tanto
conruit, atque alio maduerunt lumina fletu.
addita signa polo, laetoque ululante tumultu
tergaque et aera dei motas crepuere per auras. 730

Tunc pius Oeclides, ut prima silentia volgi
mollior ira dedit placidasque accessus ad aures :
" audite, o ductor Nemeae lectique potentes
Inachidae, quae certus agi manifestat Apollo,
iste quidem Argolicis haud olim indebitus armis 735
luctus adest, recto descendunt limite Parcae :
et sitis interitu fluviorum et letifer anguis,
et puer, heu nostri signatus nomine fati,
Archemorus, cuncta haec superum demissa suprema
mente fluunt. differte animos festinaque tela 740
ponite ; mansuris donandus honoribus infans.
et meruit ; det pulchra suis libamina virtus
manibus, atque utinam plures innectere pergas,

" Amphiaraus.

* The metaphor is probably of a river-channel ; cf.
" fluunt," 1. 740.

" "Archemorus" means "the beginning of doom."
56

THEBAID, V. 718-743

death. Therefore hasten they to his support — so
strange is Chance, so blind the purposes of men I —
and favour the king's cause ; but when " Lemnos "
and " Thoas " reached their ears, straight had they
rushed through weapons and troops of men, and
both with tears snatch their mother to their greedy
embrace and in turn press her to their bosoms.
But she, like a stony rock, with countenance un-
moved stirs not nor dares believe the gods she
knows so well. But when she recognized their
faces and the marks of Argo on the swords the
mariners had left and Jason's name inwoven on their
shoulders, her grief was stayed, and overcome by so
great a blessing she swooned, and her eyes were
moist ^vith other tears. Signs too were shown in
heaven, and the drums and cymbals of the god and
the glad huzzas of his wild train resounded through
the echoing air.

Then the devout Oeclides," so soon as WTath ap-
peased made the crowd fall silent, and there was
approach to tranquil ears : " Hearken, O ruler of
Nemea and ye flower of Argive princes, what Apollo
surely reveals for us to do. Long hath this woe
been ordained for you at Argive hands, unwavering
runs the line of Destiny.^ The drought of perished
streams, the deadly serpent, and the child Arche-
morus, whose name, alas, bears the seal of our fate,"
all these events flow down and issue from the high
purpose of the gods. A truce now to your passions,
lay down your hasty arms ! To this infant enduring
honours must be paid. Truly he hath deserved them ;
let virtue make fair libation to a virtuous soul, and
would that thou mightest continue, O Phoebus, to
weave even more delays, would that new chances

37

STATIUS

Phoebe, moras, semperque novis bellare vetemur
casibus, et semper Thebe funesta recedas ! 745

at vos magnorum transgressi fata parentum
felices, longum quibus hinc per saecula nomen,
dum Lernaea palus et dum pater Inachus ibit,
dum Nemea tremulas campis iaculabitur umbras,
ne fletu violate sacrum, ne plangite divos : 750

nam deus iste, deus, Pyliae nee fata senectae
maluerit, Phrygiis aut degere longius annis."
finierat, caeloque cavam nox induit umbram.

58

THEBAID, V. 744^753

might ever bar us from the fray, and thou, O deadly
Thebes, fade from our sight for ever ! And O ye
happy ones, who have surpassed the common fate of
noble parents, whose name will long endure through
the ages, while Lerna's lake remains and father
Inachus flows on, while Nemea throws the flickering
shadows across her fields — profane not this holy rite
by weeping, mourn not for the gods : for a god is
he, yea a god, nor would he prefer to enjoy a Pylian
age, nor a life that outlived the Phrygian span." "
He finished, and night wrapt the heaven in her
enfolding shade.

" i.e., longer than Nestor or Priam,

i

59

LIBER VI

Nuntia multivago Danaas pei'labitur urbes
Fama gradu, sancire novo sollemnia busto
Inachidas ludumque super, quo Martia bellis
praesudare paret seseque accendere virtus.
Graium ex more decus : primus Pisaea per arva 5
hune pius Alcides Pelopi certavit honorem
pulvereumque fera crinem detersit oliva ;
proxima vipereo celebratur^ libera nexu
Phocis, Apollineae bellum puerile pharetrae ;
mox circum tristes servata Palaemonis aras 10

nigra superstitio, quotiens animosa resumit
Leueothea gemitus et arnica ad litora festa
tempestate venit : planctu conclamat uterque
Isthmos. Echioniae responsant flebile Thebae.
et nunc eximii regum, quibus Argos alumnis 15

conexum caelo, quorumque ingentia tellus
Aonis et Tyriae suspirant nomina matres,
concurrunt nudasque movent in proelia vires :
ceu primum ausurae trans alta ignota biremes,
seu Tyrrhenam hiemem, seu stagna Aegaea lacessant,
tranquillo prius arma lacu clavumque levesque 21
explorant remos atque ipsa pericula discunt ;
^ celebratur P : celebravit w.

" The festivals alluded to are those at Olympia, Delphi,
and Isthmus of Corinth.

* Boeotian. "Tyrian " =Theban.

60

BOOK VI

Far-travelling Rumour glides through the Danaan
cities, and tells that the Inachidae are ordaining
sacred rites for the new tomb, and games thereto,
whereby their martial valour may be kindled and
have foretaste of the sweat of war. Customary
among the Greeks is such a festival : first " did the
dutiful Alcides contest this honour with Pelops in
the fields of Pisa, and brush the dust of combat from
his hair with the wild-olive spray ; next is celebrated
the freeing of Phocis from the serpent's coils, the
battle of the boy Apollo's quiver ; then the dark
cult of Palaemon is solemnized about the gloomy
altars, so oft as undaunted Leucothea renews her
grief, and in the time of festival comes to the wel-
coming shores : from end to end Isthmos resounds
with lamentation and Echionian Thebes makes an-
swering wail. And now the peerless princes whose
rearing links Argos with heaven, princes whose
mighty names the Aonian * land and Tyrian mothers
utter with sighs, meet in rivalry and arouse their
naked vigour to the fray : just as the two-banked
galleys that must venture the unknown deep, whether
they provoke the stormy Tyrrhenian or the calm
Aegean sea, first prove on a smooth lake their
tackling and rudder and nimble oars, and learn to
face the real perils ; but when their crews are

61

STATIUS

at cum experta cohors, tunc pontum inrunipere fretae
longius ereptasque oculis non quaerere terras.

Clara laboriferos caelo Tithonia currus 25

extulerat vigilesque deae pallentis habenas
ct Nox et cornu fugiebat Somnus inani ;
iam plangore viae, gemitu iam regia mugit
flebilis, acceptos longe nemora avia frangunt
multiplicantque sonos. sedet ipse exutus honoro 30
vittarum nexu genitor squalentiaque ora
sparsus et incultam ferali pulvere barbam.
asperior contra planctusque egressa viriles
exemplo famulas premit hortaturque volentes
orba parens, lacerasque super prorumpere^ nati 35
relliquias ardet totiensque avolsa refertur.
arcet et ipse pater, mox ut maerentia dignis
vultibus Inachii penetrarunt limina reges,
ceu nova tunc clades et primo saucius infans
vulnere letalisve inrumperet atria serpens, 40

sic alium ex alio quamquam lassata fragorem
pectora congenxinant, integratoque resultant
accensae clamore fores ; sensere Pelasgi
invidiam et lacrimis excusant crimen obortis.

Ipse, datum quotiens intercisoque tumultu 45

conticuit stupefacta domus, solatur Adrastus
adloquiis genitorem ultro, nunc fata recensens
resque hominum duras et inexorabile pensum,
nunc aliam prolem mansuraque numine dextro
pignora. nondum orsis modus, et lamenta redibant.

^ prorumpere P : procumbere w.

" Sleep is thought of as pouring slumber from a horn
upon the earth, cf.x. 111.

* Much of the following can be paralleled from the
Consolatory poems of the Silvae.

62

THEBAID, VI. 23-50

trained, then confidently do they push further out
into the main nor seek the vanished coast.

The bright consort of Tithonus had shown in heaven
her toil-bringing car, and Night and Sleep ^ith empty
horn" were fleeing from the pale goddess' wakeful
reins ; already the ways are loud >Wth wailing, and
the palace with tearful lamentation ; from afar the
wild forests catch the sounds, and scatter them in a
thousand echoes. The father himself* sits stripped
of the honour of the twined fillet, his unkempt head
and neglected beard sprinkled with the dust of
mourning. More Wolent than he and passionate
with more than a man's grief, the bereaved mother
urges on her handmaidens by example and by speech,
Milling though they be, and yearns to cast herself
upon the mangled remains of her child, and as oft
they tear her from them and bring her back. Even
the father too restrains her. Soon when the Inachian
princes ^^ith royal bearing entered the sorrowing
portals, then, as though the stroke were fresh and
the babe but newly hurt, or the deadly serpent had
burst into the palace, they smite their breasts though
wearied and raise clamour upon clamour, and the
doors re-echo vith the new-kindled wailing ; the
Pelasgians feel their ill-will and plead their innocence
with streaming tears.

Adrastus himself, whenso'er the tumult was quelled
and the distracted house fell silent, and opportunity
was given, addressed the sire unbidden with consoling
words, re\iewng now the cruel destiny of mankind
and the inexorable thread of doom, now gi\ing hope
of other offspring and pledges that by heaven's favour
would endure. But he had not ended, when mourn-
ing broke forth anew. Nor does the king more gently

63

STATIUS

ille quoque adfatus non moUius audit amicos, 51

quam trucis lonii rabies clamantia ponto

vota virum aut tenues curant vaga fulmina nimbos.

Tristibus interea raniis teneraque cupresso
damnatus flammae torus et puerile feretrum 55

texitur : ima virent agresti stramina cultu ;
proxima graniineis operosior area sertis,
et pieturatus morituris floribus agger ;
tertius adsurgens Arabum strue tollitur ordo
Eoas complexus opes incanaque glebis 60

tura et ab antiquo durantia cinnama Belo.
summa crepant auro, Tyrioque attollitur ostro
molle supercilium, teretes hoc undique gemmae
inradiant, medio Linus intertextus acantho
letiferique canes : opus admirabile semper 65

oderat atque oculos flectebat ab omine mater,
arma etiam et veterum exuvias circumdat avorum
gloria mixta malis adflictaeque ambitus aulae,
ceu grande exsequiis onus atque immensa ferantur
membra rogo, sed cassa tamen sterilisque dolentes 70
fama iuvat, parvique augescunt funere manes,
inde ingens lacrimis honor et miseranda voluptas,
muneraque in cineres annis graviora feruntur —
namque illi et pharetras brevioraque tela dicarat
festinus voti pater insontesque sagittas ; 75

iam tunc et nota stabuli de gente probatos
in nomen pascebat equos — cinctusque sonantes

<• A legendary king of Egypt, father of Danaus : also an
Asiatic monarch, as in Virg. Aen. i. 621 and Ov. M. iv. 213.
Statins only means "cinnamon from the East," cf. Silv.
iv. 5. 32.

*" Linus, according to one story, was the name of the
babe whose fate is told in i. 557 sqq., the son of Apollo and
Psamathe, daughter of Crotopus.

64.

THEBAID, VI. 51-77

hear his friendly speech than the madness of the fierce
Ionian hears the sailors shouting prayers upon the
deep, or the wayward lightnings heed the frail clouds.
Meanwhile the flame-appointed pyre and the infant
bier are intertwined with gloomy boughs and shoots
of cypress ; lowest of all is laid the green produce of
the country-side, then a space is more laboriously
WTought with grassy chaplets and the mound is
decked with flowers that soon must perish ; third in
order rises a heap of Arabian spices and the rich
profusion of the East, mth limips of hoary incense
and cinnamon that has come do^vn from Belus of old."
On the summit is set tinkling gold, and a soft coverlet
of Tvrian purple is raised high, gleaming everywhere
with polished gems, and within a border of acanthus
is Linus woven and the hounds that caused his
death * : hateful ever to his mother was this mar-
vellous work, and ever did she turn her eyes from the
omen. Arms, too, and spoils of ancestors of old are
cast about the pyre, the pride and chequered glory
of the afilicted house, as though the funeral train
bore thither the burden of some great warrior's
limbs ; yet even empty and barren fame delights
the mourners, and the pomp magnifies the infant
shade. Wherefore tears are held in high reverence
and afford a mournful joy, and gifts greater than
his years are brought to feed the flames. For his
father," in haste for the fulfilment of his prayers,
had set apart for him quivers and tiny javelins and
innocent arrows, and even already in his name was
rearing proved horses of his stable's famous breed ;

« The long parenthesis is awkward, but the only alter-
native is to construe " pascebat " by zeugma with " cinctusque
. . . lacertos."

VOL. II F "^

STATIUS

armaque maiores exspectatura lacertos.
spes avidae ! quas non in nomen credula vestes
urgebat studio cultusque insignia regni 80

purpureos sceptrumque minus ? cuncta ignibus atris
damnat atrox suaque ipse parens gestamina ferri,
si damnis rabidum queat exsaturare dolorem.^

Parte alia gnari monitis exercitus instat
auguris aeriam truncis nemorumque ruina, 85

montis opus,^ euniulare pyram, quae crimina caesi
anguis et infausti cremet atra piacula belli,
his labor accisam Nemeen umbrosaque tempe
praecipitare solo lucosque ostendere Phoebo.
stemitur extemplo veteres incaedua ferro 90

silva comas, largae qua non opulentior umbrae
Argolicos inter saltusque educta Lycaeos
extulerat super astra caput : stat sacra senectae
numine, nee solos honiinum transgressa veterno
fertur avos, Nymphas etiam mutasse superstes 95
Faunorumque greges. aderat miserabile luco
exscidium : fugere ferae, nidosque tepentes
absiliunt — metus urget — aves ; cadit ardua fagus,
Chaoniumque nemus brumaeque inlaesa cupressus,
procumbunt piceae, flammis alimenta supremis, 100
ornique iliceaeque trabes metuendaque suco
taxus et infandos belli potura cruores

^ Lines 79-83 are missing in PBL {added in margin of B),
but are found in DKNS. They are usually bracketed by edd.
as spurious. * opus Weber : onus Pco,

" Perhaps because belts were commonly adorned with
gold and silver and precious stones, and would therefore
ring against the armour; cf. Aen. v. 312.

* There appears to be no parallel for this use of " muto,"
" to take one for another," i.e., " to see one (generation of

66

THEBAID, VI. 78-102

loud-ringing belts " too are brought, and armour wait-
ing for a mightier frame. Insatiable hopes ! what
garments did she not make for him in eager haste,
credulous woman, and robes of purple, emblems of
royalty, and childish sceptre ? Yet all does the sire
himself ruthlessly condemn to the murky flames, and
bid his own signs of rank be borne withal, if by their
loss he may sate his devouring grief.

In another region the army hastens at the bidding
of the wise augur to raise an airy pile, high as a
mountain, of tree-trunks and shattered forests, to
expiate the crime of the serpent's slaying and make
dark burnt-offering for the ill-omened war. These
labour to cut down Nemea and its shady glens and
hurl them to the ground, and to lay the forests open
to the sunlight. Straightway a wood that axe has
never shorn of its ancient boughs is felled, a wood
than which none more rich in abundant shade be-
tween the vales of Argolis and Mount Lycaeus ever
raised aloft its head above the stars ; in reverend
sanctity of eld it stands, and is said not only to reach
back in years beyond the grandsires of men, but to
have seen Nymphs pass ^ and flocking Fauns and yet
be living. Upon the wood came pitiful destruction :
the beasts are fled, and the birds, terror-driven,
flutter forth from their warm nests ; the towering
beeches fall and the Chaonian " groves and the
cypress that the winter harms not, spruces are flung
prostrate that feed the funeral flames, ash-trees
and trunks of holm-oak and yews vrith poisonous sap,
and mountain ashes destined to drink the gore
Nymphs) succeed another " ; but Statius is very free in his
use of the word, cf. ii. 672, vii. 71.

* i.e., of oaks, from Chaonia in Epirus, where was the
oak-grove of Dodona.

67

STATIUS

fraxinus atque situ non expugnabile robur.

hinc audax abies et odoro vulnere pinus

scinditur, adclinant intonsa cacumina terrae 105

alnus arnica fretis nee inhospita vitibus ulmus.

dat gemitum tellus : non sie eversa feruntur

Ismara, eum fracto Boreas caput extulit antro,

non grassante noto citius nocturna peregit

flamnia nemus ; linquunt flentes dilecta locorum 1 10

otia cana Pales Silvanusque arbiter umbrae

semideumque pecus, migrantibus adgemit illis

silva, nee amplexae dimittunt robora Nymphae.

ut cum possessas avidis victoribus arces

dux raptare dedit, vix signa audita, nee urbem 115

invenias ; ducunt sternuntque abiguntque feruntque

immodici, minor ille fragor, quo bella gerebant.

lamque pari cumulo geminas hanc tristibus umbris,
ast illam supei'is aequus labor auxerat aras,
cum sign urn luctus cornu grave mugit adunco 120
tibia, cui teneros suetum producere^ manes
lege Phrygum maesta, Pelopem monstrasse ferebant
exsequiale sacrum carmenque minoribus umbris
utile, quo geminis Niobe consumpta pharetris
squalida bissenas Sipylon deduxerat urnas. 125

Portant inferias arsuraque fercula primi
Graiorum, titulisque pios testantur honores
gentis quisque suae ; longo post tempore surgit
colla super iuvenum — numero dux legerat omni —

^ Servius on Aen. v. 138 quotes solitum deducere.

" i.e., when turned into spear-shafts.

^ i.e., because it "dares" the deep, when turned into
ships. " Italian rustic deities.

^ The Nymphs are often thought of as the living spirits
of the trees, cf. Silv. i. 3. 63. The passage reminds one of
Milton's Ode on the Morning of Christ's Nativity, st. 20.

68

THEBAID, VI. 103-129

of cursed battle," and oaks unconquerable by age.
Then the daring^ fir is cloven, and the pine with
fragrant wound, alders that love the sea bow to the
ground their unshorn summits, and elms that give
friendly shelter to the vines. The earth groans :
not so are the woods of Ismarus swept away uprooted,
when Boreas breaks his prison cave and rears his
head, no s^\ifter does the nightly flame tear through
the forest before the south wind's onset ; hoar Pales
and Silvanus," lord of the shady glen, and the folk,
half-godj half-animal, go forth weeping from the
leisure haunts they loved, and as they go the wood-
land groans in sympathy, nor can the Nymphs loose
the trees from their embrace.** As when a leader
gives over to the greedy conquerors the captured
towers to plunder, scarce is the signal lieard, and the
city is nowhere to be found ; they drive and carry,
take captive and strike down in fury um-estrained ;
the din of battle was less loud.

Two altars now of equal height had they with hke
toil erected, one to the doleful shades, the other to
the gods above, when the low braying of the pipe
with curved horn gave signal for lament, the pipe
that by Phrjgia's mournful use was wont to escort
the youthful dead. They say that Pelops ordained
for infant shades this funeral rite and chant, to which
Niobe, undone by the quivers twain, and dressed in
mourning garb, brought the twelve urns to Sipylus.*

The Grecian leaders bear the funeral gifts and
offerings for the flame, each by his titles witnessing
to his race's honourable renown ; long after, high
upon the necks of youths chosen by the prince from

* The mountain on which her children were slain by Apollo
and Artemis.

69

STATIUS

ipse fero clamore torus, cinxere Lycurgum 130

Lernaei proceres, genetricem mollior ambit
turba, nee Hypsipyle raro subit agmine ; valiant
Inachidae memores, sustentant livida nati
bracchia et inventae concedunt plangere matri.

Illic infaustos ut primum egressa penates 135

Eurydice, nudo vocem de pectore rumpit
planctuque et longis praefata ululatibus infit :
" non hoc Argolidum coetu circumdata matrum
speravi te, nate, sequi, nee talia demens
fingebam votis annorum elementa tuorum, 140

nil saevum reputans ; etenim his in finibus aevi
unde ego bella tibi Thebasque ignara timerem ?
cui superum nostro committere sanguine pugnas
dulce ? quis hoc armis vovit scelus ? at tua nondum,
Cadme, domus, nuUus Tyrio grege plangitur infans.
primitias egomet lacrimarum et caedis acerbae 146
ante tubas ferrumque tuli, dum deside cura
credo sinus fidos altricis et ubera mando.
quidni ego ? narrabat servatum fraude parentem
insontesque manus. en ! quam ferale putemus 150
abiurasse sacrum et Lemni gentilibus unam
inmunem furiis, haec ilia— et creditis ausae'^ ! —
haec pietate potens solis abiecit in arvis
non regem doniinumve, alienos impia partus,
hoc tantum, silvaeque infamis tramite liquit, 155

quem non anguis atrox — quid enim hac opus, ei mihi,

leti
mole fuit ? — tantum caeli violentior aura

^ haec ilia et . . . ausae Pw : ilia est . . . ausa L, ausae
{with ausa est written over) Q, various conj. by edd., hut the
reading of mss. seems satisfactory.

" i.e., the Argives, descended from Inachus.
70

THEBAID, VI. 130-157

1 his host, aniid wild clamour comes the bier. The
Lernean cliieftains encircle Lycurgus, a female com-
pany are gathered about the queen, nor does H}-psi-
pyle go unattended : the Inachidae," not unmindJful,
surround her close, her sons support her bruised
arms, and suffer their new-found mother to lament.

There, as soon as Eurydice came forth from her
ill-starred palace, she bared her breast and cried
aloud, and ^^■ith beating of her bosom and prelude
of long wailings thus began : " I never thought, my
son, to follow thee \Wth this encompassing train of
Argive matrons, nor thus did I picture in my fooUsh
prayers thy infant years, nought cruel did I expect ;
whence at my hfe's end should I have fear for thee
from a Theban war, whereof I knew not ? WTiat god
has taken dehght in joining battle with our race ?
Who vowed this crime against our arms ? But thy
house, O Cadmus, has not suffered yet, no infant do
TATian crowds lament. 'Tis I that have borne the
first-fruits of grief and untimely death, before even
trumpets brayed or sword was drawn, while in indolent
neglect I put faith in his nurse's bosom and entrusted
to her my babe to suckle. \Miy should I not ? She
told a tale of the cunning rescue of her sire and her
innocence. But look ! this woman, who alone, we
must think, abjured the deadly deed she vowed, and
alone of her race was free from the Lemnian mad-
ness, this woman here — and ye believe her, after her
daring deed I — so strong in her devotion, cast away
in desolate fields, no king or lord, but, impious one !
another's child, that is all ! and left him on a path
in an ill-famed wood, where not merely poisonous
snake — what need, alas, of so huge a slayer ? — but
a strong tempest only, or a bough broken by the

71

STATIUS

impulsaeque noto frondes cassusque valeret
exanimare timor. nee vos ineessere luctu
orba aveo,^ fixum matri immotiimque manebat 160
hac altrice nefas ; atquin et blandus ad illam,
nate, magis, solam nosse atque audire vocantem,
ignarusque mei : nulla ex te gaudia matri.
ilia tuos questus lacrimososque impia risus
audiit et vocis decerpsit murmura primae. 165

ilia tibi genetrix semper, dum vita manebat,
nunc ego. sed miserae mihi nee punire potestas
sie meritam ! quid dona, duces, quid inania fertis
iusta regis ? illam — nil poscunt amplius umbrae, —
illam, ore, cineri simul excisaeque parenti 170

reddite, quaeso, duces, per ego haec primordia belli,
cui peperi ; sic aequa gemant mihi funera matres
Oxygiae." sternit crines iteratque precando :
" reddite, nee vero crudelem avidamque vocate
sanguinis : occumbam pariter, dum vulnere iusto 175
exsaturata oculos, unum impellamur in ignem."
talia vociferans alia de parte gementem
Hypsipylen — neque enim ilia comas nee pectora

servat —
agnovit longe, et socium indignata dolorem :
" hoc saltem, o proceres, tuque o, cui pignora nostri
proturbata tori, pi'ohibete, auferte supremis 181

invisam exsequiis. quid se funesta parenti
miscet et in nostris spectatur et ipsa minis ? ^ 183

^ aveo Mueller : habeo P {with h erased) ; habeo w, which
Klotz would defend hy parallel of Varro, R. R. i. 1. 2, ut id
mihi habeam curare roges.

^ There is some confusion in the Mss. here ; the reading in
the text is that of P, except that P omits auferte {I. 181) and
reads invitam (/. 183). The other mss. read pignore nostro
partus honos prohibete nefas auferte (nefas om. in QN), cf.
ii. 172, xii. 84. Also, I. 182 quid w : quia P. funesta w :

72

THEBAID, VI. 158-183

wind, or groundless fright could have availed to
cause his death ! Nor you would I accuse in my
stricken grief ; unalterable and sure came this curse
upon the mother, at this nurse's hands. Yet her
didst thou favour more, my son, her only didst thou
know and heard when she called thee ; me thou
knewest not, no joy had thy mother of thee. But
she, the fiend ! she heard thy cries and thy laughter
mixt with tears, and caught the accents of thy
earliest speech. She was ever thy mother, while life
remained to thee, I only now. But woe is me ! that
I cannot punish her for her crime ! Why bring ye
these gifts, ye chieftains, to the pyre, why these
empty rites ? Herself, I beg — no more does his
shade demand — herself, I pray you, offer, both to
the dead and to the ruined parent, I beseech you by
this first bloodshed of the war, for which I bore him ;
so may the Ogpan mothers have deaths to mourn
as sad as mine ! " She tears her hair and repeats
her supplication : " Ay, give her up, nor call me
cruel or greedy of blood ; I ^nll die likewise, so be
it that, my eyes full-sated by her just death, we
fall upon the selfsame fire." Thus loudly crying she
beheld elsewhere afar H}^sipyle lamenting — for she
too spares nor hair nor bosom — and ill brooking a
partner in her woe : " Tliis at least prevent, O
princes, and thou for whom the child of our own bed
has been flung to ruin ; remove that hated woman
from the funeral rites ! Why does she offend his
mother with her accursed presence, and show herself

fecisse P. L. 183 P omits et. After I. 183 come the lines :
cui luget complexa suos ? dixitque repente
concidit, abruptisque obmutuit ore querelis.

but only in DQNS (ait atque D, dixitque also in B marg.).

73

STATIUS

sic ait abruptisque immutuit ore querellis : 185

non secus ac primo fraudatum lacte iuvencum,
cui trepidae vires et solus ab ubere sanguis,
seu fera seu duras avexit pastor ad aras ;
nunc vallem spoliata parens, nunc flumina questu,
nunc armenta movet vacuosque interrogat agros ; 190
tunc piget ire domum, maestoque novissima campo
exit et oppositas impasta avertitur herbas.

At genitor sceptrique decus cultusque Tonantis
inicit ipse rogis, tergoque et pectore fusam
caesariem ferro minuit sectisque iacentis 195

obnubit tenuia ora comis, ac talia fletu
verba pio miscens : "alio tibi, perfide, pacto,
luppiter, hunc crinem voti reus ante dicaram,
si pariter virides nati libare dedisses
ad tua templa genas, sed non ratus ore sacerdos, 200
damnataeque preces : ferat haec, quae dignior,

umbra."
iam face subiecta primis in frondibus ignis
exclamat,^ labor insanos arcere parentes.

Stant iussi Danaum atque obtentis eminus armis
prospectu visus interclusere nefasto. 205

ditantur flammae ; non umquam opulentior illic
ante cinis : crepitant gemmae, atque immane liquescit
argentum, et pictis exsudat vestibus aurum ;

^ exclamat Pw : exclamant Baehrens, i.e. parentes.

" "genas," here "cheeks," that would be in the flush of
manhood; " viridis " of ten = " in the prime of age."
The clause " si dedisses " is not the protasis to " dicaram,"
but expresses the content of the vow, i.e. implies an ellipse ;

74

THEBAID, VI. 185-208

thus in my day of ruin ? " Thus spake she and fell
silent, and her complainings ceased. Even so when
a Mild beast has seized or shepherd borne away to
the cruel shrine a bullock cheated of its first milk,
whose strength is yet but frail and whose \igour is
drawn but from the udder, the despoiled mother
stirs now the valley, now the streams, now the herds
with her meanings, and questions the empty meads ;
then it irks her to go home, and she leaves the
desolate fields the last of all, and turns imfed from
the herbage spread before her.

But the father hurls with his own hand upon the
pyre his glorious sceptre and the emblems of the
Thunderer, and vrith the sword cuts short the hair
that fell o'er back and breast, and with the shorn
tresses covers the frail features of the infant where
he hes, and mingles with tender tears such words as
these : " Far otherwise, treacherous Jupiter, did I
once consecrate these locks to thee, and held me to
my vow, shouldst thou have granted me to offer
therewith my son's ripe manhood at thy shrine ; "
but the priest confirmed it not, and my prayer was
lost ; let his shade, then, who is worthier, receive
them I " Already the torch is set to the pjTe, and
the flame crackles in the lowest branches ; hard is
it to restrain the frenzied parents. Danaans are
bidden stand and with barrier raised of weapons
shut out afar from their vision the awful scene. The
fire is richly fed : never before was so sumptuous a
blaze ; precious stones crack, huge streams of molten
silver run, and gold oozes from out the embroidered

I had, previously, promised (that I would give you the
lock) if you should have, etc." " dicaram " is not " vivid "
for " dicassem " ; cf. vi. 609-610.

75

STATIUS

nee non Assyriis pinguescunt robora sucis,
pallentique croco strident ardentia^ mella, 210

spumantesque mero paterae verguntur et atri
sanguinis et rapti gratissima cymbia lactis.
tunc septem numero turmas — centenus ubique
surgit eques — versis ducunt insignibus ipsi
Graiugenae reges, lustrantque ex more sinistro 215
orbe rogum et stantes inclinant pulvere flammas.
ter curves egere sinus, inlisaque telis
tela sonant, quater horrendum pepulere fragorem
amia, quater moll em famularum bracchia planctum.
semianimas alter pecudes spirantiaque ignis 220

accipit armenta ; hie luctus abolere novique
funeris auspicium vates, quamquam omina sentit
vera, iubet : dextri gyro et vibrantibus hastis
hae redeunt, raptumque suis libamen ab armis
quisque iacit, seu frena libet seu cingula flammis 225
mergere seu iaculum summae seu cassidis umbram.
[multa gemunt extra raucis concentibus agri,
et lituis aures circum pulsantur acutis.
terretur clamore nemus : sic Martia vellunt
signa tubae, nondum ira ealet, nee sanguine ferrum
inrubuit, primus bellorum comitur ille 231

vultus, honoris opus^ : stat adhuc ineertus in alta
nube, quibus sese Mavors indulgeat armis.^]

^ ardentia Pw : armentia Nl, tymetia iV^ marg., whence
Garrod conj. hymetia {with ard written over) as reading of
archetype.

" honoris opus B3Q : horrisono K {not scanning).

' Lines 227-233 are only found in Q, the margin of B by
a late hand, and K, and are probably spurious.
76

THEBAID, VI. 209-233

raiment ; the boughs are fattened ^vith Assyrian
juices, pale saffron drops hissing in the burning
honev ; foaming bowls of ^^^ne are outpoured, and
beakers of black blood and pleasant milk yet warm
from the udder." Then squadrons seven in number
— a hundred tall knights in each — led by the Greek-
born kings themselves with arms reversed, circling
leftward in due manner purify the p\Te, and quell
with their dust the shooting flames. Thrice accom-
plished they their wheeling course, then with re-
sounding clash of arms on arms four times ^ their
weapons gave forth a terrible din, four times the
handmaids beat their breasts in womanly lament.
The other fire receives half-dead animals and beasts
yet li\ing : here the prophet bids them cease their
wailing, ominous of fresh disaster, although he knows
the signs are true ; rightward they wheel and so
return with quivering spears, and each throws some
offering snatched from his own armour, be it rein or
belt he is pleased to plunge into the flames, or
javelin or helmet's shady crest. [Around, the country-
side is filled with the hoarse cries of w^ailing, and
piercing trumpets rend the ear. Loud shouts affright
the groves ; even so do the bugles tear the Martian
standards from the ground, while anger still is cool,
and the sword unreddened with blood, and the first
face of battle is made fair and glorious : high on a cloud
stands Mavors, uncertain yet which host to favour.]

" " rapto," suggested by PhUlimore and E. H. Alton, is
perhaps to be preferred here : " most pleasing to the lost
one," cf. Silv. ii. 1. 208.

'' It is not clear whether " quater " is meant to apply to
" sonant " as well as " pepulere," or why, if they clashed
arms thrice, the noise was heard four times.

STATIUS

Finis erat, lassusque putres iam Mulciber ibat
in cineres ; instant flammis multoque soporant 235
imbre rogum, posito donee cum sole labores
exhausti ; seris vix cessit cura tenebris.
roscida iam novies caelo dimiserat astra
Lucifer et totidem Lunae praevenerat ignes
mutato nocturnus equo, nee conscia fallit 240

sidera et altemo deprenditur unus in ortu ;
mirum, opus adcelerasse manus^ : stat saxea moles,
templum ingens cineri, rerumque effictus in ilia
ordo docet casus : fessis hie flumina monstrat
Hypsipyle Danais, hie reptat flebilis infans, 245

hie iaeet, extremum tumuli circum asperat orbem
squameus ; exspeetes morientis ab ore cruenta
sibila, marmorea sic volvitur anguis in hasta.

lamque avidum pugnas visendi vulgus inermes
fama vocat ; cunctis arvis ac moenibus adsunt 250
exciti ; illi etiam, quis belli incognitus horror,
quos efFeta domi, quos prima reliquerat aetas,
conveniunt : non aut Ephyraeo in litore tanta
umquam aut Oenomai fremuerunt agmina circo.

Collibus incurvis viridique obsessa corona 255

vallis in amplexu nemorum sedet ; hispida circum
stant iuga, et obiectus geminis umbonibus agger
campum exire vetat, longo quem tramite planum
gramineae frontes^ sinuataque caespite vivo
mollia non subitis augent fastigia clivis. 260

^ adcelerasse manus Pw : adcelerante manii JD.
^ frontes P : frondes w.

" i.e., they are quite aware that the morning and evening
stars are really the same.

78

THEBAID, VI. 234-260

The end was come, and weary Mulciber was sink-
ing now to crumbling ash ; they attack the flames
and drowse the pyre with plenteous water, till with
the setting sun their toils were finished ; scarce did
their labour jield to the late-coming shadows. And
now nine times had Lucifer chased the dewy stars
from heaven, and as often changed his steed and
nightly heralded the lunar fires — yet he deceives
not the conscious stars, but is found the same in
his alternate risings ; " 'tis marvellous how the work
has sped ! there stands a marble pile, a mighty
temple to the departed shade, where a row of
sculptured scenes tells all his story : here Hj'psipyle
shows the river to the weary Danai, here crawls the
unhappy babe, here hes he, while the scaly snake
wTithes angry coils around the hillock's end ; one
would think to hear the dying hisses of his blood-
stained mouth, so twines the serpent about the
marble spear.

And now Rumour is summoning a multitude eager
to behold the unarmed battles ; called forth from
every field and city they come ; they also gather
together, to whom the horror of war is yet unknowTi,
and they who through weary age or infant years
had stayed behind ; never were such clamouring
throngs on the strand of Ephyre or in the circus of
Oenomaus.^

Set in a green ring of curving hills and embraced
by woodland hes a vale ; rough ridges stand about
it, and the twin summits of a mound make a barrier
and forbid issue from the plain, which running long
and level rises with gentle slope to grassy brows and
winding heights soft with hving turf. There in dense
* i.e., at the Isthmian or Olympian games.

79

STATIUS

illic conferti, iam sole rubentibus arvis,

bellatrix sedere cohors ; ibi corpore mixto

metiri numerum vultusque habitusque suorum

dulce viris, tantique iuvat fiducia belli.

centum ibi nigrantes, armenti robora, tauros 265

lenta mole trahunt ; idem numerusque colorque

matribus et nondum lunatis fronte iuvencis.

Exin magnanimum series antiqua parentum
invehitur, miris in vultum animata figuris.
primus anhelantem duro Tirynthius angens 270

pectoris attritu sua frangit in ossa leonem,
baud ilium impavidi, quamvis et in acre suumque
Inachidae videre decus. pater ordine iuncto
laevus harundinae recubans super aggere ripae
cernitur emissaeque indulgens Inachus urnae. 275
lo post tergum, iam prona dolorque parentis,
spectat inocciduis stellatum visibus Argum.
ast illam melior Phariis erexerat arvis
luppiter atque hospes iam tunc Aurora colebat.
Tantalus inde parens, non qui fallentibus undis 280
imminet aut refugae sterilem rapit aera silvae,
sed pius et magni vehitur conviva Tonantis.
parte alia victor curru Neptunia tendit
lora Pelops, prensatque rotas auriga natantes
Myrtilos et volucri iam iamque relinquitur axe. 285
et gravis Acrisius speciesque horrenda Coroebi
et Danae culpata sinus, et in amne reperto

" i.e., with horns.

* i.e., on all fours. Statins appears to mean that there
were two representations of lo, one of her as a heifer, and
one of her in Egypt, when Jupiter " had raised her erect
again."

« i.e., the East.

"* Pelops was a favourite of Poseidon, cf. Pindar, 01. i. 39.

80

THEBAID, VI. 261-287

crowds, while the fields were still rosy in the dawn,
the warrior company took their seats ; there the
heroes delight to reckon the number of the motley
multitude, and scan the faces and the dress of their
fellows, and they feel the glad confidence of a mighty
host. Thither they drag a hundred black bulls, the
strength of the herd, slow-paced and straining ; as
many cows of similar hue, and bullocks with fore-
heads not yet crescent-crowned."

Then the ancient hne of great-hearted sires is
borne along, in images marvellously fashioned to a
living likeness. First the Tirynthian crushes the
gasping lion against the strong pressure of his breast
and breaks it upon his own bones ; him the Inachidae
behold not without terror, though he be in bronze
and their own famous hero. Next in order is seen
father Inachus reclining leftward on the mound of
a reedy bank and letting the streaming urn flow
free. lo, already prone ^ and the sorrow of her sire,
sees behind her back Argus starred Avith eyes that
know no setting. But kindlier Jupiter had raised
her erect in the Pharian fields, and already was
Aurora'' giving her gracious welcome. Then father
Tantalus, not he who hangs above the decei\ing
waters and snatches the empty vind of the elusive
branch, but the great Thunderer's god-fearing guest
is borne along. Elsewhere triumphant in his car
Pelops handles the reins of Neptune,** and Myrtilos
the charioteer grasps at the bounding wheels, as the
swift axle leaves him far and farther behind. Grave
Acrisius too and the dread likeness of Coroebus and
Danae's guilty bosom, and Amymone * in sadness

* A daughter of Danaus, to whom Poseidon showed a
spring at Lerna in time of drought, aod ravished her there.

VOL. IT G 81

STATIUS

tristis Amymone, parvoque Alcmena superbit
Hercule, tergemina crinem circumdata luna.
iungunt discordes inimica in foedera dextras 290

Belidae fratres ; sed vultu mitior adstat
Aegyptus, Danai manifestum adgnoscere ficto
ore notas pacisque malae noctisque futurae.
mille dehinc species, tandem satiata voluptas
praestantesque viros vocat ad «;ua praemia virtus. 295

Primus sudor equis. die inclyta, Phoebe, regentura
nomina, die ipsos ; neque enim generosior umquam
alipedum conlata acies, ceu praepete cursu
confligant densae volucres aut litore in uno
Aeolus insanis statuat certamina ventis. 300

Ducitur ante omnis rutilae manifestus Arion
igne iubae. Neptunus equo, si certa priorum
fama, pater ; primus teneri^ laesisse lupatis
ora et litoreo domitasse in pulvere fertur,
verberibus parcens ; etenim insatiatus eundi 305

ardor et hiberno par inconstantia ponto.
saepe per Ionium Libycumque natantibus ire
interiunctus equis omnesque adsuerat in oras
caeruleum deferre patrem ; stupuere relicta
Nubila, certantes Eurique Notique sequuntur. 310
nee minor in terris bella Eurysthea gerentem
Amphitryoniaden alto per gramina sulco
duxerat, illi etiam ferus indocilisque teneri.
mox divum dono regis dignatus Adrasti
imperia et multum mediis mansueverat annis. 315
tunc rector genero Polynici indulget agendum
^ teneri Qarrod : teneris Pco.

" Because of the night of threefold length in which Hercules
was begotten.

* The suitors of the Danafds, sons of Aegyptus, who was
son of Belus, as was also Danaus ; cf. iv. 133.

82

THEBAID, VI. 288-316

by the stream she found, and Alcmena proud of the
infant Hercules, a threefold moon*' about her hair.
The sons of Belus * join their discordant right hands
in a pledge of enmity, but Aeg}7)tus %\'ith milder
look stands near ; easy is it to mark on the feigned
countenance of Danaus the signs of a treacherous
peace and of the coming night. Then follow shapes
innumerable. At length pleasure is sated, and
prowess summons the foremost heroes to its own
rewards.

First came the sweat of steeds. Tell, O Phoebus, -
the drivers' famous names, tell of the steeds them-
selves ; for never did nobler array of ^^ing-footed
coursers meet in conflict : even as serried ranks of
birds compete in s\\ift course or on a single shore
Aeolus appoints a contest for the wild winds.

Before the rest Arion, marked by his mane of fiery
red, is led forth. Neptune, if the fame of olden
time be true, was his sire ; he first is said to have
hurt his young mouth \vith the bit and tamed him
on the sand of the sea-shore, sparing the lash ; for
insatiable was his eagerness to run, and he was
capricious as a winter sea. Oft was he wont to go
in harness with the steeds of ocean through the
Libyan or Ionian deep, and bring his dark-blue sire
safe home to every shore ; the storm-clouds marvelled
to be outstripped, and East and South winds strive
and are left behind. Nor less s^^•iftly on land had he
borne Amphitryon's son, when he waged Eurystheus'
wars, in deep-pressed furrows o'er the mead, fierce
to him also and impatient of control. Soon by the
gods' bounty he was deemed worthy to have Adrastus
for his lord, and meanwhile had grown far gentler.
On that day the chieftain allows him to be driven

83

STATIUS

multa monens, ubi fervor equo, qua suetus ab arte
mulceri, ne saeva manus, ne liber habenis
impetus, "urge alios" inquit " stimulisque minisque;
ille ibit, minus ipse voles." sic ignea lora 320

cum daret et rapido Sol natum imponeret axi,
gaudentem lacrimans astra insidiosa docebat
nolentesque teri zonas mediamque polorum
temperiem : pius ille quidem et formidine cauta,
sed iuvenem durae prohibebant discere Parcae. 325
Oebalios sublimis agit, spes proxima palmae,
Amphiaraus equos ; tua furto lapsa propago,
Cyllare, dum Scythici diversus ad ostia Ponti
Castor Amyclaeas remo permutat liabenas.
ipse habitu niveus, nivei dant colla iugales, 330

concolor est albis et cassis et infula cristis.
quin et Thessalicis felix Admetus ab oris
vix steriles compescit equas ; Centaurica dicunt
semina (credo, adeo sexum indignantur, et omnis
in vires adducta Venus) ; noctemque diemque 335
adsimulant, maculis internigrantibus albae :
tantus uterque color, credi nee degener illo
de grege, Castaliae stupuit qui sibila cannae
laetus et audito contempsit Apolline pasci.
ecce et lasonidae iuvenes, nova gloria matris 340

Hypsipyles, subiere iugo, quo vectus uterque,
nomen avo gentile Thoas atque omine dictus
Euneos Argoo. geminis eadem omnia : vultus,

° For other references to horse-breeding see x. 228, Silv.
V. 2. 21. It is not clear why being of Centaur's seed should
make them scornful of their sex.

* i.e., the horses of Admetus, whom Apollo served as a
shepherd.

" The word Eweos = happy voyaging.

84

THEBAID, VI. 317-343

by his son-in-law Polynices, and much did he counsel
him, what arts would soothe the horse when enraged,
not to use too fierce a hand, nor to let him gallop
free of the rein ; " urge other steeds," said he,
" with voice and goad ; but he ■vvill go, ay, faster
than you wish." Even so, when the sun granted
the fiery reins and set his son upon the whirhng
chariot, with tears did he warn the rejoicing youth
of treacherous stars and zones that would fain not
be o'errun and the temperate heat that lies midway
between the poles ; obedient was he and cautious,
but the cruel Fates would not suffer him to learn.
Amphiaraus, next favourite for the prize, aloft in
his chariot drives Oebalian steeds ; thy progeny,
Cyllarus, stealthily begotten while far away by the
mouth of Scythian Pontus Castor was exchanging
for the oar the Amy clean rein. Snow-white his own
raiment, snow-white are the coursers that lend their
necks to the yoke, his helm and fillet match the
whiteness of his crested plume. Admetus, too, the
fortunate, from Thessalian shores, can scarce restrain
his barren mares, of Centaur's seed, as they tell (so
scornful, methinks, are they of their sex, and their
natural heat turns all to body's vigour)." White with
dark flecks, they resemble day and night : so strongly
marked was each colour, nor unfit were they to be
deemed of that stock ^ which stood spellbound at the
piping of the Castahan reed, and scorned their
pasture when they heard Apollo play. Lo ! the
young sons of Jason, too, their mother Hypsipyle's
new-found pride, took stand upon the chariots where-
in each rode, Thoas, bearing the name of his grand-
sire, proper to his race, and Euneos," called from
Argo's omen. In everything were the twins alike,

85

STATIUS

currus, equi, vestes, par et concordia votis,

vincere vel solo cupiunt a fratere relinqui. 345

it Chromis Hippodamusque, alter satus Hercule

magno,
alter ab Oenomao : dubites, uter efFera presset
frena magis. Getici pecus hie Diomedis, at ille
Pisaei iuga patris habet, crudelibus ambo
exuviis diroque imbuti sanguine currus. 350

metarum instar erant^ hinc nudo robore quercus,
olim omnis exuta comas, hinc saxeus umbo,
arbiter agricolis ; finem iacet inter utrumque,
quale quater iaculo spatium, ter harundine vincas.

Interea cantu Musarum nobile mulcens 355

concilium citharaeque manus insertus Apollo
Parnassi summo spectabat ab aethere terras ;
orsa deum — nam saepe lovem Phlegramque suique
anguis opus fratrumque pius cantarat honores —
tunc aperit, quis fulmen agat, quis sidera ducat 360
spiritus, unde animi fluviis, quae pabula ventis,
quo fonte immensum vivat^ mare, quae via solis
praecipitet noctem, quae porrigat, imane tellus
an media et rursus mundo succincta latenti.
finis erat, difFert avidas audire sorores, 365

dumque chelyn lauro textumque inlustre coronae
subligat et picto discingit pectora limbo,
haud procul Herculeam Nemeen clamore reductus
aspicit atque illic ingens certaminis instar

^ erant Slater : erat Poj.

^ vivat CO : bibat P, immensum quo fonte bibat conj.
Phillimore.

" A javelin could be flung 80 yards if the " amentum " or
strap were used (Pauly-Wissowa, Real-Encycl. s.v. Hasta) ;
the distance between the posts was therefore about 300 yards.

" Phlegra was the scene of the battle between the gods

86

THEBAID, VI. 344.-369

in looks, in car and steeds, in raiment, and in the
liarmony of their ^vishes, either to \nn or to lose only
at a brother's hands. Next ride Chroniis and
Hippodamus, the one born of miglity Hercules, the
other of Oenomaus : it were doubtful which drove
more madly. The one has horses bred by Getic
Diomede, the other a yoked pair of his Pisean sire,
both chariots are decked \A'ith cruel spoils and drip
with ghastly blood. For turning-points there stood
here a bare oak-trunk, there a stone pillar, arbiter
of husbandmen ; betwixt either bound there lay
a space thou mightest reach \\ith four times a
javeUn's cast, %vith thrice an arrow's flight."

Meanwhile Apollo was charming ^^ith his strains
the Muses' glorious company, and, his linger placed
upon the strings, was gazing down to earth from the
airy summit of Parnassus. First he recounts the
deeds of the gods — for oft in duty bound he had
sung of Jove and Phlegra and his own victory o'er
the serpent and his brothers' praises ^ — and then
reveals what spirit drives the thunderbolt or guides
the stars, whence comes the fury of the rivers, what
feeds the \nnds, what founts supply the unmeasured
ocean, what pathway of the sun hastens or draws out
the course of night, whether earth be lowest or in
mid-heaven and encompassed by yet another world
we view not. There he ended, and puts off the
sisters, eager though they are to Usten, and while
he fastens bay about his lyre and the woven brilliance
of his coronet, and ungirds his breast of the pictured
girdle, he hears a clamour, and beholds not far away
Nemea famed for Hercules, and there the mighty

and the giants ; the snake is the P\-thon ; his brothers are
Bacclius and Hercules, both sons of Zeus.

87

STATIUS

quadriiugi. noscit cunctos, et forte propinquo 370
constiterant Admetus et Amphiaraus in arvo.
tunc secum : " quisnam iste duos/ fidissima Phoebi
nomina, commisit deus in discrimina reges ?
ambo pii carique ambo ; nequeam ipse priorem
dicere. Peliacis hie cum famularer in arvis — 375
sic lovis imperia et nigrae voluere Sorores —
tura dabat famulo nee me sentire minorem
ausus ; at hie tripodum comes et pius artis alumnus
aetheriae. potior meritis tamen ille, sed huius
extrema iam fila colu ; datur ordo senectae 380

Admeto serumque mori ; tibi nulla supersunt
gaudia, nam Thebae iuxta et tenebrosa vorago.
scis miser, et nostrae pridem cecinere volucres."
dixit, et ps fletu paene inviolabile tinctus
extemplo Nemeen radiante per aera saltu 385

ocior et patrio venit igne suisque sagittis.
ipse olim in terris, caelo vestigia durant,
claraque per zephyros etiamnum semita lucet.

Et iam sortitus Prothous versarat aena
casside, iamque locus cuique est et Uminis ordo. 390
terrarum decora ampla viri, decora aequa iugales,
divum utrumque genus, stant uno margine clausi
spesque audaxque una metus et fiducia pallens.
nil fixum cordi : pugnant exire paventque,
concurrit summos animosum frigus in artus. 395

^ duos w : duo P {cf. Klotz ad loc. and Ilousman. Manil.
1. 792).

88

THEBAID, VI. 370-395

spectacle of a four-horsed chariot-race. He recog-
nizes all, and by chance Admetus and Amphiaraus
had taken their stand in a field hard by. Then to
himself he spake : " What god has set those two
princes, Phoebus' most loyal names, in mutual
rivalry ? Both are devoted to me, and both are dear ;
nor could I say which holds first place. The one,
when I served as thrall on Pehan ground — such was
Jove's command, so the dark Sisters willed — burnt
incense to his slave, nor dared to deem me his in-
ferior. The other is the companion of the tripods
and the devout pupil of the A^isdom of the air : and
though the first has preference by his deserts, yet
the other's thread is near its chstafF's end. For
Admetus is old age ordained, and a late death ; to
thee no joys remain, for Thebes awaits thee and the
dark gulf. Thou knowest it, unhappy one : long
since have my o^^"n birds sung thy doom." He spoke,
and tears bedewed the face that scarce any sorrow
may profane ; then straightway came he to Nemea,
bounding radiant through the air, s^^^fter than his
father's fire and his own shafts. Long had he reached
the earth, yet still his tracks remain in heaven, and
still athwart the zephyrs his path gleams bright.

And now Prothous had shaken the lots in a brazen
helmet, and each had his place and order at the
starting. The heroes, each his country's glorious
boast, and the coursers, a match to them in glory,
all alike of blood divdne, stand penned by the one
barrier, hopeful, daring yet fearful, anxious yet con-
fident. All is confusion in their hearts ; they strive,
yet are afraid, to be gone, and a thrill of courage
mixt with dread runs through them to the ex-
tremities of their limbs. The steeds are as ardent

89

ST ATI us

qui dominis, idem ardor equis ; face lumina surgunt,
ora sonant morsu, spuniisque et sanguine ferrum
uritur, impulsi nequeunt obsistere postes
claustraque, compressae transfumat anhelitus irae.
stare adeo miserum est, pereunt vestigia mille 400
ante fugam, absentemque ferit gravis ungula campum.
circumstant fidi, nexusque et torta iubarum
expediunt firmantque animos et plurima monstrant.
insonuit contra Tyrrhenum murmur, et omnes
exsiluere loco, quae tantum carbasa ponto, 405

quae bello sic tela volant, quae nubila caelo ?
amnibus hibernis minor est, minor impetus igni,
tardius astra cadunt, glomerantur tardius imbres,
tardius e summo decurrunt flumina monte.

Emissos videre atque agnovere Pelasgi. 410

et iam rapti oculis, iam caeco pulvere mixti
una in nube latent, vultusque umbrante tumultu
vix inter sese clamore et nomine noscunt.
evolvere globum, et spatio quo quisque valebat
diducti : delet sulcos iterata priores 415

orbita, nunc avidi prono iuga pectore tangunt,
nunc pugnante genu et pressis duplicantur habenis.
colla toris crinita tument, stantesque repectit
aura iubas, bibit albentes humus arida nimbos.
fit sonus immanisque pedum tenuisque rotarum. 420
nulla manu requies, densis insibilat aer
verberibus ; gelida non crebrior exsilit Arcto
grando, nee Oleniis manant tot cornibus imbres.

" Th' impatient courser pants in ev'ry vein,

And pawing, seems to beat the distant plain ;
Hills, vales and floods appear already cross'd.
And ere he starts, a thousand steps are lost.

Pope, Windsor Forest.

* i.e., of the trumpet ; see note on iii. 630.

' i.e., at the turning-points.

90

THEBAID, VI. 396-^23

as their masters : their eyes dart flame, they loudly
champ the bits, and blood and foam corrode the
iron ; scarce do the confining posts resist then-
pressure, they smoke and pant in stifled rage. Such
misery is it to stand still, a thousand steps are lost
ere they start, and, on the absent plain, their hooves
ring loud." Around stand trusty friends, smoothing
out the t^v-isted tangled manes, and speak heartening
words and give much counsel. The Tyrrhenian *
blast rang in their ears, and all leapt forward from
their places. What canvas on the deep, what javehns
in war, what clouds so SAviftly fly across the heavens ?
less violent are winter streams, or fire ; slower fall
stars or gather rains, more slowly flow the torrents
from the mountain-summits.

As they sped forth the Pelasgi saw and marked
them ; now are they lost to view, now confused and
hidden in one cloud of bhnding dust ; they can see
nothing for the press, and scarce by shout of name
can they recognize each other. Then some draw
clear of the throng, and each takes place according
to his strength ; the second lap blots out the former
furrows, and now stooping forward in their eagerness
they touch the yoke, now with straining knees they
bend double, tugging at the reins." On the shaggy
necks the muscles swell, and the breeze combs back
the erect manes, while the dusty ground drinks up
the white rain of foam. The thunder of hooves and
the gentler sound of running wheels are blended.
Never idle are their arms, the air hisses >\ith the
oft-pUed lash ; no more densely spatters the hail
from the cold North, nor streams the rain from the
Olenian horns .'^

** See note on iiL 25.

91

STATIUS

Senserat adductis alium praesagus Arion
stare ducem loris, dirumque expaverat insons 425
Oedipodioniden ; iam illinc a limine discors
iratusque oneri solito^ truculentior ardet.
Inachidae credunt accensum laudibus ; ille
aurigam fugit, aurigae furiale minatur
efFerus, et campo dominum circumspicit omni. 430
ante tamen cunctos sequitur longeque secundus
Ampliiaraus agit, quern Thessalus aequat eundo
Admetus : iuxta gemini, nunc Euneos ante
et nunc ante Thoas, cedunt vincuntque, nee umquam
ambitiosa pios conlidit gloria fratres. 435

postremum discrimen erant Chromis asper et asper
Hippodamus, non arte rudes, sed mole tenentur
cornipedum ; prior Hippodamus fert ora sequentum,
fert gemitus multaque umeros incenditur aura,
speravit flexae circum compendia metae 440

interius ductis Phoebeius augur habenis
anticipasse viam ; nee non et Thessalus heros
spe propiore calet, dum non cohibente magistro
spargitur in gyros dexterque exerrat Arion.
iam prior Oeclides et iam non tertius ibat 445

Admetus, laxo cum tandem ambo^ orbe reductus
aequoreus sonipes premit evaditque parumper
gavisos ; subit astra fragor, caelumque tremiscit,
omniaque excusso patuere sedilia vulgo.
sed nee lora regit nee verbera pallidus audet 450

Labdacides : lassa veluti ratione magister

^ solito PS : insolito oj.

^ ambo Alton (CI. Quart, xvii. 175) : ab Pco: ex or et ab
late Mss. : Klotz conj. ambage.

" Or, as he was son of Neptune, " prescient," " inspired."
" insons " : the guilty mortal makes the guiltless horse afraid.

* i.e., Polynices ; the patronymic merely indicates descent,
92

THEBAID, VI. 424-451

By instinct " had Arion guessed that another driver
ood grasping the reins, and feared, innocent as he
as, the dire son of Oedipus ; from the very start he
rages more fiercely than his wont, fretting angrily
against his burden. The sons of Inachus think him
fired by praises, but it is the charioteer that he is
flying, the charioteer that he threatens in maddened
fury, and he looks round for his lord on all the plain.
Amphiaraus follows him, yet far before the rest and
by a long space second, and level A\-ith him runs
Thessalian Admetus ; the twins are together, now
Euneos to the fore, now Thoas, and in turn give
ground and go ahead, nor ever does ambitious love
of glory set at variance the devoted brothers. Last
of all fierce Chromis and fierce Hippodamus contend,
not lacking skill, but the weight of their coursers
retards them ; Hippodamus, leading, feels the pant-
ing breath of the following steeds, and their hot
wind upon his shoulders. The seer of Phoebus hoped
by dra^ring tight his rein and turning close around
the goal to gain first place ; and the Thessahan hero
too feels hope glow nearer, while Arion, defying
control, dashes here and there in circles and strays
rightward from the course. Already OecUdes was
in front and Admetus no longer third, when the
sea-born steed, at last brought back from his ^^ide
circuit, overtakes and passes both, their triumph but
short-hved ; a loud crash rises to the sky, and heaven
trembles, and all the seats flashed bare, as the crowd
sprang to their feet. But the son of Labdacus ^ in
pale anxiety neither handles the rein nor dares the
lash : just as a steersman, his skill exhausted, rushes

as later 1. 467, where he is called " son of Echion," one of
the founders of Thebes.

93

STATIUS

in fluctus, in saxa ruit nee iam amplius astra
respicit et victam proiecit casibus artem.

Rursus praecipites in recta ac devia campi
obliquant tenduntque vias, iterum axibus axes 455
inflicti, radiisque rotae ; pax nulla fidesque :
bella geri ferro levius, bella horrida credas ;
is furor in laudes, trepidant mortemque minantur,
multaque transversis praestringitur ungula campis.
nee iam sufficiunt stimuli, non verbera, voce 460

nominibusque cient Pholoen Admetus et Irin
fumantemque Thoen, rapidum Danaeius augur
Ascheton increpitans meritumque vocabula Cygnum.
audit et Herculeum Strymon Chromin, Euneon audit
igneus Aethion ; tardumque Cydona lacessit 465

Hippodamus, variumque Thoas rogat ire Podarcen.
solus Echionides errante silentia curru
maesta tenet trepidaque timet se voce fjiteri.

Vixdum coeptus equis labor, et iam pulvere quarto
campum ineunt, iamque et tepidis sudoribus artus 470
efFeti, et crassum rapit eiectatque vaporem
cornipedum flammata sitis, nee iam integer illis
impetus, et longi suspendunt ilia flatus,
hie anceps Fortuna diu decernere primum
ausa venit. ruit, Haemonium dum fervidus instat 475
Admetum superare, Thoas, nee pertulit^ ullam
frater opem, velit ille quidem, sed Martius ante
obstitit Hippodamus mediasque immisit habenas.
mox Chromis Hippodamum metae interioris ad orbem
viribus Herculeis et toto robore patris 480

axe tenet prenso, luctantur abire iugales

^ pertulit Baehrens : praetulit Pw.
94

THEBAID, VI. 452-481

upon waves and rocks alike, nor any more consults the
stars, but flings his baffled art to the mercy of chance.

Again at headlong speed they swerve right-handed
from the track into the plain, and strive to keep their
course, and again comes the shock of axle on axle,
wheel on wheel-spokes ; no truce is there, nor keep-
ing faith ; a Ughter task, one would think, were war,
savage war, and bloodshed, such furious will to victory
is theirs, such fear and threats of death ; and many
a hoof is struck as it runs crosswise o'er the plain.
Neither goads nor lashes now suffice, but with shout
of name does Admetus urge Iris and Pholoe and
steaming Thoe, and the Danaan augur chide fleet
Aschetos and Cygnus well so-called. Strymon too
hears Chromis, son of Hercules, and fiery Aethion
Euneos ; Hippodamus provokes slow Cydon, Thoas
entreats piebald Podarces to greater speed. Only
Echion's son keeps gloomy silence in his erring car,
and fears to confess his plight by cries of alarm.

Scarce was the real struggle of the steeds begun,
and yet now they are entering the fourth dusty lap,
and now steaming sweat is pouring from their ex-
hausted limbs, and fiery thirst heaves and gasps forth
the tliick breath of the horn-footed steeds ; and now
their \igour flags, and their flanks are racked with long-
drawn pantings. Then first does Fortune, long time
doubtful, dare to step in and make decision. Thoas,
pressing madly on to pass Haemonian Admetus, falls,
nor does his brother aid him ; fain would he, but
Martian Hippodamus forestalled him and drove his
team between them. Next Chromis by Herculean
vigour and all his father's strength holds Hippodamus
with axles interlocked, as he wheels inside him past
the goal ; in vain the steeds struggle to get free,

95

STATIUS

nequiquam frenosque et colla rigentia tendunt.

ut Siculas si quando rates tenet aestus et ingens

auster agit, medio stant vela tumentia ponto.

tunc ipsum fracto curru deturbat, et isset 485

ante Chromis ; sed Thraces equi ut videre iacentem

Hippodamum, redit ilia fames, iamiamque trementem

partiti furiis, ni frena ipsosque frementes

oblitus palmae retro Tirynthius heros

torsisset victusque et conlaudatus abisset. 490

At tibi promissos iamdudum Phoebus honores,
Amphiarae, cupit. tandem ratus apta favori
tempora pulverei venit in spatia horrida circi,
cum lam in fine viae, et summum victoria nutat ;
anguicomam monstri effigiem, saevissima visu 495
ora, movet sive ille Erebo seu finxit in astus'^
temporis, innumera certe formidine cultum
tollit in astra nefas. non illud ianitor atrae
impavidus Lethes, non ipsae horrore sine alto
Eumenides vidisse queant, turbasset euntes 500

Solis equos Martisque iugum. nam flavus Arion
ut vidit, saHere iubae, atque erectus in armos
stat sociumque iugi comitesque utrimque laboris
secum alte suspendit equos. ruit ilicet exsul
Aonius nexusque diu per terga volutus 506

exuit ; abripitur longe moderamine liber
currus ; at hunc putri praeter tellure iacentem

^ astus P : astu w.

9Q

I

THEBAID, VI. 482-507

and strain their sinewy necks and bridles. As when
the tide holds fast Sicilian craft and a strong South
wind impels them, the swelling sails stand motionless
in mid-sea. Then Chromis hurls his rival from the
shattered car, and had sped on the foremost, but
when the Thracian horses saw Hippodamus lying on
the ground, that a^vful hunger comes back upon them,
and already had they shared in their mad lust his
trembling frame, had not the Tirynthian hero, forget-
ful of \ictory. taken their bridles and dragged away
the neighing steeds, and left the field vanquished
but praised of all.

But Phoebus hath long desired for thee, Amphi-
araus, thy promised honours. At last, deeming the
moment fit to show thee favour, he visits the grim
spaces of the dusty course, when now the race is
nearing its end, and for the last time \ictory hovers
doubtful ; a snake-tressed monstrous phantom, of
visage terrible to behold, whether he wrought it in
Erebus or for the cunning purpose of the moment,
certainly endowed with countless terrors — this horrid
plague he raises to the world above. The guardian
of dusky Lethe could not have beheld it unterrified,
nor the Eumenides themselves without a deep thrill
of fear, it would have overturned the horses of the
sun in mid-career, and the team of Mars. When
golden Arion saw it, his mane leapt up erect, and
he halts >vith upreared shoulders and holds high
suspended his yoke-fellow and the steeds that shared
his toil on either side. Straightway the Aonian exile
is flung backward head-over-heels : he drops the
reins, and the chariot, freed from restraint, dashes
far away. But past him as he lies on the crumbling

VOL. II H .97

ST ATI us

Taenarii currus et Thessalus axis et heros
Lemnius obliqua, quantum vitare dabatur,
transabiere fuga. tandem caligine mersum 510

erigit adcursu comitum caput aegraque tollit
membra solo, et socero redit baud speratus Adrasto.

Quis mortis, Thebane, locus, nisi dura negasset
Tisiphone, quantum poteras dimittere bellum ?
te Thebe fraterque palam, te plangeret Argos, 515
te Nemee, tibi Lerna comas Larissaque supplex
poneret, Archemori maior colerere sepulcro.

Tum vero Oeclides, quamquam iam carta sequenti
praemia, cum vacuus domino prior iret^ Arion,
ardet adhuc cupiens vel inanem vincere currum. 520
dat vires refovetque deus ; volat ocior euro,
ceu modo carceribus dimissus in arva solutis,
verberibusque iubas et terga lacessit habenis
increpitans Caerumque levem Cygnumque nivalem.
nunc saltem, dum nemo prior, rapit igneus orbes 525
axis, et effusae longe sparguntur harenae.
dat gemitum tellus et iam tunc saeva minatur.
forsitan et victo prior isset Arione Cygnus,
sed vetat aequoreus vinci pater : hinc vice iusta
gloria mansit equo, cessit victoria vati. 530

huic pretium palmae gemini cratera ferebant
Herculeum iuvenes : ilium Tirynthius olim
ferre manu sola spumantemque ore supino
vertere, seu monstri victor seu Marte, solebat.

^ prior iret Mueller : praeiret Pw : domitore praeir
Unger, cf. ii. 551.

" i.e., Amphiaraus, Admetus, and Thoas.
98

THEBAID, \'I. .308-534

earth sweep the Taenarian car and the Thessahan
axle and the Lcmnian hero," and just avoid him by
swerving in their flight. His friends rush up, and at
last he lifts his dazed head and reeling limbs from the
ground, and returns, scarce hoped for by his father-
in-law Adrastus.

How timely then, O Theban, had been thy death,
had not stem Tisiphone forbidden ! How grievous a
war couldest thou have prevented ! Thebe had be-
wailed thee and thy brother made show thereof, and
Argos too had mourned, and Xemea and Lerna and
Larissa had in suppliant guise shorn tresses for thee,
thou hadst excelled Archemorus in funeral pomp.

Then Oeclides, although the prize was now sure
for him as he followed, since masterless Arion held
first place, yearned yet with keen desire to pass even
the empty chariot. The god lends strength and re-
freshment ; SAvifter than the East wind he flies, as
though the barrier were but just fallen and he were
starting on the race, and calling aloud on nimble
Caerus and snow-white Cygnus, plies their necks A\ith
blows and shakes the reins upon their backs. Now
at least, when nobody is in front, the fiery axle
devours the course, and the scattered sand is thrown
afar. The earth groans, and even then savagely
threatens. And perchance Arion too had OAvned
defeat and Cygnus taken first place, but his ocean-sire
suffers him not to be defeated : thus by a just
division the glory remained for the horse, but the
prophet gained the victorj'. His meed of triumph
was a Herculean bowl, borne by two youths ; the
Tirj'nthian on a time was wont to take it in one
hand, and with head flung back quaff it foaming,
whether victorious over a monster or in the field of

99

STAT I us

Centauros habet arte truces aurumque figuris 535 j

terribile : hie mixta Lapitharum caede rotantur

saxa, faces aliique iterum crateres, ubique

ingentes morientum irae ; tenet ipse furentem

Hylaeum et torta molitur robora barba.

at tibi Maeonio fertur circumflua limbo 540

pro meritis, Admete, chlamys repetitaque multo

murice : Phrixei natat hie contemptor ephebus

aequoris et picta tralucet caerulus unda ;

in latus ire rnanus^ mutaturusque videtur

braccliia, nee siccum speres in stamine crinem ; 545

contra autem frustra sedet anxia turre suprema

Sestias in specuhs, moritur prope conscius ignis.

has Adrastus opes dono victoribus ire

imperat ; at generum famula solatur Acliaea.

Sollicitat tunc ampla viros ad praemia cursu 550
praeceleres : agile studium et tenuissima virtus,
pacis opus, cum sacra vocant, nee inutile bellis
subsidium, si dextra neget. prior omnibus Idas,
nuper Olympiads umbratus tempora ramis,
prosilit ; excipiunt plausu Pisaea iuventus 555

Eleaeque manus. sequitur Sicyonius Alcon, ^

et bis in Isthmiaca victor clamatus harena fl

Phaedimus, alipedumque fugam praegressus equorum "
ante Dymas, sed tunc aevo tardante secutus.
multi et, quos varii tacet ignorantia vulgi, 56a

hinc atque hinc subiere. sed Arcada Parthenopaeum

^ manus Pw {i.e. videntur) : manu Markland.

" i.e., the mixing-bowls portrayed on this bowl.

* Leander, who swam from Abydos to Sestos.

' i.e., in contrast to the robuster sports of chariot-racings
boxing, etc. ; cf. 1. 730.
100

THEBAID, VI. 535-561

Mars. Fierce Centaurs has it, cunningly \\Tought,
d fearful shapes in gold : here amid slaughter of
ipithae are stones and torches flying, and again
her bowls " ; everywhere the furious anger of dying
n ; he himself seizes the raging Hylaeus, and
ips him by the beard and ^\ields his club. But for
: ;Le, Admetus, is brought for thy deser\ing a cloak
with a flowing border of Maeonian dye, stained many
a time with purple ; here swims the youth con-
temptuous of Phrixean waters,* and gleams with sea-
blue body through the pictured wave ; one sees the
sideward sweep of his arm, and he seems about to
make the alternate stroke, nor would one think to
find his hair drj- in the woven fabric. Yonder high
upon her tower sits anxiously watching, all in vain,
the Sestian maid ; near her the conscious lamp droops
and flickers. These rich rewards Adrastus bids be
given to the \ictors ; but his son-in-law he consoles
with an Achaean handmaid.

Then he incites those heroes who are speediest of
foot to strive for ample rewards : a contest of agility
where prowess is frailest,'^ fit pursuit for peace, when
sacred games in\-ite, nor useless in war as a refuge
should power of arm fail. Before all the rest Idas
leaps to the front, whose temples were lately shaded
by Olympian wTcaths ; the youth of Pisa and the
bands of Elis hail him with applause. Alcon of Sicyon
follows, and Phaedimus, twice acclaimed the victor
on the sands of Isthmus, and Dymas, who once out-
stripped the flight of wing-footed steeds, but now
they outran him by reason of retarding age. Many
too, whom the ignorant multitude received in silence,
came forward from this side and from that. But
for Parthenopaeus the Arcadian they call aloud, and

101

STATIUS

appellant densique cient vaga murmura circi.
nota parens cursu ; quis Maenaliae Atalantes
nesciat egregium decus et vestigia cunctis
indeprensa procis ? onerat celeberrima natum 565
mater, et ipse procul fama iam notus inermes
narratur cervas pedes inter aperta Lycaei
tollere et emissum cursu deprendere telum.
tandem exspectatus volucri super agmina saltu
emicat et torto chlamydem diffibulat auro. 57(>

efFulsere artus, membrorumque omnis aperta est
laetitia, insignes umeri, nee pectora nudis
deteriora genis, latuitque in corpore vultus.^
ipse tamen formae laudem aspernatur et arcet
mirantes ; tune Palladios non inscius haustus 57,3

incubuit pinguique cutem fuscatur olivo.
hoc Idas, hoc more Dymas aliique nitescunt.
sic ubi tranquillo perlucent sidera ponto
vibraturque fretis caeli stellantis imago,
omnia clara nitent, sed clarior omnia supra 580

Hesperos exercet radios, quantusque per altum
aethera, caeruleis tantus monstratur in undis.
proximus et forma nee multum segnior Idas
cursibus atque aevo iuxta prior ; attamen illi
iam tenuem pingues florem induxere palaestrae, 58")
deserpitque genis nee se lanugo fatetur
intonsae sub nube comae, tunc rite citatos
explorant acuuntque gradus, variasque per artes
exstimulant docto languentia membra tumultu :
poplite nunc sidunt flexo, nunc lubrica forti 59(t

^ latuitque in corpore vultus P {corr. from aluitque in
corpore virtus) : patuitque (valuitque Klotz) in corpore virtus
Peyrared.

102

THEBAID, VI. 562-590

arouse murmurs that roam throughout the close-
packed circus. Well known is his parent for speed
of foot ; who cannot tell of the peerless renown of
Atalanta, and of those footprints that no suitor could
o'ertake ? The son bears all his mother's glory, and
he himself, already known to fame, is said to catch on
foot the defenceless hinds in the open glades of Mount
Lycaeus, and, as he runs, to o'ertake the flung javelin.
Long expected, at last darts he forward, leaping lightly
o'er the companies, and unfastens the twisted golden
clasp of his cloak. His limbs shine forth, and all his
graceful frame is revealed, his fine shoulders, and
breast as smooth and comely as his cheeks, and his
face was lost in his body's beauty. But he scorns
the praise of his fairness, and suffers not admirers to
come near him. Then he cunningly sets to work
with the draughts of Pallas," and makes his skin
ta^^•ny with rich oil. Thus do Idas and Dymas and
the rest shine sleek and glossy. So when the star-
light glitters on a tranquil sea, and the spangled
heaven is mirrored tremulous in the deep, brilliant
is every star, but more brilliant than the rest does
Hesperus shoot his beams, and brightly as he flames
in the high heavens, so bright is his reflection in the
dark-blue waves. Idas is next in beauty, nor much
slower in speed, next older too in years ; but for
him already has the palaestra's oil brought on the
tender growth, and the down is creeping o'er his
cheeks, nor yet confesses itself among the cloud of
unshorn locks. Then they duly try their speed and
sharpen up their paces, and by various arts and
feigned excitement stir their languid limbs ; now
they sink down with bended knees, now smite with
" Patron goddess of Athens, to whom the olive was sacred.

103

STATIUS

pectora conlidunt plausu, nunc ignea tollunt
crura brevemque fugam necopino fine reponunt.
Ut ruit atque aequum submisit regula limen,
corripuere leves spatium, campoque refulsit
nuda cohors : volucres isdem modo tardius arvis 595
isse videntur equi ; credas e plebe Cydonum
Parthorumque fuga totidem exsiluisse sagittas.
non aliter celeres Hyrcana per avia cervi,
cum procul impasti fremitum accepere leonis
sive putant, rapit attonitos fuga caeca metusque 600
congregat, et longum dant cornua mixta fragorem.
effugit hie oculos rapida puer ocior aura
Maenalius, quem deinde gradu premit horridus Idas
inspiratque umero, flatuque et pectoris umbra
terga premit. post ambiguo discrimine tendunt 605
Phaedimus atque Dymas, illis celer imminet Alcon.
flavus ab intonso pendebat vertice crinis
Arcados ; hoc primis Triviae pascebat ab annis
munus et, Ogygio victor cum Marte redisset,
nequiquam patriis audax promiserat aris. 610

tunc liber nexu lateque in terga solutus
occursu zephyri retro fugit^ et simul ipsum
impedit infestoque volans obtenditur^ Idae.
inde dolum iuvenis fraudique adcommoda sensit
tempora ; iam finem iuxta, dum limina victor 615
Parthenopaeus init, correpto crine reductum
occupat, et longae^ primus ferit ostia portae.

^ fugit P(i) : fluit Bentley.

^ obtenditur B : ostenditur Poj.

* longae w : longe FN.

"limina" practically = " limes," the line marking the
1.

In a Greek stadium the line marking the starting-point
and the goal was 30 yards long. But " longae " might =

104

THEBAID, VI. 591-617

loud claps their slippery breasts, now ply their fiery
feet in short sprint and sudden stop.

As soon as the bar fell, and left the threshold level,
they nimbly dashed away and the naked forms
gleamed upon the plain ; more slowly seemed the
swift coursers to move of late on the same ground :
one might deem them so many arrows poured forth
from Cydonian host or flying Parthians. Not other-
wise speed the stags over H}Tcanian wilds, hearing, or
fancying that they hear, a famished lion roar afar ;
bhnd fear drives them in crowding panic-stricken
flight, amid the ceaseless noise of clashing horns.
Then swifter than the rapid breeze the Maenalian
boy outstrips the sight, and hard behind him fierce
Idas runs and breathes upon his shoulder and presses
close upon his rear with panting breath and over-
shadowing form. After them Phaedimus and Dymas
strive in doubtful contest, near them fleet Alcon.
The yellow hair hung down from the Arcadian's un-
shorn head ; this from his earliest years he cherished
as a gift to Tri\ia, and vainly boasting had vowed it
to his country's altars, when he should return in
triumph from the Ogygian war. At that time, freed
from its band and streaming loose behind, it flies
backward as it meets the wind, at once hindering
his own speed, and spreading out in front of his
rival Idas. Thereat the youth bethought him of
deceit and an opportunity for fraud ; already close
upon the goal, even while Parthenopaeus is triumph-
antly crossing the threshold," he grasps his hair, and
pulhng him back seizes his place, and is the first to
breast the wide entrance of the goal.''

" longinquae " (distant) here. In any case " longe " cannot
be right.

105

STATIUS

Arcades arma fremunt, armis defendere regem,
ni raptum decus et meriti reddantur honores,
contendunt totoque parant descendere circo. 620

sunt et quis Idae placeat dolus, ipse regesta
Parthenopaeus Immo vultumque oculosque madentes
obruit, accessit lacrimarum gratia formae.
pectora nunc maerens, nunc ora indigna cruento
ungue secat meritamque comam, furit undique clamor
dissonus, ambiguumque senis cunctatur Adrasti 626
consilium, tandem ipse refert : " compescite litem,
o pueri ! virtus iterum temptanda ; sed ite
limite non uno, latus hoc conceditur Idae,
tu diversa tene, fraus cursibus omnis abesto." 630

Audierant, dictoque manent. mox numina supplex
affatu tacito iuvenis Tegeaeus odorat :
"diva potens nemorum, tibi enim hie, tibi crinis honori
debitus, eque tuo venit haec iniuria voto,
si bene quid genetrix, si quid venatibus ipse 635

promerui, ne, quaeso, sinas hoc omine Thebas
ire nee Arcadiae tantum meruisse pudorem."
auditum manifesta fides : vix campus euntcm
sentit, et exilis plantis intervenit aer,
raraque^ non fracto vestigia pulvere pendent. 640
inrumpit clamore fores, clamore recurrit
ante ducem prensaque fovet suspiria palma.
finiti cursus, operumque insignia praesto.
Areas equum dono, clipeum gerit improbus Idas,
cetera plebs Lyciis vadit contenta pharetris. 645

Tunc vocat, emisso si quis decernere disco

^ raraque P : ramaqueHeinsius: raptaque G'arrorf.

106

THEBAID, VI. 618-640

The Arcadians cry "'To arms!" and \%-ith arms
they hasten to defend their prince, if the lost prize and
merited honour be not restored, and make ready to
descend on all the course. Others again were pleased
by the ruse of Idas. Parthenopaeus himself pours
showers of earth upon his face and streaming eyes,
and the comeliness of tears is added to his beauty.
In his grief he rends with.bloody nails now his breast,
now his innocent cheeks and guilty hair, while all
around discordant clamour rages, and old Adrastus
halts irresolute of counsel. At last he speaks: "Cease
quarrelhng, youths ! your prowess must be tried
again ; but run not in one track only ; Idas has this
side ; keep thou apart yonder, and let there be no
cheating in the race ! "

They heard, and abide by his command. Then
the youth of Tegea vriih silent prayer humbly en-
treats the gods : " Goddess, queen of the woodlands,
for to thee and to thine honour these locks of mine
are vowed, and from this vow comes my disgrace ;
if my mother or I myself have deserved well of thee
in hunting, suffer me not, I pray thee, to go ill-
omened thus to Thebes, or to have won such bitter
shame for Arcadia." Clear proof was given that he
was heard. The plain scarce feels him as he goes,
his feet treads tenuous air, and the rare footsteps
hover and leave the dust unbroken. With a shout
he dashes to the goal, with a shout he runs back to
the chief, and seizing the palm appeased his grief.
The running was over, and prizes for their toils stand
ready. The Arcadian is given a horse, the shameless
Idas bears away a shield, the rest go contented with
Lycian quivers.

Then he in\'ites anv who may wish to try the

107

STATIUS

impiger et vires velit ostentare superbas.

it iussus Pterelas, et aenae liibrica massae

pondera vix toto curvatus corpore iuxta

deicit ; inspectant taciti expenduntque laborem 650

Inachidae. mox turba ruunt, duo gentis Achaeae,

tres Ephyreiadae, Pisa satus unus, Acarnan

Septimus ; et plures agitabat gloria, ni se

arduus Hippomedon cavea stimulante tulisset

in mcdios, lateque ferens sub pectore dextro 655

orbem alium : " hunc potius, iuvenes, qui moenia saxis

frangere, qui Tyrias deiectum vaditis arces,

hunc rapite : ast illud cui non iaculabile dextrae

pondus ? " et abreptum nullo conamine iecit

in latus. absistunt procul attonitique fatentur 660

cedere ; vix unus Phlegyas acerque Menestlieus —

hos etiam pudor et magni tenuere parentes —

promisere manum ; concessit cetera pubes

sponte et adorato rediit ingloria disco.

qualis Bistoniis clipeus Mavortis in arvis 665

luce mala Pangaea ferit solemque refulgens

territat incussaque dei grave mugit ab hasta.

Pisaeus Phlegyas opus incohat et simul omnes
abstulit in se oculos : ea viso^ corpore virtus
promissa. ac primum terra discumque manumque
asperat, excusso naox circum pulvere versat, 671

quod latus in digitos, mediae quod certius ulnae
conveniat, non artis egens : hie semper amori

^ ea viso P : exhausto w : ex viso Baehrens.

" I have translated tlie word both " quoit " and " disk,"
though the discus, a plate of iron or stone about 10 or 12
inches in diameter, was very different from our quoit, which
is a rinff. The "discus " is well illustrated by the familiar

108

THEBAID, \'I. 047-673

issue with the hurled quoit." and display untiring
vigour and proud strength. At his command goes
Pterelas, and with all his body bent scarce lays down
beside him the slippery weight of the bronze mass ;
in silence the sons of Inachus look on and estimate
the toil. Soon a number rush forward : two of
Achaean race, three sons of Ephyre, one Pisa-born,
the seventh an Acarnanian ; and more was the love
of glory urging on, had not tall Hippomedon, incited
by the crowd, come forward, and carrying another
broad disk at his right side : " Take this one rather,
ye warriors, who are marching to shatter walls with
stones, and to overthrow the Tyrian towers, take this
one ! As for that other, any hand can toss that
weight ! " and with no eifort he caught it up and
threw it to one side. They fall back in amaze and
confess themselves outdone ; scarce Phlegyas alone
and eager Menestheus, compelled by sense of shame
and noble ancestry, vouchsafed to try their strength ;
the rest of their own accord gave place, and returned
inglorious, marvelling at the disk. Even so the shield
of Mars on the Bistonian * plain reflects an evil Ught
on Mount Pangaeus, and shining strikes the sun with
terror, and deeply clangs beneath the spear of the
god.

Phlegyas of Pisa begins the toil ; straightway he
drew all eyes upon himself, when they beheld liis
frame, such promise of great deeds was there. And
first with earth he roughens the quoit and his own
hand, then shaking off the dust turns it right skilfully
to see which side best suits his fingers, or fits more
surely the middle of his arm. This sport had he

"Discobolus" of Myron. Thomas Gray wrote a verse
translation of this passage (646-7;?5). * Thracian.

109

ST ATI us

ludus erat, patriae non tantum ubi laudis obiret

sacra, sed alternis Alphcon utrumque solebat 675

metari ripis et, qua latissima distant,

non umquam merso transmittere flumina disco.

ergo operum fidens non protinus horrida campi

iugera, sed caelo dextram metitur, humique

pressus utroque genu collecto sanguine discum 680

ipse super sese rotat atque in nubila condit.

ille citus sublime petit similisque cadenti

crescit in adversum, tandemque exhaustus ab alto

tardior ad terram redit atque immergitur arvis.

sic cadit, attonitis quotiens avellitur astris, 685

Solis opaca soror ; procul auxiliantia gentes

aera crepant frustraque timent, at Thessala victrix

ridet anhelantes audito carmine bigas.

conlaudant Danai, sed non tibi moUe tuenti,

Hippomedon, maiorque manus speratur in aequo. 690

Atque illi extemplo, cui spes infringere dulce
immodicas, Fortuna venit. quid numina contra
tendere fas homini ? spatium iam immane parabat,
iam cervix conversa, et iam latus omne redibat :
excidit ante pedes elapsum pondus et ictus 695

destituit frustraque manum demisit inanem.
ingemuere omnes, rarisque ea visa voluptas.
inde ad conatus timida subit arte Menestheus

" Here again the reader may refer to the "Discobolus"
of Myron.

* It is flung aloft so swiftly that its fall by contrast is
actually slower — a rhetorical paradox.

" Eclipses of the moon were believed to be caused by
Thessalian witches, who were thought to have the power of
drawing it down to earth ; the steeds are those of the chariot
of the moon.
110

THEBAID, VI. 674-698

ever loved, not only when he attended his country's
famous festival, but he was wont to reckon the space
between Alpheos' either bank, and, where they are
most widely distant, to clear the river nor ever wet
the disk. At once, then, confident in his powers he
measures, not the rough acres of the plain, but the
sky's expanse with his right arm, and ^\^th either
knee bent earthward " he gathers up his strength and
whirls the disk above him and hides it in the clouds.
Swiftly it speeds aloft, and as though falHng grows
faster as it mounts ; ^ at last exhausted it returns to
earth more slowly from the height, and buries itself
in the field. So falls, whenever she is torn from the
astonished stars, the darkened sister of the sun ; " afar
the peoples beat the bronze for succour, and indulge
their fruitless fears, but the Thessalian hag triumphant
laughs at the panting steeds who obey her spell.
The Danai shout applause, though amid thy fro^vns,
Hippomedon, and he hopes for a mightier throw along
the level.<*

But thereupon Fortune, whose pleasure it is to
dash immoderate hopes, assails him ; what power
has man against the gods ? Already he was prepar-
ing a mighty throw, his head was turned and all his
side was swinging back * : the weight slipped and
fell before his feet and baffled his throw, and his
hand dropped empty and unavaihng. All groaned,
while to a few the sight brought pleasure. Mene-
stheus then, more cautious, brings careful skill to the

** Phle^-as's first throw Is a practice - throw, upwards
instead of *' on the flat '" (" in aequo ").

' i.e., his left side had been bent round towards the discus
in his right hand ; it has already begun to swing back into
place as he begins to throw.

Ill

STATIUS

cautior, et multum te, Maia crete, rogato
molis praevalidae castigat pulvere lapsus. 700

ilia manu magna et multo felicior exit,
nee partem exiguam circi transvecta quievit.
fit sonus, et fixa signatur terra sagitta.
tertius Hippomedon valida ad certamina tardos
molitur gressus ; namque ilium corde sub alto 705
et casus Phlegyae monet et fortuna Menesthei.
erigit adsuetum dextrae certamen,^ et alte
sustentans rigidumque latus fortesque lacertos
consulit ac vasto contorquet turbine, et ipse
prosequitur, fugit horrendo per inania saltu 710

iamque procul meminit dextrae servatque tenorem
discus, nee dubia iunctave Menesthea victum
transabiit meta : longe super aemula signa
consedit viridesque umeros et opaca theatri
culmina ceu latae tremefecit mole ruinae : 71.")

quale vaporifera saxum Polyphemus ab Aetna
lucis egente manu tamen in vestigia puppis
auditae iuxtaque inimicum exegit Ulixen.
sic et Aloidae, cum iam calcaret Olympum
desuper Ossa rigens, ipsum glaciale ferebant 720

Pelion et trepido sperabant iungere caelo.^
Tum genitus Talao victori tigrin inanem
ire iubet, fulvo quae circumfusa nitebat
margine et extremos auro mansueverat ungues.
Gnosiacos arcus habet et vaga tela Menestheus. 725
" at tibi " ait, " Phlegya, casu frustrate sinistro,
hunc, quondam nostri decus auxiliumque Pelasgi,

^ certamen P : gestamen w.

* Lines 719-721 are only found in late and inferior US!^.,
and are usually bracketed as spurious.

" Hermes ; see note on iv. 228.
112

THEBAID, VI. 699-727

attempt, and uttering many a prayer to thee, O son
of Maia," corrects with dust the shpperv surface of
the powerful mass. With far better fortune it speeds
from his huge hand, nor falls till it has covered no
mean extent of the course. They applaud, and an
arrow is fixed to mark the spot. Third, Hippomedon
■with slow and ponderous step advances to the labours
of the contest ; for deep in his heart he takes warning
from the fate of Phlegyas and the good fortune of
Menestheus. He lifts the instrimient of combat that
his hand knew well, and holding it aloft summons up
the strength of his unyielding side and \igorous arms,
and flings it \nih a mighty whirl, springing forward
after it himself. With a terrific bound the quoit
flies through the empty air, and even in its flight
remembers the hand that flung it and keeps to its
due path, nor attains a doubtful or a neighbouring
goal as it passes the defeated Menestheus, but far
beyond the rival sign it falls to earth, and makes
tremble the green buttresses and shady heights of
the theatre, as though they were falling in vast
and widespread ruin ; even so from smoke-emitting
Aetna did Polyphemus hurl the rock, though with
hand untaught of \ision, yet on the very track of
the ship he could but hear, and close to his enemy
Ulixes. Thus too the Aloidae, when rigid Ossa
already trod Ohnnpus under foot, bore icy Pelion also,
and hoped to join it to the frightened heaven.

Then the son of Talaus bids a tiger's skin go as
prize to the victor : all glossy it shone with a yellow
border, and its sharp claws were tamed with gold.
Menestheus receives a Gnosian bow and errant
shafts. " But to thee, Phlegyas," he cries, " whom
unlucky fortune foiled, we give this sword, once the
VOL. II . I 113

STATIUS

ferredamus,nequeenimHippomedoninviderit,ensem.
nunc opus est animis : infestos tollite caestus
comminus ; haec bellis et ferro proxima virtus." 730

Constitit ininianis cerni immanisque timeri
Argolicus Capaneus, ac dum nigrantia plumbo
tegmina cruda bourn non mollior ipse lacertis
induitur, " date tot iuvenum de milibus unum
hue " ait, " atque utinam potius de stirpe veniret 735
aemulus Aonia, queni fas demittere leto,
nee mea crudelis civili sanguine virtus."
obstipuere animi, fecitque silentia terror,
tandem insperatus nuda de plebe Laconum
prosilit Aleidamas, mirantur Dorica regum 740

agniina ; sed socii fretum PoUuce magistro
norant et sacras inter crevisse palaestras.
ipse deus posuitque manus et bracchia finxit —
materiae suadebat amor ; — tunc saepe locavit
comminus, et simili stantem miratus in ira 745

sustulit exsultans nudumque in pectora pressit.
ilium indignatur Capaneus ridetque vocantem
ut miserans, poscitque alium, tandemque coactus
restitit, et stimulis iam languida colla tumescunt.
fulmineas alte suspensi corpora plantis 75o

erexere manus ; tuto procul ora recessu
armorum in speculis, aditusque ad volnera clusi.
hie, quantum Tityos Stygiis consurgat ab arvis,
si torvae patiantur aves, tanta undique pandit
membrorum spatia et tantis ferus ossibus exstat. 755
hie paulo ante puer, sed enim maturius aevo

" " crudelis " here seems to have the meaning of " crudus "'
(from " cruor ").

'' Cf. iv. 239, where the Spartans are said to be trained by
Mercury, the patron god of the wrestling-ground, in the
modes of naked valour.
114

THEBAID, VI. 728-756

iry and aid of our Pelasgus, nor will Hippomedon
uiudge it thee. And now is courage needed ;
wield ye the terrible cestus in close conflict ;
\alour here comes nighest to that of battle and
I he sword."

Argive Capaneus took his stand — a^\'ful his aspect,
awful the terror he inspires — ^and, binding on his
arms the raw ox-hide black -with lumps of lead,
himself no softer, " Send me one," says he, " from
all those thousands of warriors ; and would rather
that my rival were of Aonian stock, whom it were
right to slay, and that my valour were not stained "
with kindred blood." They stood aghast and terror
made them silent. At last Alcidamas, unexpected,
leapt forth from the naked ^ crowd of Laconians, while
the Dorian princes marvel ; but his comrades knew
he relied on his master Pollux, and had gro\\Ti up in
the wresthng-school of a god. Pollux himself guided
his hands and moulded his arms — love of the sport
constrained him — and oft he set him against himself,
and admiring him as he stood up in like mood caught
him up exultant, and pressed his naked body to his
breast. Capaneus thinks scorn of him and mocks at
his challenge, as though in pity, and demands another
foe ; at last perforce he faces him, and now his languid
neck swells at anger's prompting. With bodies poised
at their full height they lift their hands, deadly as
thunderbolts ; safe withdrawn are their faces on
their shoulders, ever watching, and closed is the
approach to wounds. The one is as great in broad
expanse of every limb and terrible in size of bone
as though Tityos should rise up from the Stygian
fields, did the fierce birds allow him ; the other was
lately but a boy, yet his strength is riper than his

115

STATIUS

robur, et ingentes spondet tener impetus annos,
quemvincihaudquisquamsaevo neque sanguinetingui
malit, et erecto timeat spectacula voto.

Ut sese permensi oculis et uterque priorem 760 "
speravere locum, non protinus ira nee ictus : j

alternus paulum timor et permixta furori |

consilia, inclinant tantum contraria iactu ;

bracchia et explorant caestus hebetantque terendo. '
doctior hie difFert animum metuensque futuri 76o
cunctatus vires dispensat : at ille nocendi
prodigus incautusque sui ruit omnis et ambas
consumit sine lege manus atque inrita fi-endit
insurgens seque ipse premit. sed providus astu
et patria vigil arte Lacon hos reicit ictus, TTd

hos cavet ; interdum nutu capitisque citati
integer obsequio, manibus nunc obvia tela
discutiens, instat gressu voltuque recedit :
saepe etiam iniustis conlatum viribus hostem —
is vigor ingenio, tanta experientia dextrae est— 775
ultro audax animis intratque^ et obumbrat et alte ^
adsilit. ut praeceps cumulo salit unda minantes ]■
in scopulos et fracta redit, sic ille furentem
circuit expugnans ; levat ecce diuque minatur
in latus inque oculos ; ilium rigida arma caventem 780
avocat ac manibus necopinum interserit ictum
^ intratque Pw. : instatque late mss.

" i.e., that Alcidamas would win. For " quisque " to be
supplied after "nemo " cf. Orelli's note on Hor. Sat. i. 1. 1.

* They have not yet begun boxing in earnest, but are just
sparring and rubbing glove against glove.

" E. H. Alton would transpose " intrat " and " instat,"

116

THEBAID, VI. 757-781

years, and his youthful vigour gives promise of a
mighty manhood ; him would none wish to see
defeated nor stained with cruel gore, but each man
fears the spectacle with eager prayers.*

Scanning each other with their gaze and each
awaiting the first opening, they fell not at once to
angry blows, but stayed awhile in mutual fear, and
mingled caution with tlieir rage ; they but incline
their arms against each other as they spar, and make
trial of their gloves, dulling them with mere rubs.*
The one, more skilfully trained, puts by his fury, and
taking thought for the future delays and husbands
up his strength ; but the other, prodigal of harm and
reckless of his powers, rushes with all his might and
in wild blows exhausts both arms, and attacks with
fruitless gnashing of teeth, and injures his own cause.
But the Laconian, prudent and crafty, and with all
his country's vigilance, now parries, now avoids the
blow ; sometimes by the throwing back or rapid
bending of his head he shuns all hurt, now with his
hands he beats off the aimed assault, and advances
with his feet while keeping his head drawn back."^
Often again, as his foe engages him with superior
power — such strength is in his cunning, such skill in
his right hand — with bold initiative he enters his
guard and overshadows him, and towering high assails
him. Just as a mass of water hurls itself headlong
on a threatening rock, and falls back broken, so does
he wheel round his angry foe, breaking his defence ;
look ! he lifts his hand and threatens a long time his
face or side, and thus by fear of his hard weapons
diverts his guard and cunningly plants a sudden blow,

contrasting the former with "recedit": "he stands up to
him with his footwork, but keeps his head out of reach."

117

STATIUS

callidus et mediam designat volnere frontem :
iam cruor, et tepido signantur tempora rivo.
nescit adhuc Capaneus subitumqueper agmina murmur
miratur ; verum ut fessam super ora reduxit 785

forte manum et summo maculas in vellere vidit,
non leo, non iaculo tantum indignata recepto
tigris : agit toto cedentem fervidus arvo
praecipitatque retro iuvenem atque in terga supinat,
dentibus horrendum stridens, geminatque rotatas 790
multiplicatque manus. rapiunt conamina venti,
pars cadit in caestus ; motu Spartanus acuto
mille cavet lapsas circum cava tempora mortes
auxilioque pedum, sed non tamen immemor artis
adversus fugit et fugiens tamen ictibus obstat. 795
Et iam utrumque labor suspiriaque aegra fatigant.
tardius ille premit, nee iam hie absistere^ velox,
defectique ambo genibus pariterque quierunt.
sic ubi longa vagos lassarunt aequora nautas
et signum de puppe datum, posuere parumper 800
bracchia : vix requies, iam vox citat altera remos.
ecce iterum immodice venientem eludit et exit
sponte ruens mersusque umeris : efFunditur ille
in caput, adsurgentem alio puer improbus ictu
perculit eventuque impalluit ipse secundo. 805

clamorem Inachidae, quantum non litora, tollunt,
non nemora. ilium ab humo conantem ut vidit
Adrastus

^ absistere Poj : obsistere Baehrens.

" i.e., Capaneus, of course ; Alcidamas crouches (for
*' mersus umeris" cf. "colla demersere umeris," 1. 850) and
rushes at Capaneus, who pitches forward over the Spartan's

118

THEBAID, VI. 782-807

and marks the middle of his forehead with a wound ;
blood flows, and the warm stream stains his temples.
Capaneus, yet ignorant, wonders at the sudden
murmur of the crowd, but when, as he chanced to
draw his weary hand across his face, he saw the
stains upon the cowhide, no lion nor tiger feeling the
javelin's smart was e'er so mad ; hotly he drives the
youth before him in headlong retreat over the whole
field, and is forcing him on to his back ; terribly
he grinds his teeth and whirls his fists in countless
repeated blows. The strokes are wasted on the
winds, some fall on the gloves of his foe ; with
active movement and aid of nimble feet the Spartan
eludes the thousand deaths that shower about his
temples, yet not unmindful of his art he flees
still fighting, and though fleeing meets blows with
blows.

And now both are wearied with the toil and their
exhausted panting ; slower the one pursues, nor is
the other so swift to escape ; the knees of both fail
them and alike they rest. Thus when long wandering
o'er the sea has wearied the mariners, the signal is
given from the stern and they rest their arms awhile ;
but scarce have they taken repose, when another
cry summons them to the oars again. Lo I a
second time he makes a furious dash, but the other
tricks him and goes at him with a rush of his own
and sinking into his shoulders ; forward he <* pitches on
his head, and as he rises the merciless boy smote him
another blow and himself grew pale at his success.
The Inachidae raise a shout louder than the noise of
shore or forest. But when Adrastus saw him

head. This rush of Alcidamas is the " first " blow, and
explains "alio," 1. 804.

119

ST ATI us

tollentemque manus et non toleranda paranteni :
" ite, oro, socii, furit, ite, opponite dextras,
festinate, furit, palmamque et praemia ferte ! 810
non prius, efFracto quam misceat ossa cerebro,
absistet, video, moriturum auferte Lacona."
nee mora, prorumpit Tydeus, nee iussa recusat
Hippomedon ; tunc vix ambo conatibus ambas
restringunt cohibentque manus ac plurima suadent :
" vineis, abi ; pulchrum vitam donare minori. 816

noster et hie bellique comes." nil frangitur heros,
ramumque oblatumque manu thoraca repellit
vociferans : " liceat ! non has ego pulvere crasso
atque cruore genas, meruit quibus iste favorem 820
semivir,^ infodiam mittamque informe sepulcro
corpus et Oebaho donem lugere magistro ? "
dicit ; at hunc socii tumidum et vicisse negantem
avertunt, contra laudant insignis alumnum
Taygeti longeque minas risere Lacones. 825

lamdudum variae laudes et conscia virtus
Tydea magnanimum stimuhs urgentibus angunt.
ille quidem et disco bonus et contendere cursu,
nee caestu bellare minor, sed corde^ labores
ante ahos erat uncta pale, sic otia Martis 830

degere et armiferas laxare adsueverat iras
ingentes contra ille viros Acheloia circum
litora feUcesque deo monstrante palaestras.
ergo ubi luctandi iuvenes animosa citavit

^ iste favorem semivir w : ista iuventa semivir P : ista
iuventa semiviri Klotz. Garrod defends P in J. Ph. iviii.
* corde Pw : cara Markland : cura Garrod.

" i.e., Pollux (Oebalian= Spartan).
120

THEBAID, VI. 808-8*4

struggling from the ground, and lifting his hands,
intent on hideous deeds ; " Haste, friends, I pray
you, he is mad I hasten, prevent him ! he is out of
his mind — quick I bring the palm and the prizes !
He will not cease, I see well, till he pounds the
brain within the shattered skull. Rescue the doomed
Laconian I " At once Tydeus darts forth, and
Hippomedon, obedient to command ; then scarce
do the two with all their might master his two arms
and bind them fast, and forcefully urge him : " Leave
the field, thou art victorious ; 'tis noble to spare the
vanquished. He too is one of us, and a comrade in
the war." But no whit is the hero's fury lessened ;
he thrusts away the proftered branch and the cuirass,
and shouts : " Let me free I Shall I not smash in
gore and clotted dust those cheeks whereby that
eunuch-boy gained favour, and send his unsightly
corpse to the tomb, and give cause for mourning to
his Oebalian masters " ? " So says he, but his
friends force hina away, swelling with wrath and
protesting that he has not conquered, while the
Laconians praise the nursUng of famed Taygetus,
and laugh loud at the other's threats.

Long time have the varied deeds of valour and his
own conscious worth provoked with urgent stings
great-hearted Tydeus ; both at the quoit and in
speed of foot did he excel, nor less was he a champion
of the boxing-glove, but before all other sports the
anointed wrestUng-match was dear. Thus had he
been wont to spend the leisure intervals of fighting
and relax his martial ire, and with mighty heroes
on the banks of Achelous did he strive, heaven-
taught, in many a victorious bout. Therefore when
keen ambition called the youths to wrestle, the

121

STATIUS

gloria, terrificos umeris Aetolus amictus 835

exuitur patriumque suem. levat ardua contra
membra Cleonaeae stirpis iactator Agylleus,
Herculea nee mole minor, sic grandibus alte
insurgens umeris hominem super improbus exit,
sed non ille rigor patriumque in corpore robur : 840
luxuriant artus, effusaque sanguine laxo
membra natant ; unde haec audax fiducia tantum
Oenidae superare parem. quamquam ipse videri
exiguus, gravia ossa tamen nodisque lacerti
difficiles. numquam hunc animum natura minori 845
corpore nee tantas ausa est includere vires.

Postquam oleo gavisa cutis, petit aequor uterque
procursu medium atque hausta vestitur harena.
tum madidos artus alterno pulvere siccant,
collaque demersere umeris et bracchia late 850

vara tenent. iam tunc astu deducit in aequum
callidus et celsum procurvat Agyllea Tydeus,
submissus tergo et genibus vicinus harenae.
ille autem, Alpini \ eluti regina cupressus
verticis urgenti cervicem inclinat in austro^ 855

vix sese radice tenens, terraeque propinquat,
iamdudum aetherias eadem reditura sub auras :
non secus ingentes artus praecelsus Agylleus
sponte premit parvumque gemens duplicatur in

hostem,
et iam alterna manus frontemque umerosque latusque

^ in austro Baehrens : in austros Pw.

° From Cleonae, the scene of Hercules' first exploit, the
Nemean lion ; i.e. — Herculean.

* " sanguine laxo " seems to express the opposite of
" close-knit," i.e., flabbiness, softness of flesh.

122

f

THEBAID, VI. 835-860

Aetolian puts off the terrible covering of native
boar-hide from his shoulders. Against hira Agylleus,
who boasts of Cleonaean " stock, raises his tall limbs,
no less in bulk than Hercules, so loftily he towers
\nth huge shoulders and monstrously surpasses
human measure. But he lacks his father's close-
knit strength of body ; loose-limbed and overgrown
is he, unsteady and soft of muscle* ; hence is Oenides*'
boldly confident to overthrow so mighty an antagonist.
Though slight himself to look upon, yet he is heavy
of bone and hard and sinewy of arm : never did nature
dare enclose so fiery a spirit or so great force in so
small a frame.

When their skins had taken pleasure in the oil,
both ran forward to the middle of the plain and clad
themselves in showers of sand ; then >\'ith the dust
they dr}' their wet limbs in turn, and sink their necks
into their shoulders and hold out their arms Nnde-
branching. At once Tydeus Mith cunning craft
stoops his own body, his knees near touching the
sand, and so draws down the tall Agylleus and makes
him bend to his own level. But just as the CA'press,
queen of the Alpine height, inchnes her summit to
the south A^ind's pressure, scarce holding by her
root, and nears the ground, yet soon springs up again
into the air — not otherwise does towering Agylleus of
his own -s^ill force down his huge limbs and groaning "*
bend double over his httle foe ; and now, first one,
then the other, their hands attack brow and shoulder

' i.e., Tydeus.

•* Not from pain, but because, as Cicero says, " profun-
denda voce corpus intenditur venitque plaga vehementior "
{Tusc. ii. 23.56), i.e., uttering a sound makes the body strained
up and taut, and helps the force of the blow (in boxing).

123

STATIUS

collaque pectoraque et vitantia crura lacessit. 861
interdumque diu pendent per mutua fulti
bracchia, nunc saevi digitorum vincula frangunt.
non sic ductores gemini gregis horrida tauri
bella movent ; medio coniunx stat Candida prato 865
victorem exspectans, rumpunt obnixa furentes
pectora, subdit amor stimulos et volnera sanat :
fulmineo sic dente sues, sic hispida turpes
proelia villosis ineunt complexibus ursi.
vis eadem Oenidae ; nee sole aut pulvere fessa 870
membra labant, riget arta cutis durisque laborum
castigata toris. contra non integer ille
flatibus alternis aegroque efFetus hiatu
exuit ingestas fluvio sudoris harenas
ac furtim rapta sustentat pectora terra. 875

instat agens Tydeus fictumque in colla minatus
crura subit ; coeptis non evaluere potiri
frustratae brevitate manus, venit arduus ille
desuper oppressumque ingentis mole ruinae
condidit. baud aliter collis scrutator Hiberi 880

cum subiit longeque diem vitamque reliquit,
si tremuit suspensus ager subitumque fragorem
rupta dedit tellus, latet intus monte soluto
obrutus, ac penitus fractum obtritumque cadaver
indignantem animam propriis non reddidit astris,
acrior hoc Tydeus, animisque et pectore supra est,
nee mora, cum vinclis onerique elapsus iniquo 887
circuit errantem et tergo necopinus inhaeret,

" i.e., makes them not to be felt.
124

THEBAID, VI. 861-888

and side and neck and breast and legs that evade the
clutch. Sometimes they hang a long while locked in
each other's grip, now savagely they seek to break the
fingers' clasp. Less fiercely do two bulls, the leaders
of the herd, make war ; in the meadow stands the
fair white heifer and awaits the \ictor, while their
breasts are torn in the mad struggle, and love plies
the goad and heals their wounds " ; so do boars fight
with flashing tusks, so do ugly bears grasp shaggj*
hides in hairy conflict. So \iolent is Oenides ;
neither dust nor heat of sun makes his limbs faint
and wear^-, but his skin is close-knit and firm, and
schooled by toil to hard muscle. But the other,
unsound in wind, pants hea\'ily, and breathes sickly
gasps in his exhaustion, and the caked sand runs off
him in streams of sweat, while furtively he snatches
support for his body from the ground. On him Tydeus
constantly presses, and feinting at his neck catches
at his legs, but his arms were baffled by their short-
ness and failed in their design, while all the other's
towering height came do^vn upon him, and crushed
and buried him under the huge falling mass. Just
as when the Iberian ^ miner burrows beneath a hill
and leaves far behind the U\ing day, then? if the
suspended ground has rocked and the tunnelled earth
crashed do^v'n with sudden roar, overwhelmed by
the fallen mount he lies within, nor ever does his
crushed and utterly broken corpse deliver up the
indignant soul to its own skies. More \'igorous is
Tydeus than his foe, and superior in spirited valour ;
nor is it long before he has slipped from the other's
hold and unequal weight, and encompassing him as
he hesitates fastens suddenly on his back, then

* Spain was famous for its mines.

125

STATIUS

mox latus et firmo celer implicat ilia nexu,
poplitibus genua inde premens evadere nodos 890
nequiquam et lateri dextram insertare parantem
improbus, horrendum visu ac mirabile pondus,
sustulit. Herculeis pressum sic fama lacertis
terrigenam sudasse Libyn, cum fraude reperta
raptus in excelsum, nee iam spes ulla cadendi, 895
nee licet extrema matrem contingere planta.
fit sonus, et laetos adtollunt agmina plausus.
tunc alte librans inopinum sponte remisit
obliquumque dedit, procumbentemque secutus
colla simul dextra, pedibus simul inguina vinxit. 900
deficit obsessus soloque pudore repugnat.
tandem pectus humi pronamque extensus in alvum
sternitur, ac longo maestus post tempore surgit,
turpia signata linquens vestigia terra,
palmam autem dextra laevaque nitentia dono 90a
arma ferens Tydeus : "quid si non sanguinis huius
partem haud exiguam — scitis- — Dircaeus haberet
campus, ubi hae nuper Thebarum foedera plagae ? "
haec simul ostentans quaesitaque praemia laudum
dat sociis, sequitur neglectus Agyllea thorax. 910

Sunt et qui nudo subeant concurrere ferro.
iamqu* aderant instructi armis Epidaurius Agreus
et nondum fatis Dircaeus agentibus exsul.
dux vetat lasides : " manet ingens copia leti,
o iuvenes ! servate animos avidumque furorem 915

" Antaeus. He was a son of Earth, and derived all his
strength from contact with her. Hercules' "trick," there-
fore, was to deprive him of strength by keeping him lifted
up above the ground.

* i.e., " what would have happened to him if I had not
suffered loss of blood ? " ; the reference is to his adventures as
an envoy (hence " foedera ") at Thebes (see Bk. ii.).

126

THEBAID, VI. 889-915

swiftly enfolds sides and groin in a firm embrace and
grips his knees between his thighs, and relentlessly,
as he struggles in vain to escape from the grasp and
force his hand against his side — a burden wonderful
and terrible to see — raises him aloft. So, fame tells,
did Hercules hold fast in his arms the sweating earth-
born Libyan," when he found the trick and snatched
him up on high, and left him no hope of falling, nor
suffered him to touch even with his foot's extremity
his mother earth. A shout arises and glad applause
from the multitude. Then, poising him aloft,
suddenly of his own will he looked him and threw him
sideways, and following him as he fell seized his neck
%\'ith his right hand and his middle between his legs.
Thus beset, his spirit fails, and only shame drives him
to struggle. At last he lies extended, A\ith breast and
belly prone on the ground, and a long time after
sadly rises, lea\ing the marks of his disgrace on the
imprinted earth. But Tydeus, bearing the palm in
his right hand and in his left the prize of shining
armour : " What if the plain of Dirce held not no
small measure of my blood — as well ye know — where
of late these scars made treaty ^Wth Thebes * ? " So
speaking he displays the scars, and gives to his
comrades the glorious rewards that he had won,
while the spurned corselet follows Agvlleus from the
field.

There are some, too, who advance to combat with
the naked sword. And already were they taking
their stand, fully armed, Agreus from Epidaurus,
and the Dircaean exile, not yet doomed by fate.
But the chieftain, the son of lasus, forbids them :
*■ Great store of death remains, O youths, preserve
your warlike temper and your mad desire for a foe-

127

ST ATI us

sanguinis adversi. tuque o, quern propter avita
iugera, dilectas cui desolavimus urbes,
ne, precor, ante aciem ius tantum casibus esse
fraternisque sinas— abigant hoc numina ! — votis."
sic ait, atque ambos aurata casside ditat. 920

turn generum, ne laudis egens, iubet ardua necti
tempora Thebarumque ingenti voce citari
victorem : dirae recinebant^ omnia Parcae.

Ipsum etiam proprio certamina festa labore
dignari et tuniulo supremum hunc addere honorem
hortantur proceres ac, ne victoria desit 926

una ducum numero, fundat vel Lyctia cornu
tela rogant, tenui vel nubila transeat hasta.
obsequitur gaudens, viridique ex aggere in aecum
stipatus summis iuvenum descendit ; at illi 930

pone leves portat pharetras et cornua iussus
armiger : ingentem iactu transmittere circum
eminus et dictae dare vulnera destinat orno.

Quis fluere occultis rerum neget omina causis ?
fata patent homini, piget inservare, peritque 935

venturi praemissa^ fides : sic omina^ casum
fecimus, et vires hausit^ Fortuna nocendi.

Campum emensa brevi fatalis ab arbore tacta,
horrendum visu, per quas modo fugerat auras,
venit harundo retro versumque a fine tenorem 940
pertulit, et notae iuxta ruit ora pharetrae.

^ recinebant P : retinebant ui.
^ praemissa P : promissa w.
' omina w : omnia PB, * hausit PS : auxit w.

" Alton suggests " Thebanum " here, finding the omen in
the ambiguity of the word, as meaning either Polynices or
his brother.

128

THEBAID, VI. 916-941

man's blood. And thou, for whose sake we have laid
bare our ancestral acres and our beloved cities, give
not, I pray thee, such power to chance before the
fight begins, nor — may the gods forfend it ! — to thy
brother's prayers." Thus he speaks, and enriches
them both with a golden helm. Then lest his son-
in-law lack praise, he bids his lofty temples be
garlanded, and himself proclaimed aloud \-ictor of
Thebes <• : the dire Fates echoed back the ominous
sound.

The monarch himself also do the princes urge to
dignify with some exploit of his own the festal con-
tests, and to confer this final honour on the tomb ;
they bid him, lest one victory be lacking to the
number of the leaders, to shoot Lyctian * arrows from
his bow, or to cleave the clouds vvith the slender
spear. Gladly he accedes, and thronged about by
the foremost warriors descends from the green mound
to the level plain ; his armour-bearer at command
bears after him his light quiver and his bow : he
prepares to shoot the circus' mighty length, and to
plant wounds upon an appointed ash-tree.

Who will deny that omens flow from the hidden
causes of things to come ? The fates lie open to
mankind, but we choose not to take heed, and the
proof foreshown is wasted ; thus turn we omens into
chance, and from hence Fortune draws her power of
harm.

The fateful arrow in a moment measured the plain
and struck the tree, and then — avvful to behold I —
came back through the air it but now had traversed
and turning homeward from the goal kept on its way,
and fell by the mouth of its well-known quiver.
* i.e., Cretan.
VOL. u K 129

ST ATI us

multa duces errore serunt : hi nubila et altos
occurrisse notos, adversi roboris ictu
tela repulsa alii, penitus latet exitus ingens
monstratumque nefas : uni remeabile bellum 945
et tristes domino spondebat harundo recursus.

I

i

130

THEBAID, VI. 942-946

Much talk the princes interchange in error : some
say the clouds and the winds on high did meet and
drive the shaft, others that the impact of the wood
repelled it. Deep hidden lies the mighty issue and
the awful truth foretold : to its master only did the
arrow vouchsafe survival, and a sad returning from
the war.

131

LIBER VII

Atque ea cunctantes Tyrii primordia belli
luppiter haud aequo respexit corde Pelasgos,
concussitque caput, motu quo celsa laborant
sidera proclamatque adici cervicibus Atlas,
tunc ita velocem Tegees adfatus alumnum : 5

'i, medium rapido Borean inlabere saltu
Bistonias, puer, usque domos axemque nivosi
sideris, Oceano vetitum qua Parrhasis ignem
nubibus hibernis et nostro pascitur imbri.
atque ibi seu posita respirat cuspide Mavors, 10

quamquam invisa quies, seu, quod reor,arma tubasque
insatiatus habet^ caraeque in sanguine gentis
luxuriat : propere monitus iramque parentis
ede, nihil parcens. nempe olim accendere iussus
Inachias acies atque omne, quod Isthmius umbo 15
distinct et raucae circumtonat ira Maleae :
illi vix muros limenque egressa inventus
sacra colunt ; credas bello rediisse, tot instant
plausibus, ofFensique sedent ad iusta sepulcri.
hicne tuus, Gradive, furor ? sonat orbe recusso 20

^ habet Pw : havet Schrader : obit Baehrens : hiat Garrod.

" Callisto of Parrhasus in Arcadia, who was turned into a
bear and made the constellation of Ursa Major.

* The strange phrase appears to express the love of the
132

BOOK VII

As thus they tarried at the outset of the T}Tian
war, Jupiter turned on the Pelasgians his ^^-rathful
gaze and shook his head, at the movement of which
the high stars tremble and Atlas cries that his
shoulders' burden is increased. Then thus did he
address the speedy Tegean : " Go, boy, and swiftly
leaping ghde through the North as far as the Bistonian
dwelhngs and the snowy constellations of the pole,
where the Parrhasian ^ feeds her Ocean-barred fires
on storm-clouds and Heaven's own rain. And there,
whether Mars has laid aside his spear and draws
breath again — though repose be hateful to him — or
whether, as I think, he has his arms and his trumpets,
whereof he never tires, and is wantoning in the blootl
of his beloved tribe, ** haste thou to deliver the angry
message of his sire, and spare nought. Surely long
■-ince was he bidden to inflame the Inachian host, and
all that the rock of Isthmus holds apart and the
thunderous >vTath of echoing Malea encompasses ;
yet scarce hath their army passed the boundary of
their walls and they hold sacred festival ; one would
deem they had returned from war, so keen is their
applause, as they attend the rites of an offended
tomb. Is this thy rage, Gradivus ? The round

War-God for the warrior people (the Thracians), and also
his joy in bloodshed for its own sake.

133

STATIUS

discus et Oebalii coeunt in proelia caestus.
at si ipsi rabies ferrique insana voluptas
qua tumet, immeritas cineri dabit impius urbes
ferrum ignemque ferens, implorantesque Tonantem
sternet humi populos iniserumque exhauriet orbem.
nunc lenis belli nostraque remittitur ira. 26

quodni praecipitat pugnas dictoque iubentis
ocius impingit Tyriis Danaa agmina muris —
nil equidem crudele minor — , sit mite bonumque
numen, et efFreni laxentur in otia mores, 30

reddat equos ensemque mihi, nee sanguinis ultra
ius erit : aspieiam terras pacemque iubebo
omnibus; Ogygio sat erit Tritonia bello."

Dixerat, et^ Thracum Cyllenius arva subibat ;
atque ilium Arctoae labentem cardine portae 35

tempestas aeterna plagae praetentaque caelo
agmina nimborum primique Aquilonis hiatus
in diversa ferunt : crepat aurea grandine multa
palla, nee Arcadii bene protegit umbra galeri.
hie steriles delubra notat Mavortia silvas — 40

horreseitque tuens— , ubi mille furoribus illi
eingitur averso domus immansueta sub Haemo.
ferrea compago laterum, ferro apta^ teruntur
limina, ferratis incumbunt tecta columnis.

1 et Pw : at KQ. ^ apta P : arta w.

" See note on vi. 822.

** Theban. "Tritonia": i.e., Pallas Athena, the warhke
goddess; the name was derived from a lake in Libya,
where she was born, according to one legend.

« Statins uses " cardo " here not in its literal sense of
"hinge," though "portae" follows, but as = " pole" (so
Lucan often). The North is one of the poles or turning-
points of the world, and also a gate or entrance into the

134

THEBAID, VII. 21-44

quoit crashes and reverberates, and the Oebalian"
gloves meet in the boxing-match. But if he really
hath that boasted fury and mad joy in battle, then
ruthlessly will he lay innocent towns in ashes, "svield-
ing sword and fire, and strike the peoples to the ground
while they implore the Thunderer, and exhaust the
miserable world. Now he is lenient in warfare and
he grows slack though I am angry : but if he hastens
not the fight and hiu-ls not, more swiftly than the
word of my command, the Danaan ranks against the
T\Tian walls — A\ith nought cruel do I threaten him —
let his power be all for kindliness and goodness. and liis
ungovemed rage be slackened to quietness and peace,
let him return me his horses and his sword, nor have
right of bloodshed any more : I will look upon the
earth, and bid all cease from strife; for the Ogygian ''
war Tritonia will suffice."

He had spoken, and the Cyllenian was dra^ving
nigh the fields of Thrace ; down-ghding from the
gate of the Northern pole '^ he is driven this way and
that by the region's everlasting tempest and the
serried storm-clouds ranged athwart the sky and the
first blasts of Aquilo : the pouring hail rattles upon
his golden robe and ill does the shady hat <* of Arcady
protect him. Here he observes barren forests, the
sacred haunts of Mars — and he shudders as he looks
— where on the far slopes of Haemus his savage
mansion is ringed by a thousand furies. The walls
are of iron structure, iron portals bear upon tlie
threshold, the roof is carried by colvmins wrought of

sky, as being the nearest point to it ; the two ideas are
combined in the one phrase.

■* i.e., the broad -brimmed hat known as "petasus,"
regularly worn by Mercury.

135

STATIUS

laeditur adversum Phoebi iubar, ipsaque sedem 45
lux timet, et durus contristat sidera fulgor.
digna loco statio : primis salit Impetus amens
e foribus caecumque Nefas Iraeque rubentes
exsanguesque Metus, occultisque ensibus adstant
Insidiae geminumque tenens Discordia ferrum. 50
innumeris strepit aula Minis, tristissima Virtus
stat medio, laetusque Furor voltuque cruento
Mors armata sedet ; bellorum solus in aris
sanguis et incensis qui raptus ab urbibus ignis,
terrarum exuviae circum, et fastigia templi 55

captae insignibant gentes, caelataque ferro
fragmina portarum bellatrieesque carinae,
et vacui currus protritaque curribus ora,
paene etiam gemitus : adeo vis omnis et omne
vulnus. ubique ipsum, sed non usquam ore remisso
cernere erat : talem divina Mulciber arte 61

ediderat; nondum radiis monstratus adulter
foeda catenato luerat conubia lecto.

Quaerere templorum regem vix coepei-at ales
Maenalius, tremit eece solum et mugire refractis 65
corniger Hebrus aquis ; tunc quod pecus utile bello
vallem infestabat, trepidas spumare per herbas,
signa adventantis, clausaeque adamante perenni
dissiluere fores. Hyrcano in sanguine pulcher
ipse subit curru, diraque adspargine latos 70

mutat agros, spolia a tergo flentesque catervae :

" Statins is thinking of the pediment of some temple; he
appears to describe now carvings, now real things. No
doubt he has Virg. Aen. vi. 183 sqq. in his mind.

* Mulciber (Vulcan) was the architect and craftsman of
the gods (c/. Milton, P.L. i. 730 sqq.); he had here given
Mars of his best work, because he had not yet been offended

136

THEBAID, VII. 45-71

iron. The rays of Phoebus are weakened when they
meet it, the ver\' hght fears that dwelHng, and its
murky glare dismays the stars. Fit sentinels hold
watch there: from the outer gate wild Passion leaps,
and bhnd Mischief and Angers flushing red and
pallid Fear, and Treachery lurks with hidden sword,
and Discord holding a two-edged blade. Threaten-
ings innumerable make clamour in the court, sullen
\'alour stands in the midst, and Rage exultant and
armed Death with blood-stained visage are seated
there ; no blood but that of wars is on the altars, no
fire but snatched from burning cities. All around were
spoils of every land, and captured peoples adorned
the temple's high front," and fragments of iron-
^vTought gates and ships of war and empty chariots
and faces ground by chariot-wheels, ay, almost even
their groans ! truly every form of violence and wounds.
Himself was everywhere to behold, but nowhere ^ith
softened looks ; in such mse had Mulciber with
divine skill portrayed him : not yet had the adulterer,
made manifest by the sun's bright beams, atoned his
shameful union in the bed's grasping chains.*

Scarce had the winged Maenalian begun to seek
the temple's lord — lo ! earth trembles, and horned
Hebrus bellows and stays his torrent's flow ; then all
the war-steeds that troubled the valley sped foaming
o'er the frightened meads, sure sign of his approach,
and the gates barred with everlasting adamant flew
open. Glorious in Hyrcanian gore he himself comes
riding by ; far and wide the dire bespattering changes
the aspect of the fields, behind him are borne spoils

by Mars' intrigue with Venus, his wife : on that occasion
he had caught them together by means of a cunning
ned he had made himself, r/. Horn. Od. viii. 266 sqq.

137

STATIUS

dant silvae nixque alta locum ; regit atra iugales

sanguinea Bellona manu longaque fatigat

cuspide. deriguit visu Cyllenia proles

submisitque genas : ipsi reverentia patri, 75

si prope sit, dematque minas nee talia mandet.

" quod lovis imperium, magno quid ab aethere

portas ? "
occupat Armipotens " neque enim hunc, germane,

sub axem
sponte venis hiemesque meas, cui roscida iuxta
Maenala et aestivi clementior aura Lycaei." 80

ille refert consulta patris. nee longa moratus,
sicut anhelabant, iuncto sudore volantes
Mars impellit equos, resides in proelia Graios
ipse etiam indignans. vidit pater altus et irae^
iam levior tardo flectebat pondere vultum : 85

ut si quando ruit debellatasque relinquit
Eurus aquas, pax ipsa tumet pontumque iaeentem
exanimis iam volvit hiemps : nondum arma carinis^
omnia, nee toto respirant pectore nautae.

Finierat pugnas honor exsequialis inermes, 90

necdum aberant coetus, cunctisque silentibus heros
vina solo fundens cinerem placabat Adrastus
Arehemori : " da, parve, tuum trieteride multa
instaurare diem, nee saucius Arcadas aras
malit adire Pelops Eleaque pulset eburna 95

templa manu, nee Castaliis altaribus anguis,
nee sua pinigero magis adnatet umbra Lechaeo.

^ irae Peyrared : ira Pw.
^ carinis w : om. P (quiescunt in margin).

" i.e., let not the festivals of Olympia, Delphi, or the
Isthmus be more honoured. For Pelops see n. on iv. 590.
The snake is the Python slain by Apollo, the shade that of
Palaemon.

138

THEBAID, VII. 72-97

and weeping throngs ; forests and deep snows give
him room ; '\\ith bloody hand dark Bellona guides
tae team and plies them hard with her long spear.
The offspring of Cyllene grew stiff with terror at the
sight, and cast down his eyes : ay, even the Father
himself would feel awe, were he present, and would
forgo his threats nor command so sternly. First spake
the Lord of War: "What decree of Jove, what
message bringest thou from the vast heaven ? For
not of thine own will comest thou, O brother, to this
cHme and to my wintry storms, thou whose home
is dewy Maenalus and the kindUer air of warm
Lycaeus." He reports his sire's resolve. Nor does
Mars long delay, but drives forward his flying steeds,
all panting as they were and sweating together
'neath the yoke, himself indignant that the Greeks
were sluggish to begin the war. The Father on
high beheld, and abating now his anger let his
head sink with slow weight : as when the East
wind sinks to rest and leaves the waters it has
vanquished, yet even in calm the waters swell and
the departed storm yet rolls the surface of the deep ;
not yet have the vessels all their tackling set, nor
do the mariners draw a full breath again.

The funeral rites had brought an end to the un-
armed combats, but the crowds were not gone away,
when amid universal silence the hero Adrastus poured
wine upon the ground and propitiated the ashes of
Archemorus : " Grant, little one, that this day may
be renewed at many a triennial feast ; let not
maimed Pelops prefer to seek Arcadian altars or
knock at Elean temples with his ivory arm, nor the
serpent rather glide to the Castalian shrine, nor its
own shade to the pine-groves of Lechaeum." We

139

STATIUS

nos te lugenti, puer, infitiamur Averho,
maestaque perpetuis sollemnia iungimus astris,
nunc festina cohors. at si Boeotia ferro 100

vertere tecta dabis, magnis tunc dignior aris,
tunc deus, Inachias nee tantum culta per urbes
numina, captivis etiam iurabere Thebis."
dux ea pro cunctis, eadem sibi quisque vovebat.

lam pronis Gradivus equis Ephyraea premebat 105
litora, qua summas caput Acrocorinthos in auras
tollit et alterna geminum mare protegit umbra,
inde unum dira comitum de plebe Pavorem
quadripedes anteire iubet : non alter anhelos
insinuare metus animoque avertere vires^ 110

aptior ; innumerae monstro vocesque manusque
et facies quamcumque velit; bonus omnia credi
auctor et horrificis lymphare incursibus urbes.
si geminos soles ruituraque suadeat astra,
aut nutare solum aut veteres descendere silvas, 115
a ! miseri vidisse putant. tunc acre novabat
ingenium : falso Nemeaeum pulvere campum
erigit ; attoniti tenebrosam a vertice nubem
respexere duces ; falso clamore tumultum
auget, et arma virum pulsusque imitatur equorum,
terribilemque vagas ululatum spargit in auras. 121
exsiluere animi, dubiumque in inurmure vulgus
pendet: " ubi iste fragor? ni^ fallimur aure. sed unde
pulvereo stant astra globo ? num Ismenius ultro

^ animoque avertere vires P : animiimque avertere veris w.
^ ni Poj : num Wilkins.

" A curious parallel with Macbeth.
140

THEBAID, VII. 98-124

refuse thee, O child, to sad Avernus, and Unk these
mournful rites with the undying stars, we who hxirry
now to arms. But if thou wilt grant us to overthrow
the Boeotian dwelUngs ^^ith the sword, then a mighty
temple shall exalt thee, then shalt thou be a god
indeed, nor through Inachian cities only shall thy
worship spread, but Thebes also in her captivity shall
swear by thy name." So vowed the chief for all, so
vowed each warrior for himself.

Already Gradivus ^\'ith forward-straining steeds
was tramphng the Ephyrean shores, where Acro-
corinthus raises his summit into the airy heights and
casts his shadow over the twin seas in turn. Then
he orders Panic, one of his fearful train, to go before
the horses : none more skilled than he to insinuate
gasping terror and to steal coiurage from the heart ;
voices and hands innumerable has the monster, and
aspects to assume at will ; all-persuasive is he, and
his onslaughts drive cities mad ^\•ith horror. If he
suggests that there are two suns, or that the stars
are falhng, or the ground heaving, or ancient forests
marching down from the hills,* alas I the wretches
beheve that they have seen it. A new and cunning
trick was he then de\'ising : he raises a phantom
dust upon the plain of Nemea ; astounded the chiefs
behold above their heads the darkling cloud ; he
swells the timiult with unsubstantial clamour and
imitates the clank of armour and the tread of horses'
hooves, and scatters the terrible war-cry upon the
wandering breezes. Their hearts leap in fear, and
the crowd wait muttering in suspense : " Whence
comes the noise ? — unless our ears betray us. But
why stands the heaven in a cloud of dust ? surely
the Ismenian soldiery have not dared so far ? Ay,

141

ST ATI us

miles ? ita est : veniunt. tanta autem audacia
Thebis ? 125

an dubitent — age ! — , dum inferias et busta colamus ? "
haec Pavor attonitis ; variosque per agmina vultus
induitur, nunc Pisaeis e milibus unus,
nunc Pylius, nunc ore Lacon, hostesque propinquos
adiurat turmasque metu consternat inani. 130

nil falsum trepidis. ut vero amentibus ipse
incidit et sacrae circum fastigia vallis
turbine praevectus rapido ter sustulit hastam,
ter concussit equos, clipeum ter pectore plausit :
arma, arma insani sua quisque ignotaque nullo 135
more rapit, mutant galeas alienaque cogunt
ad iuga cornipedes ; ferus omni in pectore saevit
mortis amor caedisque, nihil flagrantibus obstat :
praecipitant redimuntque moras, sic litora vento
incipiente fremunt, fugitur cum portus ; ubique 140
vela fluunt, laxi iactantur ubique rudentes ;
iamque natant remi, natat omnis in aequore summo
ancora, iam dulcis medii de gurgite ponti
respicitur tellus comitesque a puppe relicti.

Viderat Inachias rapidum glomerare cohortes 145
Bacchus iter ; gemuit Tyriam conversus ad urbem,
altricemque domum et patrios reminiscitur ignes,
purpureum tristi turbatus pectore vultum :
non crines, non serta loco, dextramque reliquit
thyrsus, et intactae ceciderunt cornibus uvae. 150
ergo ut erat lacrimis lapsoque inhonorus amictu
ante lovem — et tunc forte polum secretus habebat — ■

" The lightning that struck his mother Semele and caused
his birth.
142

THEBAID, VII. 125-152

'tis even so ; they come ! But is Thebes then so
bold ? Must they wait, think you, for us to pay rites
to sepulchres ? " Thus Panic in their bewildered
minds : and many a different countenance does he
assume amid their ranks, now is he one of a thousand
men of Pisa, now a Pylian, now a Laconian by his
look, and he swears the foe are near, and dismays the
host ^\ith vain alarm. To their terror nought is false.
But Avhen undisguised he fell upon the distracted
warriors, and, borne on a s^^^ft whirlwind around the
heights of the sacred vale, thrice brandished his spear,
thrice smote his steeds, thrice clashed his shield upon
his breast, " to arms, to arms," they cry, each snatch-
ing in wild disorder his neighbour's or his ovm, and
they seize other helms and force strange steeds be-
neath the yoke ; in every heart burns the mad lust
of death and slaughter, nothing hinders their fiery
rage ; in furious haste they atone for their delays.
Such a clamour fills the shore when the wind is rising,
and men are lea\ing the port ; everywhere sails are
bellying and loose ropes flapping, and now the oars
are afloat and every anchor too upon the surface,
and now from mid-sea they are gazing back at the
land they love and at the friends left far astern.

Bacchus had seen the Inachlan cohorts gather
swiftly for the march ; ^\ith a groan he turned
towards the T}Tian city, and he recalls the home
that nurtured him and his father's fires," with sad-
ness in his heart and dismay upon his bright coun-
tenance ; disordered were his locks and garlands,
the thyrsus was fallen from his hand and the un-
touched grapes from off his horns ; tearful then and
unsightly as he was with dishevelled robe, he stood
before Jupiter — reigning then by chance alone in

143

STATIUS

constitit, baud umquam facie conspectus in ilia —
nee causae latuere patrem — , supplexque profatur :
" exscindisne tuas, divum sator optima, Thebas? 155
saeva adeo coniunx ? nee te telluris amatae
deceptique laris miseret cinerumque meorum ?
esto, olim invitum iaculatus nubibus ignem —
credimus — : en itei'um atra refers incendia terris,
nee Styge iurata, nee paelicis arte rogatus. 160

quis modus ? an nobis pater iratusque, bonusque
fulmen babes ? sed non Danaei^ limina talis
Parrhasiumque nemus Ledaeasque ibis Amyclas.
scilicet e cunctis ego neglectissima natis
progenies ? ego nempe tamen, qui dulce ferenti 165
pondus eram, cui tu dignatus limina vitae
praereptumque iter^ et maternos reddere menses,
adde, quod imbellis rarisque exercita castris
turba meas acies, mea tantum proelia norunt,
nectere fronde comas et ad inspirata rotari 170

buxa : timent thyrsos nuptarum et proelia matrum.
unde tubas Martemque pati, qui fervidus ecce
quanta parat ? quid si ille tuos Curetas in arma
ducat et innocuis iubeat decernere peltis ?
quin etiam invisos — sic hostis defuit ? — Argos 175
eligis^ ! o ipsis, genitor, graviora periclis

^ iter Poj : uterum Earth, iter is helped by limina ; still,
uterum is extremely plausible.

'^ eligis Markland {cf. i. 259) : elicis Pw.

" Callisto (see on i. 8) was beloved of Jupiter.

^ Bacchus, born untimely from Semele his mother, when
she was blasted with Jove's lightning, was received into his
father's thigh, and born again from there.

" i.e., in Bacchic revelling.
144

THEBAID, VII. 153-176

heaven — ^in such guise as had never before been
seen — yet his sire knew well the cause — and spake
in suppUcation : " Destroyest thou thine own
Thebes, O worthy father of the gods ? is thy spouse
so cruel ? pitiest thou not that well-loved land, that
hearth thou didst deceive, those ashes I hold dear ?
Be it so, once thou didst hurl unwilling fire from the
clouds — so I believe — but lo ! a second time art
thou bringing deadly fire upon the land, without
oath of Stvx or cunning paramour's request. What
limit wilt thou set ? Art thou my father, and in-
censed against me ? Kindly, and yet dost wield the
thunderbolt ? Not in such mood wouldst thou go
to Danae's city, or the Parrhasian grove," or Amyclae,
Leda's home. Am I then in truth the worst-scorned
of all thv sons ? Yet am I surely he, who was a
sweet burden for thy carrying, for whom thou
deignedst to open once more life's threshold and the
wav once closed against me, and the period of the
womb.^ Moreover, my people are unwarUke, and
rarely schooled in camps, and know my warfare only,
my battles, the twining of garlands in their hair and
t\\-irling to the frenzied pipe ; they fear the wands
that brides -svield, the wars that matrons wage."
How should they endure the bray of trumpets and
the work of Mars, who makes — behold him I — such
furious preparation ? What if he were to lead thy
own Curetes to the fight, and bid them** decide the
issue with their guileless targes ? Nay more, 'tis
hated * Argos thou choosest — was there no other foe }
Ah I cruel, O father, is our peril, but more cruel thy

■* i.e., my citizens.

« "hated," because Juno was its patron goddess, the
enemy of Thebes and Semele.

VOL. II L 145

STATIUS

iussa : novercales luimus^ ditare Mycenas !

cedo equidem. quo sacra tamen ritusque peremptae

gentis et, in tumulos si quid male feta reliquit

mater, abire iubes ? Thracen silvasque Lycurgi ? 180

anne triumphatos fugiam captivus ad Indos ?

da sedem profugo ! potuit Latonia frater

saxa — nee invideo — defigere Delon et imis

eommendare fretis ; cara submovit ab arce

hostiles Tritonis aquas ; vidi ipse potentem 185

gentibus Eois Epaphum dare iura, nee ullas

Cyllene secreta tubas Minoave curat

Ida : quid heu tantum nostris ofFenderis aris ?

hie tibi — quando minor iam nostra potentia — ^noctes

Herculeae placitusque vagae Nycteidos ardor, 190

hie Tyrium genus et nostro felicior igne

taurus : Agenoreos saltern tutare nepotes."

Invidiam risit pater, et iam poplite flexum
sternentemque manus tranquillus ad oscula tollit
inque vicem placida orsa refert : " non coniugis ista
consiliis, ut rere, puer, nee saeva roganti 196

sic expostus ego : immoto deducimur orbe
fatorum ; veteres seraeque in proelia causae,
nam eui tanta quies irarum aut sanguinis usus
parcior humani ? videt axis et ista per aevom 200

^ luimus P : ruimus w.

" " ditare " is one of those infinitives of purpose that
Statins uses so freely, cf. iii. 321. Often the sense is helped
by the main verb bearing analogy to a verb that would
naturally take an infinitive ; this, however, is not the case
here.

* i.e., anchor it safely (here.

"In her contest with Poseidon Athena repelled the waters
of the sea-god ; Epaphus was the son of Zeus by lo ; on
146

THEBAID, VII. 177-200

command ! We pay the penalty, to make rich " my
stepmother's Mycenae. I yield ! But my ruined
people's sacred rites, and aught that my mother left
when she brought forth but for the tomb — -whither
must we depart ? to Thrace and the forests of
Lycurgus ? or shall I flee a captive to that India
where I once did triumph ? Grant the outlaw some
resting-place ! My brother could make Delos fast,
Lato's rocky home — nor do I grudge him that — and
entrust it to the lowest depths * ; the Tritonian re-
moved the hostile waters from her beloved citadel ;
myself I have seen Epaphus lording it over Eastern
races, and remote Cyllene and Minoan Ida fear not
the trumpet's blast ; '^ why do our altars so offend
thee ? Here — since my o\vn influence must already
yield — here were those nights of Hercules' begetting,
and the favoured flame of wandering Nycteis,** here
was the race of Tyre and the bull more fruitful than
my lightning-brand : protect at least Agenor's off-
spring ! "

Smiling at his jealousy his father raised him quietly
to his embrace from where he knelt with arms out-
stretched, and in turn makes tranquil answer : " This
comes not by my consort's will, as thou thinkest,
my son, nor am I thus a slave to her fierce demands ;
'tis fate's unchanging wheel that ordains our destiny;*
ancient causes are leading, now late in time, to war.
Whose anger sinks so soon to rest, who is more
sparing of human blood ? The heavens and my

Cyllene Maia bore Hermes to Zeus, while Ida in Crete was
the scene of Zeus' own birth.

^ Antiope, daughter of Nycteus.

* The metaphor here is from spinning, of which " de-
ducere " is a common term ; " immoto " must therefore
mean " steady," " unshaken."

147

STATIUS

mecum aeterna domus, quotiens iani torta reponam

fulmina, quam rarus terris hie imperet ignis.

quin etiam invitus magna ulciscendaque passis

aut Lapithas Marti, aut veterem Calydona Dianae

expugnare dedi ; maesta est^ iactura pigetque 205

tot mutare animas, tot reddere corpora vitae.

Labdacios vero Pelopisque a stirpe nepotes

tardum abolere mihi ; scis ipse — ut crimina mittam

Dorica — , quam promptae superos incessere Thebae ;

te quoque — sed, quoniam vetus excidit ira, silebo.

non tamen aut patrio respersus sanguine Pentheus,

aut matrem scelerasse toris aut crimine fratres 212

progenuisse reus, lacero tua lustra replevit

funere : ubi hi fletus, ubi tunc ars tanta precandi ?

ast ego non proprio diros impendo dolori 215

Oedipodionidas : rogat hoc tellusque polusque

et pietas et laesa fides naturaque, et ipsi

Eumenidum mores, sed tu super urbe moveri

parce tua : non hoc statui sub tempore rebus

occasum Aoniis, veniet suspectior aetas 220

ultoresque aUi : nunc regia luno queretur."

his ille auditis mentemque habitumque recepit ;

ut cum sole malo tristique rosaria pendent

usta noto, si clara dies zephyrique refecit

aura polum, redit omnis honos, emissaque lucent 225

germina et informes ornat sua gloria virgas.

Nuntius attonitas iamdudum Eteoclis ad aures

^ maesta est Alton: mea est Pw: nimia est PhUlimore:
lovis, nostra conj. Garrod : meaque est late mss., edd.

" More literally, " that I have already begun to whirl."
" Pentheus, king of Thebes, was torn in pieces by the
Bacchanals, whose revelling he tried to put down.

148

THEBAID, VII. 201-22'.

eternal age-long dwelling witness how often I lay by
the whirUng " thunderbolt, how rarely these fires
have master}- of the earth. Unwilhngly indeed,
though they had suffered great ^^Tongs th^t cried
for vengeance, did I deliver the Lapithae to Mars
or ancient Calydon to Diana for destruction ; sad is
the loss, and 'tis irksome to give so manv new lives
for old, and animate afresh so many bodies. But
for the seed of Labdacus and the sons of Pelops'
hne, them am I slow to destroy ; thou knowest thy-
self— to leave unsaid the Dorian crimes — how ready
is Thebes to accuse the gods ; thee too — but my
former anger is appeased and I will hold my peace.
Pentheus * was stained by no father's blood nor bore
the guilt of defiling his mother's bed and begetting
brothers, yet he filled thy haunts with the mangled
fragments of his limbs : where then were these
tears, this eloquent appeal .' But it is to glut no
private wrath that I sacrifice the sons of Oedipus :
earth and heaven demand it, and natural piety and
injured faith, and the laws of the Avenging Powers
themselves. But be not distressed for thy city ; not
at this time have I decreed that the Aonian state
shall fall, a darker age shall come hereafter, and
others to avenge '^ ; now royal Juno shall complain."
He hearing this was composed in mind and aspect ;
as when rose-gardens droop 'neath a fiery scorching
sun and cruel South wind, should the day clear and
Western breezes refresh the sky, all their beauty
returns, the blooms open resplendent, and the un-
sightly branches are decked in their proper glory.
Long since has the messenger brought sure tidings

* i.e., the Epigoni, or perhaps Alexander, whose troops
sacked Thebes.

149

STATIUS

explorata ferens longo docet agmine Graios
ire duces, nee iam Aoniis procul afore campis ; 229
quaeumque ingressi, tremere ac miserescere cunctos
Thebarum ; qui stirpe, refert, qui nomine et armis.
ille metum condens audire exposcit et odit
narrantem ; hinc socios dictis stimulare suasque
metiri decemit opes, exciverat omnem 234

Aoniam Euboeamque et Phocidos arva propinquae
Mars, ita dulce lovi ; longe fugit ordine velox
tessera : propellunt acies, seseque sub armis
ostentant ; subeunt campo, qui proximus urbi
damnatus bellis patet exspectatque furores. 239

nondum hostes contra, trepido tamen agmine matres
conscendunt muros, inde arma nitentia natis
et formidandos monstrant sub casside patres.

Turre procul sola nondum concessa videri
Antigone populis teneras defenditur atra
veste genas ; iuxtaque comes, quo Laius ibat 245
armigero ; tunc virgo senem regina veretur.
quae sic orsa prior : " spesne obstatura Pelasgis
haec vexilla, pater ? Pelopis descendere totas
audimus gentes : die, o precor, extera regum
agmina ; nam video, quae noster signa Menoeceus,
quae noster regat arma Creon, quam celsus aena 251
Sphinge per ingentes Homoloidas exeat Haemon."
sic rudis Antigone, senior cui talia Phorbas :
" mille sagittiferos gelidae de colle Tanagrae

150

THEBAID, VII. 228-254

of discovery to the astounded ears of Eteocles,
announcing that the Grecian chiefs are on the march
at the head of a long array, and soon will be nigh
the Aonian fields ; wheresoever they advance, all
tremble and pity Thebes ; he reports the family and
fame of each and their warhke deeds. The king
hiding his fear demands to be told and hates the
teller ; then he decides to send a stirring message
to his aUies and to take the measure of his own
resources. Mars — so it pleased Jove — had stirred up
all Aonia and Euboea and the neighbouring lands
of Phocis ; far flies the rapid signal from tovra to
town ; they march forth their hosts and display
themselves in arms ; they move upon the plain that,
doomed to war, spreads near the city and awaits the
fury of the fray. They meet no foe as yet, but
matrons in an excited throng ascend the walk, and
thence show to their children the ghttering armour
and their sires' formidable hehns.

Far removed upon a lonely tower and still withheld
from the eyes of the people, Antigone shrouds in a
black veil her tender cheeks ; >\ith her was an
attendant, Laius' squire of old, whom the royal maid
reveres. She first addressed him : "Is there hope,
O father, that these standards will hold the Pelasgians
in check ? We hear that all the tribes of Pelops
descend upon us ; recount, I pray, the princes and
their foreign bands, for I see what standards our o^vn
Menoeceus, and what troops our Creon hath under
command, and how Haemon \\ith towering crest of
brazen Sphinx marches out from the mighty Homo-
loian gates." So spake artless Antigone, and old
Phorbas thus repUed : " Dryas, look ! leads forth a
thousand archers from cold Tanagra's hill : he

151

STATIUS

promovet ecce Dryas ; hie, cui nivea arma tridentem
atque auro rude fulmen habent, Ononis alti 256

non falsus virtute nepos : procul, oro, paternum
omen et innuptae vetus excidat ira Dianae.
iungunt se castris regisque in nomen adoptant
Ocalea Medeonque et confertissima lucis 260

Nisa Dionaeisque avibus cireumsona Thisbe.
proximus Eurymedon, qui pastoralia Fauni
arma patris pinuque iubas imitatur equinas,
terribilis silvis : reor et Mavorte cruento
talis erit. dites pecorum comitantur Erythrae, 265
qui Scolon densamque iugis Eteonon iniquis,
qui breve litus Hyles Atalantaeamque superbi
Schoenon habent notique colunt vestigia campi ;
fraxineas Macetum vibrant de more sarisas
saevaque difficiles excludere volnera peltas. 270

ecce autem clamore ruunt Neptunia plebes
Onchesti : quos pinigeris Mycalessos in agris
Palladiusque Melas Hecataeaque gurgite nutrit
Gargaphie, quorumque novis Haliartos aristis
invidet et nimia^ sata laeta supervenit herba. 275
tela rudes trunci, galeae vacua ora leonum,
arborei dant scuta sinus, hos regis egenos
Amphion en noster agit — cognoscere pronum,
virgo — , lyra galeam tauroque insignis avito.
macte animo iuvenis, medios parat ire per enses 280
nudaque pro caris opponere peetora muris,

^ nimia w : nivea P : Garrod conj. viva.

" Various causes are assigned for Diana's anger with
Orion ; see Class. Diet,

* Thisbe was famous for its doves. All these towns
are in Boeotia ; a very similar list occurs in Plin. N.H.
iv. 7. 12, but Statins also takes hints from Homer's

152

THEBAID, VII. 255-281

whose snow-white armour bears a trident and a fire-
brand rudely wrought in gold, is for valour the true
son of exalted Orion : heaven forfend the ill omen of
his sire, and chaste Diana's ancient grudge " I Ocalea
and Medeon join our camps and declare for our
monarch's cause, and thickly-wooded Nisa and
Thisbe echoing ^^•ith Dione's tuneful birds. ^ Next
is Eurymedon who counterfeits the pastoral arms
and horsehair crest of his father Faunus -with club
and leaves of pine ; terrible is he in the woodland,
and such, I ween, ^^^ll he be in the bloody conflict.
Erythrae rich in floclcs is Anth us, and so are they who
hold Scolos, and Eteonos set thick with arduous
ridges, and the brief strand of Hyle, and the proud
folk of Schoenos, Atalanta's home, who till the famous
plain her feet imprinted : they brandish as of wont
the long ashen Macedonian shafts, and targes that
scarce can ward off savage blows. But lo ! the
Neptunian folk of Onchestus rush on with shouts :
thev whom Mvcalessos nourishes beneath her pines,
and Melas, Pallas' stream, and Gargaphie with the
waters loved of Hecate, and they on whose young
wheat Haliartos looks jealoush', o'ergro\\ing the glad
comlands\sith too abundant grass. Unfashioned tree-
trunks are their weapons, and lions' empty jaws their
helms, the curing bark affords them bucklers. These,
as they lack a king, our own Amphion, look I is leading
— 'tis easy to recognize him, O maid — conspicuous
■with a lyre and oiu" ancestral bull upon his hehn. A
blessing on thy courage, youth I he is ready to go
where swords are thickest, and protect with naked
breast the walls he loves. Ye too come to add your

Catalogue, e.g. iroKvTp-qpwva Qiff^rjy, xoi-qevd' ' AXiaprrov, see
11. ii. 494. sqq.

1.53

STATIUS

vos etiam nostris, Heliconia turba, venitis
addere rebus opem ; tuque, o Permesse, canoris
et felix, Olmie,^ vadis armastis alumnos
bellorum resides, patriis concentibus audis 285

exsultare gregem, quales, cum pallida cedit
bruma, renidentem deducunt Strymona cygni.
ite alacres, numquam vestri morientur honores,
bellaque perpetuo niemorabunt carmine Musae."

Dixerat, et paulum virgo interfata loquenti : 290
" illi autem, quanam iunguntur origine fratres ?
sic certe paria arma viris, sic exit in auras
cassidis aequus apex ; utinam haec concordia nostris I "
cui senior ridens : " non prima errore videndi
falleris, Antigone : multi hos — nam decipit aetas—
dixerunt fratres. pater est natusque, sed aevi 296
confudere modos : puerum Lapithaona nymphe
Dercetis expertem thalami crudumque maritis^
ignibus ante diem cupido violavit amore
improba conubii ; nee longum, et pulcher Alatreus
editus, ac primae genitorem in flore iuventae 301
consequitur traxitque notas et miscuit annos.
et nunc sic fratres mentito nomine gaudent,
plus pater ; hunc olim iuvat et ventura senectus.
tercentum genitor totidemque in proelia natus 305
exercent equites : hi deseruisse feruntur
exilem Glisanta Coroniamque, feracem
messe Coroniam, Baccho Glisanta colentes.^

^ Olmie Gronovius : hormie Po.

^ maritis late ifss. : mariti Pw.

^ colentes Pjo : colenti Ellis.

" " deducere " here with two accusatives, the phrase
" concentum deducere " being equivalent to " cantare,"
another example of Statian analogy. The construction is
found also in Greek.
154

THEBAID, VII. 282-308

strength to ours, ye Heliconian throng, and thou,
Perniessus, and Oknius, happy in your tuneful
streams, ye have armed your unwarUke sons. Now
hearest thou thy people exult in strains worthy of
their home, such strains as, when pale winter pelds,
the swans uplift in praise of smihng Strymon."
Onward, valiant ones I your praise shall never die, and
Muses in songs unending shall recount your wars."

He had finished, when the maiden briefly spake in
turn : " But those yonder, what tie of birth unites
those brethren ? So truly alike are their arms, so
rise their helmet-peaks into the air together ; would
that my brothers had such concord ! " Smiling the
old man answered her : " Thou art not the first,
Antigone, to be so deluded in thy seeing ; many
have called them brethren, for their years deceive.
Father and son they are, though the fashions of age
are all confounded : the mTnph Dercetis in burning
passion and shameless lust of wedlock corrupted ere
his time the boy Lapithaon, still innocent of the
marriage bed and unripe for a lover's flames ; and
soon was born the fair Alatreus, and overtakes his
father while still in the flower of youth, and assumes
his features and confounds their years. So now they
rejoice in the false name of brethren, but more the
father ; for the past has brought him pleasure as well
as the years to come.* Three hundred knights doth
the sire marshal for the fray, and the son as many
more ; these, they say, have left scant Ghsas and
Coronia, once their husbandmen, Coronia rich in
hardest, Glisas fertile in the grape. But rather look

* " olim " has the Silver Latin meaning " all this time "
( =" iamdudum ") ; " iuvat " seems to be used first imper-
sonalh' and then with " senectus " as subject.

155

STATIUS

sed potius celsos umbrantem hunc aspice late

Hypsea quadriiugos, clipei septemplice tauro 310

laeva, ter insuto servantur pectora ferro,

pectora : nam tergo numquam metus. hasta

vetustum

silvarum decus, emissae cui pervia semper

armaque corporaque et numquam manus inrita voti.

Asopos genuisse datur, dignusque videri 315

tune pater, abreptis cum torrentissimus exit

pontibus, aut natae tumidus cum virginis ultor

flumina concussit generum indignata Tonantem.

namque ferunt raptam patriis Aeginan ab undis

amplexu latuisse lovis : furit amnis et astris 320

infensus bellare parat — nondum ista licebant

nee superis — ; stetit audaces efFusus in iras,

conseruitque manum, nee quem imploraret habebat,

donee vix tonitru submotus et igne trisulco

cessit. adhue ripis animosus gurges anhelis 325

fulmineum cinerem magnaeque insignia poenae

gaudet et Aetnaeos in caelum efflare vapores.

talem Cadmeo mirabimur Hypsea eampo,

si modo placavit felix Aegina Tonantem.

ducit Itonaeos et Alalcomenaea Minervae 330

agmina, quos Midea et quos uvida^ suggerit Ame,

Aulida qui Graeanque serunt viridesque Plataeas,

et sulco Peteona domant refluumque meatu

Euripum, qua noster, habent, teque ultima tractu

Anthedon, ubi gramineo de litore Glaucus 335

poscentes inrupit aquas, iam crine genisque

caerulus, et mixtos expavit ab inguine pisces.

^ iivida He'msius {from Horn. U. ii. 501): vivida P :
humida u.

156

THEBAID, MI. 30&-337

at Hypseus casting his shadow far o'er his lofty
steeds, his left side guarded by the sevenfold buU's-
hide of his shield, his breast by triply woven mail :
his breast, for no fear hath he for his back. His
spear is an ancient glorv of the woodland : once
thrown it always cleaves armour and flesh alike, and
his hand fails never of its aim. Asopos is deemed his
sire, a father worthy to behold, when in full torrent
he sweeps past the \vTeck of bridges, or in swollen
MTath and vengeance for his maiden daughter he
lashes his waters to fury and scorns the Thunderer
her paramour. For they say that Aegina was
carried by force from her father's stream and hidden
in the embrace of Jove ; the river in wild rage pre-
pares fierce war against the stars — not yet had even
the gods such licence — ; in defiant, quenchless anger
he stood and strove, nor had he any whose aid he
could implore, till, scarce subdued by the threefold
lightning of the brand, he yielded. Even yet doth
the proud flood rejoice from out his heaving banks
to pant forth 'gainst heaven fiery ashes, the signs of
his dire punishment, and Aetnaean vapours. Such
fury shall we marvelhng see in Hypseus on the Cad-
mean plain, if but Aegina has happily appeased the
Thunderer. He leads the men of Itone and Minerva's
Alalcomenaean bands, and those whom Midea
furnishes and Arne rich in grapes, the men who sow
the fields of Aulis and of Graea and verdant Plataeae,
and subdue Peteon with furrows and hold — where
it is ours — Euripus whose current ebbs and flows,
and thee, Anthedon, remotest of our lands, where
from the grassy shore Glaucus plunged beneath the
waters that summoned him, sea-green already in
face and hair, and started to behold the fish-tail

157

ST ATI us

glandibus et torta zephyros incidere'^ funda
cura : Cydoneas anteibunt gaesa sagittas.
tu quoque praeclarum forma, Cephise, dedisses 340
Narcissum, sed Thespiacis iam pallet in agris
trux puer ; orbata florem, pater, adluis unda.
quis tibi Phoebeas acies veteremque revolvat
Phocida ? qui Panopen, qui Daulida, qui Cyparisson,
et valles, Lebadia, tuas et Hyampolin acri 345

subnixam scopulo, vel qui Parnasson utrunique
aut Cirrham tauris Anemorianque supinant
Coryciumque nemus, propellentemque Lilaean
Cephisi glaciale caput, quo suetus anhelam
ferre sitim Python amnemque avertere ponto, 350
omnibus immixtas cono super aspice laurus
armaque vel Tityon vel Delon habentia, vel quas
hie deus innumera laxavit caede pharetras.
Iphitus asper agit, genitor cui nuper ademptus
Naubolus Hippasides, tuus, o mitissime Lai, 355

hospes ; adhuc currus securaque lora tenebam,^
cum tua subter equos iacuit convulsa cruentis
ictibus, o utinam nostro cum sanguine, cervix ! "

Dicenti maduere genae, vultumque per omnem
pallor iit, vocisque repens singultus apertum 360

intercepit iter ; refovet frigentis amicum
pectus alumna senis ; redit atque exile profatur :
" o mihi sollicitum decus ac suprema voluptas,

^ incidere w : incedere P : incendere Postdate.
^ tenebam P : tenebat w.

' " mixtos " is pregnant, " joined with and growing from."
^ Narcissus, beloved of Echo, fell in love with his own

image while gazing into the water : he remained there till he

died, when he was turned into the flower called after him.

Cephisus is the Boeotian, not the Attic, river of that name

(but cf. Soph. Oed. Col. 681 sqq.).

" The Parnassians bear on their shields emblems of

158

THEBAID, VII. 338-363

growing from his waist.* They whirl the sling and
cleave the zephyrs ^Wth the bullets : their javelins
\nll outstrip fleet arrows. Thou too, Cephisus,
wouldst have sent Narcissus,* pre-eminent in beauty,
but already, stubborn-hearted boy, he is a pale flower
in a Thespian field : thou, O father, dost lave it
with thy childless waves. Who could recount to
thee the troops of Phoebus and of ancient Phocis ?
Panope, Daulis, Cyparissos, thy valleys, Lebadia,
and Hyampolis that nestles beneath a beetling
cliff, the husbandmen who with their bulls upturn
Parnassos' either slope and Cirrha and Anemoria
and the woodland of Corycia, and Lilaea that sends
forth the ice-cold springs of Cephisus, whither Python
was wont to take his panting thirst and turn aside
the river from the sea : on all their helms behold the
entwined bay, on all their armour Tityos or Delos
or the quivers that the god emptied here in countless
slaughter.*^ Their leader is warlike Iphitus, whose
father lately slain was Naubolus, son of Hippasus,
thy friend, most gentle Laius : still was I holding the
chariot-reins, ^^ithout thought of ill, when thy neck
lay mangled by cruel blows beneath the horses' hooves
— would that my blood had flowed there too ! •*"

His eyes were moistened as he spoke, and all his
face grew pale, and sudden sobs checked the free
passage of his voice ; his ward soothes the trembling
old man's friendly heart ; he recovers and faintly
speaks : " O thou, my anxious pride and chiefest

Apollo's exploits, e.g. the slaughter of Tityos who attempted
to outrage Leto, and of the Python, the snake that ravaged
Delphi, or Delos, the island where he was born.

** Oedipus, not knowing Laius, his father, met him at the
place where three roads meet (" trifidae in Phocidis arto,"
i. 65), and slew him in a quarrel that arose there.

159

ST ATI us

Antigone ! seras tibi demoror improbus umbras,
fors eadem scelera et caedes visurus avitas, 365

donee te thalamis habilem integramque resignem :
hoc satis, et fessum vita dimittite, Parcae.
sed dum labor iners, quanti — nunc ecce reviso —
transabiere duces : Clonin atque in terga comantes
non ego Abantiadas, non te, saxosa Caryste, 370

non humiles Aegas altumque Capherea dixi.
et iam acies obtunsa negat, cunctique resistunt,
et tuus armatis iubet ecce silentia frater."

Vix ea turre senex, cum rector ab aggere coepit :
" magnanimi reges, quibus baud parere recusem 375
ductor et ipse meas miles defendere Thebas,
non ego vos stimulare parem — nam liber in arma
impetus, et meritas ultro iurastis in iras — ,
nee laudare satis dignasque rependere grates
sufficiam — referent superi vestraeque subacto 380
hoste manus— : urbem socia de gente subistis
tutari, quam non aliis populator ab oris
belliger externave satus tellure, sed hostis
indigena adsultat, cui castra adversa regenti 384

hie pater, hie genetrix, hie iunctae stirpe sorores,
hie erat et frater. cerne en ubicumque nefandus
excidium moliris avis : venere volentes
Aoniae populi, nee sum tibi, saeve, relictus.
quid velit ista cohors, et te sentire decebat :
reddere regna vetant." sic fatus, et omnia rite 390

160

THEBAID, VII. 364-390

pleasure, Antigone ! 'tis for thee I shamelessly delay
my late-arri\-ing death, though perchance I must
behold the crimes and murders of thy house repeated,
until I dehver thee unharmed and fit for wedlock :
that is enough ; then, O Fates, let me leave this
weary life. But while I am feebly swooning, what
mighty champions — ah I now I see them again —
have passed before us I Clonis I numbered not,
nor the long-haired sons of Abas, nor thy men, rocky
Carystus, nor low-lying Aegae and lofty Caphereus.
But now my dimmed sight says me nay, and all have
halted, while thy brother, look ! bids the armed host
be silent."

Scarce had the old man ended upon the tower,
when the prince began from a high mound : " Great-
hearted chieftains, whom I your leader would not
refuse to obey and fight, a common soldier for my
native Thebes, no attempt were mine to stir your zeal
— for freely have ye rushed to arms and of your own
accord taken oath to champion my righteous anger —
nor shall I suffice to praise enough or pay you worthy
thanks — the gods and your own victor)' o'er the foe
will make requital ; from friendly peoples are ye
come to protect a city assailed by no pillaging
warrior from foreign shores, no stranger from an
ahen land, but a native enemy, who as he marshals
his opposing camps has here a father and a mother
and sisters of one blood, ay, and a brother had he
too. Lo ! with what guilt thou plottest destruction
everj^where against thy father's race ; but the Aonian
peoples have come v^ilUngly to my aid, nor, cruel
one, am I left to be thy \-ictim. What yonder army
vnWs, thou too shouldest be feeUng : they forbid
me to give up the throne." Thus he spoke, and

VOL. II M 16]

STATIUS

disponit, qui bella gerant, qui moenia servent,
quas in fronte manus, medio quas robore sistat.
perspicuas sic luce fores et virgea pastor
claustra levat,^ dum terra recens ; iubet ordine primo
ire duces, media stipantur plebe maritae ; 395

ipse levat^ gravidas et humum tractura parentum
ubera, succiduasque adportat matribus agnas.

Interea Danai noctemque diemque sub armis.
noctem iterum rursusque diem — sic ira ferebat —
ingeminant : contempta quies, vix aut sopor illis 400
aut epulae fecere moram ; properatur in hostem
more fugae. nee monstra tenent, quae plurima

nectit
prodigiale canens certi fors praevia fati.
quippe serunt diros monitus volucresque feraeque
sideraque aversique suis decursibus amnes, 405

infestumque tonat pater et mala fulgura lucent ;
terrificaeque adytis voces clusaeque deorum
sponte fores ; nunc sanguineus, nunc saxeus imber,
et subiti manes flentumque occursus avorum.
tunc et Apollineae tacuere oracula Cirrhae, 410

et non adsuetis pernox ululavit Eleusin
mensibus, et templis Sparte praesaga reclusis
vidit Amyclaeos — facinus ! — concurrere fratres.
Arcades insanas latrare Lycaonis umbras
nocte ferunt tacita, saevo decurrere campo 415

Oenomaum sua Pisa refert ; Acheloon utroque
deformem cornu vagus infamabat Acarnan.
Perseos effigiem maestam exorantque Mycenae

^ levat . . . levat Pw : novat (/. 394) conj. Phillimore :
iuvat (/. 396) conj. Imhof, bttt such repetitions are charac-
teristic.

" Castor and Pollux.
162

THEBAID, VII. 391-418

orders all things duly, who are to meet the foe, who
to guard the walls, what troops shall lead the van,
whom he shall place in mid-array. Even so does a
shepherd, while the earth is fresh and the rays are
shining through the doorways, unfasten the wattled
pens ; he bids the leaders go first, then follow the
crowding ewes ; he himself aids those that are mth
young, and the parents whose udders trail the ground,
and bears to their mothers' side the failing lambs.

Meanwhile the Danai by day and night and night
and day march under arms : wrath bears them on-
ward ; they scorn repose, scarce sleep or food delays
them, like a fleeing army they haste toward the foe.
They heed not the portents that chance, the herald
of doom, with ominous presage strews thickly in their
path ; for birds and beasts give awful warnings, stars
also and backward flowing rivers, and the Father
thunders against them and baneful lightnings gleam ;
terrifying voices are heard in shrines, and temple
gates shut of their own accord ; now it rains blood,
now stones, ghosts suddenly appear and sires of old
confront them weeping. Then too did Apollo's oracle
at Cirrha fall silent, and all night through in months
unwonted did Eleusis wail, and prophetic Sparta saw
in open temples — fearful sight ! — the brethren of
Amyclae " locked in conflict. The Arcadians say
that in the silence of the night Lycaon's shade barked
madly ,** and his own Pisa tells that Oenomaus drove
o'er that cruel plain ; Achelous, maimed of either
horn,'' was dishonoured by the Acarnanian exile.**
Sad is the image of Perseus to which Mycenae prays,

* Lycaon was turned into a wolf by Jupiter.

" By Hercules in the struggle for Deianira.

■* " exile," i.e. Tydeus.

i63

STATIUS

confusum lunonis ebur ; mugire potentem
Inachon agricolae, gemini maris incola narrat 420
Thebanum toto planxisse Palaemona ponto.
haec audit Pelopea phalanx, sed bellicus ardor
consiliis obstat divum prohibetque timeri.

lam ripas, Asope, tuas Boeotaque ventum
flumina. non ausae transmittere protinus alae 425
hostilem fluvium ; forte et trepidantibus ingens
descendebat agris, animos sive imbrifer arcus,
seu montana dedit nubes, seu fluminis ilia
mens fuit obiectusque vado pater arma vetabat.
tunc ferus Hippomedon magno cum fragmine ripae
cunctantem deiecit equum, ducibusque relictis 431
gurgite de medio frenis suspensus et armis
'• ite viri " clamat, " sic vos in moenia primus
ducere, sic clusas voveo perfringere Thebas."
praecipitant cuncti fluvio puduitque secutos. 435

ac velut ignotum si quando armenta per amnem
pastor agit, stat triste pecus, procul altera tellus
omnibus et late medius timor : ast ubi ductor
taurus init fecitque vadum, tunc molUor unda,
tunc faciles saltus, visaeque accedere ripae. 440

H aud procul inde iugum tutisque adcommodacastris
arva notant, unde urbem etiam turresque videre^
Sidonias ; placuit sedes fidique receptus,
colle per excelsum patulo, quem subter aperto
arva sinu, nullique aliis a montibus instant 445

despectus ; nee longa labor munimina durus

1 videre SN : videri PBD.

" i.e., at the Isthmus of Corinth, where Palaemon, son of
Ino, was worshipped.

* This use of " timor " may be compared with that in
1, 746 of a landslide, " desilit horrendus timor."

164

THEBAID, VII. 419-446

and dowTicast is Juno's ivon' statue ; the rustics tell
how mighty Inachus bellowed, and the dweller by
the double main" how Theban Palaemon made lament
over the whole sea. The Pelopean phalanx hears
these warnings, but warhke ardour hinders heavenly
counsels and robs them of their terror.

Already they were come to thy banks, Asopus,
and the Boeotian streams. The squadrons dared not
cross the hostile river forthwith ; by chance too he
was descending in mighty flood upon the trembhng
fields, whether the rain-bringing bow or mountain
clouds had given him strength, or whether the river-
sire so purposed and hurled his stream athwart them
to forbid their arms. Then fierce Hippomedon with
a great tearing of the bank thrust down his wavering
steed, and supported by reins and trappings shouts
from mid-stream to the leaders left behind : " For-
ward, ye men ! and I will be the first, I warrant
you, to lead the attack and break through the
Theban ramparts." All fling themselves into the
river, ashamed to have but followed. Just so do
cattle stand dismayed when the herdsman drives
them to an unknown stream ; far distant seems the
other bank, and fear * stretches wide between ; but
when the chieftain bull leaps in and makes the
crossing, then gentler seem the waters, and easier
the plunge, and the banks seem to draw nearer.

Not far from thence they mark a ridge and suitable
ground for a safe camp, whence too they can behold
the city and the Sidonian towers ; the situation
pleased them and offered secure retreat upon a high
and spreading hill, with open swelling fields beneath
nor any other mountains near at hand to overlook ;
no wear}- toil added long lines of earthworks, for

l65

ST ATI us

addidit : ipsa loco mirum natura favebat.

in vallum elatae rupes devexaque fossis

aequa et fortuito ductae quater aggere pinnae ;

cetera dant ipsi, donee sol montibus omnis 450

erepsit rebusque dedit sopor otia fessis.

Quis queat attonitas dictis ostendere Thebas ?
urbem in conspectu belli suprema parantis
territat insomnem nox atra diemque minatur.
discurrunt muris ; nil saeptum horrore sub illo, 455
nil fidum satis, invalidaeque Amphionis arces.
rumor ubique alios^ pluresque adnuntiat hostes
maioresque timor ; spectant tentoria contra
Inachia externosque suis in montibus ignes.
hi precibus questuque deos, hi Martia tela 460

belligerosque hortantur equos, hi pectora fletu
cara premunt miserique rogos et crastina mandant
funera. si tenuis demisit lumina somnus,
bella gerunt ; modo lucra morae, modo taedia vitae
attonitis, lucemque timent lucemque precantur. 465
it geminum excutiens anguem et bacchatur utrisque
Tisiphone castris ; fratrem huic, fratrem ingerit illi,
aut utrique patrem : procul ille penatibus imis
excitus implorat Furias oculosque reposcit.

lam gelidam Phoeben et caligantia primus 470

hauserat astra dies, cum iam tumet igne futuro
Oceanus lateque novo Titane reclusum
aequor anhelantum radiis subsidit equorum :
ecce truces oculos sordentibus obsita canis
exsangues locasta genas et bracchia planctu 475

^ alios PS : alius w : alius Gronovius.

" They are so sure of being slain in battle that they order
their own funeral pyre for the next day.

** Oedipus had remained secluded in an inner chamber of
the palace, cf. i, 49.

166

THEBAID, VII. 447-475

nature herself marvellously favoured the spot. Rocks
rose to form a rampart, and the shelving earth served
for trenches, and four chance mounds made bastions :
the rest they themselves provide, until all the light
had left the hills, and sleep gave rest to weariness.

What words could portray the consternation of
Thebes .'' In the face of war's impending doom dark
night racks her A\ith sleepless terror and threatens
her with the coming day. Men hurry hither and
thither on the walls ; in that awful panic nought
seems guarded or secure enough, no strength is in
Amphion's fortress. Rumour announces other foes
on everv' side, and Fear yet more and mightier ;
yonder they see the Inachian tents and foreign watch-
fires in their own native hills. Some pray and en-
treat the gods, others exhort their weapons of war
and battle-steeds, others weeping embrace the hearts
they love and piteously appoint their pyres and
funeral honours for the morrow." If their eyes are
closed in a brief slumber, they are waging war ;
distraught, they now sicken of life, now prize delay ;
they pray for the light, yet fear its coming. Tisiphone,
shaking her twin serpents, goes rioting through either
camp ; brother against brother she inflames and
against both their sire : aroused he wanders far
from his secret cell,* and implores the Furies and
prays for his lost eyes once more.

Already had breaking day put out cold Phoebe
and the fading stars, while Ocean was pregnant mth
dawning fire, and the sea's expanse, revealed by
new-born Titan, was sinking to rest beneath his
radiant panting steeds : lo I Jocasta, wild-eyed, \\ith
hoary unkempt hair falling about her haggard face,
her bosom bruised and livid and in her hand a branch

167

STATIUS

nigra ferens ramumque oleae cum velleris atri
nexibus, Eumenidum velut antiquissima, portis
egreditur magna cum maiestate malorum.
hinc atque hinc natae, melior iam sexus, aniles
praecipitantem artus et plus quam possit euntem
sustentant. venit ante hostes, et pectore nudo 481
claustra adversa ferit tremulisque ululatibus orat
admitti : " reserate viam ! rogat impia belli
mater ; in his aliquod ius exsecrabile castris
huic utero est." trepidi visam expavere manipli 485
auditamque magis ; remeat iam missus Adrasto
nuntius : excipiunt iussi mediosque per enses
dant iter, ilia duces ut primum aspexit Achivos,
clamorem horrendum luctu furiata resolvit :
" Argolici proceres, ecquis monstraverit hostem, 490
quern peperi ? quanam inveniam, mihi dicite, natum
sub galea ? " venit attonitae Cadmeius heros
obvius, et raptam lacrimis gaudentibus implet
solaturque tenens, atque inter singula matrem,
matrem iterat, nunc ipsam urgens, nunc cara sororum
pectora, cum mixta fletus anus asperat ira : 496

"quid molles lacrimas venerandaque nomina fingis,
rex Argive, mihi ? quid coUa amplexibus ambis
invisamque teris ferrato pectore matrem ?
tune ille exsilio vagus et miserabilis hospes ? 500

quem non permoveas ? longae tua iussa cohortes
exspectant, multoque latus praefulgurat ense.

l68

THEBAID, VII. 476-502

of olive entwined with sable wool, goes forth from
the gates in all the mighty majesty of sorrow, like
to the most ancient of the Fm-ies. On this side and
on that her daughters, now the better sex," support
her as she hastens her aged limbs and would fain go
faster than her strength allows. She goes to meet
the foe, and baring her breast she strikes upon the
gates and with tremulous wail prays for admittance :
" Unbar the road ! it is the guilty mother of the
war who asks you ; some right to utter curses in this
camp have I by \'irtue of this womb." The squadrons
started with alarm beholding her, and hearing
her, yet more ; and now the messenger sent to
Adrastus returns ; at his command they receive her,
and open a way through the swords' midst. As soon
as she saw the Achaean princes, she uttered a fearful
cry of rage and grief : " Ye Argive chiefs, who will
show me the enemy whom I bore ? Under what
helm — tell me — shall I find my son ? " Thus frantic
she is met by the Cadmean hero, who clasps her to
him and sheds tears of joy, and holding her in his
arms consoles her, and ever and anon repeats
" mother ! " " mother ! " entreating now herself, now
his beloved sisters — when the aged dame mingles
sharp anger with her weeping : " Why this pretence
of unmanly tears and venerable names to me, O
Argive prince ? Why dost thou put thy arms about
my neck, and crush thy hated mother against tliis
mail-clad breast ? Art thou that wandering exile,
that hapless stranger ? Whose heart wouldst thou
not stir .' Far-stretching cohorts await thy word
and countless blades glitter at thy side. Ah ! we

" i.e., in contrast to their " impious "' brothers.

169

STATIUS

a miserae matres ! hunc te noctesque diesque

deflebam ? si verba tamen monitusque tuorum

dignaris, dum castra silent suspensaque bellum 505

horrescit pietas, genetrix iubeoque rogoque :

i mecum patriosque deos arsuraque saltern

tecta vide, fratremque — quid aufers lumina? — -fratrem

adloquere et regnum iam me sub iudice posce :

aut dabit, aut ferrum causa meliore resumes. 510

anne times, ne forte doli, et te conscia mater

decipiam ? non sic miseros fas omne penates

effugit : vix Oedipode ducente timeres.

nupsi equidem peperique nefas, sed diligo tales, —

a dolor !— et vestros etiamnum excuso furores. 515

quodsi adeo perstas, ultro tibi, saeve, triumphum

detulimus : religa captas in terga sorores,

inice vincla mihi : gravis hue utcumque feretur

et pater, ad vestrum gemitus nunc verto pudorem,

Inachidae, liquistis enim parvosque senesque 520

et lacrimas has quisque domi : sua credite matri

viscera ! si vobis hie parvo in tempore carus — ■

sitque precor — quid me, oro, decet quidve ista,

Pelasgi,
ubera ? ab Hyrcanis hoc Odrysiisve tulissem
regibus, et si qui nostros vicere furores. 525

adnuite, aut natum complexa superstite bello
hie moriar." tumidas frangebant dicta cohortes,
nutantesque virum galeas et sparsa videres

" i.e., to Thebes, whither Jocasta has invited him.

170

THEBAID, VII. 503-528

unhappy mothers I Is this the son whom I wept
for day and night ? Yet if thou hast respect for the
counsel of thy kinsfolk, now, while the armies are
silent, and natural affection shrinks irresolute from
war, I thy mother command thee and entreat : come
with me, and look at least on thy country's gods and
the homes which soon must burn, and, thy brother
— why dost thou look away ? — speak to thy brother
and demand thy realm with me now for arbiter :
either he \v'ill grant it, or thou wilt resume the sword
with better right. Or fearest thou, lest there be
treachery, and I thy mother purposely deceive thee ?
Not so wholly has righteousness fled oiir unhappy
house ; scarce shouldst thou have to fear if Oedipus
led thee." Sinful verily was my marrying and my
bringing forth, but I love you even so — ah ! bitter
grief ! — and even now forgive your fury. But if
thou dost persist so far, of our own accord we give
thee the \ictory, cruel one I Seize thy sisters and
bind their hands behind them, load me with chains :
thy sire shall also be brought hither, aged though
he be. And now to your sense of shame, ye sons of
Inachus, I turn my sad appeal ; for ye have left at
home, each one of you, httle ones and aged parents
and tears like these : believe in a mother's feelings !
If my son here has grown dear to you so soon — and
I pray he may be dear — what must I feel, Pelasgians,
how must this bosom suffer ! This might I have
borne from Hyrcanian or Odrysian princes, and those
whose frenzy surpassed my own. Grant my request,
or may I die here with my arms around my son, nor
live to see this war." The proud cohorts quailed
before her words, and one could have seen the
warriors' helmets quaking and their armour bedewed

171

ST ATI us

fletibus arma piis. quales ubi tela virosque
pectoris impulsu rabidi stravere leones, 530

protinus ira minor, gaudentque in corpora capto^
securam difFerre famem : sic flexa Pelasgum
corda labant, ferrique avidus mansueverat ardor.

Ipse etiam ante oculos nunc matris ad oscula versus,
nunc rudis Ismenes, nunc flebiliora^ precantis 535
Antigones, variaque animum turbante procella
exciderat regnum : cupit ire, et mitis Adrastus
non vetat ; hie iustae Tydeus memor occupat irae :
" me potius, socii, qui fidum Eteoclea nuper
expertus, nee frater eram, me opponite regi, 540

cuius adhuc pacem egregiam et bona foedera gesto
pectore in hoc. ubi tunc fidei pacisque sequestra
mater eras, pulchris cum me nox vestra morata est
hospitiis .'' nempe haec trahis ad commercia natum ?
due ilium in campum, vestro qui sanguine pinguis
spirat adhuc pinguisque meo. tu porro sequeris,
heu nimium mitis nimiumque oblite tuorum ? 547
scilicet infestae cum te circum undique dextrae
nudabunt enses, haec flebit et arma quiescent }
tene ille, heu demens, semel intra moenia clausum
possessumque odiis Argiva in castra remittet ? 551
ante haec excusso frondescet lancea ferro,
Inachus ante retro nosterque Achelous abibit.
sed mite adloquium et saevis pax quaeritur armis :
haec quoque castra patent, necdum meruere timeri.
an suspectus ego ? abscedo et mea volnera done. 556

^ in corpore capto Pw : cruore recepto N and written over
in D.

2 flebiliora Pw : flebilis ora QDN.

" Tydeus ironically repeats Jocasta's plea for discussion,
and suggests that it might just as well take place in the
Argive camp; cf. 1. 509 (" adioquere ").
172

THEBAID; VII. 529-556

with pious tears. As when hons vrith furious impact
have strewn men and weapons on the ground,
straightway their wrath abates, and they rejoice to
sate their hunger untroubled on the captured prey :
so the Pelasgians' hearts are swayed and waver, and
their fiery greed of battle grows tame.

He himself, even before their eyes, turns to kiss
now his mother, now Ismene plain of speech, now
Antigone more tearful in her appeal, and in the
varied tumult that distracts his mind the kingdom
is forgot ; he would fain go, nor does kindly Adrastus
forbid him ; then Tydeus, mindful of righteous anger,
breaks in upon him : " Send me rather, comrades,
who lately made trial of Eteocles' word, though not
his brother, send me to face the king, whose boasted
peace and honest covenant I yet bear on this breast
of mine. Where then was the mother, mediator of
peace and honour, when ye stayed me that night
with such noble welcome ? Is it to such intercourse
thou dost drag thy son ? Take him to that field
which reeks yet richly of Theban blood, and richly
yet of mine. Wilt thou follow her so far, too soft
of heart, alas ! and too forgetful of thy friends .''
Forsooth, when bared blades flash all round thee in
hostile hands, her tears shall lay those swords to
rest ? Fool that thou art, will he send thee back to
the Argive camp, once safe within his walls and at
the mercy of his hatred ? Ere that will this lance
shake off its point and burgeon, or Inachus and my
own Achelous flow backward. But 'tis gentle speech
that thou art seeking, and peace amid savage arms :
well, this camp too is open to thee, nor has yet
merited fear." Or am I suspected } then I depart

173

ST ATI us

intret : et hie genetrix eadem mediaeque sorores.
finge autem pactis evictum excedere regnis,
nempe iterum reddes ? " rursus mutata trahuntur
agmina consiliis : subito ceu turbine caeli 560

obvius adversum Boreae Notus abstulit aequor.
arma iterum furiaeque placent ; fera tempus Erinys
arripit et primae molitur semina pugnae.

Errabant geminae Dircaea ad flumina tigres,
mite iugum, belli quondam vastator Eoi 565

currus, Erythraeis sed nuper victor ab oris
Liber in Aonios meritas dimiserat agros,
illas turba dei seniorque ex more saeerdos
sanguinis oblitas atque Indum gramen olentes
palmite maturo variisque ornare corymbis 570

curat et alterno maculas interligat ostro.
iamque ipsi colles, ipsa has — quis credat ? — amabant
armenta, atque ausae circum mugire iuvencae ;
quippe nihil grassata fames : manus obvia pascit,
exceptantque cibos^ fusoque horrenda supinant 575
ora mero, vaga rure quies ; si quando benigno
urbem iniere gradu, domus omnis et omnia sacris
templa calent, ipsumque fides intrasse Lyaeum.
has ubi vipereo tactas ter utramque flagello
Eumenis in furias animumque redire priorem 580
impulit, erumpunt non agnoscentibus agris.^

1 cibos PDNQ : dapes BKS.
" agris Bentley and late uss. : argis Poi : antris B.

" i.e., ask no vengeance for them. " Him " in the next
sentence is, of course, Eteocles. In 11. 558, 559 the point
seems to be, arbitrate if you wish, but if you fight and drive
him from the throne, you are not likely to surrender it again,
i.e., you will be perpetually king; therefore it is best to fight.

174

THEBAID, VII. 557-581

and make a present of my wounds." Let him
enter : here too will he find mother and sisters to
mediate. But suppose that utterly defeated he
quits his covenanted realm : wilt thou surrender it
a second time ? " The troops, swayed by his words,
veer round again ; as when in a sudden hurricane the
South wind swooping down WTests from Boreas the
master}^ of the sea. The rage of battle finds favour
once more *, fierce Erinys seizes the moment and
sows the seed of opening conflict.

Two tigers were straying by Dirce's waters, gentle
yoke-fellows, whose warlike chariot had once laid
waste the East, but Liber, lately triumphant from
Erythraean '' shores, had suffered them to roam in
Aonian fields. The followers of the god and, as of
wont, an aged priest are zealous to adorn them,
forgetful now of bloodshed and redolent of Indian
herbs, with full-grown shoots and varied clusters of
the \ine, and deck their spotted hide with bands of
purple. And by now the very hills and even — who
would believe it ? — the cattle loved them, and the
lowing heifers ventured near ; for no hunger drives
them to fell deeds, they take their food from hands
ready to feed them, and throw back their terrible
heads to quaff the wine outpoured ; they wander at
peace over the countryside ; and whenever with
placid gait they come into the city, every home and
every temple glows with sacrificial fire, and all believe
that Lyaeus himself has entered. These did the
Furj' touch, three times each, \^ith her snaky lash,
and stung them to their former mood of madness ;
they dash forth, and the fields know them not. As

* The " mare Erythraeum " or Red Sea was what we call
the Persian Gulf.

175

ST ATI us

ceu duo diverse pariter si fulmina caelo
rupta cadant longumque trahant per nubila crinem :
non aliter cursu rapidae atque immane frementes
transiliunt campos aurigamque impete vasto, 585

Amphiarae, tuum — nee defuit omen, eriles
forte is primus equos stagna ad vicina trahebat —
corripiunt ; mox Taenarium, qui proximus, Idan
Aetolumque Acamanta premunt : fuga torva per agros
cornipedum, visa donee flammatus Aconteus 590

strage virum, eui sueta feras prosternere virtus —
Areas erat — , densis iam fida ad moenia versas
insequitur telis, multumque hastile resumens
ter, quater adducto per terga, per ilia telo
transigit. illae autem longo cum limite fusi 595

sanguinis ad portas utrimque exstantia ducunt
spicula semianimes, gemituque imitante querellas
saucia dilectis adelinant pectora muris.
templa putes urbemque rapi faeibusque nefandis
Sidonios ardere lares, sic clamor apertis 600

exoritur muris ; mallent cunabula magni
Herculis aut Semeles thalamum aut penetrale ruisse
Harmoniae.^ cultor Baccheus Acontea Phegeus
iam vacuum telis geminoque in sanguine ovantem
comminus ense petit ; subeunt Tegeaea iuventus
auxilio tardi : iam supra sacra ferarum 606

corpora maerenti iuvenis iacet ultio Baccho.

Rumpitur et Graium subito per castra tumultu
concilium ; fugit exsertos^ locasta per hostes
iam non ausa preces ; natas ipsamque repellunt 610

^ Harmoniae PKQ : Hermionae DSN.
^ exsertos P : externos w.

" The death of Amphiaraus's charioteer was an omen of
that of his master. " primus " : he happened to be first, and
Idas and the others were following.

176

THEBAID, VII. 582-610

when from opposing tracts of heaven two lightning-
brands burst forth together, and falhng trail through
the clouds their length of hair : not otherwise do
they ■\\ith rapid course and furioas roar bound o'er
the plains, and •with a mighty spring seize thy
charioteer, Amphiaraus— nor was it \\ithout ill omen,**
that by chance he was first driving his master's horses
to a neighbouring mere — then assail Taenarian Idas,
following, and Aetolian Acamas ; the horn-footed
steeds flee madly over the fields, until Aconteus,
kindhng at the sight of heroes slain — an Arcadian
was he, of wonted valour in the chase — pursued
them, now making for their trusted walls, >Wth thick-
flung darts, and plying many a spear drove thrice
and again the poised javelin through their backs and
flanks. But they >\-ith a long trail of streaming
blood bear fainting to the gates the darts that
pierced them, and uttering human wails lean their
M-ounded bodies on the walls they love. One would
think the city and its shrines were being plundered,
and the Sidonian homes were ablaze with accursed
fire, such clamour arises when the gates are opened ;
rather would they that the cradle of great Hercules
had perished, or Semele's bower or Harmonia's bridal
chamber. Phegeus, votary of Bacchus, rushes with
dra\vn sword on Aconteus, now weaponless and exult-
ing in his \ictims twain ; the youth of Tegea dash
up in tardy succour, but already on the sacred bodies
of the beasts the youth lies dead, and sorrowing
Bacchus is avenged.

The Grecian council too is broken up in the sudden
tumult of the camp : Jocasta flees through the
enemy, already in battle trim ; no longer dares she
supplicate ; they, of late so courteous, now spurn

VOL. II N 177

STATIUS

qui modo tarn mites, et praeceps tempore Tydeus
utitur : " ite age, nunc pacem sperate fidemque !
num saltem differre nefas potuitve niorari,
dum genetrix dimissa redit ? "sic fatus aperto
ense vocat socios. saevus iam clamor, et irae 615
hinc atque inde calent ; nullo venit ordine bellum,
confusique duces volgo, et neglecta regentum
imperia ; una equites mixti peditumque catervae
et rapidi currus ; premit indigesta ruentes
copia, nee sese vacat ostentare nee hostem 620

noscere. sic subitis Thebana Argivaque pubes
conflixere globis ; retro vexilla tubaeque
post tergum et litui bellum invenere secuti.
tantus ab exiguo^ crudescit sanguine Mavors !
ventus uti primas struit intra nubila vires, 625

lenis adhuc, frondesque et aperta cacumina gestat,
mox rapuit nemus et montes patefecit opacos.

Nunc age, Pieriae, non vos longinqua, sorores,
consulimus, vestras acies vestramque referte
Aoniam ; vidistis enim, dum Marte propinquo 630
horrent Tyrrhenos Heliconia plectra tumultus.

Sidonium Pterelan sonipes male fidus in armis
rumpentem frenos diversa per agmina raptat
iam liber, sic fessa manus : venit hasta per armos
Tydeos et laevum iuveni transverberat inguen 635
labentemque adfigit equo ; fugit ille perempto
consertus domino, nee iam arma aut frena tenentem
portat adhuc : ceu nondum anima defectus utraque

^ ab exiguo w : in ambiguo P.
178

THEBAIC, VII. 611-638

her and her daughters, and Tydeus is quick to use
the moment : " Away with you, now hope for peace
and honest deahng ! Surely he could have waited
and delayed the outrage till his mother had returned
in safety ? " So speaking he bares his blade and
calls to his comrades. And now fierce shouts are
raised, and on every side \^Tath boils to fever-heat ;
the host assembles in disorder, chiefs are confounded
with the common soldiers, and leaders' commands
unmarked ; horsemen, infantry in troops and rapid
chariots are intermixed, and an indiscriminate mob
urges the rout, nor is there time to display them-
selves nor scan the foe. Thus in sudden swarms the
youth of Thebes and Argos engaged ; standards and
bugles are in the rear, and the trumpets must needs
follow to find the battle. So great waxes the con-
flict from so little bloodshed ! Even so the >\-ind
gathers its earliest strength >vithin the clouds :
gentle as yet, it sways the leaves and the unprotected
summits, but soon it has torn away the forest and
laid the dark mountain bare to \iew.

Come now, Pierian sisters, 'tis of no far-off deeds
we bid you tell, sing your own country's wars, your
own Aonia ; for ye beheld while Mars raged near
and the quills of Helicon shook at the blaring of
Tyrrhenian bronze.

The horse of Sidonian Pterelas, untrustworthy in
battle, carries his rider, tearing at the reins, through
the enemy's lines ; and now he is free, so weary is
his master's arm, when through his shoulder the
spear of Tydeus flies, and pierces the youth's left
thigh and nails him swooning to his seat ; away he
dashes, pinned to his dead lord, and bears him on,
though no more he holds weapon or bridle : even as

179

STATIUS

cum sua Centaurus moriens in terga recumbit.
certat opus ferri : sternunt alterna furentes 640

Hippomedon Sybarin, Pylium Periphanta Menoeceus,
Parthenopaeus Ityn : Sybaris iacet ense cruento,
cuspide trux Periphas, Itys insidiante sagitta.
Caeneos Inachii ferro Mavortius Haemon
colla rapit, cui dividuum trans corpus hiantes 645
truncum oculi quaerunt, animus^ caput ; arma

iacentis
iam rapiebat Abas : cornu deprensus Achiva
dimisit moriens clipeum hostilemque suumque.

Quis tibi Baccheos, Eunaee, relinquere cultus,
quis lucos, vetitus quibus emansisse sacerdos, 650
suasit et adsuetum Bromio mutare furorem ?
quem terrere queas ? clipei penetrabile textum
pallentes hederae Nysaeaque serta coronant,
Candida pampineo subnectitur instita pilo,
crine latent umeri, crescunt lanugine malae, 655

et rubet imbellis Tyrio subtemine thorax,
bracchiaque in manicis et pietae vincula plantae
carbaseique sinus, et fibula rasilis auro
Taenariam fulva mordebat iaspide pallam,
quam super a tergo velox corytus et arcus 660

pendentesque sonant aurata lynce pharetrae.
it lymphante deo media inter milia longum
vociferans : "prohibete manus, haec omine dextro
moenia Cirrhaea monstravit Apollo iuvenca ;
parcite, in haec ultro scopuli venere volentes. 665
gens sacrata sumus : gener huic est luppiter urbi

^ animus Pui : Garrod conj. umerus.

" Which the oracle bade Cadmus follow till it lay down,
and there built a city. The heifer was to be the first they
180

THEBAID, VII. 639-666

a Centaur, not yet bereft of both his lives, sinks on
his own back in death. They vie with each other
in the deadly work : in furious interchange Hippo-
medon lays Sybaris low, Menoeceus Pylian Periphas,
Parthenopaeus Itys : Sybaris falls a victim to the
reeking blade, fierce Periphas to the spear-point,
Itys to a treacherous arrow. Mavortian Haemus
severs ^nth a blow the neck of Inachian Caeneus :
his eyes -wide-opened seek the trunk across the cloven
wound, his spirit the head; already Abas was spoihng
him as he lay, when caught by an Achaean shaft he let
fall in death his foeman's buckler and his own.

Who persuaded thee, Eunaeus, to desert thy
Bacchic Morship and the groves a priest may never
leave, and to change thy Bromian frenzy } WTiora
couldst thou make afraid ? Pale i\y-wreaths of Xysa
garland the weak texture of thy shield, and a white
riband is fastened to thy vine-wood javehn. Tresses
hide his shoulders, and the down is yet growing
on his cheeks ; his corslet blushes unwarlike with
threads of Tyrian dye, he wears bracelets upon his
arms and embroidered sandals on his feet, and is
garbed in hnen folds ; a smooth golden clasp bites
with a tawny jasper stone his Taenarian cloak,
whereon rattle the nimble bow-case and the bow and
the hanging quivers of gold-embroidered lynxes' hide.
Crazed by the god he goes through the midst of
thousands, and cries afar : " Stay your hands ! these
walls Apollo revealed by the good omen of Cirrha's
heifer " ! Forbear ! rocks came willingly of their
own accord to form them. A sacred race are we :
Jove is this city's son-in-law, and its father-in-law is

saw on going out from the temple, hence " Cirrhaea," i.e.,
Delphic, from Cirrha, port of Delphi.

181

STATIUS

Gradivusque socer ; Bacchum haud mentimur

alumnum
et magnum Alciden." iactanti talia frustra
turbidus aeria Capaneus occurrit in hasta.
qualis ubi primam leo mane cubilibus atris 670

erexit rabiem et saevo speeulatur ab antro
aut cervum aut nondum bellantem fronte iuvencum,
it fremitu gaudens, licet arma gregesque lacessant
venantum, praedam videt et sua volnera nescit :
sic tum congressu Capaneus gavisus iniquo 675

librabat magna venturam mole cupressum.
ante tamen " quid femineis ululatibus " inquit,
" terrificas, nioriture, viros ? utinam ipse veniret,
cui furis ! haec Tyriis cane matribus ! " et simul

hastam
expulit ; ilia volans, ceu vis non ulla moretur 680

obvia, vix sonuit clipeo et iam terga reliquit.
arma fluunt, longisque crepat singultibus aurum,
eruptusque sinus vicit cruor. occidis audax,
occidis Aonii puer altera cura Lyaei.
marcida te fractis planxerunt Ismara thyrsis, 685

te Tmolos, te Nysa ferax Theseaque Naxos
et Thebana metu iuratus in orgia Ganges.

Nee segnem Argolicae sensere Eteoclea turmae,
parcior ad cives Polynicis inhorruit ensis.
eminet ante alios iam formidantibus arva 690

Amphiaraus equis ac multo pulvere vertit

" Semele was the wife of Jove, and Harmonia the daughter
of Mars and Venus.

*> i.e., after Phegeus, 1. 603.

182

THEBAID, VII. 667H391

GradivTis " : Bacchus and great Alcides we truly call
our children." Amid boasts so vain fierce Capaneus
meets him, a tall spear in his hand. And as at break
of day a Hon in his gloomy lair stirs up his fresh-
awoken fury, and spies from the grim cave a hind
or bullock with yet unwarlike forehead, and leaps
forth with joyous roar, though assailed by the spears
of hunting bands, but he sees his prey and knows
not of his womids : so then did Capaneus exult in
the unequal conflict and poised for the throw the
great weight of his cypress-spear. Yet first he cries :
" Why, doomed one, dost thou affright our troops
with womanly howls ? Would that he for whom thou
ragest would come himself to battle I Go, bawl that
message to thy Tyrian dames I " and therewith he
flung the spear, which in its flight, as though no
force could meet and stay it, scarce rang upon the
shield and already had passed clean through his back.
His weapons fall, the gold resounds with long choking
sobs, blood streams forth and overflows his bosom.
Thou art fallen, bold youth ; thou too, one favourite
more * of Aonian Lyaeus, art fallen. Thee languid
Ismarus lamented with broken wands, thee Tmolus
and fruitful Xysa mourned, and Naxos of Theseus'
fame, and Ganges, that in fear swore fealty to
Theban orgies."^

Nor was Eteocles found a sluggard by the Argolic
bands, but Polynices' sword, more sparing, shrank
from his countr}'men. Before the rest Amphiaraus
shines pre-eminent, although already ^ his horses fear
the ground, and 'mid clouds of dust he upturns the

' All these are places connected with Bacchus. India was
conquered by him. according to one legend.
•^ See 1. 586.

183

ST ATI us

campum indignantem : famulo decus addit inane^
maestus et extremes obitus inlustrat Apollo,
ille etiam clipeum galeamque incendit honoro
sidere ; nee tarde fratri, Gradive, dedisti, 695

ne qua manus vatem, ne quid mortalia bello
laedere tela queant : sanctum et venerabile Diti
funus eat.^ talis medios aufertur in hostes
certus et ipse necis, vires fiducia leti
suggerit ; inde viro maioraque membra diesque 700
laetior et numquam tanta experientia caeli,
si vacet : avertit morti contermina Virtus,
ardet inexpleto saevi Mavortis amore,
et fruitur dextra atque anima flagrante superbit.
hicne hominum casus lenire et demere Fatis 705

iura frequens ? quantum subito diversus ab illo,
qui tripodas laurusque sequi, qui doctus in omni
nube salutato volucrem cognoscere Phoebo !
innumeram ferro plebem, ceu letifer annus
aut iubar adversi grave sideris, immolat umbris 710
ipse suis : iaculo Phlegyan iaculoque superbum
Phylea, falcato Clonin et Chremetaona curru
comminus hunc stantem metit, hunc a poplite sectum,
cuspide non missa Chroniin Iphinoumque Sagenque
intonsumque Gyan sacrumque Lycorea Phoebo—
invitus : iam fraxineum demiserat hastae 716

robur, et excussis apparuit infula cristis — ,
Alcathoum saxo, cui circum stagna Carysti
et domus et coniunx et amantes litora nati
vixerat ille diu pauper scrutator aquarum, 720

1 addit inane w : abdidit omne P : adicit omne conj.
Garrod. '■^ eat P : erat w.

" i.e., the omens of the sky ("dies" often = " caelum ")
grew more and more favourable.

184

THEBAID, VII. 692-720

indignant plain ; Apollo sadly sheds a vain lustre
upon his servant, and makes his last hours glorious.
His shield too and his helm he sets afire with starry
splendours, nor, Gradivus, wert thou slow to grant
thy brother that no human hand, no mortal weapon
should have power to harm the seer, but that he
should go to Dis sacred and venerable in death. In
such A^ise, conscious himself of doom, he is borne into
the thickest of the fray ; the assurance of death
gives him new strength, his limbs grow mightier and
the sky more favourable," nor ever knew he so well to
read the heavens, had he but leisure : but Valour, near
neighbour of death, turns his gaze away. He glows
with an insatiable love of savage War and revels in
his might, and his fieiy- soul exults. Is this he who
so oft alleviated the lot of man and made the Fates
powerless ? How quickly changed from him who
was skilled to follow the guidance of tripod and of
bay, to salute Phoebus and learn the import of the
birds in ever\- cloud I Like some pestilence or ad-
verse ray of baleful star, his sword oflFers up to his
OA\n shade a host innumerable. With a javelin he
slays Phleg}as and proud Phyleus, with scythed
chariot he mows down Clonis and Chremetaon, the
one standing to fight him, the other he severs at the
knee ; with spear-thrust Chromis and Iphinous and
Sages and unshorn Gyas and Lycoreus sacred to
Phoebus — the last unwillingly : already had he
driven home the ashen strength of the spear when
the falling crest revealed the fillet — with a stone
Alcathous, to whom by the meres of Carystus was
home and wife and his children who loved its shores.
Long had he lived a poor searcher of the waters :

185

STATIUS

decepit tellus, moriens hiemesque notosque
laudat et expert! meliora pericula ponti.

Aspicit has longe iamdudum Asopius Hypseus
palantum strages ardetque avertere pugnam,
quamquam baud ipse minus curru Tirynthia fundens
robora ; sed viso praesens minor augure sanguis : 726
ilium armis animisque cupit. probibebat iniquo
agmine consertum cunei latus ; inde superbus
exseruit patriis electum missile ripis,
ac prius : " Aonidum dives largitor aquarum, 730

elare Giganteis etiamnum, Asope, favillis,
da numen dextrae : rogat hoc natusque tuique
quercus alumna vadi ; fas et mihi spernere Phoebum,
si tibi conlatus divum sator. omnia mergam
fontibus arma tuis tristesque sine augure vittas. " 735
audierat genitor : vetat indulgere volentem
Phoebus, et aurigam iactus detorquet in Hersen.
ille ruit : deus ipse vagis succedit habenis,
Lernaeum falso simulans Haliacmona vultu.
tunc vero ardenti non ulla obsistere temptant 740
signa, ruunt solo terrore, et volnera citra
mors trepidis ignava venit, dubiumque tuenti
presserit infestos onus impuleritne iugales.
sic ubi nubiferum montis latus aut nova ventis
solvit hiemps, aut victa situ non pertulit aetas, 745
desilit horrendus canipo timor, arva^ virosque
limite non uno longaevaque robora secum
praecipitans, tandemque exhaustus turbine fesso
aut vallem cavat aut medios intercipit amnes.

^ arva a> : arma PS.

" i.e., Argive.

* For meaning see 11. 315 sqg. The "oaken nursling" is
his spear.

186

THEBAID, VII. 721-749

earth played him false, and dying he praises the
storms and >\-inds, and the more welcome dangers of
the famihar sea.

Long has Asopian H^-pseus beheld from far the
slaughter of the scattered rout, and burned to stay
the tide of battle, though he himself not less has put
to flight Tirynthian " forces ; but the sight of the
augur made htm heed the present carnage less : for
him his warlike spirit yearns. A dense phalanx of
the foe bars his way : then proudly he makes ready
a javehn, chosen from his father's banks, and first
exclaims : " O bounteous lavisher of Aonian streams,
Asopus, yet renowned for the ashes of Giants,^ give
power to this right hand ; thy son and the oaken
nursling of thv river ask thee ; if thou didst strive
with the Sire of all the gods, I may despise Phoebus.
All his armour will I sink in thy waters, and the sad
fillets from the augur's head." His father heard
him, but Phoebus would not suffer him, fain though
he was, to grant the prayer, and turns the blow aside
upon Herses the charioteer. He falls, and the god
himself takes up the straying reins, assiuning the
feigned shape of HaUacmon of Lema. Then indeed
no squadrons try to resist his fiery course, but flee
in terror unallayed, and in their panic they die a
coward's death unwounded ; 'tis doubtful to the \iew
whether the fierce coursers are retarded or sped
onward by the burden. So when a cloud-encom-
passed mountain-side is loosened by the fresh storms
of A^inter, or by irresistible decay of age, it crashes
down upon the plain, a fearful terror, and sweeps
away in many a track of ruin fields, husbandmen, and
aged oaks, and at length, its furious rush exhausted,
either scoops out a vale or bars a river in mid-course.

187

STATIUS

non secus ingentique viro magnoque gravatus 750
temo deo nunc hoc, nunc illo in sanguine fervet.
ipse sedens telis pariterque ministrat habenis
Delius, ipse docet iactus adversaque flectit
spicula fortunamque hastis venientibus aufert.
sternuntur terra^ Melaneus pedes, Antiphus alto 755
nil defensus equo, genitusque Heliconide nympha
Action,^ caesoque infamis fratre Polites,
conatusque toris vittatam attingere Manto
Lampus : in hunc sacras Plioebus dedit ipse sagittas.
et iam cornipedes trepidi ac moribunda reflantes 760
corpora rimantur terras, omnisque per artus
sulcus et incisis altum rubet orbita membris.
hos iam ignorantes terit impius axis, at illi
vulnere semineces — nee devitare facultas —
venturum super ora vident ; iam lubrica tabo 765
frena, nee insisti madidus dat temo, rotaeque
sanguine difficiles, et tardior ungula fossis
visceribus : tunc ipse furens in morte relicta
spicula et e mediis exstantes ossibus hastas
avellit, strident animae currumque sequuntur. 770

Tandem se famulo summum confessus Apollo
" utere luce tua longamque " ait, " indue famam,
dum tibi me iunctum Mors inrevocata veretur.
vincimur : immites scis^ nulla revolvere Parcas
stamina ; vade, diu populis promissa voluptas 775
Elysiis, certe non perpessure Creontis
imperia aut vetito nudus iaciture supulcro."
ille refert contra, et paulum respirat ab armis :
'• olim te, Cirrhaee pater, peritura sedentem 779

^ terra Pw : terrae Kohhnann.

^ Action Pw : Action LN : Aethion QD.

* scis Pw : fas DN (scis written over in D).

188

THEBAID. VII. 750-779

Not otherwise does the chariot, burdened by the
great warrior and the mighty god, drive furiously
through many a scene of bloodshed. From his seat
the Delian guides both reins and weapons, and in-
structs his aim ; he turns aside hostile darts and cheats
the flying javelins of their fortune. Menaleus on
foot is overthrown, and Antiphus, no whit defended
by his lofty steed, and Action, born of a nymph of
Hehcon, and Polites, ill-renowned for a brother's
murder, and Lampus, who tried to defile the couch
of the priestess Manto : against him Phoebus with
his own hand sped holy arrows. And now the hom-
footed steeds snort at the corpses in alarm and probe
the ground, and every wheel-track runs o'er bodies
and reddens deep with severed limbs. Some the
remorseless axle grinds unconscious, but others half-
dead from wounds — and powerless to escape — see
it as it draws nigh to crush them. Already the reins
are wet with gore, the slippery car gives no foothold,
blood clogs the wheels and trampled entrails hinder
the horses' hooves : then the hero himself madly
tears out darts abandoned in the slain and spears
projecting from the midst of corpses : ghosts shriek
and pursue the chariot.

At length, revealing to his servant all his godhead,
Apollo said : " Use the light that is thine, and put
on eternal fame, while Death irrevocable fears me
in thy company. We are overcome : thou knowest
that the cruel Fates unravel no threads ; depart,
long-promised delight of Elysian peoples, thou who
of a surety wilt never bend thy neck to Creon's rule,
or lie exposed and barred from burial." The other,
taking breath awhile from the fight, makes answer :
" Long since knew I, Cirrhaean father, that thou wert

189

ST ATI us

ad iuga — quis tantus miseris honor ? — ^axe trementi

sensimus ; instantes quonam usque morabere manes ?

audio iam rapidae eursum Stygis atraque Ditis

flumina tergeminosque mali custodis hiatus.

accipe commissum capiti decus, accipe laurus,

quas Erebo deferre nefas. nunc voce suprema, 785

si qua recessuro debetur gratia vati,

deceptum tibi, Phoebe, larem poenasque nefandae

coniugis et pulchrum nati commendo furorem."

desiluit maerens lacrimasque avertit Apollo :

tunc vero ingemuit currusque orbique iugales. 790

non aliter caeco nocturni turbine Cori

scit peritura ratis, cum iam damnata sororis

igne Therapnaei fugerunt carbasa fratres.

lamque recessurae paulatim horrescere terrae
summaque terga quati graviorque efFervere pulvis
coeperat ; inferno mugit iam murmure campus. 796
bella putant trepidi bellique hunc esse fragorem,
hortanturque gradus ; alius^ tremor arma virosque
roirantesque inclinat equos ; iam frondea nutant
culmina, iam muri, ripisque Ismenos apertis 800

effugit ; exciderunt irae, nutantia figunt
tela solo, dubiasque vagi nituntur in hastas
comminus inque vicem viso pallore recedunt.
sic ubi navales miscet super aequora pugnas
contempto Bellona mari, si forte benigna"^ 805

^ alius Pw : altus Heinslus and late uss.
^ benigna Pcj : maligna BN: PJiiUimore conj. nigrabit.

" The star of Helen was baneful, as those of her brothers
were beneficial, to ships at sea. Cf. Silv. iii. 2. 8 sqq. ; also
Plin. N.H. ii. 37.

190

THEBAID \II. 780-805

seated on my doomed chariot's trembling axle —
why such high honour to my hapless pUght ? — How
long wilt thou delay the death that threatens me ?
Already I hear the flow of rapid Styx, and the dark
rivers of Dis and the triple baying of his noxious
sentinel. Receive the honours thou didst bestow
upon my head, receive the laurels which may not be
taken down to Erebus. Now ^nth my last words, if
any gratitude be owed to thy prophet ere he depart,
I commend to thee, O Phoebus, my betrayed home
and the punishment of my wicked spouse and my
son's noble rage." Sad at heart Apollo leapt down
and turned to hide his tears : then verily groaned
the chariot and the horses, thus left desolate. Not
otherwise in a blind hurricane at night, when the
North-wester blows, does a ship know that she will
perish, so soon as the brethren of Therapnae have
fled the sails their sister's fire has doomed."

And now little by Uttle the earth began to shudder
to its rending, and the surface to rock, and the dust
to rise in thicker clouds, already an infernal bellowing
fills the plain. In alarm they think it is the battle
and the noise of conflict, and hasten on their steps :
a shock far different hurls arms and warriors and
marvelling steeds to earth ; already the leafy
summits are nodding, and the walls, and Ismenos
flees with all his banks exposed to \iew ; their wTath
is abated, they fix their swaying weapons in the
ground, or wandering meet and lean on their rocking
spears, and start when they see each other's pallor.
So when Bellona, scorning the deep,** joins ships in
battle on the sea, then, should a kindly tempest

^ i.e., outraging it by making it the scene of war.
" Kindly," as being safer than batue.

191

STATIUS

tempestas, sibi quisque cavent, ensesque recondit
mors alia, et socii pacem fecere timores.
talis erat campo belli fluitantis imago,
sive laborantes concepto flamine terrae
ventorum rabiem et clusum eieeere furorem, 810

exedit sen putre solum carpsitque terendo^
unda latens, sive hac volventis machina caeli
incubuit, sive omne fretum Neptunia movit
cuspis et extremas gravius mare torsit in oras,
seu vati datus ille fragor, seu terra minata est 815
fratribus : ecce alte praeceps humus ore profundo
dissilit, inque vicem timuerunt sidera et umbrae,
ilium ingens haurit specus et transire parantes
mergit equos ; non arma manu, non frena remisit :
sicut erat, rectos defert in Tartara currus 820

respexitque cadens caelum campumque coire
ingemuit, donee levior distantia rursus
miscuit arva tremor lucemque exclusit Averno.

^ terendo later mss. : ferendo Pa).

192

THEBAID, VII. 806-823

befall, all look to their own safety, and another death
bids all their swords be sheathed, and common fears
make peace among them. Such was the appearance
of the heaWng combat on the plain. Whether the
earth, labouring with imprisoned blasts, expelled the
pent-up fury of the raging ^vind, or whether hidden
waters ate away and wore down and sapped the
crumbling soil, or the fabric of the rolling sky
flung that way its weight, or Neptune's trident
moved all the ocean and flung too vast a sea upon
the shore, or whether that uproar was a tribute
to the seer, or Earth threatened the brothers — lo I
in a gaping chasm the ground yawns sheer and
deep, and stars and shades feel mutual terror. Him
the huge abyss engulfs, and swallows the horses as
they try to leap across it ; he drops neither reins
nor weapons, but, just as he was, drove his unshaken
chariot down to Tartarus, and as he sank looked back
at the heavens and groaned to see the plain meet
above him, vmtil a fainter shock joined once more
the parted fields and shut out the dayUght from
Avemus.

193

LIBER VIII

Ut subitus vates pallentibus incidit umbris
letiferasque domos orbisque^ arcana sepulti
rupit et armato turbavit funere manes,
horror habet cunctos, Stygiis mirantur in oris
tela et equos corpusque movum ; nee enim ignibus
artus 5

conditus aut maesta niger adventabat ab urna,
sed belli sudore calens, clipeumque cruentis
roribus et scissi respersus pulvere campi.
needum ilium aut trunca lustraverat obvia taxo
Eumenis, aut furvo^ Proserpina poste notarat 10

coetibus adsumptum funetis ; quin comminus ipsa
Fatorum deprensa colus, visoque paventes
augure tunc demum rumpebant stamina Parcae.
ilium et securi circumspexere fragorem
Elysii, et si quos procul ulteriore^ barathro 15

altera nox aliisque gravat plaga caeca tenebris.
tunc regemunt pigrique lacus ustaeque^ paludes,
umbriferaeque fremit sulcator pallidus undae
dissiluisse novo penitus telluris hiatu
Tartara et admissos non per sua flumina manes, 20

^ orbisque w : regisque P. ^ furvo w : fulvo PS.

' ulteriore P : inferiore w.
* ustae P Schol. : vastae a».

" Both appear to be modes of initiation to the under-
194

BOOK VIII

When' on a sudden the prophet fell among the pallid
shades, and burst into the homes of death and the
mysteries of the deep-sunken realm, and affrighted
the ghosts ^^ith his armed corpse, all were filled with
horror and marvelled at the weapons and horses and
the body still undecayed upon the Stygian shores :
for no fires had whelmed his limbs, nor came he
charred from the gloomy urn, but hot with the sweat
of war, and gory drops and the dust of the rent plain
beflecked his shield. Not yet had the Fury met and
purified him with branch of yew, not had Proserpine
marked him on the dusky door-post as admitted to the
company of the dead" ; nay, his presence surprised the
ver}- distaff of the Fates, and not till in terror they
beheld the augur did the Parcae break the thread.
At the noise of his coming the care-free Elysian folk
gazed round about them, and they whom far in the
remoter gulf a deeper night and a blind region of
denser shades o'envhelms. Then sluggish meres and
scorched lakes resound with groaning, and the pale
furrower of the ghost-bearing stream cries out that
a new chasm has cloven Tartarus to its depths and
spirits have been let in across a river not his own.

world, though nowhere else mentioned as such. The yew
belonged specially to Furies, «•/. xi. 94. " furvus " is an
epithet suitable to the underworld, cf. Silv. v. 1. 155.

195

ST ATI us

Forte sedens media regni infelicis in arce
dux Erebi populos poscebat crimina vitae,
nil hominum miserans iratusque omnibus umbris
stant Furiae circum variaeque ex ordine Mortes,
saevaque multisonas exsertat Poena catenas ; 25

Fata ferunt animas et eodem pollice damnant :
vincit opus, iuxta Minos cum fratre verendo
iura bonus meliora monet regemque cruentum
temperat ; adsistunt lacrimis atque igne tumentes
Cocytos Phlegethonque, et Styx periuria divum 30
arguit. ille autem supera compage soluta
nee solitus sentire metus expavit oborta
sidera, iucundaque ofFensus luce profatur :
" quae superum labes inimicum impegit Averno
aethera ? quis rupit tenebras vitaeque silentes 35
admonet ? unde minae^ ? uter haec mihi proelia

fratrum ?
congredior, pereant agedum discrimina rerum.
nam cui dulce magis ? magno me tertia victum
deiecit Fortuna polo, mundumque nocentem
servo : nee iste meus dirisque en pervius astris 40
inspicitur. tumidusne meas regnator Olympi
explorat vires ? habeo iam quassa Gigantum
vincula et aetherium cupidos exire sub axem
Titanas miserumque patrem : quid me otia maesta
saevus et implacidam prohibet perferre quietem 45

^ minae ui : mina P, minas Baehrens. Statius allows,
occasionally, a short syllable at this point in the line, cf.
iii. 710, also, very rarely, hiatus.

" Literally " thumb," with which the crowd in the amphi-
theatre saved or condemned the gladiators who appealed for
mercy.

* An oath sworn by Styx was inviolable, and Styx could
therefore punish perjury ; see Hesiod, Theog. 784, where any

196

THEBAID, VIII. 21-45

Bv chance the lord of Erebus, enthroned in the
midst of the fortress of his dolorous realm, was de-
manding of his subjects the misdoings of their hves,
pitying nought human but ^vToth against all the
shades. Around him stand the Furies and various
Deaths in order due, and savage Vengeance thrusts
forth her coils of jangling chains ; the Fates bring
the souls and \\"ith one gesture " damn them ; too
heavv grows the work. Hard bv, Minos with his dread
brother in kindly mood counsels a milder justice, and
restrains the bloodthirsty king ; Cocytus and Phlege-
thon, swollen ^^ith tears and fire, aid in the judge-
ment, and Styx accuses the gods of perjurj-.* But
he,'' when the frame of the world above was loosened
and filled him with unwonted fears, quaked at the
appearing stars, and thus did he speak, offended by
the gladsome light : " What ruin of the upper world
hath thrust the hateful light of day into Avernus ?
Who hath burst our gloom and told the silent folk
of hfe ? Whence comes this threat ? Which of my
brothers thus makes war on me ? Well, I Mill meet
him : confusion whelm all natural bounds ! For
whom would that please more ? the third hazard
hurled me defeated from the mighty heaven, and 1
guard the world of guilt ; nor is even that mine, but
lo ! the dread stars search it from end to end, and
gaze upon me. Does the proud ruler of Olympus
spy out my strength ? Mine is the prison-house, now
broken, of the Giants, and of the Titans, eager to
force their way to the world above, and his own un-
happy sire : why thus cruelly doth he forbid me to
enjoy my moiu-nful leisure and this untranquil peace,

god who is guilty of such perjurj- is debarred for nine years from
the company of the gods. ' i.e., Pluto, " lord of Erebus."

197

STATIUS

amissumque odisse diem ? pandani omnia regna,
si placet, et Stygio praetexam Hyperiona caelo.
Arcada nee superis — quid enim mihi nuntius ambas
itque reditque domos ? — emittam et utrumque tenebo
Tyndariden. cur autem avidis Ixiona frango 50

verticibus ? cur non exspectant Tantalon undae ?
anne profanatum totiens chaos hospite vivo
perpetiar ? me Pirithoi temerarius ardor
temptat et audaci Theseus iuratus amico,
me ferus Alcides, tunc cum custode remote 55

ferrea Cerbereae tacuerunt Umina portae ;
Odrysiis etiam pudet heu ! patuisse querelhs
Tartara : vidi egomet blanda inter carmina turpes
Eumenidum lacrimas iterataque pensa Sororum ;
me quoque — sed durae mehor violentia legis. 60

ast ego vix unum, nee celsa ad sidera, furto
ausus iter Siculo rapui conubia campo :
nee hcuisse ferunt ; iniustaeque a love leges
protinus, et sectum genetrix mihi computat annum,
sed quid ego haec ? i, Tartareas ulciscere sedes, 65
Tisiphone ; si quando novis asperrima monstris,
triste, insuetum, ingens, quod nondum viderit aether,
ede nefas, quod mirer ego invideantque Sorores.
atque adeo fratres — nostrique haec omina sunto
prima odii — , fratres alterna in vulnera laeto 70

Marte ruant ; sit, qui rabidarum more ferarum

" "The Arcadian " is Mercury, messenger of the gods and
conductor of souls to Hades. The sons of Tyndareus, Castor
and Pollux, enjoyed an alternate immortality, one being in
heaven while the other was in Hades.

* Of Orpheus ; " Odrysian " =Thracian. The task of the
Sisters was repeated, for Eurydice's thread had to be spun
anew if she was allowed to return to life.

* Demeter, whose daughter Persephone was carried off by

198

THEBAID, VIII. 46-71

and to hate the light I lost ? I will open all my
kingdoms, if such be my pleasure, and veil Hj-perion
with a Stygian sky. I will not send the Arcadian up
to the gods — why doth he come and go on errands
between realm and realm ? — and I will keep both
the sons of Tyndareus." And why do I break Ixion
on the greedy whirhng of the wheel ? Whv do the
waters not wait for Tantalus ? Must I so oft endure
the profanation of Chaos by h\ing strangers ? The
rash ardour of Pirithous provoked me, and Theseus,
sworn comrade of his daring friend, and fierce Alcides,
when the iron threshold of Cerberus' gate fell silent,
its guardian removed. It shames me too, alas I how
Tartarus opened a way to the Odrysian plaint ^ ;
with my own eyes I saw the Eumenides shed base
tears at those persuasive strains, and the Sisters
repeat their allotted task ; me too — , but the \iolence
of my cruel law was stronger. Yet I have scarce
ventured one stolen journey, nor was that to the stars
on high, when I carried off my bride from the
Sicilian mead : unlawfully, so they say, and forth-
with comes an unjust decree from Jove, and her
mother <= cheats me of half a year. But why do I
tell all this ? Go, Tisiphone, avenge the abode of
Tartarus ! if ever thou hast wrought monsters fierce
and strange, bring forth some ghastly horror, huge
and unwonted, such as the sky hath never yet be-
held, such as I may marvel at and thy Sisters envy.
Ay, and the brothers — let this be the first sign of my
hatred — let the brothers rush to slay each other in
exultant combat ; let there be one who in hideous,

Pluto to the underworld. Demeter eventually bargained
with him that she should stay only six montiis of the year in
Hades.

199

STATIUS

mandat atrox hostile caput, quique igne supremo
areeat exanimes et manibus aethera nudis
commaculet : iuvet ista ferum spectare Tonantem.
praeterea ne sola furor mea regna lacessat, 75

quaere deis qui bella ferat, qui fulminis ignes
infestumque lovem clipeo fumante repellat.
faxo baud sit cunctis levior metus atra movere
Tartara, frondenti quam iungere Pelion Ossae."
dixerat ; atque illi iamdudum regia tristis 80

attremit oranti, suaque et quae desuper urguet
nutabat tellus : non fortius aethera vultu
torquet et astriferos inclinat luppiter axes.

"At tibi quos " inquit, " manes, qui limite praeceps
non licito per inane ruis ? " subit ille minantem 85
iam tenuis visu, iam vanescentibus armis,
iam pedes : exstincto tamen indecerptus^ in ore
augurii perdurat honos, obscuraque fronti
vitta manet, ramumque tenet morientis olivae.
" si Beet et Sanctis hie ora resolvere fas est 90

manibus, o cunctis finitor maxime rerum,
at mihi, qui quondam causas elementaque noram,
et sator, oro, minas stimulataque corda remulce,
neve ira dignare hominem et tua iura timentem,
nam nee ad Herculeos — unde haec mihi pi'oelia^ ? —

raptus, 95

nee Venerem inlicitam — crede his insignibus — ausi
intramus Lethen : fugiat ne tristis in antrum

^ indecerptus Barth : interceptus Pw.
* proelia P : pectora a.'.

« Tydeus and Creon, see Bk. VIII. (fin.) and Bk. XII.

* Capaneus, see Bk. X. (fin.).

" " manes," existence in underworld, so doom, fate.

■^ Pluto may be regarded as the source, as well as the

200

THEBAID, VIII. 72-97

bestial savagery shall gnaw his foeman's head, and
one who shall bar the dead from the funeral fire and
pollute the air with naked corpses " ; let the fierce
Thunderer feast his eyes on that ! Moreover, lest
their furj- harm my realms alone, seek one who shall
make war against the gods,* and with smoking shield
repel the fiery brand and Jove's own wrath. I will
have all men fear to disturb black Tartarus no less
than to set Pelion on top of leafy Ossa." He
finished, and long since was the gloomy palace
quaking at his words, and his own land and that
which presses on it from above were rocking : no
more mightily does Jupiter sway the heaven with his
nod, and bow the starrj- poles.

" But what shall be thy doom," '^ he cries, " who
rushest headlong through the empty realm on a path
forbidden ? " As he threatens, the other draws nigh,
on foot now and shado^^y to view, his armour grow-
ing faint, yet in his lifeless face abides the dignity
of augurship inviolate, and on his brow remains the
fillet dim to behold, and in his hand is a branch of
dying olive. "If it be lawful and right for holy
shades to make utterance here, O thou to all men
the great Finisher, but to me, who once knew
causes and beginnings. Creator** also ! remit, I pray,
thy threatenings and thy fevered heart, nor deem
worthy of thy wrath one who is but a man and fears
thy laws ; 'tis for no Herculean plunder « — such wars
are not for me — , nor for a forbidden bride — believe
these emblems — that I dare to enter Lethe : let not

destined end, of all souls. Earth is similarlj- called creatress
of souls, 1. 304 inf.

' Hercules descended into Hades to fetch awaj- Cerberus,
Pirithous, in order to carry off Proserpine.

201

STATIUS

Cerberus, aut nostros timeat Proserpina currus.

augur Apollineis modo dilectissimus aris,

tester inane chaos — quid enim hie iurandus Apollo? — .-

crimine non ullo subeo nova fata, nee alma 101

sic merui de luce rapi ; scit iudicis urna

Dictaei verumque potest deprendere Minos.

coniugis insidiis et iniquo venditus auro

Argolicas acies — unde haec tibi turba recentum 105

umbrarum, et nostrae veniunt quoque funera

dextrae —
non ignarus ini : subito me turbine mundi —
horret adhuc animus — mediis e milibus hausit
nox tua. quae mihi mens, dum per cava viscera terrae
vado diu pendens et in acre volvor operto ? 110

ei mihi ! nil ex me sociis patriaeque relictum,
vel captum Thebis ; iam non Lernaea videbo
tecta, nee attonito saltern cinis ibo parenti.
non tumulo, non igne miser lacrimisque meorum
productus, toto pariter tibi funere veni, 115

nil istis ausurus equis ; nee deprecor umbram
accipere et tripodum iam non meminisse meorum.
nam tibi praesagi quis iam super auguris usus,
cum Parcae tua iussa trahant ? sed pectora flectas
et melior sis, quaeso, deis. si quando nefanda 120
hue aderit coniunx, illi funesta reserva
supplicia : ilia tua, rector bone, dignior ira."
accipit ille preces indignaturque moveri.
ut leo Massyli cum lux stetit obvia ferri,

" He had not yet become a shade ; Alton suggests
" undam " here, i.e. of Lethe, to explain " iam non memi-
nisse." The two words are often confused.

W2

THEBAID, VIII. 98-124

Cerberus flee into his cave, nor Proserpine shudder
at my chariot. I, once the best beloved of augurs
at Apollo's shrines, call empty Chaos to bear \vitness
— for what power to receive an oath has Apollo here ?
— for no crime do I suffer tliis unwonted fate, nor
have I deserved to be thus torn from the kindly
hght of day ; the urn of the Dictean judge doth
know it, and Minos can discern the truth. Sold by
the treachery of my ^\-ife for A\-icked gold, I joined
the Argive host, not unwitting— hence this crowd
of new-slain ghosts thou seest, and the \ictims
also of this right hand ; in a sudden convulsion
of the earth— my mind still shrinks in horror — ^thy
darkness swallowed me up from the midst of
thousands. What were my feehngs, while I made
my way on and on through the hollow womb of
earth, and while I was whirled along, suspended
in shrouding mist ? Ah, woe is me I nought of
me is left to my country or my friends, nor in
the power of Thebes ; no more shall I behold the
roofs of Lema, nor shall I return in ashes to my
stricken sire. With no pomp of tomb or pyre or
kinsmen's tears, to thee am I come with all my
funeral train, nor likely to venture aught -with
yonder steeds ; content am I to receive my shade,"
nor remember my tripods any more. For what
avails thee the use of prescient augur}-, when the
Parcae spin thy commands ? Nay, be thou softened,
and prove more merciful than the gods. If ever my
accursed wife come hither, reser\x for her thy deadly
torments : she is more worthy of thy >\Tath, O right-
eous lord I " He accepts his prayer, and is indignant
that he yields : just as a lion, when the ghttering
Massylian steel confronts him, then most summons

203

STATIUS

tunc iras, tunc arma citat ; si decidit hostis, 125

ire supra satis est vitamque relinquere victo.

Interea vittis lauruque insignis opima
currus et egregiis modo formidatus in armis
luce palam, fusus nulli^ nullique fugatus,
quaeritur : absistunt turmae, suspectaque tellus 130
omnibus, infidi miles vestigia campi
circuit, atque avidae tristis locus ille ruinae
cessat et inferni vitatur honore sepulcri.
nuntius hortanti diversa in parte maniplos
Adrasto, vix ipse ratus vidisse, Palaemon 135

advolat et trepidans — steterat nam forte cadenti
proximus inspectoque miser pallebat hiatu —
"verte gradum, fuge, rector" ait, "si Dorica saltern
terra loco patriaeque manent, ubi liquimus, arces.
non armis, non sanguine opus : quid inutile ferrum
stringimus in Thebas ? currus humus impia sorbet
armaque bellantesque viros ; fugere ecce videtur 142
hie etiam, quo stamus, ager. vidi ipse profundae
noctis iter ruptaque soli compage ruentem
ilium heu, praesagis quo nullus amicior astris, 145
Oecliden, frustraque manus cum voce tetendi.^
mira loquor, sulcos etiamnum rector equorum
fumantemque locum et spumis madida arva^ reliquit.^
nee commune malum est : tellus agnoscit alumnos,
stat Thebana acies." stupet haec et credere Adi*astus
cunctatur ; sed Mopsus idem trepidusque ferebat 151
Actor idem, iam^ fama novis terroribus audax

^ nulli w : media P.

2 tetendi BQC : tetendit 7'co.

^ arva w : ora P. * reliquit P : reliqui w.

® iam Sandstroem : nam Pu.

204

THEBAID, VIII. 125-152

up his anger and his might : but if the foenian fall,
to pass over him is enough, and to leave to the
vanquished his life.

Meanwhile his chariot, garlanded with sacred wool
and victorious bay, and feared but of late for noble
feats of arms, is sought in the clear light of day in
vain, though by none vanquished and by none put
to flight : the troops fall back, and the ground is
suspected by all, and the soldiers avoid the traces
of the dangerous field ; that ill-omened spot of
ravenous destruction lies idle, shunned from awe of
the helhsh abyss. While Adrastus in a different
quarter is encouraging his men, Palaemon flies to
him with tidings, scarce trusting what he has seen,
and cries in terror — for it chanced that he stood nigh
the falhng seer, and paled, poor wretch ! to see the
chasm open : " Turn, prince, and flee, if at least
the Dorian land yet remains in its place, and our
native towers where we left them. No need of arms
or bloodshed : why draw we against Thebes the un-
availing sword ? The impious earth sucks in our
chariots and our weapons and men of war ; lo ! even
the field where we stand seems to flee away. With
my own eyes I saw the road to deepest night, and
the firm soil rent, and him, alas I Oechdes, falling,
than whom none was dearer to the prescient stars ;
and in vain I stretched out my arms and cried aloud.
'Tis a miracle that I tell : only now has my charioteer
left the furrowed ground and the smoking, foam-
bespattered fields. Nor is the ruin shared by all :
the earth knows its own children, the Theban host
remains." Adrastus, horror-struck, is slow to be-
heve, but Mopsus and affrighted Actor were bringing
the same tidings. Already rimiour, bold to ply new

205

ST ATI us

non unum cecidisse refert. sponte agmina retro
non exspectato revocantum more tubarum^
praecipitant : sed torpet iter, falluntque ruentes 155
genua viros ; ipsique — putes sensisse — -repugnant
cornipedes nulloque truces hortamine parent,
nee celerare gradum nee tollere lumina terra,
fortius incursant Tyrii, sed Vesper opacus
lunar es iam ducit equos ; data foedere parvo 160

maesta viris requies et nox auctura timores.

Quae tibi nunc facies, postquam permissa gemendi
copia ? qui fletus galeis cecidere solutis ?
nil solitum f esses iuvat ; abiecere madentes,
sicut erant, clipeos, nee quisquam spicula tersit, 165
nee laudavit equum, nitidae nee cassidis altam
compsit adornavitque iubam ; vix magna lavare
vulnera et efflantes libet internectere plagas :
tantus ubique dolor, mensas alimentaque bello
debita nee pugnae suasit timor : omnia laudes, 170
Amphiarae, tuas fecundaque pectora veri
commemorant lacrimis, et per tentoria sermo
unus : abisse deos dilapsaque numina castris.
" heu ubi laurigeri currus soUemniaque arma
et galeae vittatus apex ? hoc antra lacusque 175

Castalii tripodumque fides } sic gratus Apollo }
quis mihi sidereos lapsus mentemque sinistri
fulguris, aut caesis saliat quod numen in extis,
quando iter, unde morae, quae saevis utilis armis,
^ tubarum a> : ferarum P.

" " tibi " may be an ethic dative here.
206

THEBAID, MIL 153-179

terrors, reports that more than one have perished.
Unbidden, not awaiting the wonted bugle-call that
sounds retreat, the troops take to headlong flight ;
but their movement is sluggish, their knees fail their
eager haste ; the horn-footed steeds themselves — one
would think they knew — resist them, and stubbornly
defy e\ery command, whether to hasten pace or
lift their eyes from earth. More valiantly the
Tyrians press on, but dark ^'esper is already leading
forth the horses of the moon ; a scant truce brings
the warriors sad repose, and night that will but in-
crease their fears.

How looks it now, think you," when groans are
granted their fill ? How fell the tears from the
loosened hehns ? Nought customary delights the
weary warriors ; they cast down their dripping
shields, just as they were, none ^iped his spear, or
praised his charger, or dressed and decked the plume
of his polished helm ; scarce do they care to wash
their grievous wounds, and stitch up the wide-gaping
blows : so great the despair of ever}' heart. Nor could
the fear of battle persuade them to take food and
due sustenance for war : all sing of thy praises,
Amphiaraus, and of thy mind, unfaiHng oracle of
truth ; one speech is heard throughout the tents :
that the gods have left them, and their protection
is departed from the camp. " Where, alas ! the
laurelled chariot and the sacred arms and fillet-
bearing crest ? Is this the faith of Castahan lake
and grotto, and holy tripod ? Is this Apollo's
gratitude ? Who now shall explain to me the falling
of stars, or the purpose of lightning on the left, or
the ^^^ll divine that leaps in the new-slain entrails ?
or when to march or tany^ what hour is profitable

207

ST ATI us

quae pacem magis hora velit ? quis iam omne futurum
proferet, aut cum quo volucres mea fata loquentur ?
hos quoque bellorum casus nobisque tibique
praescieras, et — quanta sacro sub pectore virtus ! —
venisti tamen et miseris comes additus armis.
et cum te tellus fatalisque hora vocaret, 185

tu Tyrias acies adversaque signa vacasti
sternere ; tunc etiam media de morte timendum
hostibus infestaque abeuntem vidimus hasta.
et nunc te quis casus habet ? poterisne reverti
sedibus a Stygiis altaque erumpere terra ? 190

anne sedes hilares iuxta tua numina Parcas
et vice concordi discis ventura docesque ?
an tibi felices lucos miseratus Averni
rector et Elysias dedit inservare volucres ?
quidquid es, aeternus Phoebo dolor et nova clades 195
semper eris mutisque diu plorabere Delphis.
hie Tenedon Chrysenque^ dies partuque ligatam
Delon et intonsi cludet penetralia Branchi,
nee Clarias hac luce fores Didymaeaque quisquam
limina nee Lyciam supplex consultor adibit. 200

quin et cornigeri vatis nemus atque Molosso
quercus anhela lovi Troianaque Thymbra tacebit.
ipsi amnes ipsaeque volent^ arescere laurus,
ipse nihil certum sagis^ clangoribus aether

^ chrisenque P : chrysamque BQ : cyrrhamque w.
^ ipsaeque volent cj : ipsaeque viae mallent P : ipsae
malent Postgate.

* sagis w : sacis S : sacris P.

" Here, as in the well-known passage from Milton's Ode
on the Nativity, "the oracles are dumb." The " bringing-
forth " (1. 197) is that of Apollo and Diana.

* Tenedos and Chrj'sa were both sacred to Apollo ; he had
an oracle at Claros and at Miletus (that of Branchus, son

208

THEBAID, VIII. 180-204

for battle, or rather calls for peace ? Who now shall
lay bare all the future, or with whom shall birds hold
converse of my destiny ? The chances of this war
thou knewest also, both for thyself and us, and yet —
how great the courage in that inspired breast I —
thou earnest and didst join our ill-fated arms. And
when the earth and thy fatal hour called thee, thou
hadst time to lay low the Tyrian lines and hostile
standards ; then even in the midst of death we saw
thee a terror to the foe, and thy spear still threatening
as thou didst depart. And now what fate befalls
thee ? Wilt thou be able to return from the abodes
of Styx, and break forth from the depths of earth ?
Or sittest thou beside the glad Parcae, thine own
deities, and by harmonious interchange dost learn
and teach the future ? Or hath the lord of Avernus
in pity granted thee to watch Elysian birds in the
groves of the blest ? Whatever thou art, an eternal
grief to Phoebus shalt thou be, and a loss that is ever
new, and long shalt thou be mourned by a Delphi
that is dumb." This day shall silence Tenedos and
Chryse, and Delos, made fast for the bringing-forth,
and unshorn Branchus' shrine, nor on this day shall
any suppliant draw nigh to the Clarian temple-gates,
nor to the threshold of Dindymus, nor consult the
Lycian god.** Nay, the precinct also of the horned
prophet and the panting oak of Molossian Jove and
Trojan Thymbra shall be mute."^ The very streams
and laurels shall of their own will fail and wither, the
air itself shall utter no certain presage in prophetic

of i%p©llo), also in Lycia (Patara), and at Didyma, near
Miletus.

* Temple of Zeus Ammon in Libya, of Zeus at Dodona,
of Apollo at Thymbra.

VOL. II p 209

STATIUS

praecinet, et nulla fei'ientur ab alite nubes. 205

iamque erit ille dies, quo te quoque conscia fatis
templa colant reddatque tuus responsa sacerdos."
talia fatidico peragunt soUemnia regi,
ceu flammas ac dona rogo tristesque rependant
exsequias mollique animam tellure reponant. 210

fracta dehinc cunctis aversaque pectora bello :
sic fortes Minyas subito cum funere Tiphys
destituit, non arma sequi, non ferre videtur
remus aquas, ipsique minus iam ducere venli.
iam fessi gemitu, paulatim et corda levavit 215

exhaustus sermone dolor, nox addita curas
obruit et facilis lacrimis inrepere somnus.

At non Sidoniam diversa in parte per urbem
nox eadem : vario producunt sidera ludo
ante domos intraque, ipsaeque ad moenia marcent 220
excubiae ; gemina aera sonant Idaeaque terga
et moderata sonum vario spiramine buxus.
tunc dulces superos atque omne ex ordine alumnum
numen ubique sacri resonant paeanes, ubique
serta coronatumque merum. nunc funera rident 225
auguris ignari, contraque in tempore certant
Tiresian laudare suum ; nunc facta revolvunt
maiorum veteresque canunt ab origine Thebas :
hi mare Sidonium manibusque adtrita Tonantis
cornua et ingenti sulcatum Nerea tauro, 230

hi Cadmum lassamque bovem fetosque cruenti
Martis agros, alii Tyriam reptantia saxa

9
" i.e., it is repugnant to them. By the tackling he means
rudder, sails, ropes, etc.

'' Used in the worship of Cybele by Mt. Ida in Phrygia.

210

THEBAID, VIII. 205-231

cries, and no wing of bird shall beat the clouds. And
soon shall come the day, when thou too shalt be
worshipped by truth-inspired shrines, and thy own
priest impart thy oracles." Such solemn chant do
they make in honour of the prophet-prince, as though
they were paying the due of flame and gifts and
mournful service to the pyre, and laying the soul to
rest in the soft earth. Then broken were the spirits
of all, with loathing for the war : even so when
sudden death snatched Tiphys from the brave
Minyae, no longer seems the tackling to obey, no
longer the oars to endure the water,*^ and even the
breezes drew the vessel with less power. And now
were they wearied of weeping, and having mourned
their fill in converse, their hearts were lightened
little by little, till sorrow was drowned in the approach
of night and sleep that gently steals o'er tearful eyes.
But elsewhere, throughout the Sidonian city, far
different was that night ; in various sport before their
houses and within they spend the hours of darkness,
and even the sentinels on the walls are tipsy ; cymbals
and the Idaean drums * resound, and the pipe that
makes its music by varied breathing. Then in
honour of their darling gods and every native deity
in order sacred paeans everywhere swell high, every-
where are garlands seen and wreathed bowls of \\'ine.
Now mock they the witless augur's death, and again
they vie in praising their o'wn Tiresias ; now they
tell the history of their sires, and sing from its
beginnings the ancient tale of Thebes : some tell of
the Sidonian sea and the hands that grasped the
Thunderer's horns and the mighty bull that ploughed
the deep, others of Cadmus and the weary heifer and
the fields pregnant with bloody war, others again of

211

STATIUS

ad chelyn et duras animantem Amphiona cautes,
hi gravidam Semelen, illi Cythereia laudant
conubia et multa deductam lampade fratrum 235

Harmoniam : nullis iam deest^ sua fabula mensis.
ceu modo gemmiferum thyrso populatus Hydaspen
Eoasque domos nigri vexilla triumpJii
Liber et ignotos populis ostenderet Indos.

Tuncprimumadcoetus sociaeque ad foedera mensae
semper inaspectum diraque in sede latentem 241

Oedipoden exisse ferunt vultuque sereno
canitiem nigram squalore et sordida fusis
ora comis laxasse manu sociumque benignos
adfatus et abacta prius solacia passum, 245

quin hausisse dapes insiccatumque cruorem
deiecisse genis. cunctos auditque refertque,
qui Ditem et Furias tantum et si quando regentem
Antigonen maestis solitus pulsare querellis.
causa latet. non hunc Tyrii fors prospera belli, 250
tantum bella iuvant ; natum hortaturque probatque,
nee vicisse velit ; sed primos comminus enses
et sceleris tacito rimatur semina voto.
inde epulae dulees ignotaque gaudia vultu.
qualis post longae Phineus ieiunia poenae, 255

nil stridere domi volucres ut sensit abactas —
necdum tota fides — hilaris mensasque torosque
nee turbata feris tractavit pocula pinnis.

Cetera Graiorum curis armisque iacebat
fessa cohors ; alto castrorum ex aggere Adrastus 260
laetificos tenui captabat corde tumultus,

* iam deest D : deest P^ : -que deest C : defit, non est
edd. : suavis Garrod, but Statms may have lengthened tlie
first syllable, cf. ii. 551, vi. 519, x. 236, xi. 276.

" He was a king in Thrace, who was plagued by Harpies,
who snatched away the food from his table.

212

THEBAID, VIII. 232-260

the boulders that moved to the music of the Tynan
lute and Amphion stirring rocks to life ; these
celebrate the travail of Semele, those the Cytherean
nuptials and the train of brothers' torches that led
Harmonia to her home ; every table has its story.
'Tis as though Liber of late had ravaged Hydaspes
rich in gems and the kingdoms of the East, and were
displaying to the folk the banners of his swarthy
captive-train ahd Indians yet unknown.

Then for the first time Oedipus, who ever lurked
unseen in his dread abode, came forth, they say, to
the friendly gatherings of the social banquet, and,
serene of countenance, freed his grey hairs from their
black filth and his face from unkempt straying locks,
and enjoyed the kindly converse of his fellows and the
solace denied before, nay, partook of the feast and
wiped the undried blood from his eyes. To all he
listens and to all he makes reply, who was wont but
to assail viith sad complaint Dis and the Furies and
his guide Antigone. They know not the cause.
'Tis not the prosperous issue of the Tj-rian war, but
war alone delights him ; he encourages and approves
liis son, yet would not have him win ; but he searches
for the first clash of swords and the seeds of guilt
with prayers unspoken. Thence his pleasure in the
feast and the strange joy upon his face. Even so
did Phineus,*" after the long fast that was his punish-
ment, when he knew the birds were driven away nor
screamed any more about his house — yet beheved
he not wholly, — recline hilarious at the board, and
handle the cups that no fierce wings upset.

The rest of the Grecian host lay fordone with care
and battle ; from a high mound in the camp Adrastus
— frail now and old, but forced by the curse of power

213

STATIUS

quamquam aeger senio, sed agit miseranda- potestas
invigilare malis. ilium aereus undique clamor
Thebanique urunt sonitus, et amara lacessit
tibia, turn nimio voces marcore superbae 265

incertaeque faces et iam male pervigil ignis.
sic ubi per fluctus uno ratis obruta somno
conticuit, pacique^ maris secura inventus
mandavere animas : solus stat puppe magister
pervigil inscriptaque deus qui navigat'alno. 270

Tempus erat, iunctos cum iam soror ignea Phoebi
sensit equos penitusque cavam sub luce parata
Oceani mugire domum, seseque vagantem
colligit et leviter moto fugat astra flagello : 274

concilium rex triste vocat, quaeruntque gementes,
quis tripodas successor agat, quo provida^ laurus
transeat atque orbum vittae decus. baud mora,

cuncti
insignem fama sanctoque Melampode cretum
Thiodamanta volunt, quicum ipse arcana deorum
partiri et visas uni sociare solebat 280

Amphiaraus aves, tantaeque baud invidus artis
gaudebat dici similem iuxtaque secundum,
ilium ingens confundit honos inopinaque turbat
gloria et oblatas frondes submissus adorat,
seque oneri negat esse parem cogique meretur : 285
sicut Achaemenius solium gentesque paternas
excepit si forte puer, cui vivere patrem
tutjus, incerta formidine gaudia librat,

^ pacique Postgate : tantique Pa', but some dat. Is needed
for the verb ; it is impossible to understand somno, as Klotz.
" provida Peyrared : prodigia P : prodita u.

" The image of the god stood in the stern of the ship ;
cf. "pictos verberat unda deos," Ov. Tr. i. 4. 8.
* Persian.

21 +

THEBAID, VIII. 261-287

to be M'atchful against disaster — heard with sinking
heart the shouts of the merrymakers. From all
sides the clamour of bronze and Theban uproar gall
him, and the pipe grates harshly on his ears, he is
vexed by the insolent shouts of the drunken and the
flickering torches and the fires already scarce lasting
out the night. So when upon the waves a ship is
whelmed in the silence of universal sleep, and the
crew in careless trust commend their lives to the
peace of ocean, alone upon the poop stands the
\igilant helmsman and the god who sails in the bark
that bears his name."

It was the time when Phoebus' fierj- sister, hearing
the sound of his yoked steeds and the roar of Ocean's
cavernous abode beneath the gathering dawn,
collects her straying beams and with light flick of
whip chases the stars away : the king calls the doleful
council, and in dismay they ask who shall take up
the duty of the tripod, to whom shall pass the
prescient laurel and the widowed glory of the fillet.
Straightway all demand holy Melampus' son,
Thiodamas of high reno^vn, with whom alone
Amphiaraus' self was wont to share the mysteries
of the gods and view the flying birds, nor grudged
him so much skill, but rejoiced to hear him called his
hke and nearest rival. Overwhelmed by the high
honour and confounded by the unlooked-for glory
he hxmibly reverences the proffered leaves, and pleads
that he is unequal to the task, and must needs for his
merit be constrained : even as when perchance a
young Achaemenian * prince has succeeded to the
throne and all his father's realms (though safer were
it for him that his sire still lived), his delight he
balances with uncertain fear, whether his chiefs be

215

STATIUS

an fidi proceres, ne pugnet volgus habenis,
cui latus Euphratae, cui Caspia limina mandet ; 290
sumere tunc arcus ipsumque onerare veretur
patris equum, visusque sibi nee seeptra capaci
sustentare manu nee adhuc implere tiaram.

Atque is ubi intorto signatus vellere crinem
convenitque dels, hilari per castra tumultu 295

vadit ovans ac, prima sui documenta, sacerdos
Tellurem placare parat : nee futile maestis
id visum Danais. geminas ergo ilicet aras
arboribus vivis et adulto caespite texi
imperat, innumerosque deae, sua munera, flores 300
et cumulos frugum et quicquid novat impiger annus
addit et intacto spargens altaria lacte
incipit : " o hominum divomque aeterna creatrix,
quae fluvios silvasque animarum et semina mundo
cuncta Prometheasque manus Pyrrhaeaque saxa 305
gignis, et impastis quae prima alimenta dedisti
mutastique^ viris,^ quae pontum ambisque vehisque :
te penes et pecudum gens mitis et ira ferarum
et voluorum requies ; firmum atque immobile mundi
robur inoccidui, te velox machina caeli 310

aere pendentem vacuo, te currus uterque
circuit, o rerum media indivisaque magnis
fratribus ! ergo simul tot gentibus alma, tot altis
urbibus ac populis, subterque ac desuper una

^ mutastique w : multatisque P.
^ viris P : viros w.

" i.e., the race of men. According to one story Prometheus
created men, cf. Ov. Met. 1. 82 ; according to another he
endued them with soul, as in Hor. C. i. 16. 13.

* " Either chariot," /.«., of sun and moon. "The brethren,"

216

THEBAID, VIII. 288-314

loyal, whether the folk -w-ill fight against the reins,
to whom he shall entrust the frontier of Euphrates
or the Caspian gate ; then does he feel awe to wield
the bow and to mount his sire's own steed, nor can
he see himself upholding the sceptre with large
grasp nor as yet filling the diadem.

He therefore ha\-ing set upon his locks the emblem
of the t\\'isted wool and held intercourse with the
gods, proceeds in triumph through the camp amid
shouts of joy, and, first evidence of his priestly
office, prepares to appease the Earth : nor seemed
it vain to the sorrowing Danaans. Therefore he
straightway bids altars twain be "WTeathed ^ith living
trees and well-grown turf, and on them, in lionour
of the goddess, he flings countless flowers, her own
bounty, and heaps of fruit and the new produce of the
tireless year, and pouring untouched milk upon the
altars he thus begins : " O eternal Creatress of gods
and men, who bringest into being rivers and forests
and seeds of life throughout the world, the handiwork
of Prometheus and the stones of Pyrrha," thou who first
didst give nourishment and varied food to famished
men, who dost encompass and bear up the sea ; in
thy power is the gentle race of cattle and the anger
of ^\ild beasts and the repose of birds ; round thee,
firm, steadfast strength of the unfailing universe,
as thou hangest in the empty air the rapid frame
of heaven and either chariot doth wheel, O middle
of the world, unshared by the mighty brethren ! ^
Therefore art thou bountiful to so many races,
so many lofty cities and peoples, while from above
and from beneath thou art all-sufficient, and >^'ith no

Jupiter, Neptune and Pluto, took air, sea, and underworld
as their portions, and left the earth common to all.

217

STATIUS

sufficis, astriferumque donios Atlanta supernas 315
ferre laborantem nullo vehis ipsa labore :
nos tantum portare negas, nos, diva, gravaris ?
quod, precor, ignari luimus scelus ? an quia plebes
externa Inachiis hue adventamus ab oris ?
omne homini natale solum, nee te, optima, saevo 320
tamque humili populos deceat distinguere fine
undique ubique tuos ; maneas communis et arma
hinc atque inde feras ; liceat, precor, ordine belli
pugnaces efflare animas et reddere caelo.
ne rape tam subitis spirantia corpora bustis, 325

ne propera : veniemus enim, quo limite cuncti,
qua licet ire via ; tantum exorata Pelasgis
siste levem campum, celeres neu praecipe Parcas.
at tu, care deis, quern non manus ulla nee enses
Sidonii, sed magna sinu Natura soluto, 330

ceu te Cirrhaeo meritum tumularet hiatu,
sic amplexa coit, hilaris des, oro, precatus
nosse tuos, caeloque et vera monentibus aris
concilies, et quae populis proferre parabas,
me doceas : tibi sacra feram praesaga, tuique 335
numinis interpres te Phoebo absente vocabo.
ille mihi Delo Cirrhaque potentior omni,
quo ruis, ille adytis melior locus." haec ubi dicta,
nigrantis terrae pecudes obscuraque mergit
armenta, ac vivis cumulos undantis harenae 340

aggerat et vati mortis simulacra rependit.
Talia apud Graios, cum iam Mavortia contra

" i.e., performing the ritual of a real funeral.
218

THEBAID, VIII. 315-342

effort earnest thyself star-bearing Atlas who staggers
under the weight of the celestial realm ; us alone,

0 goddess, dost thou refuse to bear ? Doth our
weight vex thee ? What crime, I pray, do we unwit-
tingly atone ? That we come hither, a stranger folk,
from Inachian shores ? All soil is human birthright,
nor doth it beseem thee, worthiest one, to distinguish
by a test so cruel and so mean peoples who are every-
where and in every land thine own : abide thou
common to all aUke, and bear ahke the arms of all ;
grant us, I pray, in war's due course to breathe out
our warrior souls and restore them to the sky. Whelm
not in burial so sudden our still-breathing bodies ;
haste not, for we shall come by the path all tread, by
the permitted way ; hearken but to our prayer, and
keep firm for the Pelasgians the fickle plain, and
forestall not the swift Fates. But thou, dear to the
gods, whom no violence nor Sidonian sword did slay,
but mighty Nature opened her bosom to enfold in
union with herself, as though for thy merits she were
entombing thee in Cirrha's chasm, gladly vouchsafe,

1 pray, that I may learn thy supplications, conciliate
me to the gods and the prophetic altars, and teach
me what thou didst design to tell the peoples ; I will
perform thy rites of divination, and in Phoebus'
absence be the prophet of thy godhead and call upon
thy name. That place whither thou speedest is
mightier, I ween, than any Delos or Cirrha, and more
august than any shrine." Having thus spoken he casts
into the ground black sheep and dark-hued herds, and
piles up heaps of billowy sand on their living bodies,
duly paying to the seer the emblems of death."

Such things were happening among the Greeks,
when already yonder the Martial horns were heard,

219

STATIUS

cornua, iam saevos fragor aereus excitat enses.
addit acerba sonum Teumesi e vertice crinem
incutiens acuitque tubas et sibila miscet 345

Tisiphone : stupet insolito clangore Cithaeron
marcidus et turres carmen non tale secutae.
iam trepidas Bellona fores armataque pulsat
limina, iam multo laxantur eardine Thebae. 349

turbat eques pedites, currus properantibus obstant,
ecu Danai post terga premant : sic omnibus alae
artantur portis septemque excursibus haerent.
Ogygiis it sorte Creon, Eteoclea mittunt
Neistae, celsas Homoloidas occupat Haemon,
Hypsea Proetiae,^ celsum fudere Dryanta 355

Electrae, quatit Hypsistas manus Eurymedontis,
culmina magnanimus stipat Dircaea Menoeceus.
qualis ubi aversi secretus pabula caeli
Nilus et Eoas magno bibit ore pruinas,
scindit fontis opes septemque patentibus arvis 360
in mare fert hiemes ; penitus cessere fugatae
Nereides dulcique timent occurrere ponto.

Tristis at inde gradum tarde movet Inacha pubes,
praecipue Eleae Lacedaemoniaeque cohortes
et Pylii ; subitum nam Thiodamanta secuntur 365
augure fraudati, necdum accessere regenti.
nee tua te, princeps tripodum, sola agmina quaerunt :
cuncta phalanx sibi deesse putat ; minor ille per alas
Septimus exstat apex, liquido velut aethere nubes

^ Proetiae Pw : Proetides et Lachmann : Proetiadae (-es)
edd.

" i.e., when they were built to the music of Amphion's lyre.

* Statius seems to think of the East as cold, very much
as Scythia (S. Russia) is spoken of as a region of frost and
snow ; here he is thinking vaguely, perhaps, of the Persian

220

THEBAID, VIII. 343-369

and the blare of bronze drew fierce swords from their
sheaths. From Teuraesus' height Tisiphone sends
her shrill cry. and shakes her locks, and with their
hissing adds a sharpness to the trumpets' note ;
drunken Cithaeron and the towers that followed a far
different music " listen in amaze to the unwonted din.
Already Bellona is beating at the trembling gates
and the armed portals, already by many a doorway
Thebes is emptying fast. Horsemen set infantry
in disarray, chariots delay the hurrying troops, as
though the Danaans urged their rear : thus at the
issues of all the seyen gates the crowded columns are
stuck fast. Creon goes out by lot from the Ogygian,
the Neistae send forth Eteocles, Haemon guards
the lofty Homoloian, the Proetian and Electran pour
forth the men of H^'pseus and tall Dry as, the troops
of Eurymedon make the Hypsistae shake, great-
hearted Menoeceus crowds the Dircean battlements.
Eyen so, when Nile in his secret region has drunk ^yith
mighty mouth the nurture of a distant sky and the
cold snows of the East,^ he breaks up all his wealth
of waters and carries his tempests to the sea in seyen
^yide channels o'er the fields ; the routed Nereids take
refuge in the depths, and fear to meet the saltless main.
But sad and slow moye yonder the Inachian
warriors, especially the cohorts of Elis and Lace-
daemon, and they of Pylos ; robbed of their augur they
follow the late-appointed Thiodamas, not yet assent-
ing to his command. Nor is it only thy own ranks that
miss thee, lord of the tripods : all the host feels its
loss : less gloriously along the hne rises that seyenth
crest. 'Tis as though a jealous cloud were to snatch

highlands. In poetry rivers are commonly referred to as
being swollen by rain and melting snow,

221

STATIUS

invida Parrhasiis iinum si detrahat astris, 370

truncus honor Plaustri, nee idem riget^ igne reciso
axis, et incerti rmmerant sua sidera nautae.

Sad iam bella vocant : alias nova suggere vires,
Calliope, maiorque chelyn mihi tendat Apollo,
fatalem populis ultro poscentibus horam 375

admovet atra dies, Stygiisque emissa tenebris
Mors fruitur caelo bellatoremque volando
campum operit nigroque viros invitat hiatu,^
nil vulgare legens, sed quae dignissima vita
funera, praecipuos annis animisque cruento 380

ungue^ notat ; iamque in miseros pensum onine

Sororum
scinditur, et Furiae rapuerunt licia Parcis.
stat medius campis etiamnum cuspide sicca
Bellipotens, iamque hos clipeum, iam vertit ad illos
arma ciens, aboletque domos, conubia, natos. 385
pellitur et patriae et, qui mente novissimus exit,
lucis amor ; tenet in capulis hastisque paratas
ira manus animusque ultra thoracas anhelus *
conatur, galeaeque tremunt horrore comarum.
quid mirum caluisse viros ? flammantur in hostem 390
cornipedes niveoque rigant sola putria nimbo,
corpora ceu mixti dominis irasque sedentum
induerint : sic frena terunt, sic proelia poscunt
hinnitu tolluntque armos equitesque supinant.

^ riget P : nitet w.

* hiatu Pu • amictu D (hiatu written over), conversely B,
hence Wakefield conj. investit amictu.

' ungue Barth, Bentley : angue Pw.

* animus . . . anhelus w : -os . . . -os P.

222

THEBAID, VIII. 370-394

from the clear sky one of the Parrhasian cluster " —
spoiled is the glory of the Wain, the axle wavers,
shorn of one fire, and the seamen count their stars in
doubt.

But already battle calls me : from a fresh source,
Calliope, supply new vigour, and may a mightier
Apollo attune my lyre ! The day of doom brings
nigh to the peoples the fatal hour of their own asking,
and Death let loose from Stygian darkness exults
in the air of heaven, and hovers in flight over the
field of battle, and with black jaws gaping wide in-
vites the heroes ; nought vulgar doth he choose, but
with bloody nail marks as victims those most worthy
of life, in the prime of years or valour ; and now all
the Sisters' strands are broken for the wretched men,
and the Furies have snatched the threads from the
Fates. In the midst of the plain stands the War-god
with spear yet dry, and turns his shield now against
these, now against those, stirring up the fray and
blotting out home and wife and child. Love of
country is driven out, and love of the light, that
lingers latest in the heart ; rage holds their hands all
ready on the sword-hilt and on the lance, the panting
spirit strives beyond its corslet, and the helmets
tremble beneath the quivering plumes. What
wonder that the heroes are hot for battle ? Horn-
footed steeds are inflamed against the foe and bedew
the crumbling earth with a snow-white shower, as
though they were made one in body with their
masters, and had put on their riders' rage : so champ
they the bits, and neigh to join the fight, and
rearing toss the horsemen backward.

" The Great Bear which has seven stars ; see note on
vii. 8.

223

STATIUS

lamque ruunt, primusque virum concurrere pulvis
incipit, et spatiis utrimque aequalibus acti 396

adventant mediumque vident decrescere campum.
iam clipeus clipeis, umbone repellitur umbo,
ense minax ensis, pede pes et cuspide cuspis :
sic obnixa acies ; pariter suspiria fumant, 400

admotaeque nitent aliena in casside cristae.
pulcher adhuc belli vultus : stant vertice coni,
plena armenta viris, nulli sine praeside currus,
arma loco, splendent clipei pharetraeque decorae
cingulaque et nondum deforme cruoribus aurum. 405
at postquam rabies et vitae prodiga virtus
eniisere animos, non tanta cadentibus Haedis
aeriam Rhodopen solida nive verberat Arctos,
nee fragor Ausoniae tantus, cum luppiter omni
arce tonat, tanta quatitur nee grandine Syrtis, 410
cum Libyae Boreas Italos niger attulit imbres.
exclusere diem telis, stant ferrea caelo
nubila, nee iaculis artatus sufficit aer.
hi pereunt missis, illi redeuntibus hastis,
concurrunt per inane sudes et mutua perdunt 415
volnera, concurrunt hastae, stridentia funda
saxa pluunt, volucres imitantur fulgura glandes
et formidandae non una morte sagittae.
nee locus ad terram telis : in corpora ferrum
omne cadit ; saepe ignari perimuntque caduntque.
casus agit virtutis opus : nunc turba recedit, 421

nunc premit, ac vicibus tellurem amittit et aufert.
ut ventis nimbisque minax cum solvit habenas

" A strange phrase, which seems intended to present the
scene both to eye and ear.

* i.e.. Hung back again, as in 1. 435.

" i.e., from their poison as well as their sharpness, or

224

THEBAID, VIII. 395-423

And now they charge, and the first dust-clouds of
the heroes begin to meet m the onset ; both sides
dash forward an equal space, and see the intervening
plain diminish. Then shield thrusts against shield,
boss upon boss, threatening sword on sword, foot
against foot and lance on lance : in such close struggle
they meet ; together their groans reek," close-packed
crests gleam over helmets not their own. The
face of battle is still fair : plumes stand erect, horse-
men bestride their steeds, no chariot is without its
chief ; weapons are in their place, shields glitter,
quivers and belts are comely, and gold as yet un-
sightly "\\ith blood. But when fury and valour
prodigal of life give rein to passion, Arctos lashes not
airy Rhodope so fiercely with hardened snow when
the Kids are falling, nor does Ausonia hear so loud
an uproar when Jupiter thunders from end to end
of heaven, nor are the Syrtes beaten mth such hail,
when dark Boreas hurls Italian tempests upon Libya.
Their darts shut out the day, a steely cloud hangs
athwart the sky, and the crowded air has no room for
all the javelins. Some perish by flung spears, others
by spears returning,* stakes meet in the void and rob
each other of the wounds they carry, spears meet,
and stones rain hissing from the slings, swift bullets,
and dread arrows \Wnged ^v^th a double death '^ rival
the lightning-stroke. No place for weapons earth-
ward, every dart falls on a body ; often they slay and
are slain unwitting. Chance does the work of valour :
now the press retires and now advances, loses ground
in turn and wins it. Even so when threatening Jove
has loosed the reins of winds and tempests, and sends

perhaps by hyperbole their power to kill two together, cf.
ii. 637, viii. 538.

VOL. II Q 225

STATIUS

luppiter alternoque adfligit turbine mundum :
stat caeli diversa acies, nunc fortior Austri, 425

nunc Aquilonis hiemps, donee pugnante procella
aut nimiis hie vieit aquis, aut ille sereno.

Principium pugnae turmas Asopius Hypseus
Oebalias — namque hae magnum et gentile tumentes
Euboicum duris rumpunt umbonibus agmen — 430
reppulit erepto cunei ductore Menalca.
hie et mente Lacon, crudi torrentis alumnus —
nee turpavit avos — hastam ultra pectus euntem,
ne pudor in tergo, per et ossa et viscera retro
extrahit atque hosti dextra labente remittit 435

sanguineam : dilecta genis morientis oberrant
Taygeta et pugnae laudataque pectora^ matri.
Phaedimon lasiden arcu Dircaeus Amyntas
destinat : heu celeres Parcae ! iam palpitat arvis
Phaedimus, et certi nondum tacet arcus Amyntae.
abstulit ex vunero dextram Calydonius Agreus 441
Phegeos : ilia suum terra tenet improba ferrum
et movet ; extimuit sparsa inter tela iacentem
praegrediens truncamque tamen percussit Acoetes.
Iphin atrox Acamas, Argum ferus impulit Hypseus,
stravit Abanta Pheres, diversaque volnera flentes
Iphis eques, pedes Argus, Abas auriga iacebant. 447
Inachidae gemini geminos e sanguine Cadmi
occultos galeis — saeva ignorantia belli —
perculerant ferro ; sed dum spolia omnia caesis 450
eripiunt, videre nefas, et maestus uterque
respicit ad fratrem pariterque errasse queruntur.

^ pectora P : verbera w.
226

THEBAID, VIII. 424-452

alternate hurricanes to afflict the world, opposing
forces meet in heaven, now Auster's storms pre-
vail, now Aquilo's, till in the conflict of the winds
one conquers, be it Auster's overwhelming rains, or
Aquilo's clear air.

At the outset of the fight Asopian Hj^seus re-
pulsed the Oebahan squadrons — for these in fierce
pride of race were thrusting their stout bucklers
through the Euboean lines — and slew Menalcas the
leader of the phalanx. He, a true-souled Spartan,
child of the mountain-torrent, shamed not his an-
cestry, but pulled back through bones and bowels
the spear that would pass beyond his breast, lest his
back should show dishonour, and with failing hand
hurled it back all bloody at the foe ; his loved Tay-
getus swims before his dying eyes, and his combats,
and the strong breast his mother praised. Dircaean
Amyntas marks out Phaedimus, son of lasus, with
his bow : ah ! the swift Fates ! already Phaedimus
lies gasping on the field, and not yet has the bow of
sure Amyntas ceased to twang. Calydonian Agreus
cut the right arm of Phegeus from off its shoulder :
on the ground it holds the sword in unyielding grip
and shakes it : Acoetes advancing feared it as it lay
amid scattered weapons, and struck at it, severed
though it was. Stern Acamas pierced Iphis, fierce
Hypseus Argus, Pheres laid Abas low, and groaning
from their different wounds they lay, horseman Iphis,
foot-soldier Argus, chariot-driver Abas. Inachian
twins had smitten with the sword twin brothers of
Cadmus' blood, hidden by their helms — war's cruel
ignorance I — but stripping the dead of all their
spoils they saw the horror of their deed, and each in
dismay looked on his brother, and cried that they

227

STATIUS

cultor Ion Pisae cultorem Daphnea Cirrhae
turbatis prostravit equis ; hunc laudat ab alto
luppiter, hunc tardus frustra miseratur Apollo. 455

Ingentes Fortuna viros inlustrat utrimque
sanguine in adverso : Danaos Cadmeius Haexnon^
sternit agitque, furens sequitur Tyria agmina Tydeus;
Pallas huic praesens, ilium Tirynthius implet.
qualiter hiberni summis duo montibus amnes 460

franguntur geminaque cadunt in plana I'uina :
contendisse putes, uter arva arbustaque tollat
altius aut superet pontes ; ecce^ una receptas
confundit iani vallis aquas ; sibi quisque superbus
ire cupit, pontoque negant descendere mixti. 465

Ibat fumiferam quatiens Onchestius Idas
lampada per medios turbabatque agmina Graium,
igne viam rumpens ; magno quem comminus ictu
Tydeos hasta feri dispulsa casside fixit.
ille ingens in terga iacet, stat fronte superstes 470
lancea, conlapsae veniunt in tempora flammae.
prosequitur Tydeus : "saevos ne dixeris Argos,
igne tuo, Thebane — rogum concedimus — arde ! '
inde, velut primo tigris gavisa cruore
per totum cupit ire pecus, sic Aona saxo, 475

ense Pholum, Chromin ense, duos Helicaonas hasta
transigit, Aegaeae Veneris quos Maera sacerdos
ediderat prohibente dea ; vos praeda cruenti
Tydeos, it saevas etiamnum mater ad aras.

Nee minus Herculeum contra vagus Haemona ducit

^ Haemon P : heros w.
^ ecce Pw : et cum Garrod.

" Zeus and Apollo were worshipped at Olyinpia and
Delphi respectively.

228

THEBAID, VIII. 453-480

were both at fault. Ion worshipper at Pisa over-
threw Daphneus worshipper at Cirrha," in the con-
fusion of his steeds : this one Jupiter praises from on
high, that one Apollo vainly pities, too late to aid.

Fortune on either side of the bloody fray sheds
lustre on mighty warriors ; Cadmean Haemon slays
and routs the Danaans, Tydeus madly pursues the
ranks of T\Te ; the one has Pallas' present aid, the
other the Tirynthian inspires : just as when two
torrents break forth from mountain heights and fall
upon the plain in twofold ruin, one would think they
strove, which could whelm crops and trees or bury
their bridges in a deeper flood ; lo ! at last one vale
receives and mingles their waters, but proudly each
would fain go by himself, and they refuse to flow down
to ocean with united streams.

Idas of Onchestus strode through the midst shaking
a smoky brand, and disarrayed the Grecian ranks,
forcing his way with fire ; but a great lunge of savage
Tydeus' spear from nigh at hand smote through his
helm and pierced him : in huge length he falls upon
his back, the lance stays upright in his forehead, the
flaming torch sinks upon his temples. Tydeus pur-
sues him with a taunt : " Call not Argos cruel ; bum,
Theban, in thy own flames ; see, we grant thee a
pyre ! " Then like a tigress exulting in her first
blood and eager to go through all the herd, he slays
Aon viith a stone, Pholus and Chromis with the sword,
with thrust of lance two Helicaons, whom Maera,
priestess of Aegaean \^enus, bore against the goddess'
pleasure : victims are ye of bloodstained Tydeus, but
even now your mother visits the pitiless altars.

No less on the other side is Haemon, ward of
Hercules, led on by restless vigour ; with unsated

229

STATIUS

sanguis : inexpleto rapitur per milia ferro, -481

nunc tumidae Calydonis opes, nunc torva Pylenes
agmina, nunc maestae fundens Pleuronis alumnos,
donee in Olenium fessa iam cuspide Buten
incidit. hunc turmis obversum et abire vetantem 485
adgreditur ; puer ille, puer malasque comamque
integer, ignaro cui tunc Thebana bipennis
in galeam librata venit : finduntur^ utroque
tempora dividuique cadunt in bracchia crines,
et non hoc metuens inopino limine vita 490

exsiluit. tunc flavum Hypanin flavumque Politen —
ille genas Phoebo, crinem hie pascebat laccho :
saevus uterque deus — victis Hyperenora iungit
conversumque fuga Damasum ; sed lapsa per armos
hasta viri trans pectus abit parmamque tenenti 495
excutit et summa fugiens in cuspide portat.

Sterneret adversos etiamnum Ismenius Haemon
Inachidas — nam tela regit viresque ministrat
Amphitryoniades — saevum sed Tydea contra
Pallas agit. iamque adverso venere favore 500

comminus, et placido prior haec Tirynthius ore :
" fida soror, quaenam hunc belli caligine nobis
congressum fortuna tulit ? num regia luno
hoc molita nefas ? citius me fulmina contra —
infandum ! — ruere et magno bellare parenti 505

aspiciat. genus huic — sed mitto agnoscere, quando
tu diversa foves, nee si ipsum comminus Hyllum
Tydeos hasta tui Stygioque ex orbe remissum
Amphitryona petat ; teneo aeternumque tenebo,

^ finduntur BQ {both 2nd hand) SN: funduntur, scin-
duntur, striduntiir other ifss.
230

THEBAID, VIII. 481-509

sword he speeds through thousands, now laying low
the pride of Calydon, now Pylene's grim array, now
sad Pleuron's sons, until with wearied spear he
happens on Olenian Butes. Him he attacks, as he
turns toward his men and forbids them to retreat ;
a lad Avas he, with cheeks yet smooth and hair un-
shorn, and the Theban battle-axe aimed against his
helmet takes him unaware ; his temples are cleft
asunder, and his locks diAided fall upon his shoulders,
and he, not fearing such a fate, passed from life
unwitting on its threshold. Then he slays fair-haired
Hj-panis and Polites — this one was keeping his beard
for Phoebus, that one his hair for lacchus ; but cruel
was either god — and joins H}-perenor to his victims,
and Damasus who turned to flee ; but the hero's
lance sped through his shoulders and passed out by
his heart, and tearing his buckler from his grasp,
carried it on the lance-point as it flew.

Even yet would Ismenian Haemon be laying low his
Inachian adversaries — for Amphitryon's son directs
his darts and gives him strength — but against him
Pallas xu-ged fierce Tydeus. And now they " met in
rivalry of favour, and first the Tirynthian thus calmly
spoke : " Good sister, what chance has thus brought
about our meeting in the fog of war ? Has royal
Jimo de\-ised this e\il ? Sooner may she see me —
unutterable thought ! — assault the thunderbolt and
make war against the mighty Sire ! This man's race
— but I disown him, since thou dost aid his foes, ay,
were it even Hyllus or AmphitrA'on sent back from
the world of Styx that the spear of thy Tydeus
sought in close combat ; I remember, and shall

" i.e., Pallas and Hercules, whom Statius describes as
actually present to support their rival champions.

231

STATIUS

quantum haec diva manus, quotiens sudaverit aegis
ista mihi, duris famulus dum casibus omnes 511

lustro vagus terras ; ipsa heu ! comes invia mecum
Tartara, ni superos Acheron excluderet, isses,
tu patriam caelumque mihi, quis tanta relatu
aequet ? habe totas, si mens excidere,^ Thebas. 515
cedo equidem veniamque precor." sic orsus abibat.
Pallada mulcet honos : rediit ardore remisso
voltus et erecti sederunt pectoris angues.

Sensit abesse deum, levius Cadmeius Haemon
tela rotat nuUoque manum cognoscit in ictu. 520

tunc magis atque magis vires animusque recedunt,
nee pudor ire retro ; cedentem Acheloius heros
impetit,^ et librans uni sibi missile telum
direxit iactus, summae qua margine parmae
ima sedet galea et iuguli vitalia lucent. 525

nee frustrata manus, mortemque invenerat hasta ;
sed prohibet paulumque umeri libare sinistri
praebuit et merito parcit Tritonia fratri.
ille tamen nee stare loco nee comminus ire
amplius aut voltus audet perferre cruenti 530

Tydeos ; aegra animo vis ac fiducia cessit :
qualis saetigeram Lucana cuspide frontem
strictus aper, penitus cui non infossa cerebro
volnera, nee felix dextrae tenor, in latus iras
frangit, et expertae iam non venit obvius hastae. 535

Ecce ducem turmae certa indignatus in hostem
spicula felici Prothoum torquere lacerto,

^ excidere Kohlmann : exscindere w : excedere P.
* impetit w : impedit P.

232

THEBAID, VIII. 510-537

remember everlastingly, how much that godlike hand,
how oft that aegis of thine hath laboured for me,
while, a thrall to hards liip, I roamed through every
land ; yea ! thou wouldst have gone thyself to path-
less Tartarus with me, did not Acheron exclude the
gods. Thou gavest me my home, ay, heaven — who
could name a service so great ? All Thebes is thine,
if thou hast a mind to destroy it. I yield and crave
pardon." So he spake, and departed. Pallas is
soothed by the praise ; her countenance is calm
again, the anger spent, and the snakes erect upon
her bosom sank to rest.

Cadmean Haemon felt that the god had left him ;
more weakly he hiu"ls his darts, nor recognizes his
skill in any stroke. Then more and more his powers
and courage fail him, nor is he ashamed to retreat ;
as he gives ground the Acheloian hero assails him,
and poising a spear that he alone could wield aims
the blow where the rim of the helmet rests on the
topmost margin of the shield and the vulnerable
throat gleams white. Nor erred his hand, and the
spear had found a deadly spot, but Tritonia forbade,
and suffered it to touch the left shoulder, sparing her
brother for his merits' sake. But the warrior dares
no longer hold his ground or engage or bear the sight
of murderous Tydeus ; his courage grows faint, and
his confidence has departed : as when the bristly
^■isage of a boar has been grazed by a Lucanian
javeUn-point, and the blow has not sunk deep into
his brain nor has the aim been true, he lets the
anger of his side -stroke weaken, nor attacks the
spear he knows too well.

Lo ! now, indignant that Prothous the leader of a
squadron is hurling sure darts with happy aim against

233

STATIUS

turbidus Oenides una duo corpora pinu,
cornipedemque equitemque, ferit : ruit ille ruentem
in Prothoum lapsasque manu quaerentis habenas 540
in voltus galeam clipeumque in pectora calcat,
saucius extremo donee cum sanguine frenos
respuit et iuncta domino cervice recumbit.
sic ulmus vitisque, duplex iactura colenti,
Gaurano de monte cadunt, sed maestior ulmus 545
quaerit utrumque nemus, nee tam sua bracchia labens
quam gemit adsuetas invitaque proterit uvas.
sumpserat in Danaos Heliconius arma Corymbus,
ante comes Musis, Stygii cui conseia pensi
ipsa diu positis letum praedixerat astris 550

Uranie. cupit ille tamen pugnasque virosque,
forsitan ut caneret ; longa iacet ipse canendus
laude, sed amissum mutae^ flevere sorores.

Pactus Agenoream primis Atys ibat ab annis
Ismenen, Tyrii iuvenis non advena belli. 555

quamvis Cirrha domus, soceros nee tristibus actis
aversatus erat ; sponsam quin cast us amanti
squalor et indigni commendat gratia luetus.
ipse quoque egregius, nee pectora virginis illi
diversa, inque vicem, sineret fortuna, placebant. 560
bella vetant taedas, iuvenique hinc maior in hostes
ira ; ruit primis immixtus et agmina Lernae
nunc pedes ense vago, prensis nunc celsus habenis,
ceu spectetur, agit. triplici velaverat ostro

^ mutae w : inusae PDS.

« Ovpavla, the Muse of heavenly lore, and therefore,
appropriately, the teacher of astrology. " Stygium pensum "
is the doom spun for him by the Fates in the underworld.

234

THEBAID, VIII. 538-564

the foe, Oenides furiously strikes two bodies with
one shaft of pine, horseman and horn-footed steed :
Prothous falls and the horse upon him, and as he
gropes for the lost reins the horse tramples the helm
upon his face and the shield upon his breast, until as
the last drops ebb from his wound he casts off the
bridle and sinks with his head upon his master's
body. Even so from Mount Gauranus fall an elm-
tree and a vine together, a twofold loss to the
husbandman, but the elm more sorroAvful seeks also
for its comrade tree, and falling grieves less for its
ov^Ti boughs than for the familiar grapes it crushes
against its ^vill. Corymbus of Helicon had taken
arms against the Danaans, formerly the Muses'
friend, to whom Uranie ° herself, knowing full well
his Stygian destiny, had long foretold his death by
the p>osition of the stars. Yet seeks he battles and
warriors, perchance to find theme for song ; now Ues
he low, worthy himself to be sung with lasting
praise, but the Sisters wept his loss in silence.

Atys, betrothed from childhood to Ismene, off-
spring of Agenor, went his way, a youth no stranger
to the wars of Thebes, though Cirrha was his home,
nor had he shunned his bride's kinsmen for their
evil deeds ; nay, her misery undeserved and chaste
himiiUty commend her to her lover's favour. He
too was noble, nor was the maiden's heart tmmed
from him, and they were pleasing in each other's
sight, had only Fortune suffered it. But war forbids
his marriage, and hence the youth's fiercer ^v^ath
against the foe ; among the foremost he rushes on,
and now afoot >vith errant sword, now grasping the
reins aloft, as though at some spectacle, he drives
before him the ranks of Lema. With threefold

235

STATIUS

surgentes etiamnum umeros et levia mater 565

pectora ; nunc auro phaleras auroque sagittas
cingulaque et manicas, ne coniuge vilior iret,
presserat et mixtum cono crispaverat aurum.
talibus heu ! fidens vocat ultro in proelia Graios.
ac primum in faciles grassatus cuspide turmas 570
arma refert sociis et in agmina fida peracta
caede redit. sic Hyrcana leo Caspius umbra
nudus adhuc nulloque iubae flaventis honore
terribilis magnique etiamnum sanguinis insons,
haud procul a stabulis captat custode remoto 575

segne pecus teneraque famem consumit in^ agna.
mox ignotum armis ac solo corpore mensus
Tydea non timuit, fragilique lacessere telo
saepius infrendentem aliis aliosque sequentem
ausus erat. tandem invalidos Aetolus ad ictus 580
forte refert oculos et formidabile ridens :
" iamdudum video, magnum cupis, improbe, leti
nomen " ait ; simul audacem non ense nee hasta
dignatus leviter digitis imbelle solutis
abiecit iaculum : latebras tamen inguinis alte 585
missile, ceu totis intortum viribus, hausit.
praeterit haud dubium fati et spoliare superbit
Oenides. " neque enim has Marti aut tibi, bellica

Pallas,
exuvias figemus" ait, "procul arceat^ ipsum
ferre pudor ; vix, si bellum comitata relictis, 590

^ consumit in Pw : depascitur iV, and written over in D.
^ arceat co : habeat P : afuat conj. Garrod.

" i.e., " procul arceat pudor me ipsum has exuvias ferre,"
where " arceat " is given by analogy the same construction
as " prohibeat."

236

THEBAID, VIII. 565-590

robe of purple had his mother clothed his yet growing
shoulders and smooth breast, and now, lest he should
go in meaner raiment than his spouse, she had plated
with gold his harness and with gold his arrows and
his belt and armlets, and had encrusted his helm
with inlay of gold. Trusting alas ! in such things as
these he challenges the Greeks to combat, and first
assailing a weak company with his spear he brings
back spoil of arms to his comrades, and the slaughter
accomplished returns to the friendly lines. So a
Caspian lion beneath Hyrcanian shade, still smooth
nor terrible yet in the yellow glory of his mane, and
guiltless of great carnage, raids the slow-moving flock
not far from their fold while the shepherd is away,
and sates his hunger on a tender lamb. Soon he
feared not to attack Tydeus, knowing not his prowess
but judging only by his stature, and dared to vex
him with his frail Aveapon, as oft he shouted taunts
at some and pursued others. At length the Aetolian
turned his gaze by chance upon his feeble efforts, and
with a terrible laugh : " Long since," he cries, " I
have seen, insatiate one, 'tis a famous death that
thou desirest ! " and forthwith, deeming the bold
youth worthy of neither sword nor spear, with care-
less fingers lightly flung an unwarUke shaft ; yet the
missile drained deep the recesses of the groin, as
though hurled with all his might. His death assured,
Oenides passes him by, and is too proud to plunder.
" For not such spoils as these," says he, " will I
hang up to Mars, or to thee, warhke Pallas ; shame
keep me far from taking them for my own pleasure ; "
scarcely had Deipyle ^ left her bower and come with

* She was the daughter of Adrastus, and had married
Tydeus, see ii. 201 sqq.

237

STATIUS

iJeipyle thalamis, illi inludenda^ tulissem."
sic ait, et belli maiora ad praemia niente
ducitur : innumeris veluti leo forte potitus
caedibus imbellis vitulos mollesque iuvencas
transmittit : magno furor est in sanguine mergi, 595
nee nisi regnantis cervice recumbere tauri.
at non semianimi clamore Menoecea lapsus
falUt Atys : praevertit equos curruque citato
desilit : instabat pubes Tegeaea iacenti,
nee prohibent Tyrii. " pudeat, Cadmea iuventus,
terrigenas mentita patres ! quo tenditis " inquit, 601
" degeneres ? meliusne iacet pro sanguine nostro
hospes Atys ? tantum hospes adhuc et coniugis ultor
infelix nondum iste suae ; nos pignora tanta
prodimus ? " insurgunt iusto firmata pudore 605

agmine, cuique suae rediere in pectora curae.

Interea thalami secreta in parte sorores,
par aliud morum miserique innoxia proles
Oedipodae, varias miscent sermone querellas.
nee mala quae iuxta, sed longa ab origine fati, 610
haec matris taedas, oculos ast ilia paternos,
altera regnantem, profugum gemit altera fratrem,
bella ambae. gravis hinc miseri^ cunctatio voti :
nutat utroque timor, quemnam hoc certamine victum,
quern vicisse velint : tacite praeponderat exsul. 615
sic Pandioniae repetunt ubi fida volucres

^ iniudenda w : inlaudanda P.
* miseri Pui : misti Barth, edd., from later mss.

" i.e., as he sucks its blood.

'' Nightingales, from Philomela, daughter of Pandion,
king of Athens, changed into a nightingale. She grieves

238

THEBAID, VIII. 591-616

me to the war, would I have borne her spoils that
she might mock at." So saying, he is led on to dream
of nobler prizes of the fight : as when a lion by chance
hath slaughter inniunerable in his power, he passes
by the unwarlike calves and heifers : he is mad to
drench himself in some mighty victim's blood, nor
to crouch " save on the neck of a chieftain bull. But
Menoeceus fails not to hear the dying wail of fallen
Atys : thither he turns his horses, and leaps down
from his swift chariot ; the Tegean warriors were
drawing nigh him where he lay, nor did the Tyrians
hold them off. " For shame, Cadmean youth," he
cries, " that behe your earthborn sires ! Whither
fly ye, degenerate ones ? Hath he not fallen more
nobly for our folk, the stranger Atys } Ay, still but
a stranger, nor yet, hapless one, hath he avenged
his spouse ; shall rve betray a pledge so great ? "
Heartened by righteous shame they rally, and each
bethinks himself of those he loves.

Meanwhile in the seclusion of their chamber the
sisters — innocent pair, guiltless offspring of unhappy
Oedipus — mingle their converse with, varying com-
plaint. Nor grieve they for their present ills, but
starting from the far origins of their fate, one laments
their mother's marriage, the other their father's eyes,
this one the brother that reigns, that one him that
is an exile, and both lament the war. Long do they
hesitate in their unhappy prayers : fear sways them
either way, in doubt whom they wish defeated in
the fight, and whom victorious : but in their silent
hearts the exile wins the day. So when Pandion's
birds ^ seek once more trusty welcome and the homes

for her son Itys, whom she slew to avenge his father,
Tereus's, cruelty to her sister Procne.

289

ST ATI us

hospitia atque larem bruma pulsante relictum,
stantque super nidos veterisque exordia fati
adnarrant tectis, it^ truncum ac flebile murmur ;
verba putant, voxque ilia tamen non dissona verbis,
atque ibi post laerimas et longa silentia rursus 621
incohat Ismene : " quisnam hie mortalibus error ?
quae deeepta fides ? curam invigilare quieti
claraque per somnos animi simulacra reverti ?
ecce ego, quae thalamos nee si pax alta maneret,
tractarem sensu — pudet heu ! — conubia vidi 626

nocte, soror ; sponsum unde mihi sopor attulit amens
vix notum visu ? semel his in sedibus ilium,
dum mea nescio quo spondentur foedera pacto,
respexi non sponte, soror. turbata repente 630

omnia cernebam, subitusque intercidit ignis,
meque sequebatur rabido clamore reposcens
mater Atyn. quaenam haec dubiae praesagia cladis ?
nee timeo, dum tuta domus milesque reeedat^
Doricus et tumidos liceat componere fratres." 635

Talia nectebant, subito cum pigra tumultu
expavit domus, et multo sudore receptus
fertur Atys, servans animam iam sanguine nuUo,
cui manus in plaga, dependet languida cervix
exterior clipeo, crinesque a fronte supini. 640

prima videt caramque tremens locasta vocabat
Ismenen : namque hoc solum moribunda precatur
vox generi, solum hoc gelidis iam nomen inerrat
faucibus. exclamant famulae, tollebat in ora

^ it Markland : et Pw. ^ recedat w : superstes P.

" The nightingales feel that they are expressing their
grief, and, Statins adds, their notes, thougli not words,
are yet (" tamen ") as expressive as words can he. There is
real poetry in this thought.

240

THEBAID, VIII. 617-644

they left when winter drove them forth, and they
stand over the nest and tell to the house the old
story of their woe, a broken, dolorous sound goes
forth : they deem it words, nor in truth does their
voice sound other than words." Then after tears and
a long silence Ismene begins again : " What delusion
is this of mortals ? What means this trust deceived ?
Is it true then that our cares are awake in time of rest,
and our fancies return in sleep so clearly ? Lo ! I,
who could not bear the thought of wedlock, not even
in sure abiding peace, this very night, my sister —
ah ! for shame ! — I beheld myself a bride ; whence
did my fevered slumber bring my husband before
my \dsion, whom I scarce know by sight ? Once in
this palace I caught sight of him, my sister, not of
my own ^\^ll — ^while pledges in some wise were ex-
changed for my betrothal. On the instant all was
confusion to my \-iew and sudden fire fell between
us, and his mother followed me, demanding Atys
back with loud clamour. What presage of disaster
to whom I know not is this ? And yet I have no
fear, so but our home be safe and the Dorian
host depart, and we can reconcile our haughty
brothers."

Such was their converse, when the quiet house
started at a sudden tumult, and Atys, rescued at
great labour's cost, bloodless but still living, is borne
in ; his hand is on his hurt, outside the shield the
neck droops languid, and the tresses hang backward
from his forehead. Jocasta saw him first and trembling
called his beloved Ismene ; for that prayer alone do
the dying accents of her son-in-law utter, that name
alone hovers on his parched mouth. The women
shriek, and the maiden hfts her hands to her face ;

VOL. II R 241

STATIUS

virgo manus, tenuit saevus pudor ; attamen ire 645
cogitur, indulget summum hoc locasta iacenti,
ostenditque oiFertque. quater iam morte sub ipsa
ad nomen visus defectaque^ fortiter ora
sustulit ; illam unam neglecto lumine caeli
aspicit et vultu non exsatiatur amato. 650

tunc quia nee genetrix iuxta positusque beata
morte pater, sponsae munus miserabile tradunt
declinare genas ; ibi demum teste remoto
fassa pios gemitus lacrimasque in lumina fudit.

Dumque ea per Thebas, aliis serpentibus ardens 655
et face mutata bellum integrabat Enyo.
arma volunt, primos veluti modo comminus ictus
sustulerint omnisque etiamnum luceat ensis.
eminet Oenides. quamvis et harundine certa
Parthenopaeus agat, morientumque ora furenti 660
Hippomedon proculcet equo, Capaneaque pinus
iam procul Aoniis volet agnoscenda catervis :
Tydeos ilia dies, ilium fugiuntque tremuntque
clamantem : "quo terga datis ? licet ecce peremptos
ulcisci socios maestamque rependere noctem. 665
ille ego inexpletis solus qui caedibus hausi
quinquaginta animas : totidem, totidem heia^

gregatim
ferte manus ! nulline patres, nulline iacentum
unanimi fratres ? quae tanta oblivio luctus ? 669

quam pudet Inachias contentum abiisse Mycenas !
hine super Thebis ? haec robora regis ? ubi autem
egregius dux ille mihi ? " simul ordine laevo
ipsum exhortantem cuneos capitisque superbi

^ defectaque Heinsius (xii. 325) : deiectaque Pw.
* totidem, totidem heia Kohlmann : totidem heia P :
totidem totidemque w.

" Goddess of war.
242

THEBAIC, VIII. 645-673

fierce shame restrains her, yet she must needs go to
him, Jocasta grants the dying man this final boon,
and shows her-^nd sets her before him. Four times
at the very point of death he bravely raised his eyes
and faihng \ision at her name ; at her alone, neglect-
ing the light of heaven, he gazes, and cannot gaze
enough on the face he loves. Then because his mother
is not near and his father is laid in bhssful death, they
give to his betrothed the sad office of closing his eyes ;
there at last un^^'itnessed and alone, she gave utter-
ance to %\'ifely grief and drowned her eyes in tears.
WTiile these things were happening in Thebes,
Enyo," afire >\-ith torch fresh-charged and other
serpents, was restoring the fight. They yearn for
battle, as though they had but lately borne the
opening shock of combat hand to hand, and every
sword still shone bright and clear. Oenides is pre-
eminent ; though Parthenopaeus draw an unerring
shaft, and Hippomedon trample the faces of the
dying with furioiLS steed, though the spear of Capaneus
fly even from far with a message to Aonian troops,
that day was the day of Tydeus : from him they flee
and tremble, as he cries out : " Whither turn ye
your backs ? Lo I thus can ye avenge your slain
comrades, and atone for that sad night. I am he
who took fifty lives in unsated carnage ; bring as
many, ay, as many squadrons in swarms ! Are there
no fathers, no loving brothers of the fallen ? Why
such forgetfulness of sorrow ? Shame on me that I
departed content to Inachian Mycenae ! Are these
all that stand for Thebes ? Are these yovir monarch's
strength.' And where can I find that noble chieftain?"
Therevsith he spies him on the left of the array, en-
couraging his columns and conspicuous by the flash

243

STATIUS

insignem fulgore videt ; nee segnius ardens
occurrit, niveo quam flammiger ales olori 675

imminet et magna trepidum circumligat umbra,
tunc prior : " Aoniae rex o iustissime gentis,
imus in arma palam tandemque ostendimus enses,
an noctem et solitas placet exspectare tenebras ? "
ille nihil contra, sed stridula cornus in hostem 680
it referens mandata ducis, quam providus heros
iamiam in fine viae percussam obliquat, et ipse
telum ingens avide et quanto non ante lacerto
impulit : ibat atrox finem positura duello
lancea. convertere oculos utrimque faventes 685
Sidonii Graique dei ; crudelis Erinys
obstat et infando differt Eteoclea fratri :
cuspis in armigerum Phlegyan peccavit. ibi ingens
pugna virum, stricto nam saevior inruit ense
Aetolus, retroque datum Thebana tegebant 690

arma ducem. sic densa lupum iam nocte sub atra
arcet ab adprenso pastorum turba iuvenco ;
improbus erigitur contra, nee cura vetantes
impetere : ilium, ilium, semel in quern venerat, urget.
non secus obiectas acies turbamque minorem 695

dissimulat transitque manu ; tamen ora Thoantis,
pectora Deilochi, Clonii latus, ilia torvi
perforat Hippotadae ; truncis sua membra remittit
interdum galeasque rotat per nubila plenas.
et iam corporibus sese spoliisque cadentum 700

" Neither Argive nor Theban deities wished the war to
end in this way.
244

THEBAID, VIII. 674-700

of haughty helm ; not less s-wiftly does he rush to
meet him all afire, than the bird that wields the
flame swoops on the frightened snow-white swan and
enfolds him in his mighty shadow. Then he first
speaks : " Most righteous king of the Aonian people,
meet we in open fight, and show we our swords at
last, or doth it please thee to await the night and thy
wonted darkness ? " Nought spake he in reply, but
the whizzing cornel-shaft comes flying against his
foe, bearing the chieftain's message ; the prudent
hero strikes it aside just as it reached its mark, and
himself eagerly hurled a mighty weapon with
strength unknown before : on was the angry lance
flying, to end the war. On it the gods, Sidonian
and Greek, who favoured either side, turned their
eyes ; " cruel Erinys checks its comrse, and pre-
serves Eteocles for a brother's impious deed ; the
erring spear-point lighted on Phlegyas the charioteer.
Then a great fight arose of heroes, for the Aetolian,
drawing his sword, charged more fiercely, while
Theban warriors protected the retreating king. So
in the murk of night a crowd of shepherds forces away
a wolf from the bullock he has seized ; but he relent-
lessly rises up against them, nor cares to attack those
who bar his way ; him, him only, whom he had once
assailed, does he pursue. Just so does Tydeus ignore
the lines arrayed against him and the lesser throng,
and pass them by in the fight ; yet he wounds the face
of Thoas, the breast of Deilochus, Clonius in the flank,
stem Hippotades in the groin ; now he throws back
their limbs to mutilated trunks, or whirls heads and
helms together through the air. And now he had
enclosed himself with the spoils and corpses of the

245

STATIUS

clauserat ; unum acies circum consumitur, unum
omnia tela vovent : summis haec ossibus haerent,
pars frustrata cadunt, partem Tritonia vellit,
multa rigent clipeo. densis iam consitus^ hastis
ferratum quatit umbo nemus, tergoque fatiscit 705
atque umeris gentilis aper ; nusquam ardua coni
gloria, quique apicem torvae Gradivus habebat
cassidis, baud laetum domino ruit omen : inusta^
temporibus nuda aera sedent, circumque sonori
vertice percusso volvuntur in ai*ma molares. 710

iam cruor in galea, iam saucia proluit ater
pectora permixtus sudore et sanguine torrens.
respicit hortantes socios et Pallada fidam,
longius opposita celantem lumina parma :
ibat enim magnum laerimis inflectere patrem. 715

Ecce secat zephyros ingentem fraxinus iram
fortunamque ferens, teli non eminet auctor :
Astacides Melanippus erat, nee prodidit ipse,
et vellet latuisse manum, sed gaudia turmae
monstrabant trepidum ; nam flexus in ilia Tydeus
submissum latus et elipei laxaverat orbem. 721

clamorem Aonii miscent gemitumque Pelasgi,
obiectantque manus indignantemque tuentur.
ille per oppositos longe rimatus amarxma
Astaciden, totis animae se cogit in ictum 725

relliquiis telumque iaeit, quod proximus Hopleus
praebuerat : perit expressus conamine sanguis,
tunc tristes socii cupidum bellare — quis ardor ! — •
et poscentem hastas mediaque in morte negantem
exspirare trahunt, summique in margine campi 730

^ consitus CO : constitit P. ^ inusta w : inulta P.

" i.e., of his helm.
246

THEBAID, VIII. 701-730

fallen ; the ring of foes spends itself on him alone,
at him alone all darts aspire ; some lodge A^ithin
his limbs, some fall amiss, others Tritonia tears away,
many stand stiffly in his shield. Thick-planted
already with spears, his buckler is a quivering grove
of steel, and his native boarskin is torn upon his back
and shoulders ; gone is the towering glor^- of the
crest, and the Mars that held the peak of his grim
helmet falls, no happy omen to its lord. The bare
bronze*' is fixed and welded in his temples, stones
strike his head and fall rattling about his armour.
His helm now fills \\ith blood, and now his wounded
breast is drenched by a dark mingling torrent of
blood and sweat. He looks round upon his applaud-
ing comrades and on faithful Pallas, who conceals
from afar her face behind her shield ; for she was on
her way to soften vrith her tears her mighty sire.

Lo ! an ashen spear charged ^\ith might}' WTath
and fate cleaves the zephyrs, its author unperceived :
Melanippus it was, the son of Astacus, and he be-
trayed not his oN^Ti work and would fain have been
hidden, but the joy of his troop revealed him all
afirighted ; for Tydeus bending o'er his groin had
sunk upon his side and let go his round shield.
Aonians and Pelasgians mingle their shouts and
groans, and form a barrier, and protect the in-
dignant hero. He spying afar through the foe the
hated Astacides, summons for a stroke all the vital
forces that remain, and hurls a dart that Hopleus
who stood by had given him ; the effort makes the
blood spout and flow. Then his grie\"ing comrades
drag him away, eager yet to fight — what fiery zeal !
— and calling for spears, and even in death's agony
refusing to die, and set him on the farthest margin

247

STATIUS

efFultum gemina latera inclinantia parma
ponunt, ac saevi rediturum ad proelia Martis
promittunt flentes. sed et ipse recedere caelum
ingentesque animos extremo frigore labi
sensit, et innixus terrae " miserescite " clamat, 735
" Inachidae : non ossa precor referantur ut Argos
Aetolumve larem ; nee enim mihi cura supremi
funeris : odi artus fragilemque hunc corporis usum,
desertorem animi. caput, o caput, o mihi si quis
adportet, Melanippe, tuum ! nam volveris arvis, 740
fido equidem, nee me virtus suprema fefellit.
i, precor, Atrei^ si quid tibi sanguinis umquam,
Hippomedon, vade, o primis puer inclyte bellis
Areas, et Argolicae Capaneu iam maxime turmae."

Moti omnes, sed primus abit primusque repertum
Astaciden medio Capaneus e pulvere tollit 746

spirantem laevaque super cervice reportat,
terga cruentantem concussi vulneris unda :
qualis ab Arcadio rediit Tirynthius antro
captivumque suem clamantibus intulit Argis. 750

Erigitur Tydeus voltuque occurrit et amens
laetitiaque iraque, ut singultantia vidit
era trahique oculos seseque adgnovit in illo,
imperat abscisum porgi, laevaque receptum
spectat atrox hostile caput, gliscitque tepentis 755
lumina torva videns et adhuc dubitantia figi.
infelix contentus erat : plus exigit ultrix
Tisiphone ; iamque inflexo Tritonia patre
venerat et misero decus immortale ferebat,
atque ilium effracti perfusum tabe cerebri 760

^ Atrei Pw : Arcadii BQ : Argei Schroder.

" Of Erymanthus.
248

THEBAID, VIII. 731-760

of the field, propped against shields on either side,
and promise with tears a return to the conflicts of
fierce Mars. But he too now felt the light of heaven
fail him and his mighty spirit yield to the final chill,
and lying on the ground he cries : " Have pity, sons
of Inachus : I pray not that my bones be taken to
Argos or my Aetolian home ; I care not for funeral
obsequies ; I hate my limbs and my body so frail
and useless, deserter of the soul within it. Thy head,
thy head, O Melanippus, could one but bring me
that ! for thou art grovelling on the plain, so indeed
I trust, nor did my valour fail me at the last. Go,
Hippomedon, I beg, if thou has aught of Atreus'
blood, go thou, Arcadian, youth reno>\-ned in thy
first wars, and thou, O Capaneus, mightiest now of
all the Argive host ! "

All were moved, but Capaneus first darts away,
and finding the son of Astacus lifts him still breathing
from the dust, and returns with him on his left shoul-
der, staining his back A\ith blood from the stricken
wound : in such wise did the Tirynthian return
from the Arcadian lair, when he brought home to
applauding Argos the captive boar."

Tydeus raises himself and turns his gaze upon him,
then mad vriih joy and anger, when he saw them
drag the gasping visage, and saw his handiwork
therein, he bids them cut off and hand to him his foe's
fierce head, and seizing it in his left hand he gazes at
it, and glows to see it still warm in life and the wrath-
ful eyes still flickering ere they closed. Content was
the wretched man, but avenging Tisiphone demands
yet more. And now, her sire appeased, had Tritonia
come, and was bringing immortal lustre to the un-
happy hero : when lo I she sees him befouled with

240

STATIUS

aspicit et vivo scelerantem sanguine fauces —

nee comites auferre valent — : stetit aspera Gorgon

crinibus emissis rectique ante ora cerastae

velavere deam ; fugit aversata iacentem,

nee prius astra subit, quam mystica lampas et insons

Elisos multa purgavit lumina lympha. 766

" This hideous scene was imitated by Dante in the
/w/<?rno (canto xxxii. 11. 125 sq.), where Count Ugolino gnaws
his enemy's skull. Other parallels between the Divina
Commedia and the Thebaid will be found in Inf. ix. 82
{Theb. ii. 55), Inf. xiv. 46 {Theb. x. fin.). Inf. xxvi. 52 {Theb.
1. 33, xii. 429), Purg. ix. 34 {Ach. i. 228, 247).

250

THEBAID, VIII. 761-766

the shattered brains' corruption and his jaws polluted
with li\'ing blood " — nor can his comrades wTest it
from him — : fierce stood the Gorgon with out-
stretched snakes, and the horned serpents upreared
before her face o'ershadowed the goddess ; with
averted face she flees from him where he lies, nor
enters heaven ere that the mystic lamp and Elisos
with plenteous water has purged her vision.''

* The Gorgon is the head of Medusa with snakes for hair,
that Pallas carried on her breastplate. The " mystic lamp "
refers to the fire which was one of the means of ceremonial
purification. " Elisos '' is the river Illssus at Athens.

25]

LIBER IX

Asperat Aonios rabies audita cruenti
Tydeos ; ipsi etiam minus ingemuere iacentem
Inachidae, culpantque virum et rupisse queruntur
fas odii ; quin te, divum implacidissime, quamquam
praecipuum tunc caedis opus, Gradive, furebas,^ 5
ofFensum virtute^ ferunt, nee comminus ipsum^
ora, sed et trepidos alio torsisse iugales.
ergo profanatum Melanippi funus acerbo
volnere non aliis ultum Cadmeia pubes
insurgunt stimulis, quam si turbata sepulcris 10

ossa patrum monstrisque datae crudelibus urnae.
accendit rex ipse super : " quisquamne Pelasgis*
mitis adhuc hominemque gerit ? iam morsibus uncis —
pro furor ! usque adeo tela exsatiavimus ! — artus
dilacerant. nonne Hyrcanis bellare putatis 15

tigribus, aut saevos Libyae contra ire leoiies ?
et nunc ille iacet — pulchra o solacia leti ! —
ore tenens hostile caput, dulcique nefandus

^ furebas w : ferebas P.

^ offensum virtute Po) : oifensa conj. Garrod, feritate
Mueller. For virtute Klotz cf. Val. Flacc. ii. 647.

* ipsum Pu : isse Koch.

* Pelasgis Pw : -um Imhof: -us Owen.

252

BOOK IX

The news of the mad fury of blood-stained Tydeus
exasperates the Aonians ; even the Inachidae them-
selves grieve but httle for the fallen warrior, and
blame him, complaining that he has transgressed the
lawful bounds of hatred ; nay, thou too, O Gradivnis,
most %iolent of gods, though at that time the furious
work of slaughter did most occupy thee, thou too
wert offended, as they relate, by such hardihood,"
nor turned thy own gaze thereon, but drove another
way thy affrighted steeds. Therefore the Cadmean
youth rise up to avenge the shameful profanation of
Melanippus' corpse, as much inflamed as though
their father's bones had been disturbed from their
sepulchres and their urns flung a prey to cruel
monsters. The king himself infuriates them still
further : " Who any more is merciful or humane to
the Pelasgians r Why, ^\-ith hooked fangs they rend
our limbs — shame on such madness ! Have we then
so glutted their weapons ? — Do ye not think ye are
making war on Hyrcanian tigers or facing angry
Libyan lions ? And now he hes — O I noble solace
of death ! — his jaws fastened in his enemy's head,
and meets his unhallowed end in welcome gore

" " virtus " in an unfavourable sense Is found in Val.
Flacc. ii. 647, " eifera virtus" : cf. also Theb. xi. 1," iniqua
virtus " : but in both cases tlie epithet helps.

253

ST ATI us

immoritur tabo ; nos ferrum immite^ facesque,
illis nuda odia, et feritas iam non eget armis. 20

sic pergant rabidi claraque hac laude^ fruantur,
dum videas haec, summepater. sed enimhiscere campos
conquesti terraeque fugam mirantur ; an istos
vel sua portet humus ? " magno sic fatus agebat
procursu fremituque viros, furor omnibus idem 25
Tydeos invisi spoliis raptoque potiri
corpore. non aliter subtexunt astra catervae
incestarum avium, longe quibus aura nocentem
aera desertasque tulit sine funere mortes ;
illo avidae cum voce ruunt, sonat arduus aether 30
plausibus, et caelo volucres cessere minores.

Fama per Aonium rapido vaga murmure campum
spargitur in turmas, sohto pernicior index
cum lugenda refert, donee, cui maxima fando
damna vehit, trepidas lapsa est Polynicis ad aures. 35
deriguit iuvenis lacrimaeque haesere paratae,
et cunctata fides ; nimium nam cognita virtus
Oenidae credi letum suadetque vetatque.
sed postquam haud dubio clades auctore reperta est,
nox oculos mentemque rapit ; turn sanguine fixo 40
membra simul, simul arma ruunt : madet ardua fletu
iam galea atque ocreae chpeum excepere cadentem.
it maestus genua aegra trahens hastamque sequentem,
vulneribus ceu mille gravis totosque per artus
saucius, absistunt socii monstrantque gementes. 45

^ immite P : mite w. Emended in various ways by edd.
Supply, not, as Klotz, putamus, but pro telis habemus ; the
translation makes it clear.

- laude P : luce w, cf. i. 319.
254,

THEBAID, IX. 19-45

Our weapons are ruthless steel and brands of fire,
but theirs is naked hate, and savagery that needs no
arms. May they continue in their frenzy and enjoy
a reno^vn so glorious, do thou but look upon it, O
Father supreme I But they complained that the
battle-field gaped and they marvel that the earth
fled : would even their own soil bear such as them .' "
So speaking, he led his men forward in a fierce onset
shouting loud, and all ahke furious to seize the
corpse of the hated Tydeus and to gain his spoils.
Not other\\ise do swarms of obscene birds veil the
stars, when the breezes have told them afar of
tainted air and bodies left luiburied ; thither in
clamorous greed they haste, the lofty sky is loud vriih
flapping of "«"ings, and lesser fowl withdraw from
heaven.

Fame, travelling in s^^ift rumours about the Aonian
plain, is spread from troop to troop, a more rapid
messenger than of wont when her tidings are e\il,
until she ghdes into the affrighted ears of Polynices,
to whom her tale brings most grievous news of loss.
The youth stiffened ^\ith horror, his ready tears
stood congealed, and slow was he to give credence ;
for Oenides' well-known valour now prompts and now
forbids him to beUeve his death. But when the
disaster was confirmed on undoubted warrant, his
mind and \'ision are whelmed in night ; his blood
stands still ; together his arms, together his limbs
sink doMTi, his lofty helm is already moist ^^•ith tears,
and his greaves caught the sliield as it fell. Sadly
he goes, dragging faint knees and traihng spear,
as though biu-dened by a thousand wounds and
maimed in every limb ; his comrades shrink from
him and point to liim with groans. At length he

25.5

STATIUS

tandem ille abiectis, vix quae portaverat, armis
nudus in egregii vacuum iam corpus amici
procidit et tali lacrimas cum voce profudit :
" hasne tibi, armorum spes o suprema meorum,
Oenide, grates, haec praemia digna rependi, 50

nudus ut invisa Cadmi tellure iaceres
sospite me ? nunc exsul ego aeternumque fugatus,
quando alius misero ac melior mihi frater ademptus.
nee iam sortitus veteres regnique nocentis
periurum diadema peto : quo gaudia tanti 55

empta mihi aut sceptrum, quod non tua dextera

tradet ?
ite, viri, solumque^ fero me linquite fratri :
nil opus arma ultra temptare et perdere^ mortes ;
ite, precor ; quid iam dabitis mihi denique maius ?
Tydea consumpsi ! quanam hoc ego morte piabo ? 60
o socer, o Argi ! et primae bona iurgia noctis,
alternaeque manus et longi pignus amoris
ira brevis ; non me ense tuo tunc, maxime Tydeu, —
et poteras— nostri mactatum in limine Adrasti !
quin etiam Thebas me propter et impia fratris 05
tecta libens, unde haud alius remeasset, adisti,
ceu tibimet sceptra et proprios laturus honores.
iam Telamona pium, iam Thesea fama tacebat —
qualis et ecce iaces ! quae primum vulnera mirer ?
quis tuus hie, quis ab hoste cruor ? quae te agmina

quive 70

innumeri stravere globi ? num fallor, et ipse
invidit pater et tota Mars impulit hasta ? "

^ solumque w : totumque P.
^ perdere co : pergere P.

" i.e., than Tydeus, whom he has " wasted " by allowing
him to be slain. * See i. 401 sqq.

256

THEBAID, IX. 46-72

throws away the armour he scarce has power to carry,
and falUng naked on the now hfeless body of his
peerless friend speaks thus "vWth streaming tears :
" Oenides, last hope of my emprise, is this my
gratitude, is this my due reward and recompense to
thee, that thou shouldst lie bare on Cadmus' hated
earth and I be unharmed ? Now for ever am I an
exile and for ever banished, since my other, ay and
truer, brother has, alas, been taken from me. No
more do I seek the old decrees of lot or the perjured
diadem of a guilty throne : to what purpose are joys
so dearly bought, or a sceptre that thy hand \vill not
place in mine ? Depart from me, ye warriors, and
leave me to face my cruel kinsman alone : nought
avails it to try further battle and be wasteful of
deaths. Depart, I pray you ; what greater thing
can ye give me now " ? I have squandered Tydeus.
By what death can I atone for that ? O father of
my bride ! O Argos ! and that first night's honest
quarrel, and our mutual blows, and the short wrath
that was the pledge of long affection ! * Ah ! why
was I not then slain by thy sword, great Tydeus —
thou wert able — on the threshold of our host
Adrastus ? Nay more, on my account thou didst
go to Thebes, and willingly enter my brother's
impious palace, whence none other would have
returned, as though to win a sceptre and honours for
thyself alone. Already of devoted Telamon, already
of Theseus fame ceased to tell — and lo ! in what
phght thou liest here ! Which wounds shall I first
marvel at ? Wliich is thy blood, which thy foe's ?
WTiat troops, what countless bands o'erthrew thee ?
Nay, the Father himself, an I mistake not, envied
thee, and Mars smote thee with all the force of his
VOL. II s 257

STATIUS

sic ait, et niaerens etiamnum lubrica tabo

ora viri target lacrimis dextraque reponit.

" tune meos hostes hucusque exosus, et ultra 75

sospes ego ? " exuerat vagina turbidus ensem

aptabatque neci : comites tenuere, socerque

castigat bellique vices ac fata revolvens

solatur tumidunm, longeque a corpora caro

paulatim, unde dolor letique animosa voluntas, 80

amovet ac tacite ferrum inter verba reponit.

ducitur amisso qualis consorte laborum

deserit inceptum media inter iugera sulcum

taurus iners coUoque iugum deforme remisso

parte trahit, partem lacrimans sustentat arator. 85

Ecce autem hortatus Eteoclis et arma secuti,
lecta manus, iuvenes, quos nee Tritonia bello,
nee prope conlata sprevisset cuspide Mavors,
adventant ; contra conlecta ut pectora parmae
fixerat atque hastam longe protenderat, haeret 90
arduus Hippomedon : ceu fluctibus obvia rupes,
cui neque de caelo metus et fracta aequora cedunt,
stat cunctis immota minis, fugit ipse rigentem
pontus et ex alto miserae novere carinae.
tunc prior Aonides — validam simul eligit hastam —
" non pudet hos manes, haec infirmantia bellum 96
funera dis coram et caelo inspectante^ tueri ?
scilicet egregius sudor memorandaque virtus
banc tumulare feram, ne non maerentibus Argos
^ inspectante u : insectante P.
" "troubled," because they know their danger.
258

THEBAID, IX. 73-99

spear." So he speaks and weeping cleanses with
his tears the hero's face that still runs blood, and
composes it ^\^th his o>vn hand. " Didst thou then
hate my foes thus far, and do I outlive thee ? " — in
his bhnd passion he had pulled the sword from its
sheath, and was pointing it for death — his friends
restrained liim, and his father-in-law rebukes him,
and calUng to his mind the chances of war and the
\\i\\ of fate consoles his swelling heart, and from that
dear body, whence comes his grief and eager will
for death, Httle by little he drags him far away, and
mid his converse silently puts back the weapon. He
is led Uke a bull that ha\ing lost the partner of his
toils deserts in numb despair the furrow he has begun
among all the acres round, and on his drooping neck
drags part of the unsightly yoke, while part the
weeping ploughman bears.

But see I rallying to the battle-cry of Eteocles a
chosen band of warriors advances, who neither
Tritonia would have despised in the fray nor Mavors
in the encounter \\ith the lance : against them,
when he had set his protecting shield before his
breast and thrust forth his long spear tall Hippomedon
stands his ground : even as a rock that fronts the
waves, and hath no fear from heaven, and the waters
are broken and give way before it : firm it stands,
unmoved by threats ; the ver}' sea flees from its
stark face, and from afar the troubled " barks
recognize it. Then first the Aonian — choosing withal
a stalwart spear : " Hast thou no shame in the
presence of the gods and -n-ith heaven as witness to
guard this ghost, this corpse that defames our
warfare ? Surely 'tis a glorious task and a memor-
able exploit to compass burial for this wild beast, in

259

STATIUS

exsequiis lacrimandus eat moUique feretro 100

infandam eiectans saniem ! dimittite curam ;
nullae ilium volucres, nulla impia monstra nee ipse,
si demus, pius ignis edat." nee plura, sed ingens
intorquet iaculum, duro quod in aere moratum
transmissumque tamen clipei stetit orbe secundo.
inde Pheres acerque Lycus ; sed cassa Pheretis 106
hasta redit, Lycus excelso terrore comantem
perstringit galeam ; eonvulsae cuspide longe
difFugere iubae patuitque ingloria cassis.
ipse nee ire retro, nee in obvia concitus arma 110
exsilit, inque eadem sese vestigia semper
obversus cunctis^ profert recipitque, nee umquam
longius indulget dextrae motusque per omnes
corpus amat, corpus servans circumque supraque
vertitur. imbellem non sic amplexa iuvencum 115
infestante lupo tunc primum feta tuetur
mater et ancipiti circumfert cornua gyro ;
ipsa nihil metuens sexusque oblita minoris
spumat et ingentes imitatur femina tauros.
tandem intermissa iaculantum nube potestas 120

reddere tela fuit ; iamque et Sicyonius Alcon
venerat auxilio, Pisaeaque praepetis Idae
turma subit cuneumque replent. his laetus^ in hostes
Lernaeam iacit ipse trabem, volat ilia sagittis
aequa fuga mediumque nihil cunctata Politen 125
transabit et iuncti clipeum cavat improba Mopsi.
Phocea tum Cydona Tanagraeumque Phalanthum
atque Erycem,hunc retro conversum et telapetentem,

^ cunctis Pia : cuneis Heinsius.
* (h)is laetus P : his fretus w.

260

THEBAID, IX. 100-128

fear he go not to Argos to win his meed of tears
and obsequies, nor on the soft bier spew out his
cursed gore ! Dismiss your care ; him no birds nor
foul monsters mil devour, not even the sacred fire
itself, were we to grant it." No more he spake, but
hurled a huge javehn, that, checked by the hard
bronze, yet passing through, is stayed in the second
layer of the shield. Then Pheres aims, and \-igorous
Lycus ; but the dart of Pheres falls vainly to earth,
while Lycus cleaves the casque Mith its terrible
streaming plume ; torn by the lance-point the crest
is scattered far, and lays bare the inglorious helm.
He himself neither retires, nor leaps out to attack the
foeman, but ever turning in his own ground to ever}'
side now advances and now draws back, nor ever for
long gives his right arm play, but in all his movements
keeps nigh the body, keeps the body in \'iew, hovering
over and around it. Not so jealously does its mother
shield and protect a helpless calf, her first-born, when
a wolf is threatening, and wheel round in perplexity
mth lowered horns ; for herself she has no fear, but
forgetful of her weaker sex foams at the mouth, and,
female as she is, imitates mighty bulls. At last the
cloud of darts grew less, and they could hurl weapons
back again ; and by now Alcon of Sicyon had come
in succour, and the Pisaean squadron of fleet Idas
arrives, and they reinforce the phalanx. Rejoicing
thereat he flings a Lemaean shaft against the foe :
it flies with all an arrow's speed, and tarrying not a
whit pierces Pohtes through the middle, and still
persistent passes through the shield of Mopsus his
close comrade. Then he transfixes Cydon the
Phocian, and Phalanthus of Tanagra, and Eryx '^'^^
latter as he turns rearward in search of '^ '^^^"^ ^^

263

ST ATI us

dum spes nulla necis, crinito a vertice figit ;
faucibus ille cavis hastam non ore receptam 130

miratur moriens, pariterque et murmure planus
sanguis et expulsi salierunt cuspide dentes.
ausus erat furto dextram eiectare^ Leonteus,
pone \iros atque arma latens, positumque trahebat
prenso crine caput : vidit, quamquam undique

crebrae, 135

Hippomedon, ante ora minae, saevoque protervam
abstulit ense manum ; simul increpat : " banc tibi

Tydeus,
Tydeus ipse rapit ; post et confecta virorum
fata time magnosque miser fuge tangere manes ! "
ter Cadmea phalanx torvum abduxere cadaver, 140
ter retrahunt Danai : Siculi velut anxia puppis
seditione maris nequiquam obstante magistro
errat et averso redit in vestigia velo.

Non ibi Sidoniae valuissent pellere coepto
Hippomedonta manus, non ilium impacta moverent
tormenta opposituni, formidatique superbis 146

turribus impulsus temptato umbone redissent.
sed memor Elysii regis noxasque recensens
Tydeos in medios astu subit impia campos
Tisiphone : sensere acies subitusque cucurrit 150

sudor equis sudorque viris, quamquam ore remisso
Inachiuna fingebat Halyn ; nusquam impius ignis
verberaque, et iussi tenuere silentia erines.
arma gerit iuxtaque feri latus Hippomedontis

^ eiectare PN : iniectare w.

" Pluto had given special commands to Tisiphone, c/.
•''i. 65 sqq.

■ - . the Fury puts off her torch and scourge and hissing

260

THEBAID, IX. 129-154

vrith no thought of death, through the long tresses
of his head ; the other expu-ing marvels that he has
received the lance not in his face but in his hollow
throat, and therev^ith the blood gushes forth, full of
his d^-ing wail, and the teeth that the spear-point
has dislodged. Leonteus, lurking behind the battle
of the heroes, stealthily dared to put forth his right
hand, and pulled at the prostrate corpse, seizing its
hair : Hippomedon spied him, though faced by many
a threat on every side, and vrith his grim blade
lopped off the impudent hand, taunting him withal :
" 'Tis Tydeus, Tydeus, himself who robs thee of it I
Have fear of heroes even when they are slain and
touch not, miserable man, the mighty dead ! "
Thrice did the Cadmean phalanx pull away the
dreadful corpse, thrice do the Danaans drag it back
again : just as an anxious vessel strays in a lawless
tumult of the Sicilian sea, despite the helmsman's
fruitless efforts, and then returns on her path ^ith
canvas backward-blown.

No Sidonian forces would there have availed to
drive Hippomedon from his purpose, no engine-
hurled missiles were hke to move his stout resistance,
and the blows that proud battlements dreaded had
fallen baffled from the buckler they assailed. But,
mindful of the Elysian monarch," and recounting the
crimes of Tydeus, impious Tisiphone craftily draws
nigh to the middle of the field : the armies felt her
presence, and horses and men alike were seized by a
sudden sweat, although, laying aside her o^nti aspect,
she counterfeited Halys the Inachian ; absent was the
unhallowed torch and the scourge, while her locks
at her command held their peace.* As warrior, and
with flattering looks and voice, she comes near to

263

STATIUS

blanda genas vocemque venit, tamen ille loquentis
extimuit vultus admiraturque timorem. 156

ilia autem lacrimans " tu nunc " ait, " inclyte, frustra
exanimes socios inhumataque corpora Graium —
scilicet is nobis metus, aut iam cura sepulcri ? —
protegis ; ipse nianu Tyria tibi captus Adrastus 160
raptatur, teque ante alios, te voce manuque
invocat ; heu qualem lapsare in sanguine vidi,
exutum canos lacero diademate crines !
nee procul hinc, adverte oculos ; ubi plurimus ille
pulvis, ubi ille globus." paulum stetit anxius heros
librabatque metus ; premit aspera virgo : " quid
haeres ? 166

imus ? an hi retinent manes, et vilior ille
qui superest ? " miserum sociis opus et sua mandat
proelia et unanimi vadit desertor amici,
respiciens tamen et revocent si forte paratus. 170
inde legens turbata trucis vestigia divae
hue illuc frustra ruit avius, impia donee
Eumenis ex oculis reiecta caerula parma
fugit et innumeri galeam rupere cerastae.
aspicit infelix discussa nube quietos 175

Inachidas currumque nihil metuentis Adrasti.

Et Tyrii iam corpus habent, iam gaudia magnae
testantur voces, victorque ululatus aderrat
auribus occultoque ferit praecordia luctu.
ducitur hostili — pro dura potentia fati ! — • 180

Tydeus ille solo, modo cui Thebana sequenti
agmina, sive gradus seu frena efFunderet, ingens

" i.e., is Adrastus less worth rescuing than the dead body
(" manes ") of Tydeus ?
264

THEBAID, IX. 155-182

fierce Hippomedon, yet he feared her countenance
as she spoke, and marvelled at his fear. Weeping
she says : "In vain, O man of reno>\Ti, thou guardest
thy dead comrades and the unburied bodies of the
Greeks — is that then our fear, do we yet care for a
sepulchre r — Lo ! Adrastus is being dragged along,
the captive of a Tyrian band, and to thee before all
else, to thee he cries and beckons. Alas I in what
plight I saw him slip and fall in blood, his diadem torn
and the white locks streaming free ! Nor far from
here, look I where all that cloud of dust is, all that
mass of men." Awhile the hero stood perplexed,
balancing his fears ; the ruthless maid urges him :
" Why dost thou hesitate ? Shall we go forward ? Or
does this dead body keep us back, and is he more
worthless who sur\'ives ? " " To his comrades he
entrusts the forlorn task and the fight that should be
his, and strides away, deserting his loyal friend, yet
looking behind him, and ready, should they perchance
recall him. Then following the impetuous footsteps
of the relentless goddess he rushes here and there in
aimless, pathless course, till the wicked Fury, casting
her shield behind her, vanishes darkly from his sight,
and snakes innumerable break forth from her helmet.
The cloud disperses, and the unhappy man beholds
the Inachidae unperturbed, and Adrastus in his
chariot, fearing nought.

And now the Tyrians possess the body, and by
loud cries attest their joy ; the triumphant shout
steals upon the ear and strikes the heart with secret
dismay. He is dragged on hostile soil — alas ! fate's
cruel power I — that verj- Tydeus for whom of late a
mighty space on either hand was left as he pursued
the ranks of Thebes, whether on foot or shaking out

265

STATIUS

limes utrimque datus ; numquam arma manusque

quiescunt,
nulla viri feritas : iuvat ora rigentia leto
et formidatos impune lacessere vultus. 185

hie amor, hoc una timidi fortesque sequuntur
nobilitare manus, infectaque sanguine tela
coniugibus servant parvisque ostendere natis.
sic ubi Maura diu populatum rura leonem, 189

quem propter clausique greges vigilantque magistri,
pastorum lassae debellavere cohortes :
gaudet ager, magno subeunt clamore coloni,
praecerpuntque iubas immaniaque ora recludunt
damnaque commemorant, seu iam sub culmine fixus
excubat, antiquo seu pendet gloria luco. 195

At ferus Hippomedon quamquam iam sentit inane
auxilium et seram rapto pro corpore pugnam,
it tamen et caecum rotat inrevocabilis ensem,
vix socios hostesque, nihil dum tardet euntem,
secernens ; sed caede nova iam lubrica tellus 200
armaque seminecesque viri currusque soluti^
impediunt laevumque femur, quod cuspide fixum
regis Echionii, sed dissimulaverat ardens,
sive ibi nescierat. maestum videt Hoplea tandem ;
Tydeos hie magni fidus comes et modo frustra 205
armiger alipedem prona cervice tenebat
fatorum ignarum domini solumque frementem,
quod vacet inque acies audentior ille pedestres.
hunc aspernantem tumido nova pondera tergo —
unam quippe manum domitis expertus ab annis —
corripit adfaturque : "quid o nova fata recusas, 211

^ soluti w : secuti P.

^Q6

THEBAID, IX. 183-211

his chariot-reins ; never still are hands or weapons
or any savagery of man : they dehght to wound with
impunity those features rigid in death and that \'isage
that they feared. This is their passion, by this deed
they strive, both brave and cowards, to gain ennoble-
ment, and they keep the blood-stained weapons to dis-
play to their young children and their wives. So when
weary troops of shepherds have warred do\vn a lion
that has long devastated Moorish fields, and caused
flocks to be penned up and guardians to be watchful,
the countr\'side exults, the husbandmen come with
loud cries of joy, and pluck at the mane and open
the mighty jaws and tell of all their losses, whether
he now keeps \'igil nailed up beneath the roof, or
hangs the glory of some ancient grove.

But fierce Hippomedon, although he sees now his
help is of no avail and he is too late to fight for the
stolen corpse, nevertheless goes on and blindly whirls
his relentless sword, scarce knowing friend from foe,
so that nought delay his advance ; but the ground
now shppery ^vith recent slaughter, and arms and
dying men and shattered chariots impede him, and
his left thigh, which the spear-point of the Echionian
monarch pierced, but in his fury he had dissembled
the wound or known not of it. At length he sees
Hopleus sorrowing : he, the trusty comrade of great
Tydeus and lately, but all in vain, his squire, was
holding the wing-footed steed, who, with bowed neck
and ignorant of his master's fate, was impatient only
of his idleness, and because his lord was more adven-
turous in the fray of infantry. Him, though he scorns
a new weight on his proud back — for since his taming
he knew but one hand only — the hero seizes and
thus bespeaks : " Why refiisest thou thy new destiny,

267

STATIUS

infelix sonipes ? numquam tibi dulce superbi
regis onus ; non iam Aetolo satiabere campo
gaudentemque iubam per stagna Acheloia solves,
quod superest, caros, i, saltern ulciscere manes 215
aut sequere, extorrem ne tu quoque laeseris umbram
captivus tumidumque equitem post Tydea portes."
audisse accensumque putes : hoc fulmine raptum
abstulit et similes minus indignatur habenas.
semifer aeria talis Centaurus ab Ossa 220

desilit in valles, ipsum nemora alta tremiscunt,
campus equum, trepidi cursu glomerantur anhelo
Labdacidae, premit ille super, necopinaque ferro
colla metens linquit truncos post terga cadentes.

\'entum erat ad fluvium ; solito tunc plenior alveo —
signa mali — magna se mole Ismenos agebat. 226

ilia brevis requies, illo timida agmina lassam
de campis egere fugam ; stupet hospita belli
unda viros claraque armorum incenditur umbra,
insiluere vadis, magnoque fragore solutus 230

agger et adversae latuerunt pulvere ripae.
ille quoque hostiles saltu maiore per undas
inruit attonitis — longum dimittere habenas —
sicut erat, tantum viridi defixa parumper
caespite populeo commendat spicula trunco. 235

tunc vero exanimes tradunt rapientibus ultro
arma vadis : alii demissa casside, quantum
tendere conatus animae valuere sub undis,

" "hoc" here = " tali." " fulmen " is occasionally used
by Statius for a sudden shock or violent movement.

* i.e., at that part of the Centaur which was human.

* The word " umbra " is sometimes used by Statius in the
sense of " reflection " ; here of the light reflected from a
thing: see n. on viii. 116.

268

THEBAID, IX. 212-238

unhappy charger ? Never more for thee is the burden
of thy haughty lord ; no more shalt thou sate thy
hunger on the Aetohan meads, or shake free thy
exultant mane about the streams of Achelous. This
remains for thee — go and at least avenge thy dear
master's death, or come with me, lest thou too in
captiNity vex his vanished shade, and after Tydeus
bear some boastful rider." One would have said
he heard and was enkindled : so \"iolently " does he
whirl him away in -wild career, resenting less the
similar reins. Even so the half-brute Centaur leaps
do^^^l into the vale from the airy height of Ossa :
at himself * the lofty forests quake in fear, at the horse
the plain shakes. Alarmed and breathless the sons
of Labdacus flock together, on them Hippomedon
bears down, and shearing with the sword their
un^^•itting necks leaves behind their falling trunks.

They had reached the river : with channel fuller
than of wont Ismenos was running then in mighty
spate, an omen of disaster. There a short respite
was given, thither the columns urged their wearv
flight in terror from the field ; the waves, their
refuge from the fray, are spellbound at the warriors,
and are ht up by the bright sheen ' of armour. Into
the water they leapt, and with a great crash the bank
gave way and the opposite shores lay hid in dust.
He too with mightier leap plunges through the
hostile stream against his astonished foe, just as he
was — no time for dismounting — , only his javelins,
fixed in the green turf, he entrusts for a while to a
poplar tree. Then, indeed in deadly terror, of their
own accord they fling their weapons on the waves
that carry them away ; some doff their helms and
lie basely hid, so long as they can maintain their

269

ST ATI us

turpe latent ; multi fluvium transmittere nando
adgressi, sed vincla tenent laterique repugnat 240
balteus et madidus deducit pectora thorax,
qualis caeruleis tumido sub gurgite terror
piscibus, arcani quotiens devexa profundi
scrutantem delphina vident ; fugit omnis in imos
turba lacus viridesque metu stipantur in algas ; 245
nee prius emersi, quam summa per aequora flexus
emieet et visis malit certare carinis :
talis agit sparsos mediisque in fluetibus heros
frena manu pariter, pariter regit arma, pedum quem^
remigio sustentat equus^ ; consuetaque campo 250
fluctuat et mersas levis ungula quaerit harenas.
sternit lona Chromis, Chromin Antiphos, Antiphon

Hypseus,
Hypseus Astyagen evasurumque relicto
amne Linum, ni fata vetent et stamine primo
ablatum tellure mori. premit agmina Thebes 255
Hippomedon, turbat Danaos Asopius Hypseus :
amnis utrimque timet, crasso vada mutat uterque
sanguine, et e fluvio neutri fatale reverti.
iam laceri pronis volvuntur cursibus artus
oraque et abscisae redeunt in pectora dextrae, 260
spicula iam clipeosque leves arcusque remissos
unda vehit, galeasque vetant descendere cristae :
summa vagis late sternuntur flumina^ telis,

^ pedum quern Housman : pedumque Pw : pedum se
Jortin.

* equus Housman : equum Foi.

^ sternuntur flumina w : spernuntur fulmina P.

" Obviously not of metal, but the linen corselet {XiyoOJ^pi)^
Hom. II. ii. 529, 830), used sometimes by the Romans, e.g.
Suet. Galba, xix. " loricam induit linteam."
270

THEBAID, IX. 239-263

lives beneath the waters ; many tried to s^^'im the
river, but their fastenings grip them, the belts im-
pede their breathing, and the soaked* corslets
weigh down their bodies. Even as beneath the
swelhng flood the dark blue fishes are afraid, when-
so'er thev see a dolphin probing the secret lairs of
the deep ; the whole swarm flees to the lowest pools
and huddles frightened in the green seaweed : nor
come they forth till through the surface waves he
darts his cur\-ing body and prefers to race the ships
that meet his sight : even so the hero drives them
pell-mell before him, and in mid-stream both guides
the rein and aims the shaft, upheld by his SA^imming
horse, whose nimble hoof, accustomed to the plain,
now treads the wave and seeks the deep-sunk sands.
Chromis lays Ion low, Antiphos Chromis, and Hj'pseus
Antiphos, Hypseus also Astyages, and Linus, who is
about to leave the river and flee away, were it not
that the Fates forbid, and early in his hfe's thread
he is doomed to a watery death.* Hippomedon
presses hard the ranks of Thebes, Asopian H\^seus
throws the Danaans into confusion ; on either side the
river is affrighted, each stains the waters thick \vith
blood, from that stream each is fated never to return.
And now mangled limbs are rolled do^^'n on the
flowing current, and heads and severed arms rejoin
their bodies, and now the wave bears lances and hght
targes and slackened bows, and plumes suffer not
their casques to sink. Far and wide the surface of
the stream is strewn with floating weapons, and its

* It is not clear whether " ablatum " governs " stamine
primo " or " illo " understood ; in either case the sense is
the same : " it was taken away from him," i.e., forbidden
him, "to die on land."

271

STATIUS

ima viris ; illic luctantur corpora leto,

efflantesque animas retro premit obvius amnis. 265

Flumineam rapiente vado puer Argipus ulmum
prenderat, insignes umeros ferus ense Menoeceus
amputat ; ille cadens, nondum conamine adempto,
truncus in excelsis spectat sua bracchia ramis.
Hypseos hasta Tagen ingenti vulnere mersit, 270

ille manet fundo, rediit pro corpore sanguis,
desiluit ripis fratrem rapturus Agenor
heu ! miser et tenuit, sed saueius ille levantem
degravat amplexu : poterat resolutus Agenor
emersisse vadis, piguit sine fratre reverti. 275

surgentem dextra Capetum vulnusque minantem
sorbebat rapidus nodato^ gurgite vertex ;
iam voltu, iam crine latet, iam dextera nusquam,
ultimus abreptas ensis descendit in undas,
mille modis leti miseros mors una fatigat. 280

induit a tergo Mycalesia cuspis Agyrten ;
respexit : nusquam auetor erat, sed concita tractu
gurgitis efFugiens invenerat hasta eruorem.

Figitur et validos sonipes Aetolus in armos,
exsiluitque alte vi mortis et aera pendens 285

verberat ; baud tamen est turbatus fulmine^ ductor,
sed miseratur equum, magnoque ex volnere telum
exuit ipse gemens et sponte remisit habenas.
inde pedes repetit pugnas gressuque manuque
certior, et segnem Nomium fortemque Mimanta 290
Thisbaeumque Lichan Anthedoniumque Lycetum

^ nodato QN: nudato P : notato, montano, vadato, etc.,

MSS.

* fulmine P : fluinine w.

" i.e., of Tydeus, now ridden by Hippomedon.
* See note on line 218 above.

272

THEBAID, IX. 264-291

depths yviih men ; there bodies ^\Testle with death,
and the confronting stream chokes back their forth-
issuing breath.

The lad Argipus had grasped a river-side ehn-tree
in the rushing flood ; savage Menoeceus \nih his
sword shears through those comely shoulders ; he, as
he falls, still stri\ing, gazes, a trunk, at his own arms
on the high boughs . The spear of Hypseus sank Tages
with a mighty wound : he remains at the bottom, and
in place of his body his blood returns. To rescue
his brother Agenor leapt down from the bank, and
grasped him — alas ! poor A\Tetch I — but the wounded
man weighs him down in his embrace, as he tries
to hft him. Agenor could have freed himself and
come forth from the water, but hked not to return
without his brother. Capetus rises to his right and
threatens a blow, but is sucked down by the en-
tanghng eddies of the rapid current ; now his face
goes under, now his hair, now his right arm is gone,
last of all his sword sinks beneath the headlong
waters. One death in a thousand shapes of dying
torments the ^vretches. A Mycalesian spear-point
sheathes itself in AgjTtes' back : he looks round,
but there was none who hurled it ; urged by the
torrent's flow the spear had sped and found his blood.

The Aetohan charger " too is pierced in his strong
shoulders, and at the deadly shock rears up and
prances, beating the air ; yet the chief is no whit
upset by the plunge,* but pities the horse, and
groaning pulls the dart from the deep wound with
his own hand, and of his own accord lets go the
reins. Then he rejoins the fray afoot, surer both in
step and hand, and, one after the other, slays tardy
Nomius and vaUant Mimas and Lichas of Thebes and
VOL. II T 273

ST ATI us

continuat ferro geminisque e fratribus unum
Thespiaden ; eadem poscenti fata Panemo :
" vive superstes " ait, " diraeque ad moenia Thebes
solus abi, miseros non decepture parentes. 295

di bene, quod pugnas rapidum deieeit in amnem
sanguinea Bellona manu : trahit unda timentes
gurgite gentili, nuda nee flebilis umbra
stridebit vestros Tydeus inhumatus ad ignes ;
ibitis aequoreis crudelia pabula monstris, 300

ilium terra vehit suaque in primordia solvet."
sic premit adversos et acerbat vulnera dictis
ac nunc ense furit, nunc tela natantia captans
ingerit : innuptae comitem Therona Dianae,
ruricolamque Gyen cum fluctivago Ergino, 305

intonsumque Hersen contemptoremque profundi
Crethea, nimbosam qui saepe Caphereos arcem
Euboicasque hiemes parva transfugerat alno.
quid non fata queant ? traiectus pectora ferro
volvitur in fluctus, heu cuius naufragus undae ! 310
te quoque sublimi tranantem flumina curru,
dum socios, Pharsale, petis, resupinat ademptis
Dorica cuspis equis ; illos violentia saevi
gurgitis infelixque iugi concordia mergit.

Nunc age, quis tumidis magnum inclinarit in undis
Hippomedonta labor, cur ipse excitus in arma 316
Ismenos, doctae nosse indulgete sorores :
vestrum opus ire retro et senium depellere famae.
gaudebat Fauno Nymphaque Ismenide natus
maternis bellare tener Crenaeus in undis, 320

" Who could now no longer mistake him for his brother.

274

THEBAID, IX. 292-320

Lycetus of Anthedon. and Thespiades, one of twin
brothers ; to Panemus begging a like fate he cries :
" Live on, and to the walls of accursed Thebes
depart alone, no more to deceive thy unhappy
parents." Thanks be to Heaven that Bellona's gory
hand has driven the fight into the rapid stream ;
the wave sweeps away the cowards on their native
flood, and the naked ghost of unburied Tydeus shall
not moan and shriek around your pyres ; ye shall
go down to feed the cruel monsters of the deep, but
him the earth doth carry and shall resolve into her
own elements." So harries he the foe, and with
taunts adds bitterness to his blows ; and now he rages
^\-ith the sword, now snatches up floating javelins and
flings them back ; Theron he slays, the friend of
chaste Diana, and Gyas, dweller in the country, and
wave-wandering Erginus, and unshorn Herses, and
Cretheus, contemner of the deep, who oft in a tiny
craft had weathered Caphereus' stormy promontory
and the Euboean squalls. Behold the power of fate !
a lance pierces his breast, and he is carried on the
stream, alas on what waters ship^^Tecked ! Thee
too Pharsalus, crossing the river in thy lofty car to
join thy companions, the Doric spear-point overturns
and slays thy horses : the violence of the angry
flood engulfs them, and the ill-starred union of the
yoke.

Come now, ye learned Sisters, grant me to know
what toil laid low Hippomedon in the heaWng billows,
and why Ismenos himself was roused to join the
fray ; for your task it is to search out the past, and
let not fame grow old. Crenaeus, the youthful son
of Faunus and the nymph Ismenis, rejoiced to fight
in his mother's waters — Crenaeus, who first saw the

275

STATIUS

Crenaeus, cui prima dies in gurgite fido
et natale vadum et virides cunabula ripae.
ergo ratus nihil Elysias ibi posse Sorores,
laetus adulantem nunc hoc, nunc margine ab illo
transit avum : levat unda gradus, seu defluus ille, 325
sive obliquus eat ; nee cum subit obvius, ullas
stagna dedere moras pariterque revertitur amnis.
non Anthedonii tegit hospitis inguina pontus
blandior, aestivo nee se magis aequore Triton
exserit, aut carae festinus ad oscula matris 330

cum remeat tardumque ferit delphina Palaemon.
arma decent umeros, clipeusque insignis et auro
lucidus Aoniae caelatur origine gentis.
Sidonis hie blandi per Candida terga iuvenci,
iam secura maris, teneris iam cornua palmis 335

non tenet, extremis adludunt aequora plantis ;
ire putes clipeo fluctusque secare iuvencum.
adiuvat unda fidem pelago nee discolor amnis.
tunc audax pariter telis et voce proterva
Hippomedonta petit : " non haec fecunda veneno 340
Lerna, nee Herculeis haustae serpentibus undae :
sacrum amnem, sacrum — et miser experiere ! —

deumque
altrices inrumpis aquas." nihil ille, sed ibat
comminus ; opposuit cumulo se densior amnis
tardavitque manum, vulnus tamen ilia retentum 345
pertulit atque animae tota in penetralia sedit.

" Glaucus, who was turned into a fish from the waist
down, c/. vii. 337.

* Often referred to by Statius ; he was the infant son of
Leucothea, a daughter of Cadmus, who with his mother was
worshipped as a deity at the isthmus of Corinth ; cf. i. 13, 121,
vii. 421.
276

THEBAID, IX. 321-346

light in the trusted stream and was cradled in the
green banks of his native river. So thinking that
there the Elysian Sisters had no power, merrily, now
from this bank now from that, he crosses his caressing
grandsire : the wave supports his footsteps, whether
he go downstream or athwart the flood ; nor when he
goes counter does the river one whit delay him, but
flows backward likewise. No more winningly does the
sea cover the waist of the stranger from Anthedon,"
nor Triton rise higher from the summer waves, nor
yet Palaemon,^ when he hastes back to his darling
mother's kisses, and smites his tardy dolphin. Gay
harness decks his shoulders, and his splendid buckler
gleaming with gold is engraved with the ancient tale
of the Aonian race. Here the Sidonian maid '^ rides on
the white back of the enticing steer ; now fears she
not the sea, now clings not to the horns with tender
hands ; around the margin of her feet the waves play
sportively ; one would think that the bull moved upon
the shield, and cleft the billows. The river-waves,
of the same colour as the sea,** assist belief. Then
bold alike with weapons and saucy speech he chal-
lenges Hippomedon : " This is no poisonous Lerna,
no Herculean Hydras drink these waters, 'tis a sacred
river that thou art defiling, ay, sacred, — so shalt
thou find it to thy cost, thou wTctch ! — and gods
have been nourished by its streams." Nought said
the other, but advanced upon him ; in a denser mass
the flood resisted him, and checked his hand, but
yet he drave home the wound for all his hindering,
and pierced utterly life's secret chambers. The river

" Europa.

■* Alton suggests " umbra " = reflection, for " unda " :
c/. note on viii. 116.

277

STATIUS

horruit unda nefas, silvae flevistis utraeque,
et. graviora cavae sonuerunt murmura ripae.
ultimus ille sonus moribundo emersit ab ore :
" mater ! " in banc miseri ceciderunt flumina vocem.
At genetrix coetu glaucarum eincta sororum 351
protinus icta malo vitrea de valle solutis
exsiluit furibunda comis, ac verbere crebro
oraque pectoraque et viridem scidit horrida vestem.
utque erupit aquis iterumque iterumque trementi
ingeminat " Crenaee " sono : nusquam ille, sed index
desuper, a miserae nimium noscenda parenti, 357
parma natat ; iacet ipse procul, qua mixta supremum
Ismenon primi mutant confinia ponti.
fluctivagam sic saepe domum madidosque penates
Alcyone deserta gemit, cum pignora saevus 361

Auster et algentes rapuit Thetis invida nidos.
mergitur oi*ba iterum, penitusque occulta sub undis
limite non uno, liquidum qua subter eunti
lucet iter, miseri nequaquam funera nati 365

vestigat, plangitque tamen ; saepe horridus amnis
obstat, et obducto caligant sanguine visus,
ilia tamen praeceps in tela ofFendit et enses
scrutaturque manu galeas et prona reclinat
corpora ; nee ponto submota intrabat amaram 370
Dorida, possessum donee iam fluctibus altis
Nereidum miserata cohors ad pectora matris
impulit. ilia manu ceu vivirni amplexa reportat
insternitque toris riparum atque umida siccat

278

THEBAID, IX. 347-374

shuddered at the horrid deed, ye woods on either
shore lamented, and deeper groans resounded from
the hollow banks. From his dying hps came the
last cry : " Mother ! " As he uttered it, the waters
choked the poor lad's voice.

But his mother, amid her company of silvery-
gleaming sisters, leapt up straightway from the sea-
green valley at the shock of doom, frenzied, with
loosened hair, and in wild grief rent ^\ith many a
blow her face and bosom and green robe. Forth
from the waves she burst, and ^^ith trembhng voice
again and again cries out " Crenaeus " : nowhere was
he to be seen, but on the flood there floats his shield,
a mark, alas ! his unhappy parent must recognize
too well; he himself Ues far off, where on the bounds of
minghng sea and river Ismenos suffers his last change.
Often thus does Alcyone deserted make lament for
her wave-wandering, spray-drenched home, when
savage Auster and envious Thetis have scattered her
darUngs and their shivering nests. Once more the
bereaved mother sinks, and hidden in the watery
depths she searches in vain for her dead son by many
a track, where the path shines clear before her as
she goes — searches and yet bewails ; ofttimes the
bristUng river checks her, and a bloody haze obscures
her vision. Yet in mad haste she flings herself on
weapons and swords, and thrusts her hand into
helmets and turns over prostrate corpses ; nor draw-
ing nigh the deep did she enter the bitter brine of
Doris, until a band of Nereids pitying her wafted
his body, now in the keeping of the ocean-billows,
to his mother's breast. Embracing him as though
he lived she brings him home and lays him on the
sloping bank and with soft tresses dries his wet

279

ST ATI us

mollibus ora comis, atque haec ululatibus addit : 375
" hoc tibi semidei munus tribuere parentes
nee mortalis avus ? sic nostro in gurgite regnas ?
mitior haee misero discors alienaque tellus,^
mitior unda maris, quae iuxta flumina corpus
rettulit et miseram visa exspectasse parentem. 380
hine mei vultus ? haec torvi lumina patris ?
hi crines undantis avi ? tu nobile quondam
undarum nemorumque decus, quo sospite maior
diva et Nympharum longe regina ferebar.
heu ubinam ille frequens modo circa limina matris
ambitus orantesque tibi servire Napaeae ? 386'

cur nunc te, mehus saevo mansure^ profundo,
amplexu misero tumulis, Crenaee, reporto
non mihi ? nee tantae pudet heu miseretque ruinae,
dure parens ? quae te alta et ineluctabiUs imo 390
condidit amne palus, quo nee iam cruda nepotis
funera, nee nostri valeant perrumpere planctus ?
ecce furit iactatque tuo se in gurgite maior
Hippomedon, ilium ripaeque undaeque tremiscunt,
illius impulsu nostrum bibit unda cruorem : 395

tu piger et trucibus facilis servire Pelasgis.
ad cineres saltem supremaque iusta tuorum,
saeve, veni, non hie solum accensure nepotem."
his miscet planctus multumque indigna cruentat
pectora, caeruleae referunt lamenta sorores : 400

qualiter Isthmiaco nondum Nereida portu

1 I. 378 only in PDN.
* mansure Baehrens : mansura Pu).

" Leucothea's infant son Palaemon was drowned (c/. Theb.
i. 14), and subsequently worshipped as Melicertes at the
280

THEBAID, IX. 375-401

face, and cries amid loud lament : "Is this the gift
thy half-di\'ine parents and thy immortal grandsire
have given thee ? Is it thus thou reignest in our
flood ? Unhappy boy I gentler was the discordant
ahen earth, gentler the ocean wave, which brought
back thy body to the river and seemed to await thy
hapless mother's coming. Are these my hnea-
ments ? Are these the eyes of thy fierce sire ? Are
these thy billoN^y grandsire's tresses ? Once wert
thou the pride and glory of wave and woodland, and
whilst thou livedst I was held a greater goddess and
the queen of Nymphs. Where alas ! is that late
crowd of courtiers round thy mother's halls, where
are the Maidens of the Glen that prayed to serve
thee ? Why do I now bring thee home, Crenaeus,
in my sad embrace, not for myself but for thy burial,
who hadst better remained there in the cruel deep ?
Hard-hearted father, hast thou not pity nor shame
for such a death ? What lake profound and in-
escapable hath engulfed thee in the river's depths, so
that nor thy grandson's cruel fate nor my o^\^l weeping
can reach thee there ? Lo ! Hippomedon rages and
boasts himself the master in thy flood, and banks
and waves tremble before him ; his was the stroke
that made the water drink our blood ; but thou art
sluggish, and the fierce Pelasgians' acquiescent
slave ! Come at least, cruel sire, to the ashes and
last obsequies of thy own, for 'tis not thy grandson
only whose p}Te thou shalt kindle here." With her
words she mingles wailing, and stains with blood her
innocent bosom, while the caerulean sisters re-echo
her lament ; so, men say, did Leucothea," not yet a

Isthmus of Corinth. Before his mother was made a Nymph,
she was Ino, daughter of Cadmus.

281

STATIUS

Leucothean planxisse ferunt, dum pectore anhelo
frigidus in matrem saevum mare respuit infans.

At pater arcano residens Ismenos in antro,
unde aurae nubesque bibunt atque imbrifer arcus
pascitur et Tyrios melior venit annus in agros, 406
ut lamenta procul, quamquam obstrepit ipse, novos-

que
accepit natae gemitus, levat aspera niusco
colla gravemque gelu crinem, ceciditque soluta
pinus adulta manu dimissaque volvitur urna. 410

ilium per ripas annoso scrupea limo
ora exsertantem silvae fluviique minores
mirantur : tantus tumido de gurgite surgit,
spumosum attollens apieem lapsuque sonoro
pectora caeruleae rivis manantia barbae. 415

obvia cognatos gemitus casumque nepotis
Nympharum docet una patrem monstratque cruentum
auctorem dextramque premit : stetit arduus alto
amne, manuque genas et nexa virentibus ulvis
cornua concutiens sic turbidus ore profundo 420

incipit : " huncne mihi, superum regnator, honorem,
quod totiens hospesque tuis et conscius actis —
nee memorare timor — falsa nunc improba fronte
cornua, nunc vetitam currus deiungere Phoeben,
dotalesque rogos deceptaque fulmina vidi 425

praecipuosque alui natorum ? an vilis et illis
gratia ? ad hunc certe repsit Tirynthius amnem,
hac tibi flagrantem Bromium restinximus unda.

" Jupiter's amours with Europa, Alcmene, and Semele are
thus alluded to ; Hercules and Bacchus were the sons of the
two last-named.

282

THEBAID, IX. 402-428

Nereid, wail in Isthmus' haven, when her cold babe
with gasping breast spewed out upon his mother the
angry sea.

But father Ismenos, reclining in that secret cavern
whence winds and clouds do drink and the rain-
bringing bow is nourished, and whence comes a
fuller harvest to the Tyrian fields, when from afar,
spite of his own waters' roar, he caught the sound
of lamentations and his daughter's earliest groans,
uplifted his moss-gro^\'n neck and his ice-weighted
hair ; the tall pine fell from his loosened grasp,
and the um dropped and rolled away. Along
the banks the woods and lesser rivers marvel at
him as he thrusts forth his face encrusted with
age-long mire ; so majestically he rises from the
flood, lifting his foamy head and his breast astream
with the echoing fall of rivulets from his dark-
blue beard. One of the Nymphs meets her
father and tells him of his daughter's tears and
his grandson's fate, and shows him the blood-
stained author of the deed and seizes his right
hand ; high he stands in the deep river, and smiting
his face and horns entwined %Aith grpen sedge, thus
begins sore troubled A\-ith deep-mouthed utterance :
" Is this thy reward, O ruler of the gods above, for
that so oft I played the accomplice-friend to thy
adventures, and saw — I fear not to recall it — the
shameless horns on thy false \'isage, then Phoebe
forbidden to unyoke her car, or the dowTy-gift of a
funeral-pyre and the lightning's trickery " ? And
that I have nurtured the foremost of thy sons ? Do
they too feel so mean a gratitude ? Of a truth the
Tirynthian crawled an infant by this river ; viith
these waters I quenched thy Bromius as he burned.

283

STATIUS

aspice, quas fluvio caedes, quae funera portem,

continuus telis alioque adopertus acervo. 430

omne vadum belli series tenet, omnis anhelat

unda nefas, subterque animae supraque recentes

errant et geminas iungunt caligine ripas.

ille ego clamatus saeris ululatibus amnis,

qui molles thyrsos Baccheaque cornua puro 435

fonte lavare feror, stipatus eaedibus artas

in freta quaero vias ; non Strymonos impia tanto

stagna cruore natant, non spumifer altius Hebrus

Gradivo bellante rubet. nee te admonet altrix

unda tuasque manus, iam pridem oblite parentum

Liber ? an Eous melius pacatur Hydaspes ? 441

at tu, qui tumidus spoliis et sanguine gaudes

insontis pueri, non hoc ex amne potentem

Inachon aut saevas victor revehere Mycenas,

ni mortalis ego et tibi ductus ab aethere sanguis."

Sic ait infrendens et sponte furentibus undis 446
signa dedit : mittit gelidus montana Cithaeron
auxilia antiquasque nives et pabula brumae
ire iubet ; frater tacitas Asopos eunti
conciliat vires et hiulcis flumina venis 450

suggerit. ipse cavae scrutatur viscera terrae
stagnaque torpentesque lacus pigrasque paludes
excutit, atque avidos toUens ad sidera voltus
umentes nebulas exhaurit et aera siccat.
iamque super ripas utroque exstantior ibat 455

aggere, iam medium modo qui superaverat amnem

" i.e., so easily that you must needs fight here? References
to the Eastern exploits of Bacchus are frequent.

** The rivers have a common dwelling-place underground,
whence they can secretly reinforce one another; "venis"
refers to channels underground, " hiulcis " seems to imply

284

THEBAID, IX. 429-456

See the carnage and the corpses I carry on my
stream, choked utterly with weapons as it is and
hidden beneath unwonted heaps. Continuous war-
fare besets my channel, everv- wave breathes horror,
and souls new-slain wander above me and beneath,
and join bank to bank in darkness. Yet I, that
river invoked with holy cries, I, whose praise it is to
lave in my pure fount the soft wands and horns of
Bacchus, am blocked ^^^th dead, and seek a difficult
passage to the sea ; so great a stream of gore fills
not the impious meres of Strymon, and foaming
Hebrus reddens not so deeply when Gradivus is at
war. Does not thy fostering wave rebuke thee and
thy violence, O Liber, who hast long forgotten thy
parents ? Is Eastern Hydaspes more easily sub-
dued ? ° But thou who boastfully exultest in the
spoils and slaughter of an innocent lad, thou shalt
not return in triumph from this stream to mighty
Inachus of fierce Mycenae, unless it be that I am
mortal and thou of heavenly race."

So spake he, gnashing his teeth, and gave the sign
to his already raging waters : cold Cithaeron sends
succour from the hills, and bids his ancient snows
and stores of frost be moving ; to the flood his
brother Asopos unites his secret stores, and supphes
streams from A\ide-open veins.* He himself explores
the hollow earth's recesses, and tries torpid lakes
and pools and lazy fens, and lifting sk^^vard his
greedy countenance sucks down the moisture of the
clouds and drains dry the air. Already he flowed
with a tide that rose above either lofty bank, already
Hippomedon, who of late stood higher than mid-

that they are not closed but ready to connect with Ismenus's
stream.

285

STATIUS

Hippomedon intactus aquis umerosque manusque,
miratur crevisse vadum seseque minorem.
hinc atque hinc tumidi fluctus animosaque surgit
tempestas instar pelagi, cum Pliadas haurit 460

aut nigrum trepidis impingit Oriona nautis.
non secus aequoreo iactat Teumesius amnis^
Hippomedonta salo, semperque umbone sinistro
tollitur et clipeum nigrante supervenit aestu
spumeus adsultans, fractaque refunditur unda 465
et cumulo maiore redit ; nee mole liquenti
contentus carpit putres servantia ripas
arbusta annosasque trabes eiectaque fundo
saxa rotat. stat pugna impar amnisque virique,
indignante deo ; nee enim dat terga nee ullis 470
frangitur ille minis, venientesque obvius undas
intrat et obiecta dispellit flumina parma.
stant terra fugiente gradus, et poplite tenso
lubrica saxa tenet, genibusque obnixus et haerens
subruta fallaci servat vestigia limo, 475

sic etiam increpitans : "unde haec, Ismene, repente
ira tibi ? quove has traxisti gurgite vires,
imbelli famulate deo solumque cruorem
femineis experte choris, cum Bacchica mugit
buxus et insanae maculant trieterida^ matres ? ' 480
dixerat ; atque illi sese deus obtulit ultro
turbidus imbre genas et nube^ natantis harenae,
nee saevit dictis, trunca sed pectora quercu

^ amnis at : ignis P. ^ trieterida PBQ : trieterica DNS.
^ nube PBN : mole w.

" The sea is described as (i.) draining the Pleiads, i.e. of
their rain, cf. iv. 120, (ii.) hurling Orion against the sailors
(by inversion, for the sailors, i.e. ships, against Orion), a

286

THEBAID, IX. 457-483

channel's depth, %\ithunrnoistened arms and shoulders,
is marvelling that the stream has grown above his
stature. All round him the billows swell and the
angry tempest rises high, hke the sea when it drains
the Pleiads or flings darkened Orion against trembling
mariners." Not othersWse does the Teumesian river
batter Hippomedon with its seething flood and ever
is hurled back by the shield on his left arm, and anon
the dark tide in its foaming onslaught surges over
his buckler, pours back with shattered wave and
returns in greater volume ; moreover, not content
with the watery mass, it plucks at the trees that
support the crumbling banks and whirls along aged
boughs and stones torn from its bed. River and hero
are locked in unequal combat, and furious grows the
god ; for the other retreats not, nor is weakened by
any threats, but advancing attacks the oncoming
billows, and holding out his shield divides the stream.
His feet stand firm though the ground recedes, and
with straining sinews he holds fast to slippery rocks,
and by struggling and clinging with his knees he
maintains the foothold that the treacherous mud
undermines, and thus he taunts besides : " Whence,
Ismenos, this sudden WTath ? Or from what deeps
hast thou drawn these forces, slave of an unwarhke
god, who knowest nought of blood save in women's
revels, when the Bacchic pipe is bleating, and
frenzied matrons defile the three-yearly festival ? "
He spoke, and on the instant the god assailed him,
his visage a welter of rain and clouded by floating
sand ; nor was he fierce in speech, but with an oak-
common h\-perbole in storm-descriptions; cf. Lucan, v.
%2a, 642. Both Orion and the Pleiades set in November, t.«.,
the stormy season.

287

ST ATI us

ter quater oppositi, quantum ira deusque valebat.
impulit adsurgens : tandem vestigia flexit 485

excussumque manu tegimen, conversaque lente
terga refert. instant undae sequiturque labantem
amnis ovans ; nee non saxis et grandine ferri
desuper infestant Tyrii geminoque repellunt
aggere. quid faciat bellis obsessus et undis ? 490
nee fuga iam misero, nee magnae copia mortis,

Stabat gramineae producta erepidine ripae
undarum ae terrae dubio, sed amieior undis,
fraxinus ingentique vadum possederat umbra,
huius opem — nam qua terras invaderet ? — unca
arripuit dextra : nee pertulit ilia trahentem ; 496

sed maiore super, quam stabat, pondere victa
solvitur, et qua stagna subit radice quibusque
arentem mordebat humum, demissa^ superne
Iniecit sese trepido ripamque, nee ultra 500

passa virum^ subitae vallavit ponte ruinae.
hue undae eoeunt, et ineluctabile caeno
verticibusque cavis sidit crescitque barathrum,
iamque umeros, iam colla ducis sinuosa vorago
circuit : hie demum victus suprema fateri 505

exclamat: "fluvione — pudet! — Mars inclyte, merges
hanc animam, segnesque lacus et stagna subibo
ceu pecoris custos, subiti torrentis iniquis
interceptus aquis ? adeone oecumbere ferro 509

^ demissa w : dimissa PL.
^ passa virum Barth : passurum Pw.

" Statins is here trying to concentrate his description into
one effective phrase. He has in mind Horn. II. xxi. 2S3 sqq.,
the battle between Achilles and Scamander, especially 242 sqq.
where the elm-tree that Achilles grasps falls into the river,

288

THEBAID, IX. 484-509

trunk thrice and four times smote his adversary's
breast with all the might of a god's \\Tath, rising to
the blow ; he at last turned his steps, the buckler
stricken from his ann, and beat a slow retreat. The
waters press after him, and the river follows in
triumph as he gives ground ; the Tyrians too vex him
from above "with stones and iron hail, and drive him
back from either bank. What can he do, beset by
flood and battle .' No flight is there now for the
unhappy man, no room for a glorious death.

Rising from the grassy brim there stood an ash-
tree, on the doubtful verge of land and waters but
more friendly to the waters, and held the stream in
the dominion of its mighty shadow. The succour
of this tree — for where could he attempt the land ?
— he grasped \\ith clutching fingers, nor did it endure
the strain, but, overcome by a weight too great for
its hold, gave way, and, torn from the roots whereby
it entered the river and gripped the thirsty ground,
dropped from on high and hurled itself and the bank
together on the dismayed hero, nor brooking him
further, bridged and dammed the stream with sudden
downfall." Hither all the waves come surging, and
an inescapable whirlpool of mud and hollow eddies
rises and falls. And now the tortuous flood surrounds
the shoulders, now the neck of the warrior ; com-
pelled at last to confess despair he exclaims : " For
shame ! great Mars ! wilt thou drown this life of
mine in a river ? Must I then sink beneath sluggish
lakes and meres like a shepherd caught in the cruel
waters of a sudden torrent ? Have I verily not
deserved to fall by the sword .^ " Moved by his

and " stemmed {ye(pup'jjj€f, lit. bridged) the River himself
falling all within him" (Lang, Leaf, and Myers).

VOL. II u 289

STATIUS

non merui ? " tandem precibus commota Tonantem
luno subit : "quonam miseros, sator inclyte divum,
Inachidas, quonam usque premes ? iam Pallas et odit
Tydea, iam rapto tacuerunt augure Delphi :
en meus Hippomedon, cui gentis origo Mycenae
Argolicique lares numenque ante omnia luno — 515
sic ego fida meis ? — pelagi crudelibus ibit
praeda feris ? certe tumulos supremaque victis
iusta^ dabas ; ubi Cecropiae post proelia flammae,
Theseos ignis ubi est?" non spernit coniugis aequas
ille preces, leviterque oculos ad moenia Cadmi 520
rettulit, et viso sederunt flumina nutu.
illius exsangues umeri et perfossa patescunt
"pectora : ceu ventis alte cum elata resedit
tempestas, surgunt scopuli quaesitaque nautis
terra, et ab infestis descendunt aequora saxis. 525
quid ripas tenuisse iuvat ? premit undique nimbo
telorum Phoenissa cohors, nee tegmina membris
ulla, omnisque patet leto ; tunc vulnera manant,
quique sub amne diu stupuit cruor, acre nudo
solvitur et tenues venarum laxat hiatus, 530

incertique labant undarum e frigore gressus.
procumbit, Getico qualis procumbit in Haemo
seu Boreae furiis putri seu robore quercus
caelo mixta comas, ingentemque aera laxat :
illam nutantem nemus et mons ipse tremiscit, 535
qua tellure cadat, quas obruat ordine silvas.
non tamen aut ensem galeamve audacia cuiquam

^ iusta IJeinshis : busta Pu.

" Theseus, the champion of humanity, allowed his enemies
to burn their dead after a battle ; in Book XII. he compels
Creon to give the Argives the same right.

290

THEBAID, IX. 510-537

prayers Juno at length accosts the Thunderer : " How
long, glorious sire of gods, how long wilt thou press
the hapless sons of Inachus ? Already Pallas holds
Tydeus in detestation, already Delphi is silent, its
prophet slain : lo ! my Hippomedon, whose home is
Argos and Mycenae the cradle of his race, who
worships Juno before all other gods — is it thus I am
faithful to my own ? — shall my Hippomedon go to
feed the cruel monsters of the deep ? Surely thou
didst once allow the conquered to have the last rites
of the tomb ? Where are the flames that followed
the Cecropian fray " ? Where is Theseus' fire? " He
spurns not his consort's righteous plea, but lightlv
glanced towards Cadmus' walls : the waters beheld
his nod and sank to rest. The shoulders and breast
of the hero are revealed, those drained of blood, that
pierced with wounds : as when a stormy sea, made
mountainous by the -vvinds, abates, the rocks and the
land the sailors sought for rise into view, and the
waters subside from the threatening crags. What
avails it to have gained the bank .- The Phoenician
host presses him on every side with a storm of darts,
his limbs are without covering, all exposed is he to
death ; then his wounds stream, and the blood that
was staunched beneath the water flows in the open
air and breaks the tender apertures of the veins,
and the cold of the river makes him reel and stagger
in his gait. He falls, even as on Getic Haemus,
whether from Boreas' rage or its own strength's
decay, an oak that blended its fohage with the sky
falls forward and leaves a void in the wide air ; as it
totters, the forest and the very mountain tremble,
for fear where it may fall, what stretch of woodland
it may shatter. Yet none dares touch his sword or

291

ST ATI us

tangere ; vix credunt oculis ingentiaque horrent
funera, et adstrictis accedunt comminus armis.

Tandem adiit Hypseus capulumque^ in morte
tenenti 540

extrahit et torvos laxavit casside vultus ;
itque per Aonios alte mucrone corusco
suspensam ostentans galeam et clamore superbit :
" hie ferus Hippomedon, hie formidabilis ultor
Tydeos infandi debellatorque cruenti 545

gurgitis ! " agnovit longe pressitque dolorem
magnanimus Capaneus, telumque immane lacerto^
hortatur librans : " ades o mihi, dextera, tantum
tu praesens bellis et inevitabile numen,
te voco, te solam superum contemptor adoro." 550
sic ait, et voti sese facit ipse potentem.
it tremibunda abies clipeum per et aerea texta^
loricae tandemque animam sub pectore magno
deprendit : ruit haud alio quam celsa fragore
turris, ubi innumeros penitus quassata per ictus 555
labitur efFractamque aperit victoribus urbem.
cui super adsistens " non infitiamur honorem
mortis " ait, " refer hue oculos, ego vulneris auctor ;
laetus abi multumque aliis iactantior umbris ! "
tunc ensem galeamque rapit clipeumque revellit 560
Hypseos* ; exanimumque tenens super Hippomedonta
" accipe " ait, " simul hostiles, dux magne, tuasque
exuvias, veniet cineri decus et suus ordo
manibus ; interea iustos dum reddimus ignes,
hoc ultor Capaneus operit tua membra sepulcro." 565

^ capulum u : caelum P : telum Garrod.
^ lacerto : receptum P : (from -to) lacertum Kohlmann.
Klotz thinks recepto came from a false reading lacepto.
' texta Gronovius : terga Pw.
* Hypseos Markland : ipsius Pw.

292

THEBAID, IX 538-565

helmet ; scarce believe they their eyes, but shudder
at the monstrous corpse, and approach it with drawn
swords.

At length Hypseus went near and wrenched the
sword-hilt from his deathly grip, and freed the grim
\isage of its casque : then he goes through the
Aonian ranks, displaying the helmet balanced aloft
on his ghttering blade, and crying exultantly :
" Behold the fierce Hippomedon, behold the dread
avenger of impious Tydeus, and the subduer of the
gory flood ! " Great-hearted Capaneus " knew him
from afar, and mastered his rage, and poising a huge
javehn ^Wth his arm thus prays : " Help me now,
right arm of mine, my only present aid in battle
and deity irresistible ! On thee I call, thee only I
adore, despising the gods above." So he speaks,
and himself fulfils his own prayer. The quivering
fir-shaft flies through shield and corslet's brazen
mail, and finds out at last the Ufe deep in the mighty
breast ; he falls >nth the thunderous crash of a lofty
tower when pierced and shaken ^^^th innumerable
blows it sinks in ruin, and opens the breached city
to the conquerors. Then standing over him : " We
deny thee not," says he, " thy death's renown ; look
hither, 'twas I that dealt the wound. Depart in joy,
and boast thee far beyond the other shades I " Then
he seizes the sword and casque of Hypseus, and tears
away his shield ; and holding them over the dead
Hippomedon : " Receive, O mighty chief," he cries,
" thy o^vn and thy enemy's spoils together ; thy
ashes shall have their glory and thy shade its rightful
rank. Meanwliile, till we pay thee the flame that
is thy due, Capaneus thy avenger hides thy hmbs in
" Cf. Aesch. Sept. 422 aqq.

293

STATIUS

sic anceps dura belli vice mutua Grais
Sidoniisque simul nectebat vulnera Mavors :
hie ferus Hippomedon, illic non segnior Hypseus
fletur, et alterni praebent solacia luctus.

Tristibus interea somnum turbata figuris 570

torva sagittiferi mater Tegeatis ephebi,
crine dato passim plantisque ex more solutis,
ante diem gelidas ibat Ladonis ad undas
purgatura malum fluvio vivente soporemi.
namque per attonitas curarum pondere noctes 575
saepe et delapsas adytis, quas ipsa dicarat,
exuvias, seque ignotis errare sepulcris
extorrem nemorum Dryadumque a plebe fugatam,
saepe novos nati bello rediisse triumphos,
armaque et alipedem notum comitesque videbat, 580
numquam ipsum, nunc ex umeris fluxisse pharetras,
effigiesque suas simulacraque nota cremari.
praecipuos sed enim ilia metus portendere visa est
nox miserae totoque erexit pectore matrem.
nota per Arcadias felici robore silvas 585

quereus erat, Triviae quam desacraverat ipsa
electam turba nemorum numenque colendo
fecerat : hie arcus et fessa reponere tela,
armaque curva suum et vacuorum terga leonum
figere et ingentes aequantia cornua silvas. 590

vix ramis^ locus, agrestes adeo omnia cingunt

^ ramis Pco : radiis Barth.

" Atalanta, an Arcadian maiden, vowed to chastity, until,
according to one legend, she became the mother of Partheno-
paeus by Ares, according to another, by Milanion, who
married her after defeating her in the famous footrace ;
other legends again make her of Boeotian origin. Tegea is
in Arcadia. Statins seems to follow the first form of the

294

THEBAID, IX. 566-591

this sepulchre." Thus impartial Mars in the cruel
vicissitudes of war gave interchange of mutual
slaughter to Greeks and to Sidonians alike : here
they mourn fierce Hippomedon, there Hypseus, no
slower to the fray, and each gain solace from their
foes' distress.

Meanwhile the stem-eyed mother of the Tegean
archer-lad," troubled in her sleep by gloomy dreams,
^\^th flying hair and feet duly unsandalled was
going before day-break to Ladon's chilly stream, that
she might cleanse her from her tainted slumbers in
its h\"ing waters. For throughout many a distracted,
care-worn night she would often see spoils that she
herself had dedicated fallen from the shrines, and
herself, a fugitive from the woodlands and chased
away by Dr\'ad folk, wandering by unknow^^ tombs,
and often new-won triumphs of her son brought home
from the war, his armour, his well-known steed,
his comrades, but himself never ; or again she would
see her quiver fallen from her shoulders, and her own
images and familiar hkenesses aflame. But that
night seemed to the unhappy woman to portend
surpassing terrors, and disturbed all her mother's
heart. Well-known throughout the forests of Arcadia
was an oak of fertile growth, which she herself had
chosen from a multitude of groves and made sacred
to Diana, and by her worship endued with power
di\'ine ; here she would lay by her bow and weary
shafts, and fasten the curved weapons of boars and the
flayed skins of hons, and antlers huge as woodland
boughs. Scarce have the branches room, so closely
set is it with spoils of the countrj'-side, and the

story (<•/. 1. 613 and "culpam," 1. 617), but he speaks of
" parents " in 1. 780 without any allusion to Ares.

295

STATIUS

exuviae, et viridem ferri nitor impedit umbram.
hanc, ut forte iugis longo defessa redibat
venatu, niodo rapta ferox Erymanthidos ursae
ora ferens, multo proscissam vulnere cernit 595

deposuisse comam et rorantes sanguine ramos
exspirare solo ; quaerenti Nympha cruentas
Maenadas atque hostem dixit saevisse Lyaeum.
dum gemit et planctu circumdat pectus inani,
abrupere oculi noctem maestoque cubili 600

exsilit et falsos quaerit per lumina fletus.

Ergo ut in amne nefas merso ter crine piavit
verbaque sollicitas matrum solantia curas
addidit, armatae ruit ad delubra Dianae
rore sub Eoo, notasque ex ordine silvas 605

et quercum gavisa videt. tunc limina divae
adstitit et tali nequiquam voce precatur :
" virgo potens nemorum, cuius non moUia signa
militiamque trucem sexum indignata frequento
more nihil Graio — nee te gens aspera ritu 610

Colchis Amazoniaeve magis coluere catervae — :
si mihi non umquam thiasi ludusve protervae
noctis et, inviso quamvis temerata cubili,
non tamen aut teretes thyrsos aut mollia gessi
pensa, sed in tetricis et post conubia lustris 615

sic quoque venatrix animumque innupta remansi :
nee mihi secretis culpam occultare sub antris
cura, sed ostendi prolem posuique trementem
ante tuos confessa pedes ; nee degener ille
sanguinis inque meos reptavit protinus arcus, 620

" For this use of "impedit" may be compared Hor. Od.
k 9 "viridi nitidum caput impedire myrto."
'' Ominous of her son's fate in the Theban war.
" i.e., of Theban Bacchanals.

296

THEBAID, IX. 592-620

sheen of steel mingles " with the green shade. This
oak-tree, when once she was returning from the
uplands tired viith. the long chase, and carrying in
proud triumph the head late-severed of an En,^-
manthian bear, she beheld all hacked and torn with
many a wound, its foliage fallen, and its branches
dripping blood and dying on the ground ; in answer
to her question a N\Tnph told of the \-iolence of cruel
Maenads and her foe Lyaeus.* While she moaned
and beat her breast with imaginary blows, her eyes
cast off their darkness ; from her sorrowing couch
she leaps, and searches o'er her cheeks for the
phantom tears.

So when by dipping thrice her hair in the river she
had atoned the sacrilege, and added words that com-
fort a mother's troubled heart, she hastened to armed
Diana's shrine while the morning dew was falling,
and rejoiced to see the familiar woodland and the
oak-tree all unharmed. Then standing at the
threshold of the goddess she prays thus, to no avail :
" Maiden Queen of the forests, whose ungentle
standards and ruthless warfare I follow, scorning my
sex, in no Grecian manner — nor are the barbarous-
fashioned Colchians or troops of Amazons more truly
thy votaries — if I have never joined revelhng bands
or the wanton nightly sport,'' if, although stained by a
hated union, I have nevertheless handled not the
smooth wands nor the soft skeins, but even after
wedlock remained in the rough wilds, a huntress still
and in my heart a virgin ; if I took no thought to
hide my fault in some secret cave, but showed my
child and confessed and laid him trembling at thy
feet — no puny weakling was he, but straightway
crawled to my bow, and as a babe he cried for arrows

297

STATIUS

tela puer lacrimis et prima voce poposcit : ^

hunc mihi — quid trepidae noctes somnusque minan-

tur ?—
hunc, precor, audaci qui nunc ad proelia voto
heu nimium tibi fisus abit, da visere belli
victorem, vel, si ampla peto, da visere tantum ! ^ 625
hie sudet tuaque arma ferat. preme dira malorum
signa ; quid in nostris, nemoralis Delia, silvis
Maenades hostiles Thebanaque numina regnant ?
ei mihi ! cur penitus — simque augur cassa futuri ! —
cur penitus magnoque interpreter omine quercum ?
quod si vera sopor miserae praesagia mittit, 631

per te maternos, mitis Dictynna, labores
fraternumque decus, cunctis^ hunc fige sagittis
infelicem uterum ; miserae sine funera matris
audiat ille prior ! " dixit, fletuque soluto 635

aspicit et niveae saxum maduisse Dianae.

Illam diva ferox etiamnum in limine sacro
expositam et gelidas verrentem crinibus aras
linquit, et in mediis frondentem Maenalon astris
exsuperat saltu gressumque ad moenia Cadnii 640
destinat, interior caeli qua semita lucet*
dis tantum, et cunctas iuxta videt ardua terras,
iamque fere medium Parnassi frondea praeter
colla tenebat iter, cum fratrem in nube corusca
aspicit haud solito visu : remeabat ab armis 645

maestus Echioniis, demersi funera lugens

^ This line is not in P, and is condemned by some edd,
* In some late mss. after this line folloics " si non victorem,

da tantum cernere victum," '"'grant me to behold him, if not

victor, at least vanquished.''''

^ cunctis P : iustis w. * lucet w : ducit P.

" Different regions of the sky were apportioned to
298

THEBAID, IX. 621-646

in his first tearful accents : for him I pray — ah !
what mean these nights of terror, these threatening
dreams ? — for him, who now in confident hope,
trusting overmuch, alas, in thee, is gone to battle ;
grant me to see him \ictorious in the war, or if I ask
too much, grant me but to see him ! Here let him
labour and bear thy arms. Make the dire signs of
ill to cease ; what power, O Diana of the woods, have
Maenads and Theban deities in our glades ? Woe
is me ! why in my own heart — may my augury be
vain ! — why in my o^\'n heart do I find a dreadful
omen in the oak ? But if sleep sends true presagings
to my unhappy mind, I beseech thee, merciful
Dictynna, by thy mother's travail and thy brother's
splendour, pierce with all thine arrows this unblest
womb ! Let him first hear of his wretched mother's
death ! " She spoke, and beheld even cold Diana's
marble moist with falling tears.

The stern goddess leaves her still stretched upon
the sacred doorway and brushing the cold altar with
her tresses, and with a bound crosses the leafy
summit of Maenalos in mid-air and directs her steps
to Cadmus' walls, where the inner path of heaven <*
shines for gods alone, and high uphfted \iews all
the earth together. And now, near half-way on her
road, she was passing the forest-clad ridges of
Parnassus, when in a ghttering cloud she saw her
brother not as she was wont to see him : for he was
returning sadly from the Echionian fray, mourning

different grades of supernatural beings; cf. Phars. ix. 5,
where Lucan speaks of demigods (" semidei manes ") having
the space between earth and moon allotted to them (also
Silv. ii. 7. 109). The " interior semita " would refer to some
loftier zone.

299

STATIUS

auguris. inrubuit caeli plaga sidere mixto,

occursuque sacro pariter iubar arsit utrimque,

et coiere arc us et respondere pharetrae.^

ille prior : "scio, Labdacias, germana, cohortes 650

et nimium fortes ausum petis Arcada pugnas.

fida rogat genetrix : utinam indulgere precanti

fata darent ! en ipse mei — pudet ! — inritus arma

cultoris frondesque sacras ad inania vidi

Tartara et in memet versos descendere vultus ; 655

nee tenui currus terraeque abrupta coegi,

saevus ego immeritusque coli. lugentia cernis

antra, soror, mutasque domos : haec sola rependo

dona pio comiti ; nee tu peritura movere

auxilia et maestos in vanum perge labores. 660

finis adest iuveni, non hoc mutabile fatum,

nee te de dubiis fraterna oracula fallunt."

" sed decus extremum certe ^ " confusa vicissim

virgo refert, " veraeque licet solacia morti

quaerere, nee fugiet poenas, quicumque nefandam

insontis pueri scelerarit sanguine dextram 666

impius, et nostris fas sit saevire sagittis."

sic effata movet gressus libandaque fratri

parcius ora tulit, Thebasque infesta petivit.

At pugna ereptis maior crudescit utrimque 670
regibus, alternosque ciet vindicta furores.
Hypseos hinc turmae desolatumque magistro
agmen, at hinc gravius fremit Hippomedontis adempti

^ Lines 648-9 omitted in P. * certe P : misero a.'.

" Some commentators think that Statius means to describe
an ecHpse of the sun in this meeting of Diana and Apollo.

300

THEBAID, IX. 647-673

the death of the engulfed augur. The region of the
sky glowed red as their rays mingled ; at the di\ine
conjunction the beams of each shone out, their bows
met, and quiver rang to quiver.** He first began :
" I know, my sister, 'tis the Labdacian ranks thou
seekest, and the Arcadian who dares a fight too
valiant for him. His faithful mother begs thee :
would that the Fates might grant her prayer ! Lo !
I myself have availed not — ah I for shame ! — but
seen my votary's arms and consecrated laurels go
down to the void of Tartarus, and his face turned
toward me as he went, nor did I check his car or close
the chasm of the earth, heartless that I am and
unworthy to be worshipped. Thou seest how my
caverns mourn, O sister, and the silence of my shrine ;
this is my sole recompense to my loyal friend. Nor
do thou continue to summon aid that can but
fail, nor pursue thy sad task in vain ; the youth
is near his end, 'tis fate immutable, nor do thv
brother's oracles deceive thee on a doubtful matter."
" But I may surely obtain glory for him at the last,"
the maiden in dismay rephes, " and find a solace for
his death, if indeed it so must be, nor shall that man
escape unpunished, whoever shall impiously stain his
guilty hand with the blood of an innocent boy, and
may my shafts wTeak a dire revenge I " With these
words she moved upon her way, and suffering her
brother but a scant embrace sought Thebes in hostile
mood.

But on either side after the slaying of the chiefs
the fight waxed fiercer, and the lust of vengeance
aroused mutual rage. Here the squadrons of Hyp-
seus shout and the troop that has lost its leader,
there Anth deeper roar the bereft cohort of the dead

301

STATIUS

orba cohors ; praebent obnixi corpora ferro,

idem ardor rabidis externum haurire cruorem 675

ac fudisse suum, nee se vestigia mutant :

stat cuneo defixa acies, hostique cruento

dant animas et terga negant^ : cum lapsa per auras

vertice Dircaei velox Latonia montis

adstitit ; adgnoscunt colles notamque tremiscit 680

silva deam, saevis ubi quondara exserta sagittis

fecundam lasso Nioben consumpserat arcu.

Ilium acies inter coepta^ iam caede superbum
nescius armorum et primas tunc passus habenas
venator raptabat equus, quern discolor ambit 685

tigris et auratis adverberat unguibus armos.
colla sedent nodis et castigata iubarum
libertas, nemorisque notae sub pectore primo
iactantur niveo lunata monilia dente.
ipse bis Oebalio saturatam murice pallam 690

lucentesque auro tunicas — hoc neverat unum
mater opus — ^tenui collectus in ilia vinclo,
cornipedis laevo clipeum demiserat armo,
ense gravis nimio : tereti iuvat^ aurea morsu
fibula, pendentes circum latera aspera cinctus, 695
vaginaeque sonum tremulumque audire pharetrae
murmur et a cono missas in terga catenas ;
interdum cristas hilaris iactare comantis
et pictum gemmis galeae iubar. ast ubi pugna
cassis anhela calet, resoluto vertice nudus 700

^ negant w : natant P : vetant Postgate.
^ coepta Kohlmann : coeptas P : medias w.
* iuvat oj : iubet P : ligat, levat, vorat edd.

302

THEBAID, IX. 674-700

Hippomedon ; fiercely struggling they expose their
bodies to the sword, and with equal ardour drain
the foe's blood and shed their own, nor do they
budge a step : the lines stand locked, column
against column, and they yield their lives, but will
not turn their backs, to the cruel foe — when ghd-
ing through the air the sA\ift Latonian takes her
stand on the Dircaean height ; the hills know her,
and the forest trembles at the well-known goddess,
where once bare-breasted with cruel arrows she had
slain Niobe and all her brood, out-wearying her bow.
But the lad, exultant now that the slaughter has
begun, was darting between the lines on a hunter
steed, untrained to war and suffering then his
earliest bridle ; about him was cast a striped tiger-
skin, and the gilded talons beat upon his shoulders :
liis knotted mane in controlled luxuriance lies close
against his neck, and upon his breast tosses a crescent
chain of snow-white tusks, tokens of the woodland.
The boy wore a cloak t-vWce steeped in Oebalian
dye,** and a glittering gold-embroidered tunic — only
this had his mother woven — gathered about his waist
by a slender girdle, and, burdened by a huge sword,
he had let drop his shield on the left shoulder of his
horse ; the golden buckle of the belt that hangs by
his armed side delights him \nih its polished clasp,
and he joys to hear the rattle of the scabbard and the
rusthng murmur of the quiver and the sound of the
chains that fall behind him from his crest ; sometimes
he gaily tosses his flo^\ing plume and his glancing
jewel-studded casque. But when his panting helm
grows hot in the fight, he frees him of the covering

" i.e., Laconian (from Oebahis, once king of Sparta) ; cf.
Hor. Od. ii. 18. 8, It was the purple dye from shell-fish.

303

ST ATI us

exoritur^ : tunc dulce comae radiisque trementes^
dulce nitent visus et, quas dolet ipse morari,
nondum niutatae rosea lanugine malae.
nee formae sibi laude placet multumque severis
asperat ora minis, sed frontis servat honorem 705
ira decens. dat sponte locum Thebana iuventus,
natorum memores, intentaque tela retorquent,
sed premit et saevas miserantibus ingerit hastas.
ilium et Sidoniae iuga per Teumesia^ Nymphae
bellantem atque ipso sudore et pulvere gratum 710
laudant, et tacito ducunt suspiria voto.

Talia cernenti mitis subit alta Dianae
corda dolor, fletuque genas violata " quod " inquit,
" nunc tibi, quod leti quaeram dea fida propinqui
efFugium ? haecne ultro properasti in proelia, saeve
ac miserande puer ? cruda heu festinaque virtus 716
suasit et hortatrix animosi gloria leti.
scilicet angustum iamdudum urgentibus annis
Maenalium tibi, parve, nemus, perque antra ferarum
vix tutae sine matre viae, silvestria cuius 720

nondum tela procax arcumque implere valebas.
et nunc ilia meas ingentem plangit ad aras
invidiam surdasque fores et limina lassat :
tu dulces lituos ululataque proelia gaudes
felix et miserae tantum moriture parenti." 725

ne tamen extremo frustra morientis honori
adfuerit, venit in medios caligine furva

^ nudus exoritur Pw : vultus exseritur conj. Garrod.

* trementes BDQ : frementes P : meantes, micantes, etc.,

MSS.

' iuga per T. w : Teumesi e vertice P {from viii. 344).

" i.e., he would die so nobly that only his mother would
weep.
304

THEBAID, IX. 701-727

and appears bare-headed ; then sweetly shuie his
locks and his countenance, all a-quiver in the sun-
beams, and the cheeks whose tardiness he himself
laments, not yet changed by rosy do^\^l. Nor does
he find pleasure in the praise of his ovra fairness,
but puts on a harsh severity of look ; yet anger
becomes him and preserves the beauty of his brow.
Freely do the Theban warriors yield him place,
remembering their own sons, and relax their strain-
ing bows, but he pursues and plies them with ruth-
less javelins, for all their pity. Even the Sidonian
Njinphs along Teumesian ridges praise him as he
fights ; his very dust and sweat are in favour, and
sighing they breathe unspoken prayers.

Tender sorrow steals to the depth of Diana's heart
as she beholds this sight, and staining her cheeks
with tears she cries : " What escape from approaching
death can thy faithful goddess find thee now } Was
it to battles such as these thou hastenedst, fierce, ill-
fated lad ? Alas ! thy rash and untried spirit drove
thee, and the love of fame that prompts to a glorious
death. Too scant already, forsooth, was the Maena-
lian forest for thy impetuous years, and the paths
that lay through lairs of beasts, scarce safe for thee,
child, without thy mother, to whose bow and woodland
spears, impudent boy, thy strength was yet unequal.
And she now is making loud and bitter complaint
about my altars, and wearies the unhearing doors
and thresholds ; in the well-loved clarions and the
battle's outcry thou art rejoicing, happy thou, and thou
shalt die making but thy mother ^vTctched. " " Yet
lest as he dies she fail to bring him her last honour, she
advances into the midst of the array, hemmed about

VOL. II X 805

ST ATI us

saepta globos, primumque leves furata sagittas
audacis tergo pueri caelestibus implet
coryton telis, quorum sine sanguine nullum 730

decidit ; ambrosio turn spargit membra liquore,
spargit equum, ne quo violetur^ vulnere corpus
ante necem, cantusque sacros et conscia miscet
murmura, secretis quae Colchidas ipsa sub antris
noete docet monstratque feras quaerentibus berbas.

Tunc vero exserto circumvolat igneus arcu 736

nee se mente regit, patriae matrisque suique
immemor, et nimium caelestibus utitur armis :
ut leo, cui parvo mater Gaetula cruentos
suggerit ipsa cibos, cum primum crescere sensit 740
colla iubis torvusque novos respexit ad ungues,
indignatur ali, tandemque efFusus apertos
liber amat campos et nescit in antra reverti.
quos, age, Parrhasio sternis, puer improbe, cornu ?
prima Tanagraeum turbavit harundo Coroebum 745
extremo galeae primoque in margine parmae
angusta transmissa via, stat faucibus unda
sanguinis, et sacri facies rubet igne veneni.
saevius Eurytion, cui luminis orbe sinistro
callida^ tergeminis acies se condidit uncis. 750

ille trahens oculo plenam labente sagittam
ibat in auctorem : sed divum fortia quid non
tela queant ? alio geminatum lumine volnus
explevit tenebras ; sequitur tamen improbus hostem,
qua meminit, fusum donee prolapsus in Idan 755

decidit : hie saevi miser inter funera belli
palpitat et mortem sociosque hostesque precatur.

^ violetur P : temeretur w. ^ callida PB : aspera w.

306

THEBAID, IX. 728-757

>\ith dusky mist, and first stealing the light shafts
from the back of the bold lad, she fill his quiver vriih
celestial arrows, whereof none falls unstained with
blood ; then she sprinkles his limbs with ambrosial
liquor, and his steed also, lest their bodies be pro-
faned by any wound before his death, and murmurs
many a sacred charm and conscious spell, which she
herself teaches the Colchian maids at night in secret
caves, and as they search shows them cruel herbs.
Then indeed uncovering his bow he darts in fiery
course about the field, nor is controlled by caution,
forgetful of his native land, his mother and himself,
and uses overmuch his heavenly weapons : just as a
lion, whose GaetuUan dam brings him herself in
his infancy gory food, as soon as he feels his neck
swell with muscles and grimly looks at his new talons,
scorns to be fed, and at last breaks forth to freedom
and loves the open plains, and can no more return
to his cave. Whom now slayest thou, ruthless boy,
with thy Parrhasian horn ? Coroebus of Tanagra,
did thy first shaft lay low, sped on a narrow path
between the lowest margin of the helm and the
uppermost of the shield ; the blood wells up into his
throat, and his face glows red with the sacred fiery
venom. More cruelly Eurytion falls, in the orb of
whose left eye the cunning point buries itself with
triple barb. Pulling out the arrow that brings the
melting eyeball with it, he dashes at his assailant ;
but what cannot the brave weapons of the gods per-
form ? A second wound in the other orb makes his
darkness complete ; yet he yields not but pursues
the foe by memorj-'s aid, until he trips and falls o'er
prostrate Idas : there wTetchedly he hes gasping
amid the \ictims of the cruel fight, and entreats friend

307

ST ATI us

addit Abantiadas, insignem crinibus Argum
et male dilectum miserae Cydona sorori.^ 759

huic geminum obliqua traiecit harundine tempus, 761
exsilit hac ferrum, velox hac pinna remansit :
fluxit utrimque cruor. nulli tela aspera mortis
dant veniam, non forma Lanaum, non infula Lygdum,
non pubescentes texerunt Aeolon anni : 765

figitur ora^ Lamus, flet saucius inguina Lygdus,
perfossus^ telo niveam gemis, Aeole, frontem.
te praeeeps Euboea tulit, te Candida Thisbe
miserat, hunc virides non excipietis Erythrae.* 769
numquam cassa manus, nullum sine numine^ fugit
missile, nee requies dextrae, sonitumque priori
iungit harundo sequens. unum quis crederet arcum
aut unam saevire manum ? modo derigit ictus,
nunc latere alterno dubius conamina mutat,
nunc fugit instantes et solo respicit arcu. 775

Et iam mirantes indignantesque coibant
Labdacidae, primusque lovis de sanguine claro
Amphion ignarus adhuc, quae funera campis
ille daret : "quonam usque moram lucrabere fati,
o multum meritos puer orbature parentes ? 780

quin etiam menti tumor atque audacia gliscit,
congressus dum nemo tuos pugnamque minorem
dignatur bellis, iramque relinqueris infra,
i, repete Arcadiam mixtusque aequalibus illic,

^ After 759 folloics " illi perfossum telo patefecerat
inguen," not found in Pw, only in later Mss., and clearly
spurious.

^ ora w : ilia P : lie Garrod. Klotz suggests that ilia was
a gloss on inguina.

* perfossus Bentley : perfossam Pw.

* Erythrae Koestlin : Amyclae Pw, which must he wrong,
as Thebans are spoken of: Hyrides . . . amicae Phillimore.

* numine P : vulnere w.
308

THEBAID, IX. 758-784

and foe to slay him. To these he adds the sons of
Abas, Argus of the noble locks, and Cydon, guiltily
loved by his unhappy sister. Him did he pierce
through both his temples with transverse-flpng
shaft : from one temple the point protrudes, at the
other the feathers' flight was stayed, from both the
blood came flowing. None do his angry darts excuse
from death, Lamus is not slxielded by his beauty, nor
Lygdus by his fillet, nor Aeolos by his budding man-
hood. Lamus is pierced in the face, Lygdus be-
wails a wounded groin, thou, Aeolus, dost bemoan
the dart that transfixed thy snow-white brow. Thee
rocky Euboea bore, thee Thisbe shining white had
sent, tliis warrior, green Erythrae, thou wilt not
receive again. No blow but tells, no missile flies un-
favoured of heaven, his right hand rests not, and the
next arrow's twang follows hard upon the last. Who
could beheve that one bow, one arm was deahng
death ? Now aims he forward, now shifts from side
to side in bewildering change of attack, now flees
>vhen they assail and turns nought but his bow to face
them.

And now in wonder and indignation the sons of
Labdacus were rallying, and first Amphion, of Jove's
famous seed, ignorant still what deaths the lad was
dealing on the battle-field : " How long shalt thou
still makeprofitof death's delaying, thou boy that shalt
be a sore loss to thy goodly parents ? Nay, even yet
thy spirit swells high and thy rashness grows, while
none deigns to meet thy onset and thy too feeble
might, and thou art left as beneath their wrath. Go,
return to thy Arcadia and minghng with thy equals

309

STATIUS

dum ferus hie vero desaevit pulvere Mavors, 785

proelia lude domi : quodsi te maesta sepulcri
fama movet, dabimus leto moriare^ virorum !
iamdudum hunc contra stimulis gravioribus ardet
trux Atalantiades — necdum ille quierat — et infit :
" sera etiam in Thebas, quarum hie exereitus, arma
profero ; quisnam adeo puer, ut bellare recuset 791
tahbus ? Arcadiae stirpem et fera semina gentis,
non Thebana vides : non me sub nocte silenti
Thyias Echionio genetrix famulata Lyaeo
edidit, haud umquam deformis vertice mitras 795
Induimus turpemque^ manu iaetavimus hastam.
protinus adstrietos didici reptare per amnes
horrendasque domos magnarum intrare ferarum
et — quid plura loquar ? ferrum mea semper et arcus
mater habet, vestri feriunt cava tympana patres." 800
non tulit Amphion vultumque et in ora loquentis
telum immane rotat ; sed ferri lumine diro
turbatus sonipes sese dominumque retorsit
in latus atque avidam transmisit devius hastam.
acrior hoc iuvenem stricto muerone petebat 805

Amphion, cum se medio Latonia campo
iecit et ante oculos omnis stetit obvia vultu.

Haerebat iuveni devinctus amore pudieo
Maenalius Doreeus, eui bella suumque timorem
mater et audaces pueri mandaverat annos. 810

huius tum vultu dea dissimulata profatur :
" haetenus Ogygias satis infestasse eatervas,
Parthenopaee, satis ; miserae iam paree parenti,

moriare Housman : moriere Pw.
turpemque Klotz : turpique Pw.

310

THEBAID, IX. 785-813

there, while fierce Mars exhausts liis fury here in the
real dust of war, play thy soldier games at home !
But if the melancholy glory of the tomb doth move
thee, we will grant thee to die a hero's death." Long
had the truculent son of Atalanta raged with yet
bitterer taunts against him, and ere yet the other
had ended thus begins : " Nay, I am even late in
making war on Thebes, if this is all your host ! What
boy so tender as to refuse to fight ^ith such as these?
No Theban offspring seest thou here, but the war-
hke stock of the Arcadian race ; no Thpad mother,
slave to Echionian Lyaeus, bore me in the silence of
the night, never have we put unsightly turbans on
our heads, nor brandished dishonourable spears.
From childhood I learnt to crawl on frozen streams,
and to enter the dread lairs of monsters, and — but
why should I say more ? My mother has ever the
sword and bow, your fathers beat hollow drums ! "
Amphion brooked this not, but hurled a mighty spear
at his face while he spoke ; but his charger, affrighted
by the terrible gleam of the steel, swung round with
his master to one side, and swer\ing sent the greedy
javeUn flying wide of the mark. Amphion was
attacking the youth with drawn sword the more
fiercely, when the Latonian " leapt down into mid-
plain, and stood clear to see before the eyes of all.

Dorceus of Maenalus, bound by the ties of chaste
affection, was keeping close to the lad's side : to him
the queen had entrusted her son's rash youth and
her own fears and all the chances of war. Disguised
in his features the goddess then addressed the
boy : " Enough, Parthenopaeus, to have routed the
Og}'gian bands so far ; enough, now spare thy un-
*• i.e., Diana (= Artemis, daughter of Latona).

311

STATIUS

parce deis, quicumque favent." nee territus ille :

" hunc sine me — non plura petam — fidissime Dorceu,

sternere humi, qui tela meis gerit aemula telis 816

et similes cultus et frena sonantia iactat.

frena regam, cultus Triviae pendebitis alto

limine,, captivis matrem donabo pharetris."

audiit et mixto risit Latonia fletu. 820

Viderat banc caeli iamdudum in parte remota
Gradivum complexa Venus, dumque anxia Tbebas
commemorat Cadmumque viro caraeque nepotes
Harmoniae, pressum tacito sub corde dolorem
tempestiva movet : " nonne hanc,Gradive, protervam
virginitate vides mediam se ferre virorum 826

coetibus ? utque acies audax et Martia signa
temperet ? en etiam donat praebetque necandos
tot nostra de gente viros. huic tradita virtus,
huic furor ? agrestes superest tibi figere dammas."
desiluit iustis commotus in amia querellis 831

Bellipotens, cui sola vagum per inane ruenti
Ira comes, reliqui sudant ad bella Furores,
nee mora, cum maestam monitu Letoida duro
increpat adsistens : " non haec tibi proelia divum 835
dat pater ; armiferum ni protinus improba campum
deseris, huic aequam nosces nee Pallada dextrae."
quid faciat contra ? premit hinc Mavortia cuspis,
hinc plenae tibi, parve, colus, lovis inde severi
vultus : abit solo post haec evicta pudore. 840

S12

THEBAID, IX. 814-840

happy mother, spare the gods who favour thee."
But he unterrified : " Suffer me, faithful Dorceus —
no more ^^^ll I ask — to slay this man who bears
weapons that rival mine, and boasts Uke apparel
and resounding reins. These reins I will handle,
the apparel shall hang on Trivia's lofty door, and his
captured quiver shall be a present to my mother."
The Latonian heard him, and smiled amid her tears.
Long time from a distant quarter of the sky had
\'enus, in the embrace of Mars, beheld her, and while
she anxiously commended Thebes and Cadmus and
her dear Harmonia's progeny to her lord, she stirred
with timely utterance the grief that lay hidden in
his silent breast : " Seest thou not, O Gradivus,
yonder wanton maid who goes to and fro among the
troops of warriors ? And with what boldness she is
ordering the hnes and the Martial standards ? Lo !
she even presents and offers to the slaughter all these
men of our oa\"ti race I Hath she then valour ? Hath
she the rage of battle ? Nought then remains for
thee but to hunt the woodland deer I " Moved by
these just complaints the lord of war sprang down
into the fight : as he sped through the paths of air
Anger alone was his companion : the other Madnesses
were busy in the sweat of war. Without delay he
stands by Lato's sorrowing daughter and chides her
with harsh reproof: " Not such battles as these does
the Father of the gods allow thee : leave forth^nth the
field of arms, thou shameless one, or thou shalt learn
that not even Pallas is a match for this right hand."
What can she do against him ? On one side the spear
of Mavors threatens her, on the other, child, is thy
distaff, full already, yonder the stern countenance of
Jove : then she departs, yielding to reverence alone.

313

STATIUS

At pater Ogygias Mayors circumspicit alas
horrendumque Dryanta movet, cui sanguinis auctor
turbidus Orion, comitesque odisse Dianae
(inde furit) patrium, hic^ turbatos arripit ense
Arcadas exarmatque ducem ; cadit agmine longo
Cyllenes populus Tegeesque habitator opacae, 846
Aepytiique duces Telphusiaeaeque phalanges,
ipsum autem et lassa fidit prosternere dextra,
nee servat vires : etenim hue iam fessus et illuc
mutabat turmas ; urgent praesagia mille 850

funeris, et nigrae praecedunt nubila mortis,
iamque miser raros comites verumque videbat
Dorcea, iam vires paulatim abscedere sensit,
sensit et exhaustas umero leviore pharetras ;
iam minus atque minus fert arma puerque videtur 855
et sibi, cum torva clipei metuendus obarsit
luce Dryas : tremor ora repens ac viscera torsit
Arcados ; utque feri vectorem fulminis albus
cum supra respexit olor, cupit hiscere ripam
Strymonos et trepidas in pectora contrahit alas : 860
sic iuvenem saevi conspecta mole Dryantos
iam non ira subit, sed leti nuntius horror,
arma tamen, frustra superos Triviamque precatus,
molitur pallens et surdos expedit arcus.
iamque instat telis et utramque obliquus^ in ulnam^
cornua contingit mucrone et pectora nervo, 866

cum ducis Aonii magno cita turbine cuspis

^ patrium hie Alton : primum Pu, hie DNS and Q {with
n over), hinc B,

^ obliquus w : oblitus P : obnixus Phillimore.

* ulnam w : urnam P.

" For this use of " patrium " cf. Val. Fl. ii. 157 " adde
cruentis quod patrium saevire Dahis," and Theb. xi. 33.

* Diana in h 811 is mentioned as having taken the shape
of Dorceus.

314

THEBAID, IX. 841-867

But father Mavors looks round upon the Ogygian
ranks, and rouses up the terrible Dryas, who had
turbulent Orion as the author of his blood, and an
inherited" hatred of Diana's followers — hence came
his fury. Sword in hand he leaps upon the dis-
heartened Arcadians, and robs their leader of his
arms : in long lines fall the folk that dwell in Cyllene
and shady Tegea, and the Aepytian chieftains and
the Telphusian cohorts. Their prince himself he is
confident to slay, though his arm be tired, nor does
he husband his strength ; for the other, already
wear\-, was wheeling his squadrons here and there : a
thousand presentiments of doom crowd on him, and
the black clouds of death float before his eyes. And
now the wretched lad could see but few companions
and the true Dorceus,^ now he felt his force ebb little
by httle, and his shoulder lighten as the shafts
diminished; already less and less can he support
his armour, and even to himself he seems now but
a boy, when Dr^-as blazed terribly before him with
fiercely -flashing shield ; a sudden tremor shook the
countenance and the frame of the Arcadian, and,
just as when a white swan sees above him the bearer
of the angry thunderbolt he wishes that Strymon's
bank would gape and gathers his trembhng wings
about his breast, so the youth, perceiving the great
bulk of savage Dryas, felt >vrath no longer, but a
thrill that heralded death. Yet he plies his weapons,
pale-faced and praying vainly to Trivia and the gods,
and makes ready the bow that will not answer.
Already he is on the point to shoot, and with both
elbows held aslant he is touching the bow with the
arrow-head and his breast with the string — when,
mightily whirled, the Aonian chieftain's spear flies

315

880

STATIUS

fertur in adversum nervique obliqua sonori
vincla secat : pereunt ictus manibusque remissis
vana supinato ceciderunt spicula cornu. 870

tunc miser et frenos turbatus et arma remisit,
vulneris impatiens, umeri quod tegmine dextri
intrarat facilemque cutem : subit altera cuspis
cornipedisque fugani succiso poplite sistit.
tunc cadit ipse Dryas — mirum — nee vulneris umquam
conscius : olim auctor teli causaeque patebunt.^ 876

At puer infusus sociis in devia campi
tollitur — heu simplex aetas ! — moriensque iacentem
flebat equum ; cecidit laxata casside vultus,
aegraque per trepidos exspirat gratia visus,
et prensis concussa comis ter colla quaterque
stare negant, ipsisque nefas lacrimabile Thebis,
ibat purpureus niveo de pectore sanguis,
tandem haec singultu verba incidente profatur :
" labimur, i, miseram, Dorceu, solare parentem. 885
ilia quidem, si vera ferunt praesagia curae,
aut somno iam triste nefas aut omine vidit.
tu tamen arte pia trepidam suspende diuque
decipito ; neu tu subitus neve arma tenenti
veneris, et tandem, cum iam cogere fateri, 890

die : merui, genetrix, poenas invita capesse ;
arma puer rapui, nee te retinente quievi,
nee tibi sollicitae tandem inter bella peperci.
vive igitur potiusque animis irascere nostris,
et iam pone metus. frustra de colle Lycaei 895

^ patebunt P : patebant w : latebant Grotius.

« The word is perhaps intended to refer to the ends of the
bow that sprang back when the string was cut.
*' i e., in their endeavour to rouse him.

31b

THEBAID, IX. 868-895

straight upon him, and cuts the slanted fastenings
of the echoing bowstring : the shot is lost, his hands
relax, and the arrow falls fruitless from the back-
ward falling *" bow. Then in confusion and distress
he drops both reins and weapons, reckless of the
wound that had pierced the harness and the soft
skin of his right shoulder ; another javelin follows
and checks the charger's flight, cutting the tendons
of his leg. Then Dryas himself falls — strange ! — nor
ever knows who wounds him ; one dav the author
of the deed and its cause will be revealed.

But the lad is carried from the field in his comrades'
arms — alas, for his tender years ! — and dying bewails
his fallen steed ; relieved of the helm his head sinks
back, and a sickly charm plays about his quivering
eyes ; thrice and four times, grasping his hair, they
shake the neck * that refuses to stay upright, and — a
horror Avhereat Thebes itself might weep — the purple
blood came welling from the snow-white breast. At
last he speaks, with sobs that break his utterance :
" I am dying, Dorceas : go, solace my poor mother.
Already, if care doth bring true presage, she hath
seen this calamity in dream or omen. Yet do thou
with loyal craft keep her fears in suspense, and long
deceive her ; nor come upon her of a sudden, nor
when she holds a weapon in her hand ; and when
at last thou art forced to admit the truth, say this
to her : Mother, I confess my fault ; exact thy
unwilhng punishment ; I rushed to arms, though
a mere boy, nor, though thou didst hold me back,
would I be still, nor, despite thy trouble, war once
begun did I spare thee at the last. Live then thou
and be angry rather at my impetuous spirit and
now be done with fears. In vain dost thou

317

STATIUS

anxia prospectas, si quis per nubila longe
aut sonus aut nostro sublatus ab agmine pulvis :
frigidus et nuda iaceo tellure, nee usquam
tu prope, quae voltus efflantiaque ora teneres.
hunc tamen, orba parens, crinem " dextraque
secandum 900

praebuit " hunc toto capies pro corpore crinem,
comere quem frustra me dedignante solebas.
huic dabis exsequias, atque inter iusta memento,
ne quis inexpertis hebetet mea tela lacertis
dilectosque canes ullis agat amplius antris.^ 905

haec autem primis arma infelicia castris
ure, vel ingratae crimen^ suspende Dianae."

^ Lines 903-5 not in P.
^ crimen Imhof : crinem P : munus crimen B : munus DNS.

318

THEBAID, IX. 896-907

look forth anxiously from Lycaeus' hill, if per-
chance sound or dust of my cavalcade rise to thee
through the air afar ; cold on the bare earth I lie,
and thou art nowhere near me, to hold my face and
catch my parting breath. Yet take this tress, O
mother bereaved," and with his hand he offered it
to be cut, " take this tress in place of my whole body ;
once thou wert wont to trim it in spite of my vain
scorn." To it give burial, and amid the rites re-
member to let none blunt my weapons with inex-
perienced hands, or lead my beloved hounds to the
hunting-grounds any more. But bum these ill-
fated arms of my first warfare, or hang them up as a
reproach to ungrateful Diana."

" Or taking " frustra " with " comere," " which thou went
wont to trim, though I scorned it, in vain."

319

LIBER X

Obruit Hesperia Phoebum nox umida porta,
imperiis properata lovis ; nee eastra Pelasgum
aut Tyrias miseratus opes, sed triste, tot extra
agmina et immeritas ferro decrescere gentes.
panditur immenso deformis sanguine campus : 5

illic arma et equos, ibant quibus ante superbi,
funeraque orba rogis neglectaque membra relinquunt.
tunc inhonora cohors laceris insignibus aegras
secernunt acies, portaeque, ineuntibus arma
angustae populis, latae cepere reversos. 10

par utrimque dolor ; sed dant solacia Thebis
quattuor errantes Danaum sine praeside turmae :
ceu mare per tumidum viduae moderantibus alni,
quas deus et casus tempestatesque gubernant.
inde animus Tyriis non iam sua eastra, sed ultro 15
hostilem servare fugam, ne forte Mycenas
contenti rediisse petant : dat tessera signum
excubiis, positaeque vices ; dux noctis opertae
sorte Meges ultroque Lycus. iamque ordine iusso
arma, dapes ignemque ferunt ; rex firmat euntes : 20
" victores Danaum — nee enim lux crastina longe,
320

BOOK X

De^\'\' Night overwhelmed Phoebus in the gateway
of the West, hastened by the commands of Jove ;
nought pitied he the Pelasgian camp nor the Tyrlan
forces, but he grieved that beside the warriors so
many innocent folk should fall by the sword. Far
stretches the plain, a vast vmsightly sea of blood ;
there they leave their arms, and the steeds whereon
before they went so proudly, and the corpses de-
prived of their pyres and the neglected limbs. Then,
an unsightly troop with tattered ensigns, they ^\ith-
draw their exhausted lines, and the gates that were
so narrow as they thronged to battle are all too
broad as they return. Each side is ahke distressed,
but Thebes has solace in the four Danaan bands
wandering without a chief : Hke alder vessels on
the billowy deep that are widowed of their helmsmen
and steered by God and Chance and all the storms.
Therefore the T}Tians are emboldened to keep watch
no more on their own camp, but rather on their foes'
retreat, lest haply they seek to return with all speed
to Mycenae ; the watchword gives the signal to the
sentinels, and posts are set ; Meges by lot, and
Lycus at his request are leaders of the night's enter-
prise. And now in marshalled ranks they bring
arms and food and fire ; the king cheers them
as they go : " Conquerors of the Danaaos — for to-
VOL. II Y 321

STATIUS

nee quae pro timidis intercessere tenebrae
semper erunt — augete animos et digna secundis
pectora ferte dels, iacet omnis gloria Lernae
praecipuaeque manus : subiit ultricia Tydeus 25

Tartara, Mors subitam nigri^ stupet auguris umbram,
Ismenos raptis tumet Hippomedontis opimis,
Arcada belligeris pudet adnumerare tropaeis.
in manibus merces, nusquam capita ardua belli
monstrataeque ducum septena per agmina cristae ;
scilicet Adrasti senium fraterque iuventa 31

peior et insanis Capaneus metuendus in armis.
ite age et obsessis vigilem circumdate flammam !
nulli ex hoste metus : praedam adservatis opesque
iam vestras." sic ille truces hortatibus implet 35
Labdacidas, iuvat exhaustos iterare^ labores :
sicut erant — pulvis sudorque cruorque per artus
mixtus adhuc — vertere gradum ; vix obvia passi
conloquia, amplexus etiam dextrasque suorum
excussere umeris. tum frontem aversaque terga 40
partiti laterumque sinus, vallum undique cingunt
ignibus infestis. rabidi sic agmine multo
sub noctem coiere lupi, quos omnibus agris
nil non ausa fames longo tenuavit hiatu : 44

lam stabula ipsa premunt, torquet spes inrita fauces,
balatusque tremens pinguesque ab ovilibus aurae^ ;
quod superest, duris adfrangunt postibus ungues,
pectoraque et siccos minuunt in limine dentes.

^ nigri Pu : Garrod conj. integri, and cp. viii. 6 and x. 204.

* iterare Pio : tolerare D.

* aurae (agnae written over) P : conversely D.

" Inconsistent with 1. 204, but he supposes that the seer's
body has been burnt, and that therefore his shade will be
charred black, cf. viii. 6 " niger ab urna," " black from the
ashes of the urn." " i.e., Parthenopaeus.

322

THEBAID, X. 22-48

morrow's dawn is near, and the darkness that saved
the cowards Avill not last for ever — raise your spirits
high and let your hearts be worthy of heaven's
favour. All the glory of Lema, all her foremost
might lies low : Tydeus is gone to avenging Tartarus ;
Death starts to behold the black augur's sudden
shade ; " Ismenos is swollen with the plunder of
Hippomedon's spoils ; the Arcadian ^ we are ashamed
to count among the trophies of war. Our reward
is in our hands, gone are the proud leaders of the
host, and the chieftains' crests displayed along the
sevenfold array ; formidable indeed is Adrastus'
dotage, and my brother's more cowardly manhood,
and Capaneus' frenzied arms ! Forward then, and
set your wakeful fires about their beleaguered camp.
Ye need not fear the foe ; 'tis booty ye watch, and
wealth that at last is yours." Thus does he heap
encoxu-aging words upon the fierce Labdacidae :
they rejoice to repeat the toils already endured.
Just as they were, with dust and sweat and blood still
caked upon their limbs, they turned to go, scarce
heeding the farewells that would stay them, but
shaking off the embracing arms and hand-clasps of
their friends. Then sharing between them front
and rear and curving flanks they ring round the
rampart ^vith hostile flame. So gathers at night-
fall a herd of ravening wolves, whom over all the
country-side hunger that brings reckless daring has
starved with long privation : already they are near
the ver}' sheep-folds, hope imfulfilled and the. feeble
bleatings and juicy scents from the pens torture
their throats ; at last they break their claws against
the cruel stakes, and bruise their bodies and blunt
their unfleshed fangs upon the doors.

323

ST ATI us

At procul Argolici supplex in margine templi
coetus et ad patrias fusae Pelopeides aras 50

sceptriferae lunonis opem reditumque suorum
exposcunt, pictasque fores et frigida voltu
saxa terunt parvosque decent procumbere natos.
condiderant iam vota diem ; nox addita curas
iungit, et ingestis vigilant altaria flammis. 55

peplum etiam dono, cuius mirabile textum
nulla manu sterilis nee dissociata marito
versarat, calathis castae velamina divae
haud spernenda ferunt, variis ubi plurima floret
purpura picta modis mixtoque incenditur auro. 60
ipsa illic magni thalamo desponsa Tonantis,
expers conubii et timide positura sororem/
lumine demisso pueri lovis oscula libat
simplex et nondum furtis ofFensa mariti.
hoc tunc Argolicae sanctum velamine matres 65

induerant ebur, et lacrimis questuque rogabant :
"aspice sacrilegas Cadmeae paelicis arces,
siderei regina poli, tumulumque rebellem
disice et in Thebas aliud — potes— excute fulmen."
quid faciat ? scit Fata suis contraria Grais 70

aversumque lovem, sed nee periisse precatus
tantaque dona velit ; tempus tamen obvia magni
fors dedit auxilii. videt alto ex aethere clusa
moenia et insomni vallum statione teneri :
horruit irarum stimulis motaque verendum 75

turbayit diadema coma : non saevius arsit

^ sororem Pu : pudorem D : furorem {corrected from
sororem) B.

" Semele.
S24

THEBAID, X. 49-76

But far away a suppliant train of Pelopean dames,
prostrate before their native altars and on the thres-
hold of the Argohc fane, implore the help of sceptred
Juno and the return of their loved ones, and press
their faces to the cold stones and painted doors, and
teach their Uttle children to kneel. The day was
already spent in entreaties : night comes and adds
its cares, and the altars keep vigil with high-piled
fires. They bear too a gift in a basket, a robe whose
marvellous textm-e no hand of childless wife nor
of any parted from her husband had wTought, a
garment full worthy of the chaste goddess : thereon
was much purple, gaily embroidered in manifold
design and blazing with interwoven gold. She
herself was there, promised in marriage to the great
Thunderer, but not yet a bride and timidly putting
off her sisterhood ; with downcast eyes she kisses
the youthful Jupiter, a simple maid, nor yet offended
by the secret loves of her husband. With this robe
the Argive matrons at that time veiled the sacred
ivory image, and with tears and supplications made
their prayer : " Look upon the sacrilegious towers
of the Cadmean harlot," O Queen of the starry pole,
shatter that rebel hill, and hurl — for thou canst —
another thunderbolt against Thebes." What can
she do ? She knows the Fates are adverse to her
Grecians, and Jove's favour is turned away, but she
would that such prayers and gifts were not wasted ;
nevertheless, a ready chance gave occasion for potent
aid. From lofty heaven she sees the city-gates
closed and the rampart guarded by sleepless sentinels ;
the stings of anger thrilled her frame, and stirred
her hair and shook the awful diadem : no more
fiercely did she rage, when alone in heaven she felt

325

STATIUS

Herculeae cum matris onus geminosque Tonantis

secubitus vacuis indignaretur in astris.

ergo intempesta somni dulcedine captos

destinat Aonios leto praebere, suamque 80

orbibus accingi solitis iubet Irin et omne

mandat opus, paret iussis dea clara polumque

linquit et in terras longo suspenditur arcu.

Stat super occiduae nebulosa cubilia noctis
Aethiopasque alios, nulli penetrabilis astro, 85

lucus iners, subterque cavis grave rupibus antrum
it vacuum in montem, qua desidis atria Somni
securumque larem segnis Natura locavit.
limen opaca Quies et pigra Oblivio servant
et numquam vigili torpens Ignavia voltu. 90

Otia vestibulo pressisque Silentia pinnis
muta sedent abiguntque truces a culmine ventos
et ramos errare vetant et murmura demunt
alitibus. non hie pelagi, licet omnia clament
litora, non ullus caeli fragor ; ipse profundis 95

vallibus efFugiens speluncae proximus amnis
saxa inter scopulosque tacet^ : nigrantia circum
armenta, omne solo recubat pecus, et nova marcent
germina,^ terrarumque inclinat spiritus herbas.
mille intus simulacra dei caelaverat ardens 100

Mulciber : hie haeret lateri redimita Voluptas,
hie comes in requiem vergens Labor, est ubi Baccho,
est ubi Martigenae socium pulvinar Amori
obtinet. interius tecti in penetralibus altis

^ tacet w : iacet P.
^ germina Pw : gramina late mss. and edd.

" Because the night was prolonged to twice its length.

" The Aethiopians of the far West ; they were usually
spoken of as being in the East or South.
326

THEBAID, X. 77-104

v^Tath against Alcmene for her offspring and for
the Thunderer's twofold ° adulter}-. Therefore she
determines to make the Aonians, sunk in the timeless
bliss of slumber, a prey to death, and bids her own
Iris gird herself "with her wonted circles, and commits
to her all her task. Obedient to command, the
bright goddess leaves the pole and ^vings her way
down her long arc to earth.

Beyond the cloud-^sTapt chambers of western
gloom and Aethiopia's other realm ^ there stands a
motionless grove, impenetrable by any star ; be-
neath it the hollow recesses of a deep and rocky cave
run far into a mountain, where the slow hand of
Nature has set the halls of lazy Sleep and his un-
troubled dwelling. The threshold is guarded by
shady Quiet and dull Forgetfulness and torpid Sloth
vrith ever drowsy countenance. Ease, and Silence
with folded wings sit mute in the forecourt and drive
the blustering ^^^nds from the roof-top, and forbid
the branches to sway, and take away their warbUngs
from the birds. No roar of the sea is here, though
all the shores be sounding, nor yet of the sky ; the
very torrent that runs do^vn the deep valley nigh
the cave is silent among the rocks and boulders ;
by its side are sable herds, and sheep recUning one
and all upon the ground ; the fresh buds >\-ither,
and a breath from the earth makes the grasses sink
and fail. Within, glowing Mulciber had carved a
thousand likenesses of the god : here wreathed
Pleasure clings to his side, here Labour drooping
to repose bears him company, here he shares a couch
with Bacchus, there ^^^th Love, the child of Mars.
Further \\ithin, in the secret places of the palace he

327

STATIUS

et cum Morte iacet, nullique ea tristis imago^ 105
cernitur. hae species, ipse autem^ umentia subter
antra soporifero stipatos flore tapetas
incubat ; exhalant vestes et corpore pigro
strata calent, supraque torum niger efflat anhelo
ore vapor ; manus haec fusos a tempore laevo 110
sustentat crinis, haec cornu oblita remisit.
adsunt innumero circum vaga Somnia vultu,^
vera simul falsis permixtaque tristia blandis,^
noctis opaca cohors, trabibusque aut postibus haerent,
aut tellure iacent. tenuis, qua circuit aulam, 115
invalidusque nitor, primosque hortantia somnos
languida succiduis exspirant lumina flammis.

Hue se caeruleo libravit ab aethere virgo
discolor : effulgent silvae, tenebrosaque Tempe
adrisere deae, et zonis lucentibus icta 120

evigilat domus ; ipse autem nee lampade clara
nee sonitu nee voce deae perculsus eodem
more iacet, donee radios Thaumantias omnis
impulit inque oculos penitus descendit inertes.
tunc sic orsa loqui nimborum fulva creatrix : 125

" Sidonios te luno duces, mitissime divum
Somne, iubet populumque trucis defigere Cadmi,
qui nunc eventu belli tumefactus Achaeum
pervigil adservat vallum et tua iura recusat.
da precibus tantis, rara est hoc posse facultas 130
placatumque lovem dextra lunone mereri.^ "

^ Lines 100-5 only in P and some late uss.
^ cernitur. hae (haec Klotz) species, ipse autem Vollmer :
cernitur haec species autem P : ipse autem vacuus curis w.

* Lines 112-17 only in P, 112-15 in a MS. of Corp. Christ.
Coll. Oxford.

* tristia blandis edd. i flumina flammis P {from 117),
various conjectures by edd.

* mereri w : vereri P : merere late Mss., Gronovius.

328

THEBAID, X. 105-131

lies with Death also, but that dread image is seen
by none. These are but pictures : he himself be-
neath humid caverns rests upon coverlets heaped
with slumbrous flowers, his garments reek, and the
cushions are warm with his sluggish body, and above
the bed a dark vapour rises from his breathing mouth.
One hand holds up the locks that fall from his left
temple, from the other drops his neglected horn."
\'ague dreams of countless shapes stand round about
him, true mixed ^^■ith false, flattering viiih sad, the
dark brood of Night, and chng to beams and doorposts,
or he on the ground. The light about the chamber
is weak and fitful, and languid gleams that woo to
earhest slumbers vanish as the lamps flicker and die.
Hither from the blue sky came in balanced flight
the varicoloured maid ; the forests shine out, and
the shady glens smile upon the goddess, and smitten
with her zones of radiance the palace starts from its
sleep ; but he himself, awoken neither by the bright
glow nor by the sound or voice of the goddess, lay
motionless as ever, till the Thaumantian ^ shot at
him all her splendours and sank deep into his drowsy
\-ision. Then thus began to speak the golden fashioner
of clouds " : " Sleep, gentlest of the gods, Juno
bids thee bind fast the Sidonian leaders and the
folk of ruthless Cadmus, who now, puffed up by the
issue of the fight, aie watching in ceaseless vigi\ the
Achaean rampart, and refuse thy sway. Grant so
solemn a request — rarely is this opportunity vouch-
safed, to win the favour of Jove with Juno on thy

' Elsewhere alluded to by Statius, ii. 14o, vi. 27, never,
apparently, by other poets. * Iris, daughter of Thaumas.

* "fulvus " is a regular epithet of gold : Iris seems to be
regarded as creating the clouds on which she shines.

329

STATIUS

dixit, et increpitans languentia pectora dextra,
ne pereant voces, iterumque iterumque monebat.
ille deae iussis vultu, quo nutat, eodem^
adnuit ; excedit gravior nigrantibus antris 135

Iris et obtusum multo iubar excitat imbri.

Ipse quoque et volucrem gressum et ventosa citavit
tempora, et obscuri sinuatam frigore caeli
implevit clilamydem, tacitoque per aethera cursu
fertur et Aoniis longe gravis imminet arvis. 140

illius aura solo volucres peeudesque ferasque
explicat, et penitus, quemcumque^ supervolat orbem,
languida de scopulis sidunt freta, pigrius haerent
nubila, demittunt extrema cacumina silvae,
pluraque laxato ceciderunt sidera caelo. 145

primus adesse deum subita caligine sensit
campus, et innumerae voces fremitusque virorum
submisere sonum ; cum vero umentibus alis
incubuit piceaque baud umquam densior umbra
castra subit, errare oculi resolutaque colla, 150

et medio adfatu verba imperfecta relinqui.
mox et fulgentes clipeos et saeva remittunt
pila manu, lassique cadunt in pectora voltus.
et iam cuncta silent : ipsi iam stare recusant
cornipedes, ipsos subitus cinis abstulit ignes. 155

At non et trepidis eadem sopor otia Grais
suadet, et adiunctis arcet sua nubila castris
noctivagi vis blanda dei : stant undique in armis

^ vultu quo nutat eodem P : dubium mixtumque sopori w.
^ quemcumque PD : quamcumque w, quacumque N.

" i.e., nodding as he ever does in slumber.

* Sleep is sometimes represented with wings upon his
temples, as may be seen in a well-known bronze figure of
330

THEBAID, X. 132-158

side." She spoke, and \vith her hand beat upon his
languid breast, and charged him again and yet again,
lest her message be lost. He ^vith his ovm nodding
\isage ° nods assent to the goddess' command ; o'er-
weighted with the caverns' gloom Iris goes forth,
and tricks out her beams, made dim by showers of
rain.

Himself too he bestirred both swift progress and
his wind-torn temples,* and filhng his mantle's
folds with the chill dark air is borne in silent course
through heaven, and from afar swoops do\vn in might
upon the Aonian fields. The -wind of his coming sets
birds and beasts and cattle prostrate on the ground,
and, whatsoever region of the world he passes in
his flight, the waves shde languidly from the rocks,
more lazily cHng the clouds, the forests bow their
summits, and many a star drops from the loosened
vault of heaven. The plain first felt the god's
presence by the sudden coming of a mist, and
the countless voices and cries of men were hushed ;
but when he brooded with dewy wings and entered
the camp, unsubstantial as a pitchy shadow, eyes
wavered and heads sank, and words were left un-
finished in mid-speech. Next shining bucklers and
cruel spears are dropped from their hands, their
faces fall in weariness upon their breasts. And now
universal silence reigns : even the horn-footed steeds
refuse to stand, even the fires are quenched in sudden
ashes.

But slumber woos not the anxious Greeks to the
same repose, and the night-wandering, persuasive
deity keeps his mists from the camp hard by ; on

Hypnos (Greek Bronzes, A. S. Murray, p. 72). Cf. also Theb.
V. 433.

331

STATIUS

foedam indignantes noctem vigilesque superbos.
ecce repens superis animum lymphantibus horror
Thiodamanta subit formidandoque tumultu 161

pandere fata iubet, sive hanc Saturnia mentem,
sive novum comitem bonus instigabat Apollo,
prosilit in medios, visu audituque tremendus
impatiensque dei, fragili quem mente receptum 165
non capit : exundant stimuli, nudusque per ora
stat furor, et trepidas incerto sanguine tendit
exhauritque genas — acies hue errat et illuc —
sertaque mixta comis sparsa cervice flagellat.
sic Phryga terrificis genetrix Idaea cruentum 170
elicit ex adytis consumptaque bracchia ferro
scire vetat ; quatit ille sacras in pectora pinus
sanguineosque rotat crines et vulnera cursu
exanimat : pavet omnis ager respersaque cultrix^
arbor, et attoniti currum erexere leones. 175

Ventum ad consilii penetrale domumque verendam
signorum, magnis ubi dudum cladibus aeger,
rerum extrema movens, frustra consultat Adrastus.
stant circum subiti proceres, ut quisque perempto
proximus, et magnis loca desolata tuentur 180

regibus baud laeti seque hue crevisse dolentes.
non secus amisso medium cum praeside puppis
fregit iter, subit ad vidui^ moderamina clavi
aut laterum custos, aut quem penes obvia ponto
prora fuit : stupet ipsa ratis tardeque sequuntur 185
arma, nee accedit domino tutela minori.

^ cultrix PN : cultris w.
* vidui w : dubii P.

" i.e., Juno, daughter of Saturn.

* i.e., the pine, sacred to Cybele, and bespattered by the
blood of her votaries.
332

THEBAIC, X. 159-186

every side they stand to arms, in wTath at the hateful
gloom and their foes' proud sentinels. Lo ! a sudden
frenzy, heaven-inspired, seizes Thiodamas, and in
aw-ful tumult bids him show forth the fates, whether
Saturnia <* fired him mth this resolve, or kindly Apollo
incited his new attendant. He rushes into the midst,
fearful to see and to hear, and impatient of the god,
whom his frail mind had received but could not
contain ; his pangs overwhelm him, stark madness
reigns upon his \isage, and the uncertain blood now
distends, now ebbs from his trembling cheeks ; his
gaze darts here and there, he shakes and scatters
on his shoulders the -wTcaths ent^^^ned in his locks.
Thus does the Idaean mother summon from the
terrible shrine the blood-stained Phrygian and make
him unconscious of his knife-hacked arms ; he beats
the holy pine-brands against his breast, and tosses
his gory hair and deadens his wounds by running ;
all the country-side and the bespattered votary
tree ** feels terror, and the panic-stricken lions rear
the chariot high.

Now had he reached the inner council-chamber and
the revered home of the standards, where Adrastus,
long distressed by the dire disasters, takes fruitless
counsel for their desperate phght : the new-appointed
chiefs stand about him, each the next successor to the
slain, and gaze at the empty places of the mighty
princes, feeling no joy but rather grief that they are
raised so high. Even so when a bark has lost its helms-
man and stopped in mid-voyage, either the watchman
of the sides or of the wave-breasting prow succeeds to
the guidance of the widowed helm ; the ship herself
is all aghast, and the very tackling is slow to obey the
word, nor does she brook the protection of a lesser

333

STATIUS

ergo alacer trepidos sic erigit augur Achivos :

" magna deum mandata, duces, monitusque verendos

advehimus, non hae nostro de pectore voces :

ille canit, cui me famulari et sumere vittas 190

vestra fides, ipso non discordante, subegit.

nox fecunda operum pulchraeque accommoda fraudi

panditur augurio divom ; vocat obvia Virtus,

ct poscit Fortuna manus. stupet obruta somno

Aonidum legio : tempus nunc funera regum 195

ulcisci miserumque diem ; rapite arma morasque

frangite portarum : sociis hoc subdere flammas,

hoc tumulare suos. equidem haec et Marte diurno

dum res infractae pulsique in terga redimus —

per tripodas iuro et rapti nova fata magistri — - 200

vidi, et me volucres circum plausere secundae.

sed nunc certa fides, modo me sub nocte silenti

ipse, ipse adsurgens iterum tellure soluta,

quahs erat — solos infecerat umbra iugales — ,

Amphiaraus adit : non vanae monstra quietis, 205

nee somno comperta loquor. 'tune' inquit, 'inertes

Inachidas — redde haec Parnassia serta meosque

redde deos — -tantam patiere amittere noctern,

degener ? haec egomet caeh secreta vagosque

edocui lapsus ? vade heia, ulciscere ferro 210

nos saltem ! ' dixit, meque haec ad limina visus

cuspide sublata totoque impellere curru.

quare agite, utendum superis ; non comminus hostes

334

THEBAID, X. 187-213

lord. Therefore \\-ith spirited words the prophet
rouses the hearts of the do>\'ncast Achaeans : " Chief-
tains, it is the high eommands and aA^'ful counsels of
the gods that I bring you ; these words come not
from my o>vn breast ; he gives the oracle, whom your
solemn word, he too consenting, constrained me to
serve and to assume his fillets. The di\'ine augury
reveals a night fruitful in achievement and well fitted
for glory-winning guile ; \alour meets and beckons
us, and Fortune implores our arms. The Aonian
legions are sunk 'neath the spell of slumber : now is the
time to avenge our princes' deaths and that unhappy
day ; snatch up your weapons and break through the
hindering gates I This means the lighting of our
comrade's pyres, this means their burial. This saw
I during the battle of the day, when our arms were
stricken and we fled defeated to the rear — I swear
it by the tripods and the strange fate of my lost
master — I saw it, and the birds around me sang a
favouring strain. But now my behef is sure. Only
now beneath the silent night he himself — himself,
Amphiaraus ! — rose up again from the chasm of
earth, even as he was^the shades had touched his
team alone— and came towards me : 'tis of no vain
phantom of night, or %ision of sleep that I tell.
' Wilt thou allow the idle sons of Inachus,' he cries,
' — restore then those Parnassian \vreaths, give me
back my ovra gods ! — to lose so favourable a night,
degenerate one ? Was it thus I taught thee all the
secrets of the sky and the wandering flight of birds ?
Begone I for me at least take vengeance vrith the
sword.' He spake, and seemed to raise his lance, and
to drive me \\ith all his chariot's force unto these doors.
Arouse you, then, and use heaven's favour ; this is

335

ST ATI us

sternendi : bellum iacet, et saevire potestas.
ecqui aderunt, quos ingenti se adtollere fama 215
non pigeat, dum fata sinunt ? iterum ecce benignae
noctis aves ; sequor, et comitum licet agmina cessent?
solus eo ! atque adeo venit ille et quassat habenas."

Talia vociferans noctem exturbabat, euntque^
non secus aecensi proceres, quam si omnibus idem 220
corde deus : flagrant comitari et iungere casus,
ter denos numero, turmarum robora, iussus
ipse legit ; circa fremit indignata iuventus
cetera, cur maneant castris ignavaque servent
otia : pars sublime genus, pars facta suorum, 225

pars sua, sortem alii clamant, sortem undique poscunt.
gaudet in adversis animoque adsurgit Adrastus.
vertice sic Pholoes volucrum nutritor equorum,
cum fetura gregem pecoroso vere novavit,
laetatur cernens hos montis in ardua niti, 230

hos innare vadis, certare parentibus illos ;
tunc vacuo sub corde movet, qui molle domandi
ferre iugum, qui terga boni, quis in arma tubasque
natus, ad Eleas melior quis surgere palmas :
talis erat turmae ductor longaevus Achivae. 235

nee deest inceptis^ : " unde haec tam sera repente
numina ? qui fractos superi rediistis ad Argos ?
estne hie infelix virtus ? gentique superstes
sanguis, et in miseris animorum semina durant ?
laudo equidem, egregii iuvenes, pulchraque meorum

^ euntque w : eumque PD.

" deest inceptis Ellis, Garrod : deest coeptis Pw ; cf. viii.
236.

336

THEBAID, X. 214-240

no hand-to-hand slaying of the foe ; his men He
prostrate, and ye may take your revenge. Will any
come forward, ready to exalt themselves to mighty
fame, while the Fates allow ? Lo I once again the
birds of night are auspicious ; I follow them, and
though my comrades' troops he idle, I go alone I Ay,
and there he too comes, shaking his reins ! "

With such cries did he disturb the night : the chiefs
pour forward, fired as though the same god inspired
the hearts of all : they burn to accompany him, and
share his fortunes. By command he chooses thirty
himself, the flower of all the host ; the rest of the
youth demand in ^\Tathful clamour, why remain they
in the camp ingloriously at ease ; some plead their
noble birth, some their kinsmen's deeds, others their
own, others again shout for the lot, and all take up
the cry. Adrastus exults that they oppose him, and
his spirits rise. Thus upon Pholoe's height a rearer
of swift coursers rejoices when the breeding-time of
prohfic spring has renewed his stud, and he beholds
some straining up steep mountain-paths, some
swimming the stream, others vying with their sires ;
then in idle thought he ponders which he shall tame
to bear a gentle yoke, which ^\^ll make good riders,
which are born for trumpets and arms, which best
fitted to >\in the palm of Ehs : such was the aged
chieftain of the Achaean host. Nor does he fail the
enterprise : " Whence of a sudden comes so late the
favour of heaven ? What gods are ye, who have
turned again to Argos in her distress ? Is this the
valour born of misfortune ? Does the \-igour of our
race still sll^^-ive, and seeds of courage endure in
spite of adversity ? Yea, I praise you, heroic youths,
and enjoy my warriors' glorious mutiny ; but it is
VOL. II z 387

ST ATI us

seditione fruor ; sed fraudem et operta paramus 241
proelia, celandi motus : numquam apta latenti
turba dolo. servate animos, venit ultor in hostes
ecce dies ; tunc arma palam, tunc ibimus onines."
his tandem virtus iuvenum frenata quievit : 245

non aliter moto quam si pater Aeolus antro
portam iterum saxo premat imperiosus et omne
claudat iter, iamiam sperantibus^ aequora ventis.

Insuper Herculeum sibi iungit Agyllea vates
Actoraque : hie aptus suadere, hie robore iactat 250
non cessisse patri ; comites tribus ordine deni,
horrendum Aoniis et contra stantibus agmen.
ipse novi gradiens furta ad Mavortia belU
ponit adoratas, Phoebea insignia, fi'ondes,
longaevique ducis gremio commendat honor em 255
frontis, et oblatam Polynicis munere grato
loricam galeamque subit. ferus Actora magno
ense gravat Capaneus, ipse haud dignatus in hostem
ire dolo superosque sequi. permutat Agylleus
arma trucis Nomii : quid enim fallentibus umbris
arcus et Herculeae iuvissent bella sagittae ? 261

Inde per abruptas castrorum ex aggere pinnas,
ne gravis exclamet portae mugitus aenae,
praecipitant saltu ; nee longum, et protinus ingens
praeda solo ceu iam exanimes multoque peracti 265
ense iacent. " ite, o socii, quacumque voluptas
caedis inexhaustae, superisque faventibus, oro,
sufficite ! " hortatur clara iam voce sacerdos,

^ sperantibus w : spirantibus PBLQ.
338

THEBAID, X. 241-268

fraud and a hidden assault that we devise, our move-
ments must be concealed ; a crowd ill fits a secret
ruse. Nurse then your rage, lo I dawn will bring
vengeance on our foes ; then shall the fight be open,
and all take the field ! " These words at length re-
strained and allayed their ardour : even so might
father Aeolus, when the cave is in a tumult and the
vvinds are already yearning for the deep, sternly set
another rock against the door, and wholly bar their
passage.

Beside the rest the seer takes v\-ith him Agylleus,
son of Hercules, and Actor : persuasive of speech is
Actor, the other boasts strength equal to his sire's;
with each go ten companions, a troop that even
in open fight the Aonians would fear. He himself,
since he goes to unwonted battle and a ruse of war,
lays down the sacred leaves, the emblems of Phoebus,
and entrusts the glory of his brow to the bosom of the
aged prince, and dons helm and corslet, the welcome
gift of Polynides. Fierce Capaneus fastens his heavy
sword on Actor, not deigning himself to go by
stealth against the foe, or to follow where heaven
leads. AgA'lleus borrows the arms of truculent
Xomius ; for what would the bow and shafts of
Hercules have availed him, battling amid deceiving
shades ?

Then, lest the brazen hinges groan too loudly, they
leap down from the steep battlements of the fortress
wall ; nor is it long before lo ! their prey lies vast
upon the ground, as though already hfeless and slain
by many a sword. " Forward, friends, whither-
soe'er dehght in carnage unsated takes you, and
have strength for the work I pray, since heaven shows
us favour ! " Now with loud voice the seer exhorts

S39

STATIUS

" cemitis expositas turpi marcore cohortes ?
pro pudor ! Argolicas hine ausi obsidere portas, 270
hi servare viros ? " sic fatus. et exuit ensem
fulmineum rapidaque manu morientia transit
agmina. quis numeret caedes, aut nomine turbam
exanimem signare queat ? subit ordine nullo
tergaque pectoraque et galeis inclusa relinquit 275
murmura permiscetque vagos in sanguine manes :
hunc temere explicitum stratis, hunc sero remissis
gressibus inlapsum elipeo et male tela tenentem,
coetibus hos mediis vina inter et arma iacentes,
adclines clipeis alios, ut quemque ligatum 280

infelix tellure sopor supremaque nubes
obruerat. nee numen abest, armataque luno
lunarem quatiens exserta lampada dextra
pandit iter firmatque animos et corpora monstrat.
sentit adesse deam, tacitus sed gaudia celat 285

Thiodamas ; iam tarda manus, iam debile ferrum
et caligantes nimiis successibus irae.
Caspia non aliter magnorum in strage iuvencum
tigris, ubi immenso rabies placata cruore
lassavitque genas et crasso sordida tabo 290

confudit maculas, spectat sua facta doletque
defecisse famem : victus sic augur inerrat
caedibus Aoniis ; optet nunc bracchia centum
centenasque in bella manus ; iam taedet inanes
exhaurire minas, hostemque adsurgere mallet. 295

Parte alia segnes magno satus Hercule vastat
Sidonios Actorque alia, sua quemque cruento
limite turba subit : stagnant nigrantia tabo

" Seems to mean a torch kindled from the lunar fires
(c/. X. 370).

340

THEBAID, X. 269-298

them, " See ye the cohorts lying in base torpor ?
Shame on them ! Dared these beleaguer Argive
gates, and keep watch on heroes ? " So spake he,
and drew his flashing sword, and vrith. s^^ift hand
passed over the doomed Unes. Who could reckon
up the slaughter, or give names to all the crowd of
corpses ? At random he goes o'er backs and breasts,
and leaves behind him groans stifled in their helms,
and mingled all his victims in a welter of blood ; one
stretched carelessly upon a couch, another shpping
with reeling steps upon his shield, too late, and
fumbUng ^\-ith his arms, others lying in a throng amid
wine and weapons, others propped against their
shields — each one just as ill-fated slumber and the
night that was their last had bound and cast them to
the ground. Nor lack they divine power, but armed
Juno frees her right hand and brandishing a lunar
torch ° makes clear their path and strengthens their
courage and displays the bodies. Thiodamas feels
her presence, but conceals his joy in silence ; already
his hand grows slow, and his blade weak, and his fury-
is dimmed by too much success. Not otherwise does
a Caspian tigress, amid a mighty slaughter of
bullocks, when fury appeased by streams of gore has
wearied out her jaws and stained her stripes in foul
clotted corruption, behold her work, and grieve that
her appetite fails ; so wanders the augur fordone
among the Aonian corpses : now would he have a
hundred arms, a hundred hands to fight with ; already
it irks him to squander menaces in vain, and he
could ^^■ish the foe would rise against him.

Here the son of mighty Hercules, there Actor
destroys the sluggish Sidonians, each followed by his
own band along a path of slaughter ; the grass is

341

STATIUS

gramina, sanguineis nutant tentoria rivis ;

fumat humus, somnique et mortis anhelitus una 300

volvitur ; haud quisquam visus aut ora iacentum

erexit : tali miseris deus aliger umbra

incubat et tantum morientia lumina solvit.

traxerat insomnis cithara ludoque suprema

sidera iam nullos visurus lalmenus ortus, 305

Sidonium paeana canens ; huic languida cervix

in laevum cogente deo mediaque iacebant

colla replicta^ lyra : ferrum per pectus Agylleus

exigit aptatamque cava testudine dextram

percutit et digitos inter sua fila trementes. 310

proturbat mensas dirus liquor : undique manant

sanguine permixti latices et Bacchus in altos

crateras paterasque redit. ferus occupat Actor

implicitum fratri Thamyrin, Tagus haurit Echetli

terga coronati, Danaus caput amputat Hebri : 315

nescius heu rapitur fatis, hilarisque sub umbras

vita fugit mortisque ferae lucrata dolores.

stratus humo gelida subter iuga fida rotasque

Calpetus Aonios gramen gentile metentes

proflatu terrebat equos : madida ora redundant 320

accensusque mero sopor aestuat ; ecce iacentis

Inachius vates iugulum fodit, expulit ingens

vina cruor fractumque perit in sanguine murmur.

fors illi praesaga quies, nigrasque gravatus

per somnum Thebas et Thiodamanta videbat. 325

Quarta soporiferae superabant tempora nocti,
cum vacuae nubes et honor non omnibus astris,

^ replicta Heinsius : relicta Pw : relapsa N : reclina
Gronovius.

342

THEBAID, X. 299-327

black and stagnant with gore, the tents totter and
sway in streams of blood, the earth reeks, and the
breathing of sleep is mingled 's^ith the gasps of death ;
none of the sluraberers hfts his head or turns liis gaze,
so deep the shade wherewith the winged god broods
over the wretched ones, and unseals their eyes but
as they die. lalmenus had spent his last night in
unsleeping merriment and with the lute, never to
behold to-morrow's dawn, and was singing a Sidonian
paean ; under the influence of the god his languid
neck sank leftward, and his lyre pillowed his drooping
head : through his breast Agy Ileus drives the blade,
and pierces the right hand that grasps the tortoise-
shell, and the fingers trembhng among their well-
known strings. The tables are flooded by the dreadful
stream ; everywhere flow blood and water mingled,
and the wine returned to the goblets and deep mixing-
bowls. Fierce Actor catches Thamyris in his brother's
embrace, Tagus stabs garlanded Echetlus in the back,
Danaus shears off the head of Hebrus : unwitting
alas ! he meets his fate, and mirthfully his life passes
to the shades, saving the pains of cruel death.
Calpetus, lying on the cold ground beneath his
trusty chariot-wheels, scared with his hea\y breath-
ing his Aonian steeds as they cropped their native
grass : his mouth o'erflows with Uquor, and his
slumber wine-inflamed grows agitated ; lo ! the
Inachian prophet pierces his throat as he lies : the
wine is forced out in a great rush of blood, and his
murmiu"s perish in the stream. Perchance his sleep
foretold his doom, and in his dream he saw with
dismay Thiodamas and a black ruin that was Thebes.
The fourth period of slumbrous night remained,
when the clouds have shed their dew and not all the

343

STATIUS

adflatusque fugit curru maiore Bootes.

iamque ipsum defecit opus, cum providus Actor

Thiodamanta vocat : " satis haec inopina Pelasgis 330

gaudia : vix ullos tanto reor agmine saevam

efFugisse necem, ni quos deformis in alto

sanguine degeneres occultat vita ; secundis

pone modum : sunt et diris sua numina Thebis.

forsitan et nobis modo quae favere, recedunt.^ " 335

paruit, et madidas tollens ad sidera palmas :

" Phoebe, tibi exuvias monstratae praemia noctis

nondum ablutus aquis — tibi enim haec ego sacra litavi —

trado ferus miles tripodum fidusque sacerdos.

si non dedecui tua iussa tulique prementem, 340

saepe veni, saepe hanc dignare inrumpere mentem.

nunc tibi crudus honos, trunca arma cruorque

virorum :
at patrias si quando domos optataque. Paean,
templa, Lycie, dabis, tot ditia dona sacratis
postibus et totidem voti memor exige tauros." 345
dixerat, et laetis socios revocabat ab armis.

Venerat hos inter fato Calydonius Hopleus
Maenaliusque Dymas, dilecti regibus ambo,
regum ambo comites, quorum post funera maesti
vitam indignantur. prior Arcada concitat Hopleus :
" nullane post manes regis tibi cura perempti, 351
clare Dyma, teneant^ quern iam fortasse volucres
Thebanique canes ? patriae quid deinde feretis,

^ recedunt Pw, which Klotz defends by Silv, i. 3. 63,
ii. 6. 101, V. 3. 185 (c/. also i. 447 inf.) : recedant Jortin.

- teneant Pw : temerant Baehrens, because only here does
Statius use fortasse with subj.
344

THEBAID, X. 328-353

stars shine bright, and Bootes flies before the pantings
of a mightier car. And now, the task itself faiUng
them, prudent Actor calls Thiodamas : " Sufficient
for the Pelasgians is this unhoped-for triumph ;
scarce any, methinks, of so large a company have
escaped cruel death, save the base cowards whom
the gory flood conceals, polluted but aUve ; set a
limit to success : dread Thebes too hath her deities.
Perchance we too may lose those who late have
favoured us." He consented, and raising his dripping
hands to the stars : " These spoils, O Phoebus, the
trophies of the night thou didst reveal, I present
to thee, I, the bold champion of thy tripods
and thy faithful priest, not yet cleansed with water,
for this is my sacrifice to thee. If I have not
disgraced thy commands and have borne thy
instancy, come often to me, often deign to take
possession of my mind. Rude is thy guerdon now,
maimed hmbs and human blood, but if ever,
O Paean, thou Milt bestow on me my native home
and the temples that I long for, O Lycian god,
forget not my vow, but demand as many sumptu-
ous gifts and as many bulls for thy sacred portals."
He spoke, and recalled his comrades from the glad
work of arms.

Among these by the will of Fate had come Caly-
donian Hopleus and Maenahan Dymas, both
favourites and close companions of their princes, after
whose deaths they grieve and think scorn of living.
First Hopleus incites the Arcadian : " Renowned
Dymas, hast thou no care for thy hapless prince
once slain, though perchance already birds and
Theban dogs possess him ? What then will ye bring
home to your country, ye Arcadians ? Lo ! his

345

STATIUS

Arcades ? en reduces contra venit aspera mater :

funus ubi ? at nostro semper sub pectore Tydeus 355

saevit inops tumuli, quamvis patientior artus

ille nee abruptis adeo lacrimabilis annis.

ire tamen saevumque libet nullo ordine passim

scrutari campum, mediasve inrumpere Thebas."

excipit orsa Dymas ; " per ego haec vaga sidera iuro,

per ducis errantes instar mihi numinis umbras, 361

idem animus misero ; comitem circumspicit dim

mens humilis luctu, sed nunc prior ibo " — viamque

incohat et maesto conversus ad aethera voltu

sic ait : " arcanae moderatrix Cynthia noctis, 365

si te tergeminis perhibent variare figuris

numen et in silvas alio descendere voltu,

ille comes nuper nemorumque insignis alumnus,

ille tims, Diana, puer — nunc respice saltem —

quaeritur." incendit^ pronis dea cornibus^ almum

sidus et admoto monstravit funera curru.^ 371

apparent campi Thebaeque altusque Cithaeron :

sic ubi nocturnum tonitru malus aethera frangit

luppiter, absiliunt nubes et fulgure claro

astra patent, subitusque oculis ostenditur orbis. 375

accepit radios et eadem percitus Hopleus

Tydea luce videt ; longe dant signa per umbras

mutua laetantes, et amicum pondus uterque,

ceu reduces vitae saevaque a morte remissos,

subiecta cervice levant ; nee verba, nee ausi 380

flere diu : prope saeva dies indexque minatur

^ incendit Po : intendit Earth and late Mss.

^ cornibus Markland ; curribus Pw.

' curru P : cornu w, and N (curru written over), con-
versely D.
346

THEBAID, X. 354-381

stem mother meets you returning, and asks " Where
is his body ? " But in my heart imburied Tydeus
gives me no rest, though more enduring of limb nor
so worthy of lament for an untimely death. Yet fain
would I go and search even,"\vhere, high and low,
over the ruthless plain, or break into the midst of
Thebes." Dymas makes reply : " I swear by these
moving stars, by my chieftain's wandering shade,
to me a power divine, my grief inspires a like resolve ;
my downcast mind hath long looked for a companion,
but now I will lead the way " — and straight he starts
upon the road, and turning his sad face to heaven
thus speaks : " Cynthia, queen of the mysteries of
night, if as they say thou dost vart* in threefold ^\^se
the aspect of thy godhead, and in different shape
comest do^^'n into the woodland, 'tis he who was lately
thy companion and the glorious nursling of thy groves,
'tis thine oym boy, Diana — now at least look upon
us ! — 'tis he we search for." The goddess stooped
her horns and made bright her kindly star, and
illumined the battle-field ^^ith near-approaching
chariot. The plain appears and Thebes and lofty
Cithaeron : so when fell Jupiter cleaves the sky at
night with thunder, the clouds di\'ide and the bright
flash reveals the stars, and the world is suddenly
sho^^■n to watching eyes. He caught the rays, and
by the same piercing light Hopleus sees Tydeus ;
from afar they joyfully beckon to each other through
the darkness, and each lifts his beloved burden on his
bowed shoulders, as though it were restored to life
and rescued from cruel death ; no word do they utter,
nor for a long while dare to weep ; unfriendly day
is nigh at hand, and the sunrise that threatens to

347

STATIUS

ortus. eunt taciti per maesta silentia magnis
passibus exhaustasque dolent pallere tenebras.

Invida fata piis et fors ingentibus ausis
rara comes, iam castra vident animisque propinquant,
et decrescit onus, subiti cum pulveris umbra 386

et sonus a tergo, monitu duels acer agebat
Amphion equites, noctem vigilataque castra
explorare datus, primusque per avia campi
usque procul — necdum totas lux solverat umbras —
nescio quid visu dubium incertumque moveri 391

corporaque ire videt ; subitus mox fraude reperta
exclamat : " cohibete gradum quicumque ! " sed hostes
esse patet : miseri pergunt anteire timentque
non sibi ; tunc mortem trepidis minitatur et hastam
expulit, ac vanos alte levat eminus ictus, 396

adfectans errare manum. stetit ilia Dy mantis
ante oculos, qui forte prior gressumque repressit.
at non magnanimus curavit perdere iactus
Aepytus, et fixo transverberat Hoplea tergo 400

pendentisque etiam perstrinxit Tydeos armos.
labitur egregii nondum ducis immemor Hopleus,
exspiratque tenens — felix, si corpus ademptum
nesciat — et saevas talis descendit ad umbras.

Viderat hoc retro conversus et agmina sentit 405
iuncta Dymas, dubius precibusne subiret an armis
instantes ; arma ira dabat, fortuna precari,
non audere iubet : neutri fiducia coepto.
distulit ira preces ; ponit miserabile corpus
ante pedes, tergoque graves, quas forte ferebat, 410

348

THEBAID, X. 382-410

betray. Mute they go with long strides through the
sad silences and grieve that the exhausted gloom is
pahng to the dawn.

Fate is envious of devoted souls, and good luck
goes rarely with great ventures. Already they see
the camp and in thought are at the gates, and lighter
grows the burden, when there is a sudden cloud of
dust and a sound behind them. It was bold Amphion
at the head of his troop, bidden by his chief to explore
the night and the guarded camp ; he is the first to
see far away on the pathless plain — not yet had the
light dispersed all the shadows — something stirring
faint and doubtful to the sight and bodies moving ;
then on a sudden he discovers the fraud and cries :
" Halt, whoe'er ye be ! " but 'tis plain they are the
foe ; on go the hapless ones, and fear, though not
for themselves ; then he threatens the anxious pair
>\ith death, and flings his spear, but, aiming in
purposed error, sends it high and far beyond them.
Before the eyes of Dymas it fell, who by chance was
in front : he halted ; but Aepytus, proud of soul,
cared not to lose his throw, and transfixed the back
of Hopleus, grazing thereby the shoulder of Tydeus
as he hung. Hopleus falls, not yet forgetful of his
peerless chieftain, and dies still clutching him —
happy were he ignorant that the corpse was lost —
and in such wise descends to the cruel shades.

Dymas had turned and seen, and knew that battle
was joined, and doubted whether to use arms or
prayers against the oncoming foe : ^vrath urges
arms, fortune bids him try prayer not daring ;
neither resource brings confidence. Anger forbade
entreaty ; before his feet he places the hapless body,
and flings on his left arm a hea\'y tiger's hide that

349

STATIUS

tigridis exuvias, in laevam torquet et obstat

exsertum obiectans mucronem, inque omnia tela

versus et ad caedem iuxta mortemque paratus :

ut lea, quam saevo fetam pressere cubili

venantes Numidae, natos erecta superstat 415

mente sed^ incerta, torvum ac miserabile frendens ;

ilia quidem turbare globos et frangere morsu

tela queat, sed prolis amor crudelia vincit

pectora, et a media catulos circumspicit ira.

et iam laeva viro, quamvis saevire vetaret 420

Amphion, erepta manus, puerique trahuntur

ora supina comis. serus tunc denique supplex

demisso mucrone rogat : " moderatius, oro,

ducite, fulminei per vos cunabula Bacchi

Inoamque fugam vestrique Palaemonis annos ! 425

si cui forte domi natorum gaudia, si quis

hie pater, angusti puero date pulveris haustus

exiguamque facem ! rogat, en I'ogat ipse tacentis^

voltus : ego infandas potior satiare volucres,

me praebete feris, ego bella audere coegi." 430

" immo " ait Amphion, " regem si tanta cupido

condere, quae timidis belli mens, ede, Pelasgis,

quid fracti exsanguesque parent ; cuncta ocius efFer,

et vita tumuloque ducis donatus abito."

horruit et toto praeeordia protinus Areas 435

implevit capulo. " summumne hoc cladibus " inquit,

" deerat, ut adflictos turparem ego proditor Argos ?

nil emimus tanti, nee sic velit ipse^ cremari."

^ sed Garrod : sub Pu : sui Heinsius.
^ tacentis Markland : iacentis Pw.
* sic . . . ipse CO : si . . . iste P.

350

THEBAID, X. 411-438

he wore bv chance upon his back, and holding out his
bared blade he stands on guard,, and turns to face
every dart, prepared both to slay and to be slain : as
a honess lately whelped, beset by Numidian hunters
in her savage lair, stands above her young, erect but
doubting in her mind, and utters a wild and melan-
choly roar ; full well could she scatter their array and
snap their weapoas in her jaws, but love of her off-
spring overcomes the fierceness of her heart, and
from the midst of her rage she looks round upon her
cubs. And now the hero's left hand has been cut
away, though Amphion bade them use no \"iolence,
and the boy is dragged along by his hair \^-ith face
upturned. Then at last, too late a supphant, he lets
fall his blade and makes entreaty : " Carry him less
roughly, I pray you, by the cradle of hghtning-born
Bacchus and the flight of Ino and your own Palae-
mon's tender years ; if any of you know at home the
joy of children, if any here is a father, grant the lad
some few handfuls of dust, and a httle fire : lo I he
implores, he implores you with mute countenance ;
better that I should sate the accursed fowls, cast me
to the wild beasts, 'twas I that made him dare the
fight." " If so great be thy desire to bury thy
prince," Amphion cried, " tell us, what plan of war
have the scared Pelasgians, what purpose they in
their broken, heartless state ? Quick, out with it
all, and we grant thee to depart ahve and give burial
to thy chief I " The Arcadian shuddered, and on the
instant plunged his sword up to the hilt in his o^vn
breast. " Was this then lacking," he cried, " to
crown our woes, that I should dishonour and betray
Argos in her hour of need ? That were too dearly
bought, nor would he himself wish for the pyre at

351

STATIUS

sic ait, et magno proscissum volnere pectus

iniecit puero, supremaque murmura volvens : 440

" hoc tamen interea mecum^ potiare^ sepulcro."

tales optatis regum in complexibus ambo,

par insigne animis, Aetolus et inclytus Areas,

egregias efflant animas letoque fruuntur.

vos quoque sacrati, quamvis mea carmina surgant

inferiore lyra, memores superabitis annos. 446

forsitan et comites non aspernabitur umbras

Euryalus Phrygiique admittet gloria Nisi.

At ferus Amphion, regi qui facta reportent
edoceantque dolum captivaque corpora reddant, 450
mittit ovans ; clusis ipse insultare Pelasgis
tendit et abscisos sociorum ostendere voltus.
interea reducem murorum e culmine Grai
Thiodamanta vident nee iam erumpentia celant
gaudia. ut exsertos enses et caede recenti 455

arma rubere notant, novus adsilit aethera magnum
clamor, et e summo pendent cupida agmina vallo
noscere quisque suos. volucrum sic turba recentum,
cum reducem longo prospexit in acre matrem,
ire cupit contra summique e margine nidi 460

exstat hians, iamiamque cadat, ni pectore toto
obstet aperta parens et amantibus increpet alis.
dumque opus arcanum et taciti compendia Martis
enumerant laetisque suos complexibus implent
HopleaqueexquirunttardumqueDymantaqueruntur:
ecce et Dircaeae iuxta dux concitus alae 466

^ mecum Garrod : et tu P : claro w : saltern conj. Klotz :
sed tu Vollmer : dedero cotij. Alton.

^ potiare a> : potiere D : potiore P {with a written over).

352

THEBAID, X. 439-466

such a cost." So speaking, he tore a mightv gash
in his breast, and casting him do^^•n upon the lad with
his last breath murmured : " Yet receive mean-
while this burial ^^ith me ! " Thus in the longed-
for embraces of their chiefs do both the noble-
minded pair, Aetolian alike and famed Arcadian,
breathe out their peerless souls and taste of death.
Ye too are consecrate, though my songs soar for a
less lofty lyre, and will go down the unforgetful
years. Perchance too Eurvalus will not spurn his
comrade shades, and the glory of Phrygian Nisus will
not say them nay.

But fierce Amphion sends in triumph heralds to
report his doings to the king, and inform him of the
crafty attack, and deliver back the captured bodies ;
he himself proceeds to iiisult the beleaguered Pelas-
gians, and to display their comrades* severed heads.
Meanwhile from the summit of the walls the Greeks
perceive Thiodamas returning, nor conceal any more
their joyous outbursts. But when they saw their
naked swords and arms all red with recent carnage.
a fresh shout leaps upward to the broad sky, and
eager throngs hang from the rampart's top, while
each one looks for his own. Even so a crowd of
nestlings, seeing their mother returning through the
air afar, would fain go to meet her, and lean gaping
from the edge of the nest, and would even now be
falling, did she not spread all her motherly bosom
to save them, and chide them with lo\ing wings.
And while they recount their hidden deeds and the
swift work of silent war, and clasp their friends in a
long embrace, they look for Hopleus and complain
of Dymas' slowness : and lo I Amphion, the com-
mander of the Theban band, had drawni nigh in

VOL. II 2 a 353

ST ATI us

venerat Amphion ; non longum caede recenti
laetatus videt innumeris fervere catervis
tellurem atque una gentem exspirare ruina.
qui tremor elicita^ caeli de lampade tactis, 470

hie fixit iuvenem, pariterque horrore sub uno
vox, acies sanguisque perit, gemitusque parantem
ipse ultro convertit equus ; fugit ala retorto
pulvere. nondum illi Thebarum claustra subibant,
et iam Argiva cohors nocturno freta triumpho 475
prosilit in campos ; per et arma et membra iacentum
taetraque congerie sola semianimumque cruorem
cornipedes ipsique ruunt : gravis exterit artus
ungula, sanguineus lavat imber et impedit axes,
dulee viris hac ire via, ceu tecta superbi 480

Sidorlia atque ipsas calcent in sanguine Thebas.
hortatur Capaneus : " satis occultata, Pelasgi,
delituit virtus : nunc, nunc mihi vincere pulchrum
teste die ; mecum clamore et pulvere aperto
ite palam, iuvenes : sunt et mihi provida dextrae
omina^ et horrendi stricto mucrone furores." 486

sic ait ; ardentes alacer succendit Adrastus
Argolicusque gener, sequitur iam tristior augur,
iamque premunt muros — et adhuc nova funera narrat
Amphion — miseramque intrarant protinus urbem,
ni Megareus specula citus exclamasset ab alta : 491
"claude, vigil, subeunt hostes,claude undique portas !''

Est ubi dat vires nimius timor : ocius omnis
porta coit ; solas dum tardius artat Echion

^ elicita late mss., Peyrared : inlicita Pw : inicitur conj.
Garrod : ilicibus Phillimore.

^ omina w : omnia P : Menke conj. numina (ill. 615).

354

THEBAID, X. 467-494

haste ; no long delight had he of his late bloodshed,
when he saw the ground a heap of countless bodies,
and a whole race in the death-throes of one universal
doom. Such a tremor as falls on those whom the
brand called forth from heaven has smitten, seized
now the warrior, and in one spasm voice, sight, and
blood all fail, and as he still attempts a groan his
charger unbidden wheels him round ; 'mid a whirl
of dust the troop flees back. Not yet had they
entered the barred gates of Thebes, when the
Argive band, flushed ynih their nocturnal triumph,
leapt forth into the plain ; over weapons and
prostrate bodies and earth befouled bv heaps of
slain, and blood still warm -with hfe men and horn-
footed steeds go rushing : the hea\y hoof crushes
the Hmbs, and a rain of gore bathes and clogs the
axles. Sweet is it to the heroes to go by such a road,
as if they proudly trampled Sidonian homes and
Thebes herself in blood. Capaneus cheers them on :
" Long enough, Pelasgians, has our valour lain in
hiding ; now, now is \'ictory fair in my eyes, in the
full blaze of day ! On, men, with me to open con-
flict ! Raise the dust and shout your battle-cry !
Sure is the omen of my right hand, terrible the fury
of my drawn sword ! " So he speaks ; Adrastus and
the Argive prince vriih eagerness inflame their ire,
and the augur follows in sadder mood. Already they
are nigh the walls — and still Amphion is telling of
the new disaster — and Mould straight have entered
the hapless city, had not Megareus from a high watch-
tower exclaimed in haste : " Shut the gates, sentry,
everj-where ! the enemy comes."

Overmastering fear sometimes gives strength :
quick closes every gate ; only while Echion is slow

355

ST ATI us

Ogygias, audax animis Spartana iuventus 495

inrupit, caesique ruunt in limine primo
incola Tavgeti Panopeus rigidique natator
Oebalus Eurotae ; tuque, o spectate palaestris
omnibus et nuper Nemeaeo in pulvere felix,
Alcidama, primis quem eaestibus ipse ligarat 500

Tyndarides, nitidi moriens eonvexa magistri
respicis : averso pariter deus occidit astro,
te nemus Oebalium, te lubrica ripa Lacaenae
virginis et falso gurges cantatus olori
flebit, Amyclaeis Triviae lugebere Nymphis, 505

et quae te leges praeceptaque fortia belli
erudiit genetrix, nimium didicisse queretur.
talis Echionio Mavors in limine saevit.

Tandem umeris obnixus Acron et pectore toto
pronus lalmenides aeratae^ robora portae 510

torserunt : quanta pariter cervice gementes
profringunt inarata diu Pangaea iuvenci.
par operis iactura lucro, quippe hoste retento
exclusere suos ; cadit intra moenia Graius
Ormenus, et pronas tendentis Amyntoris ulnas 515
fundentisque preces penitus cervice remissa
verba solo voltusque cadunt, colloque decorus
torques in hostiles cecidit per vulnus harenas.
solvitur interea vallum, primaeque recusant
stare morae ; iam se peditum iunxere catervae 520
moenibus : at patulas saltu transmittere fossas
horror equis, haerent trepidi atque immane paventes
abruptum mirantur agi^ ; nunc impetus ire

^ aeratae Klotz : ferratae w. ^ affi w : iter P.

" i.e., the Eurotas, where Jupiter feigned to be a swan
(proverbially tuneful) and deceived Leda.

356

THEBAID, X. 495-523

to bar the Ogygian. courageous Spartan warriors
break in, and fall in the threshold slain,. Panopeus,
dweller upon Taygetus, and Oebalus, swimmer of
rough Eurotas ; thou too, Alcidamas, who didst
prove thy worth in every \\Testling-gi-ound, and of
late win Wctory in Nemean dust, thou for whom the
son of Tyndareus himself fastened thy first gloves ;
dying thou lookest toward the vault where thy
master shines ; straightway the god sinks wiih
averted star. Thee the Oebalian woodland, thee
the Laconian maiden's deceitful river-bank shall
mourn, and the flood" that the feigned swan once
sang of ; thou shalt be wept by Trivia's Amyclaean
Nymphs, and thy mother who taught thee the laws
and valiant rules of war shall lament that thou wert
too apt a scholar. Thus does Mavors wreak his fury
on the threshold of Echion's to^\-n.

At length Acron, hea\'ing vrith his shoulders, and
lalmenides, leaning all his body's weight, forced to
the bronze-clad doors : with such strength do groan-
ing bullocks cleave side by side the long-unploughed
fields of Pangaeum. Yet equal is the loss to their
labour's gain, for they have kept the foe A^ithin, and
shut out their own countrymen. Ormenus the
Grecian is slain ^vithin the walls, and while Amyntor
stretches imploring arms and pours out prayers, his
head is severed, and words and face ahke fall to
earth, and at the blow a shapely necklace drops from
his neck into the hostile dust. Meanwhile the ram-
part is breached, the first lines give way, and already
troops of infantrv are at the walls ; but the horses
fear to leap the vride trenches and shrink back in
alarm, and panic-struck at the vast abyss marvel that
they are driven on ; now they start forward from the

357

ST ATI us

margine ab extremo, nunc sponte in frena recedunt.
hi praefixa solo vellunt munimina, at illi 525

portarum obiectus minuunt et ferrea sudant
claustra remoliri, trabibusque atque aere^ sonoro
pellunt saxa loco ; pars ad fastigia missas
exsultant haesisse faces, pars ima lacessunt
scrutanturque cavas caeca testudine turres. 530

At Tyrii, quae sola salus, caput omne coronant
murorum, nigrasque sudes et lucida ferro
spicula et arsuras caeli per inania glandes
saxaque in adversos ipsis avolsa rotabant
moenibus: exundant saevo fastigia nimbo, 535

armataeque vomunt stridentia tela fenestrae.
qualiter aut Malean aut alta Ceraunia supra
cessantes in nube sedent nigrisque locantur^
collibus et subitae saliunt in vela procellae :
talis Agenoreis Argivom exercitus armis^ 540

obruitur ; non ora virum, non pectora flectit
imber atrox, rectosque tenent in moenia voltus
immemores leti et tantum sua tela videntes.
Anthea falcato lustrantem moenia curru
desuper Ogygiae pepulit gravis impetus hastae ; 545
lora excussa manu, retroque in terga volutus
semianimos artus ocreis retinentibus haeret ;
mirandum visu belli scelus : arma trahuntur,
fumantesque rotae tellurem et tertius hastae
sulcus arat ; longo sequitur vaga pulvere cervix, 550
et resupinarum patet orbita lata comarum.

^ trabibusque atque aere Postgate : trabibusque artata w,
trabibus et ariete P : trabibusque aut aere Kohlmann, tr.
atque assere duro Owen: fidibusque artata sonoris conj.
Garrod.

2 locantur Bury : locuntur P : legantur S : leguntur w :
teguntur D {with le- written over).

^ armis co : orans P.

358

THEBAID, X. 524:-55l

edge, now of their own accord recoil upwjn the reins.
Some tear from the ground the planted palisades,
others hack at the defences of the gates and sweat
to force away the iron barriers, and %nth beams and
sounding bronze drive stones from their places ;
some hurl torches roofwards and exult when they
stick fast, others assail the foundations and with the
bhnd tortoise sap the base of hollow towers.

But the Tyrians — their only means of safety —
crown the summit of the battlements, and hurl
charred stakes and shining darts of steel against the
foe, and stones torn from their own walls, and missiles
that catch fire as they go through the void of air ; a
fierce deluge streams from the roof-tops, and the
barred ^^^ndows spew forth hissing javehns. As
when the tempests sit motionless in the clouds over
Malea or tall Ceraunia's mount and are ranged about
the darkened hills, then suddenly swoop upon the
sails beneath : so is the Argive host overwhelmed
by the Agenorean arms ; yet the relentless rain
turns aside neither face nor breast, the warriors keep
their gaze steady upon the walls, forgetful of death
and seeing nought but their o^^ti weapons. While
Antheus drives his scythed car round the Theban
walls the \iolent impact of an Og}'gian spear strikes
him from above ; the reins are torn from his grasp,
and, scarce ahve, he is hurled to the rear upon his
back, but stays caught by his greaves ; strange
sight and horrible fate of war 1 his arms are dragged
along, the smoking wheels and the spear with third
furrow ploughing the earth ; tossed to and fro the
head follows in a long wake of dust, and the broad
track of the outspread locks shows clear.

359

STATIUS

At tuba luctificis pulsat clangoribus urbem
obsaeptasque fores sonitu perfringit amaro.
divisere aditus, omnique in limine saevus
signifer, ante omnes sua damna et gaudia portans.
dira intus facies, vix Mavors ipse videndo 556

gaudeat ; insanis lymphatam horroribus urbem
scindunt dissensu vario Luctusque Furorque
et Pavor et caecis Fuga circumfusa tenebris.
bellum intrasse putes : fervent discursibus arces,
miscentur clamore viae, ferrum undique et ignes 561
mente vident, saevas mente accepere catenas,
consumpsit ventura timor : iam tecta replerunt
templaque et ingratae vallantur planctibus arae.
una omnes eademque subit formido per annos : 565
poscunt fata senes, ardet palletque inventus,
atria femineis trepidant ululata querellis.
flent pueri et flendi nequeunt cognoscere causas
attoniti et tantum matrum lamenta trementes.
illas cogit amor, nee habent extrema pudorem : 570
ipsae tela viris, ipsae iram animosque ministrant,
hortanturque unaque ruunt, nee avita gementes
limina nee parvos cessant ostendere natos :
sic ubi pumiceo pastor rapturus ab antro
armatas erexit apes, fremit aspera nubes, 575

inque vicem sese stridore hortantur et omnes
hostis in ora volant, mox deficientibus alis
amplexae flavamque domum captivaque plangunt
mella laboratasque premunt ad pectora ceras.

" i.e., the standard, emblem of each one's fate, whether
sad or glorious.

*" " shame," i.e., of appearing in public.

360

THEBAID, X. 552 579

But now the trumpet's clangour smites the city
with dismay, and its harsh sound penetrates the
barricaded doors. They dixide the approaches, and
in every gate there stands a fierce ensign-bearer,
raising high for all to see their sufferings or their
joys." Dreadful is the sight within, scarce Mars
himself would rejoice to behold it ; Grief and Fury
and Panic, and Rout enwTapped in blinding gloom
rend with many-voiced discord the frenzied, horror-
stricken town. One would think the battle was
within ; men are hurrying to and fro about the
citadel, the streets are full of clamour, everywhere
they see in imagination sword and fire, everywhere
cruel chains. Fear anticipates the future ; already
houses and temples are thronged, and the ungrateful
shrines are ringed with lamentation. Old and young
alike are in the grip of one universal terror ; the old
men pray for death, the young flush with ardour and
grow pale bv turns, the houses rock with the shriek
of women's wailing. Children weep, nor know the
cause of their weeping, but stand aghast and tremble
at their mothers' sobs. Them love constrains, nor does
utmost need admit of shame ^ ; with their own hands
they give weapons to the men, with their own voices
they fire them to wrath and valour, and exhort them,
and rush with them to battle, nor cease amid their
tears to show them their ancestral homes and helpless
babes. So when a husbandman, on plunder bent,
has aroused the armed bees from their rocky cavern,
the angry swarm is in an uproar, inciting each other
with loud buzzing, and all fly in the enemy's faces;
but soon with failing wings they clasp their waxen
home, and bewail the rifled store of honey, and press
to their bosoms the laboured combs.

361

STATIUS

Nee non ancipitis pugnat sententia volgi 580

diseordesque serit motus : hi reddere fratrem^ —
nee mussant, sed voee palam elaroque tumultu — ,
reddere regna iubent ; periit reverentia regis
sollicitis : " veniat pactumque hie eomputet annum,
Cadmeosque lares exsul patriasque salutet 585

infehx tenebras ; cur autem ego sanguine fraudes
et periura luam regahs crimina noxae ? "
inde alii : " sera ista fides, iam vincere mavult."
Tiresian alii lacrimis et supplice coetu
orant, quodque unum rebus solamen in artis, 590

nosse futura rogant. tenet ille inclusa premitque
fata deum : " quiane ante duci bene credita nostro
consilia et nionitus, cum perfida bella vetarem ?
te tamen, infelix," inquit, " perituraque Thebe,
si taceam, nequeo miser exaudire cadentem 595

Argolicumque oculis haurire vacantibus ignem.
vincamur, Pietas ; pone heia altaria, virgo,
quaeramus superos." facit ilia, acieque sagaci
sanguineos flammarum apices geminumque per aras
ignem et clara tamen mediae fastigia lucis 600

orta docet ; tunc in speciem serpentis inanem
ancipiti gyro volvi frangique ruborem
demonstrat dubio, patriasque inluminat umbras,
ille coronatos iamdudum amplectitur ignes,
fatidicum sorbens vultu flagrante vaporem. 605

stant tristes horrore comae, vittasque prementes
caesaries insana levat : diducta putares

^ fratrem Pw : fratri late mss., Sandstroem.

" i.e., "do 3'e ask my counsel now because . . ."

^ i.e., lit by Argives.

" The goddess of devotion to country, etc. ; see n. on 1. 780.

"* " ancipiti " here may mean " doubtful," i.e. not clear
to the sight, or " two-headed," literally. " frangi " is to be
broken or moulded into a shape.
36-2

THEBAID, X. 580-607

The crowd also is filled with the strife of opposing
tongues, and spreads discordant passions ; some,
with no muttered voice, but outspokenly and in open
tumult, bid the brother restore the kingdom ; in
their distress all reverence for their prince is lost :
" Let him come, and here make up the count of his
bargained year, and salute — unhappy exile ! — his
Cadmean home and his father's blindness ; why
should my blood atone the fraud and the royal
miscreant's traitorous crime ? " Then others : " Too
late is good faith now, he would rather conquer."
Others in a tearful suppliant throng implore Tiresias,
and ask — the only solace in adversity— to learn the
future. But he withholds and keeps hidden the
destinies of heaven: "Is it because" our monarch
so trusted my warning counsels before, when I
forbade perfidious warfare ? Yet, unhappy Thebes,"
he cries, " that art doomed to destruction should I
be dumb, I cannot endure miserably to hear of
thy fall and with these empty eyes to drink
in Argohc ^ flames. Let me yield, O Piety " ! ho !
maiden, set the altars, let us inquire of the gods
above." She obeys, and keenly gazing informs him
of blood-red points of flame and a twofold fire
upon the altar, and how the middle blaze yet
rises high and clear ; then she teaches her doubt-
ing sire that the ruddy flame is rolled and
shaped with double coil into the ghostly likeness
of a serpent ** and illuminates her father's gloom.
He straightway spreads his arms about the gar-
landed fire, and absorbs the prophetic vapours with
glowing countenance. His hair rises in horror and
dismay, and the grey locks madly Hft high the
covering fillets : one would think his eyes were open,

363

STATIUS

lumina consumptumque genis rediisse nitorem.

tandem exundanti permisit verba furori :

" audite, o sontes, extrema litamina divum, 610

Labdacidae : venit alma salus, sed limite duro.

Martius inferias et saeva efflagitat anguis

sacra : cadat generis quicumque novissimus exstat

viperei, datur hoe tantum victoria pacto.

felix, qui tanta lucem mercede relinquet." 615

Stabat fatidici prope saeva altaria vatis
maestus, adhuc patriae et tantum communia lugens
fata, Creon : grandem subiti cum fulminis ictum,
non secus ac torta traiectus cuspide pectus,
accipit exanimis sentitque Menoecea posci. 620

monstrat enim suadetque timor ; stupet anxius alto
corda metu glaciante pater : Trinacria qualis
era repercussum Libyco mare sumit ab aestu.
mox plenum Phoebo vatem et celerare iubentem
nunc humilis genua amplectens, nunc ora canentis
nequiquam reticere rogat ; iam fama sacratam 626
vocem amplexa volat, clamantque oracula Thebae.

Nunc, age, quis stimulos et pulchrae gaudia mortis
addiderit iuveni — neque enim haec absentibus

umquam
mens homini transmissa deis — memor incipe Clio,
saecula te quoniam penes et digesta vetustas. 631

Diva lovis solio iuxta comes, unde per orbem
rara dari terrisque solet contingere. Virtus,
seu pater omnipotens tribuit, sive ipsa capacis
elegit penetrare viros, caelestibus ut tunc 635

" Sicilian.
364

THEBAID, X. G08-63.5

and the lost glow had returned again to his cheeks.
At length he gave vent in words to the flood of his
frenzy : " Listen, ye guilty sons of Labdacus, and
hear the last sacrifice of all ! Kindly salvation
Cometh, but by a hard path. The snake of Mars
demands a \"ictim and a cruel offering : the latest
born of the serpent -brood must fall, at this price alone
can victory come. Happy is he whose death shall
win so great a guerdon I "

Creon, sad at heart and mourning as yet only for
his country and the common fate, stood by the stern
altar of the prophetic seer : when with the shock of a
sudden blow, as if a flung lance had pierced his breast,
he heard, near dead with horror, and knew Menoeceus
was demanded. Fear points the truth, nor suffers
doubt : he is benumbed by anguish, and an icy dread
assails the father's heart ; even so does the Trin-
acrian " coast sustain the sea hurled back from the
Libyan surge. Then humbly clasping the knees
of the seer, who, full of Phoebus, bids him make
speed, and touching the lips that chant the oracle, he
entreats him to be silent, all in vain ; already rumour
has seized the word and flies abroad, and Thebes
proclaims the oracle.

Come, now, tell who fired the youth with joy in a
noble death — for ne\-er without heaven's aid is this
mind given to men — begin thou, unforgetting Clio,
for the ages are in thy keeping, and all the storied
annals of the past.

The goddess Mrtue, close companion of the throne
of Jove, whence rarely she is wont to be vouchsafed
to the world and to bless the earth, whether the
almighty Father hath sent her, or she herself hath
chosen to dwell in men worthy of her — how gladly

365

STATIUS

desiluit gavisa plagis ! dant clara meanti

astra locum quosque ipsa polis adfixerat ignes.

iamque premit terras, nee vultus ab aethere longe ;

sed placuit mutare genas, fit provida Manto,

responsis ut plena^ fides, et fraude priores 640

exuitur voltus. abiit horrorque vigorque

ex oeulis, paulum decoris permansit honosque

mollior, et posito vatum gestamina ferro

subdita ; descendunt vestes, torvisque ligatur

vitta comis — nam laurus erat — tamen aspera produnt

ora deam nimiique gradus. sic Lydia coniunx 646

Amphitryoniaden exutum horrentia terga

perdere Sidonios umeris ridebat^ amictus

et turbare colus et tympana rumpere dextra.

Sed neque te indecorem sacris dignumque iuberi
talia Dircaea stantem pro tun*e, Menoeceu, 651

invenit ; immensae reserato limine portae
sternebas Danaos, pariter Mavortius Haemon.
sed consanguinei quamvis atque omnia fratres,
tu prior : exanimes circum cumulantur acervi ; 655
omne sedet telum, nulli sine caedibus ictus —
necdum aderat Virtus — non mens,non dextra quiescit,
non avida arma vacant, ipsa insanire videtur
Sphinx galeae custos, visoque animata cruore
emicat effigies et sparsa orichalca renident : 660

^ plena Pw : plana L Gronovius.
^ ridebat a; : redimibat P.

" i.e., the spirits who for their virtue had been made divine.
The stars were supposed to be the abode of such, or even
the spirits themselves.

* Apparently a rendering of Homer's description of Eris,
II. iv. 443 ovpav<^ earrjpL^e Kapr) /cat eVi x^^vl ^alvn.

366

THEBAID, X. 636-660

then did she leap do^^Ti from the heavenly places !
The shining stars gave way before her, and those
fires that she herself had fixed in heaven <* ; already
she treads the earth, nor is her countenance far
distant from the sky * ; but it pleased her to change
her aspect, and she becomes sagacious Manto, that
her speech might have full credence, and by deceit
puts off her former mien. The look of awe, the
austerity were gone, something of charm remained,
and a softer beauty ; the sword was laid aside, and
she took instead the prophet's wand ; her robe falls
to her feet, and on her stem brow the wool is bound,
where before was laurel ; yet her grave aspect and
more than mortal strides betray the goddess. Even
so at AmphitrA'on's son did his Lydian mistress ^
laugh, when putting off the bristling hide he marred
the Sidonian raiment ^^^th his vast shoulders, and
wrought confusion in the distaff and smashed the
timbrels with his hand.

Nor does she find thee, O Menoeceus, an unworthy
\ictim, nor unfit to receive so solemn a behest, as
thou standest before the Dircaean tower ; the huge
gate unbarred, thou wert slaying the Danaans, and
Martian Haemon'* in like manner. But though ye
were of one blood, and in everj'thing brothers, thou
hadst first place : heaps of dead are piled around thee,
ever}- dart finds its mark, no stroke but a victim falls
— nor yet had Virtue come to aid — neither mind nor
hand is idle, the eager weapons are never still, even
the Sphinx, the guardian of his casque, appears to
rage, the image, animated by the sight of blood,
flashes out, and the bespattered brass gleams :

* i,*., Orophale. ''His brother.

367

STATIUS

cum dea pugnantis capulum dextramque repressit :
" magnanime o iuvenis, quo non agnoverit ullum
certius armifero Cadmi de semine Mavors,
linque humiles pugnas, non haec tibi debita virtus :
astra vocant, caeloque animam, plus concipe, mittes.
iamdudum hoc hilares genitor bacchatur ad aras, 666
hoc ignes fibraeque volunt, hoc urget Apollo :
terrigenam cuncto patriae pro sanguine poscunt.
fama canit monitus, gaudet Cadmeia plebes
certa tui^ ; rape mente deos, rape nobile fatum. 670
1, precor, adcelera, ne proximus occupet Haemon."
sic ait, et magna cunctantis pectora dextra
permulsit tacite seseque in corde reliquit.
fulminis haud citius radiis adflata cupressus
combibit infestas et stirpe et vertice flammas, 675
quam iuvenis multo possessus numine pectus
erexit sensus letique invasit amorem.
ut vero aversae gressumque habitumque notavit
et subitam a terris in nubila crescere Manto,
obstipuit. " sequimur, divum quaecumque vocasti,
nee tarde paremus," ait ; iamiamque recedens 681
instantem vallo Pylium tamen Agrea fixit.
armigeri fessum excipiunt ; tum vulgus euntem
auctorem pacis servatoremque deumque
conclamat gaudens atque ignibus implet honestis.
iamque iter ad muros cursu festinus anhelo 686

obtinet et miseros gaudet vitasse parentes,
cum genitor — steteruntque ambo et vox haesit
utrique,^

^ certa tui w : certatim P.
utrique KQ : utrimque Pw.

SQS

THEBAID, X. 661-688

M'hen the goddess stays the warrior's hand upon the
sword-hilt : " Great-hearted youth, than whom none
were more surely known of Mars to be of Cadmas'
fighting seed, leave these mean affrays, such is not
the prowess reserved for thee : the stars are calhng
thee, thou shalt send thy soul to heaven — conceive a
nobler destiny ! This it is that inspires my father's
frenzy at the joyful altars, this the flames and the
fibres demand, this doth Apollo urge : they call for
an earth-born one on behalf of our country's common
hfe. Rumour repeats the counsel, the folk of Cadmus,
certain of thee, rejoice ; take the gods' word to heart,
and snatch a glorious fate. Go, I pray thee, and
hasten, lest Haemon by thy side forestall thee." So
speaking she assured his wavering mind vrith the
silent touch of her mighty hand, and left herself
\v-ithin his heart. No more swiftly does the cypress
blasted by the lightning flash drink up the deadly
flame from stem to summit than did the youth,
possessed by the mighty deity, raise high his' spirit
and fall straight in love with death. But when he
marked her gait and habit as she turned, and beheld
Manto on a sudden rise from earth into the clouds,
he was astounded. " I follow thee," he cries, " who-
ever of the gods hast called me, nor am I slow to
obey : " yet even as he retired he pierced Agreus
of Pylos, who was threatening the rampart. His
squires receive him, weary from the battle ; then, as
he proceeds, the mob in joy hails him as peace-
bringer, preserver and god, and kindles within him
a noble flame.

And now he is making his way to the city in
breathless haste, rejoicing to have avoided his un-
happy parents, when his father — both stopped, with

VOL. II 2 b 369

ST ATI us

deiectaeque genae. tandem pater ante profatus :

" quis novus inceptis rapuit te casus ab armis ? 690

quae bello graviora paras ? die, nate, precanti,

cur tibi torva acies ? cur hie truculentus in ore

pallor, et ad patrios non stant tua lumina voltus ?

audisti responsa, palam est. per ego oro tuosque,

nate, meosque annos miseraeque per ubera matris,

ne vati, ne crede, puer ! superine profanuin 696

dignantur stimulare senem, cui vultus inanis

exstinctique orbes et poena simillima diro

Oedipodae ? quid si insidiis et fraude dolosa

rex agit, extrema est cui nostra in sorte timori 700

nobilitas tuaque ante duces notissima virtus ?

illius haec forsan, remur quae verba deorum ;

ille monet ! ne frena animo permitte calenti,

da spatium tenuemque moram, male cuncta ministrat

impetus ; hoc, oro, munus concede parenti. 705

sic tua maturis signentur tempora canis,

et sis ipse parens et ad hunc, animose, timorena

pervenias : ne perge meos orbare penates.

externi te nempe patres alienaque tangunt

pignora ? si pudor est, primum miserere tuorum. 710

haec pietas, hie verus honos ; ibi gloria tantum

ventosumque decus titulique in morte latentes.

nee timidus te flecto parens : i, proelia misce,

i Danaas acies mediosque per obvius enses ;

non teneo : liceat misero tremibunda lavare 715

vulnera et undantem lacrimis siccare cruorem,

teque iterum saevis iterumque remittere bellis.

hoc malunt Thebae." sic colla manusque tenebat

370

THEBAID, X. 689-718

speech cut short and eyes downcast. At length his
sire began : " What new chance has taken thee from
a battle lately joined ? What design hast thou, that
is weightier than war ? Tell me, my son, I entreat
thee, why is thy look so fierce ? Why this angry
pallor in thy face, why do thy eyes meet not thy
father's gaze ? 'Tis plain, thou hast heard the oracle.
By thy years and mine, my son, and by thy \ATetched
mother's breast, I pray thee, lad, listen not to the
seer ! Do the gods deign to inspire an impious
dotard, with sightless face and blinded eyes, stricken
even as dread Oedipus ? What if the king be using
treachery and deceitful fraud, fearing in his desperate
case our noble blood and thy valour that is renowned
above our chieftains ? Perchance they are his words,
which we deem to be the gods' ; 'tis he that gives
this counsel ! Suffer not thy hot blood to carry
thee away, but delay a trifling space, passion is ever
a bad guide ; grant this boon, I entreat thee, to thy
father. So may thy temples be marked with the
grey hairs of age, and thyself be a parent, and come,
rash boy, to fear like me : lay not my home desolate.
Do other sires and the babes of strangers move thee ?
If thou hast any shame, pity first thine own. This
is duty, this is true honour ; there lies but empty
glory and wind-blown reno^^Ti and a name that will
be lost in death. Nor is it from a father's fears that I
urge thee : go, join in the fray, go, force thy way
through the Danaan lines where swords are thickest :
I do not hold thee back ; let me but cleanse thy
quivering wounds and stanch with my tears thy
welling blood, and send thee back again and yet
again to the cruel battle. This does Thebes rather
choose." So spake he, vriih his arms in close

371

ST ATI us

implicitus ; sed nee laerimae nee verba movebant
dis votum iuvenem ; quin et monstrantibus illis 720
fraude patrem tacita subit avertitque timorem :
" falleris heu verosque metus, pater optime, nescis.
non me ulli monitus, nee vatum exorsa furentum
sollicitant vanisque^ movent : sibi callidus ista
Tiresias nataeque canat ; non si ipse reclusis 725

comminus ex adytis in me insaniret Apollo,
sed gravis unanimi casus me fratris ad urbem
sponte refert : gemit Inachia mihi saucius Haemon
cuspide ; vix ilium medio de pulvere belli
inter utrasque acies, iamiamque tenentibus Argis —
sed moror ; i, refove dubium turbaeve ferenti^ 731
die, parcant leviterque vehant ; ego vulnera doctum
iungere supremique fugam revocare cruoris
Aetiona petam." sic imperfecta locutus
effugit ; illi atra mersum caligine pectus 735

confudit sensus ; pietas incerta vagatur
discordantque metus, impellunt credere Parcae.

Turbidus interea ruptis venientia portis
agmina belligeri Capaneus agit aequore campi,
cornua nunc equitum, cuneos nunc ille pedestres,
et proculcantes moderantum funera currus ; 741

idem altas turres saxis et turbine crebro
laxat, agit turmas idem atque in sanguine fumat.
nunc spargit torquens volucri nova vulnera plumbo,
nunc iaculum excusso rotat in sublime lacerto, 745
nuUaque tectorum subit ad fastigia, quae non
deferat hasta virum perfusaque caede recurrat.

^ vanisque P : manesque w.
" ferenti P : furenti BLD.

372

THEBAID, X. 719-747

embrace about his son's neck, but the youth, once
vowed to the gods, was moved by neither tears nor
words ; nay, at their prompting he met his sire with
secret fraud and turned his fears : " Good father,
thou art mistaken, thy fears are vain. No warning
or speech of frenzied seers disturbs me, or troubles
me "vWth empty terrors ; let crafty Tiresias keep his
chantings for himself and his own daughter ; nought
should I care, if Apollo himself were to open his
shrine and confront me with his ravings. No, 'tis
the sore hurt of my loved brother that takes me back
of my own will to the city ; my Haemon groans from
the wound of an Inachian spear ; scarce out of the
dust of battle, from between the lines — the Argives
had already seized him — but I waste time ; go,
cheer his distress, and tell his bearers to spare him
and carry him gently ; I go to find Action who is
skilled to join up wounds and recall the life-blood's
ebbing stream." He breaks off and speeds away ;
in the other's breast confusion reigns and a dark
cloud of woe ; he wavers uncertainly between devoted
love and harsh, discordant fears ; but Fate impels
him to beheve.

Meanwhile impetuous Capaneus drives o'er the
battle-plain the troops that issue from the breached
gates, now squadrons of horse, now regiments of foot,
now chariots that trample the corpses of their own
charioteers ; he it is that rends high towers with stones
and many a whizzing dart, he it is that routs the
cohorts and reeks in gore. Now he whirls the winged
bullet and scatters strange wounds all around, now
he swings his arm aloft and sends the javelin flying,
nor ever a lance mounts the roof-top, that brings not
down its man, and falls back streaming with blood.

373

STATIUS

nee iam aut Oeniden aut Hippomedonta peremptos
aut vatem Pelopea phalanx aut Arcada eredunt :
quin socium coiisse animas et eorpore in uno 750

stare omnes, ita cuncta replet. non ullius aetas,
non cultus, non forma movet ; pugnantibus idem
supplicibusque furit ; non quisquam obsistere contra,
non belli temptare vices : procul arma furentis
terribilesque iubas et frontem cassidis horrent. 755

At pius electa murorum in parte Menoeceus
iam sacer aspectu solitoque augustior ore,
ceu subito in terras supero demissus ab axe,
constitit, exempta manifestus casside nosci,
despexitque acies hominum et clamore profundo 760
convertit campum iussitque silentia bello.
" armorum superi, tuque o qui funere tanto
indulges mihi, Phoebe, mori, date gaudia Thebis,
quae pepigi et toto quae sanguine prodigus emi.
ferte retro bellum captaeque impingite Lernae 765
relliquias turpes, confixaque terga foventes
Inachus indecores pater aversetur alumnos.
at Tyriis templa, arva, domos, conubia, natos
reddite morte mea : si vos placita hostia iuvi,
si non attonitis vatis consulta recepi 770

auribus et Thebis nondum credentibus hausi,
haec Amphioniis pro me persolvite tectis
ac mihi deceptum, precor, exorate parentem."
sic ait, insignemque animam mucrone corusco
dedignantem artus pridem maestamque teneri 775
arripit atque uno quaesitam vulnere rumpit.
sanguine tunc spargit turres et moenia lustrat,

374

THEBAID, X. 748-777

No longer does the Pelopean phalanx believe Oenides
or Hippomedon slain, or the bard or yet the Arcadian,
but rather that their comrades' souls are all rejoined
in his one frame, so fills he all the battle-field. Nor
age, nor dress, nor beauty moves him ; alike on those
that fight and those that entreat he pours his fury ;
none dare resist, or try the chances of war ; afar as
he rages they shudder at his armour and terrible
crest and helmet's front.

But the devoted Menoeceus stood on a chosen part
of the wall, sacred already to behold, and majestic
in mien beyond his wont, as though suddenly de-
scended to earth from heaven above, bareheaded and
manifest to view ; he gazed down upon the lines of
warriors, and stilled the clamours of the field and
bade the war be silent. " Ye gods of battle, and
thou, O Phoebus, who grantest me a death so
glorious, vouchsafe to Thebes the joys which I have
covenanted for and bought with all my lavish hfe-
blood. Roll back the tide of war, and hurl against
captive Lerna her base remnants ; let father Inachus
turn away from his dishonoured sons as they nurse
the spear- wound in their backs. But restore to the
T}Tians by my death their temples, fields and homes,
children and wives ; if I, your chosen \ictim, have
pleased you, if I heard the prophet's oracle with no
panic-stricken ear, and took it to my heart ere ever
Thebes believed it, reward Amphion's town in my
stead, and reconcile,! pray, the sire whom I deceived."
So he speaks, and with his ghttering blade tears at
the noble soul that long has disdained its body and
grieved to be held fast, and probes for the life and
rends it with one wound. Then with his blood he
sprinkled the towers and purified the walls, and

375

STATIUS

seque super medias acies, nondum ense remisso,

iecit et in saevos cadere est eonatus Achivos.

ast ilium amplexae Pietas Virtusque ferebant 780

leniter ad terras corpus ; nam spiritus olim

ante lovem et summis apicem sibi poscit in astris.

lamque intra muros nullo sudore receptum
gaudentes heroa ferunt : abscesserat ultro
Tantalidum venerata cohors ; subit agmine longo
colla inter iuvenum, laetisque favoribus omni 786

concinitur vulgo Cadmum atque Amphiona supra
eonditor ; hi sertis, hi veris honore solutos^
adcumulant artus patriaque in sede reponunt
corpus adoratum. repetunt mox bella peractis 790
laudibus ; hie victa genitor lacrimabilis ira
congemit, et tandem matri data flere potestas :
" lustralemne feris ego te, puer inclyte, Thebis
devotumque caput vilis ceu mater alebam ?
quod molita nefas, cui tantum invisa deorum ? 795
non ego monstrifero coitu revoluta novavi^
pignora, nee nato peperi funesta nepotes.
quid refert ? potitur natis^ locasta ducesque
regnantesque videt : nos saeva piacula bello
demus, ut alterni — placet hoc tibi, fulminis auctor —
Oedipodionii mutent diademata fratres ! 801

quid superos hominesve queror ? tu, saeve Menoeceu,
tu miseram ante omnes properasti exstinguere
matrem.

^ solutos late mss., Peyrared : soluto w : solito P.

" novavi DQ, Heinsius : notavi w, natavi P.

^ potitur natis P : habet ecce suos to.

" The Latin " Pietas " has a somewhat wider significance,
including the ideas of Loyaltj', Devotion, Affection, which
it is impossible to express in one English word.
376

THEBAID, X. 778-803

grasping still his sword hurled himself into the midst
of the hnes and strove to fall upon the fierce Achaeans.
But Piety " and \'irtue clasped and bore his body
Ughtly to the earth ; for his spirit long since is at
the throne of Jove, and demands for itself a crown
'mid highest stars.

And now rejoicing they bear the hero within the
walls, recovering his body ^\^th no labour : of its
own accord the Tantahd host in reverence withdrew ;
he is borne on the necks of youths in a long train, and
is acclaimed by the glad praise of all the populace
as patron of the town above Cadmus and Amphion ;
with garlands and all the honour of the spring they
heap his hfeless limbs, and lay his venerated body in
his forefathers' tomb. Then when their lauds are
finished they resume the fight, and his sire, his \ATath
appeased, sheds tears and joins in the lament, and
his mother can weep her fill at last : " Was it then
to make atonement and devote thy life for cruel
Thebes that I nourished thee, illustrious boy, as
though I were some worthless mother ? What
crime then had I "WTOught, what god so hated me ?
No incestuous offspring have I borne in unnatural
intercourse, nor given unhallowed progeny to my
own son. What matters that ? Jocasta hath her
sons, and sees them leaders and kings : but we must
make cruel expiation for the war, that the brothers,
sons of Oedipus, may exchange their diadems — doth
this please thee, O author of the blow * ? But why
complain I of men and gods ? Thou, cruel Menoeceus,
thou before all didst haste to slay thy unhappy

* For the use of " fulmen " see note on ix. 218 ; for the
phrase cf. Chid, Met. viii. 349 " auctor teU." Jupiter is
presumably meant.

377

STATIUS

unde hie mortis amor ? quae saera insania menti ?
quosve ego conceptus aut quae male pignora fudi
tarn diversa mihi ? nimirum Martius anguis, 806

quaeque novis proavum tellus effloruit armis —
hinc animi tristes nimiusque in pectore Mayors,
et de matre nihil, sponte en ultroque peremptus
inrumpis maestas Fatis nolentibus umbras. 810

ast egomet Danaos Capaneaque tela verebar :
haec erat, haec metuenda manus ferrumque, quod

amens
ipsa dedi. viden ut iugulo consumpserit ensem ?
altius haud quisquam Danaum mucrone subisset."

Diceret infelix etiamnum et cuncta repleret 815
questibus : abducunt comites famulaeque perosam
solantes thalamoque tenent, sedet eruta multo
ungue genas ; non ilia diem, non verba precantum
respicit aut visus flectit tellure relietos,
iam vocis, iam mentis inops. sic aspera tigris 820
fetibus abreptis Scythico deserta sub antro
accubat et tepidi lambit vestigia saxi ;
nusquam irae, sedit^ rabidi^ feritasque famesque
oris, eunt praeter secura ai'menta gregesque :
aspicit ilia iacens ; ubi enim, quibus ubera pascat
aut quos ingenti premat exspectata rapina ? 826

Hactenus arma, tubae, ferrumque et vulnera : sed
nunc
comminus astrigeros Capaneus tollendus in axis,
non mihi iam solito vatum de more canendum^ ;

^ sedit Pw : cedit Q.
^ rabidi VoUmer : rapidi P : rabies w.
* canendum w : canentum P.

378

THEBAID, X. 804-829

mother ! Whence came this love of death ? WTiat
cursed madness seized thy mind ? What did I con-
ceive, what misbegotten child did I bear, so different
from mvself ? \'erily 'tis the snake of Mars, and the
ground that burgeoned fresh \\-ith our armed sires
— thence comes that desperate valour, that o'er-
mastering love of war : nought comes of his mother.
Lo ! of thine o^\•n ysriW and pleasure slain, ay, even
against the will of Fate, thou forcest an entrance to
the gloomy shades. I was fearing the Danaans and
the shafts of Capaneus : 'twas this hand, this hand of
thine I should have feared, and the sword I myself
once gave thee in my folly. See how the blade is
wholly buried in his throat ! None of the Danaans
could have made a deeper thrust."

Even yet would the unhappy woman be speaking
and making her sorrow kno\^Ti on every side ; but
her companions and her handmaids bear her away,
hating those who would console her, and keep her
in her chamber ; there she sits, her cheeks deep
ploughed by her nails, nor looks towards the hght,
nor listens to entreaties, nor turns her face that is
ever fixed on the ground — her voice, her reason lost.
So a fierce tigress robbed of her cubs lies desolate
in her Scythian lair and hcks the traces on the warm
stone ; her fury is gone, the savagery and hunger
of her ravenous jaws are abated, and the flocks and
herds go careless by : she sees them and hes still,
for where are they for whom she should feed her
dugs, or, long-awaited, heap up the abundant prey ?

So far of arms and trumpets, of swords and wounds
I tell ; but now Capaneus must be raised high to do
battle mth the star-bearing vault. No more may I
sing after the wonted way of bards ; a mightier

379

STATIUS

maior ab Aoniis poscenda amentia lucis : 830

mecum omnes audete deae ! sive ille profunda
missus nocte furor, Capaneaque signa secutae
arma lovem contra Stygiae rapuere sorores,
seu virtus egressa modum, seu gloria praeceps,
seu magnae data fata^ neci, seu laeta malorum 835
principia et blandae superum mortalibus irae.

lam sordent terrena viro taedetque profundae
caedis, et exhaustis olim Graiumque suisque
missilibus lassa respexit in aethera dextra.
ardua mox torvo metitur culmina visu, 840

innumerosque gradus, gemina latus arbore clusos,
aerium sibi portat iter, longeque timendus
multifidam quercum flagranti lumine vibrat ;
arma rubent una clipeoque ineenditur ignis.
" hac " ait, " in Thebas, hac me iubet ardua virtus 845
ire, Menoeceo qua lubrica sanguine turris.
experiar, quid sacra iuvent, an falsus Apollo."
dicit, et alterno captiva in moenia gressu
surgit ovans : qualis mediis in nubibus aether
vidit Aloidas, cum cresceret impia tellus 850

despectura deos nee adhuc immane veniret
Pelion et trepidum iam tangeret Ossa Tonantem.

Tunc vero attoniti fatorum in cardine summo,
ceu suprema lues urbi facibusque cruentis
aequatura solo turres Bellona subiret, 855

^ fata Pw : fama late MSB.

" " magnae data fata neci " seems hardly Latin, but I
have kept the ms. reading ; " fama " merely repeats the
idea of " gloria praeceps " ; " necis," Klotz's suggestion, may
be right.

* A strange expression by which Statius means a ladder
(the KXlfxaKos Trpoo-ayU^dtrets of Aeschylus, Sept. 466).

380

THEBAID, X. 830-855

frenzy must be summoned from the Aonian groves.
Dare \\ith me, goddesses all : whether that madness
of his was sent from deepest night and the Stygian
sisters dogged the banner of Capaneus and forced
him to the assault against Jove, or whether 'twas
valour that brooked no bounds, or headlong love of
glory, or utter destruction's appointed doom,** or
success that goes before disaster and heaven luring
to ruin in its wTath.

Now earthly battles grow mean in the hero's eyes,
he is tired of the endless slaughter ; long ago have his
own weapons and those of the Greeks been spent, his
right arm grows weary, he looks up to the sky. Soon
with frowning gaze he measures the lofty battlements,
and gets him a skyward leading path of steps in-
numerable, a tree guarding its either flank,* and
terribly from afar he brandishes a flaring torch of
oaken faggots : his armour glows red, and a blaze
is kindled on his shield. " By this road," he cries,
" by this road my lofty valour bids me go to Thebes,
where yonder tower is slippery with Menoeceus'
blood. I shall try what sacrifice avails, and whether
Apollo be false." He speaks, and chmbs %\-ith alter-
nate step exultant against the captured wall : even
as the vault beheld the Aloidae "^ amid the clouds,
when impious earth rose high and was like to look
down upon the gods ; not yet had mighty Pelion
been added and Ossa already touched the affrighted
Thunderer.

Then indeed aghast, upon the utmost verge of
doom, as though the last destruction threatened, or
Bellona with blood-stained brand drew nigh to raze
their towers to the ground, from every roof in

* Otus and Ephialtes, Giants who tried to storm heaven.

381

ST ATI us

omnibus e tectis certatim ingentia saxa
roboraque et validas fundae Balearis habenas —
nam iaculis caeloque vagis spes unde sagittis ? —
verum avidi et tormenta rotant et molibus urgent,
ille nee ingestis nee terga sequentibus umquam 860
detrahitur telis, vacuoque sub aere pendens
plana velut terra certus vestigia figat,
tendit et ingenti subit oceurrente ruina :
amnis ut incumbens longaevi robora pontis
adsiduis oppugnat aquis, iam saxa fatiscunt 865

emotaeque trabes ; tanto violentior ille —
sentit enim — maiore salo quassatque trahitque
molem aegram, nexus donee celer alveus omnis
abscidit et cursu victor respirat aperto.
utque petita diu celsus fastigia supra 870

eminuit trepidamque adsurgens desuper urbem
vidit et ingenti Thebas exterruit umbra,
increpat attonitos : " humilesne^ Amphionis arces,
pro pudor ! hi faciles carmenque imbelle secuti,
hi, mentita diu Thebarum fabula, muri ? 875

et quidnam egregium prosternere moenia molli
structa lyra ? " simul insultans gressuque manuque
molibus obstantes cuneos tabulataque saevus
restruit^ : absiliunt pontes, tectique prementis
saxea frena labant, dissaeptoque aggere rursus 880
utitur et truncas rupes in templa domosque
praecipitat frangitque suis iam moenibus urbem.
lamque lovem circa studiis diversa fremebant

^ humilesne Pw : haene illae N2, Barth, Bentley.
2 restruit PQSB -. destruit K, detrahit N. Garrod cf.
X. 527, claustra remoliri.

382

THEBAID, X. 856-883

emulous haste they hurl huge stones and stakes,
and whirl the strong lash of the Balearic sling — what
hope is there in javehns and the vague flight of
arrows ? — nay, they eagerly ply their engines and
impel great rocks against him. But he, unmoved
by missiles assailing him in front or rear, hovers
aloft in empty air, yet sure as though he planted his
steps on the flat earth, and strives onward, and draws
nigh in the teeth of fell destruction : just as a river
pressing upon the timbers of an ancient bridge
assaults it w-iih unresting waters, and now the
stones gape and the beams are loosened ; with the
more violence — for he knows it — and greater surge
he shakes and drags at the weakening mass, till the
s>\'ift current has burst all the fastenings, and
triumphantly draws breath again, and flows on with
unhampered course. And when he stood out high
above the long-attempted summit, and in towering
height looked down upon the trembling city, and
terrified Thebes with his huge shadow, he taunted
the astounded folk: "Are these Amphion's insigni-
ficant towers — for shame I— are these the comphant
walls that followed an unwarlike song ? — that ancient,
lying tale of Thebes ? And what glor}- is there in
overtlirowing a fortress built by a feeble lyre ? "
Therewith he falls vrith. foot and hand upon the
masonry, and fiercely destroys the jointing and the
flooring that would stay him; connecting bridges
fall, the stone curbs of the covering roof give way,
and again he uses the dismembered mass, and hurls
do\vn rocky fragments on temples and on houses,
and now he is shattering the city with its own
fortress- walls.

Meanwhile about Jove's throne the Argive and

383

ST ATI us

Argolici Tyriique dei ; pater aequus utrisque
aspicit ingentes ardentum comminus iras 885

seque obstare videt. gemit inservante^ noverca
Liber et obliquo respectans lumine patrem :
" nunc ubi saeva manus, meaque heu cunabula

flammae,
fulmen, io ubi fulmen ? " ait. gemit auctor Apollo,
quas dedit ipse, domos ; Lernam Thebasque rependit
maestus et intento dubitat Tirynthius arcu ; 891

maternos plangit volucer Danaeius Argos ;
flet Venus Harmoniae populos metuensque mariti
stat procul et tacita Gradivum respicit ira.
increpat Aonios audax Tritonia divos, 895

lunonem tacitam furibunda silentia torquent.
non tamen haec turbant pacem lovis : ecce quierunt
iurgia, cum mediis Capaneus auditus in astris.
" nullane pro trepidis " clamabat, " numina Thebis
statis ? ubi infandae segnes telluris alumni, 900

Bacchus et Alcides ? pudet instigare minores.
tu potius venias — quis enim concurrere nobis
dignior? en cineres Semeleaque busta tenentur — ,
nunc age, nunc totis in me conitere flammis,
luppiter ! an pavidas tonitru turbare puellas 905

fortior et soceri turres exscindere Cadmi ? "

Ingemuit dictis superum dolor ; ipse furentem
risit et incussa sanctarum mole comarum,
" quaenam spes hominum tumidae post proelia

Phlegrae !

^ inservante PN : infestante KQ marg. of B.

" i.e., Juno.

* The references here are to the oracle given by Apollo
at Delphi to Cadmus, which led to the founding of Thebes,
cf. vii. 664, and to the fact that Hercules was connected

384

THEBAID, X. 884-909

the Tyrian deities were clamouring in diverse factions:
the impartial sire beholds their \\Tath blaze high
around him, and marks that he restrains it. Beneath
his stepmother's " gaze Liber regards his sire askance,
and makes lament : " Where now is that ruthless
hand? " he cries, "where alas! is my cradle of fire,
the thunderbolt, ay, where the thunderbolt ? "
Apollo ^ too laments the homes which once his
command appointed ; the Tirynthian weighs Lema ^
against Thebes, and hesitates %\-ith ready-strung bow;
the >nnged Danaan ^ grieves for his mother's Argos ;
Venus weeps for Harmonia's folk, and fearing her
husband stands apart and gazes at Gradivus in silent
anger. Bold Tritonia blames the Tyrian gods,
while speechless rage tortures the heart of silent
Juno. Yet undisturbed is the peace of Jove ; and lo !
their quarrels ceased when in mid-heaven Capaneus
was heard: "Are there no gods among you," he
cries, " who stand for panic-stricken Thebes ?
Where are the sluggard sons of this accursed land,
Bacchus and Alcides ? Any of lesser name I am
ashamed to challenge. Rather come thou — what
worthier antagonist ? For lo ! Semele's ashes and
her tomb are in my power! — <;ome thou, and strive
with all thy flames against me, thou, Jupiter! Or
art thou braver at frightening timid maidens with
thy thunder, and razing the towers of thy father-in-
law Cadmus? "

Loud rose the gods' indignant clamour at his words ;
Jove himself laughed at the madman, and shaking
the thick mass of his sacred locks : " What hope has
man after Phlegra's arrogant assault ? " he says,

botli with Thebes and Argos (Lema) by descent. The
Danaan is Perseus, son of Danae.

VOL. II 2 c 385

ST ATI us

tune etiam feriendus ? " ait. premit undique lentum
turba deum frendens et tela ultrieia poscit, 911

nee iam audet fatis turbata obsistere coniunx.
ipsa dato nondum caelestis regia signo
sponte tonat, coeunt ipsae sine flamine nubes
adcurruntque imbres : Stygias rupisse catenas 915
lapetum aut vinctam^ supera ad convexa levari
Inarimen Aetnanive putes. pudet ista timere
caelicolas ; sed cum in media vertigine mundi
stare virum insanasque vident deposcere pugnas,
mirantur taciti et dubio pro fulmine pallent. 920

coeperat Ogygiae supra fastigia turris
arcanum mugire polus caelumque tenebris
auferri : tenet ille tamen, quas non videt, arces,
fulguraque attritis quotiens micuere procellis,
" his " ait, " in Thebas, his iam decet ignibus uti, 925
hinc renovare faces lassamque accendere quercum."
talia dicentem toto love fulmen adactum
corripuit : primae fugere in nubila cristae,
et clipei niger umbo cadit, iamque omnia lucent
membra viri. cedunt acies, et terror utrimque, 930
quo ruat, ardenti feriat quas corpore turmas.
intra se stridere facem galeamque comasque
sentit,^ et urentem thoraca repellere dextra
conatus ferri cinerem sub pectore tractat,^
stat tamen, extremumque in sidera versus anhelat,*

^ vinctam K2, Peyrared: victam BDNQK: victum PS.
aut after victum Kohlmann.

^ sentit Imliof: quaerit mss. : questus Garrod : saevit Klotz.

^ Lines 932-4 only in DS (between lines) B {in marg.) and
late MSS.

* anhelat w : adhaesit PN2.

" lapetus was a Titan, imprisoned below the earth;
volcanoes such as Aetna were thought to contain fettered
giants and Titans.

386

THEBAID, X. 910-935

" and must thou too be struck down ? " As he
hesitates the gods throng round him, gnashing their
teeth and crying for the avenging weapons, nor any
longer dares his anxious consort resist the Fates.
The heavenly palace itself thunders, though no sign
is given, the clouds themselves gather and the
storms collect without the blast of any wind : one
would think lapetus had burst his Stygian chains,
and that fettered Inarime or Aetna had been lifted
to the heights above." Such things the denizens of
heaven feel shame to fear; but when they see the
hero stand midway in the dizzy height of air, and
summon them to insane battle, they marvel in
silence, and grow pale, doubting the thunderbolt's
power. Then above the summit of the Ogygian
tower the vault began to bellow strangely, and the
sky to be lost in darkness ; yet still he grasps the
battlements he no longer sees, and as often as the
lightnings flashed through the rent storm-clouds :
"Ay here," he shouts, "here at last are the fires
'tis right to use against Thebes ! From them I may
renew my torch, and awaken my smouldering oaken
brand." Ev6n as he spoke, the thunderbolt struck
him, hurled vrith the whole might of Jove : his
crest first vanished into the clouds, the blackened
shield-boss dropped, and all the hero's limbs are now
illumined. The armies both give way, in terror
where he may fall, what squadrons he may strike
with his burning body. He feels the flame hissing
within him and his helmet and hair afire, and trying
to push away the galling cuirass ^^-ith his hand,
touches the scorched steel beneath his breast. He
stands nevertheless, and turning towards heaven

387

STATIUS

pectoraque invisis obicit fumantia muris, 936

ne caderet : sed membra virum terrena relinquunt,
exuiturque animus ; paulum si tardius artus
cessissent, potuit fulmen sperare^ secundum.

^ sperare Pi)iV2 : meruisse w.

388

THEBAID, X. 936-939

pants out his life and leans his smoking breast on the
hated battlements, lest he should fall ; but his
earthly frame deserts the hero, and his spirit is
released ; yet had his limbs been consumed a whit
more slowly, he might have expected a second
thunderbolt.

389

LIBER XI

Postquam magnanimus furias virtutis iniquae
consumpsit Capaneiis exspiravitque receptum
fulmen, et ad terras longe comitata cadentem
signavit muros ultricis semita flammae :
componit dextra victor concussa plagarum 5

luppiter et vultu caelumque diemque reducit.
gratantur superi, Phlegrae ceu fessus anhelet
proelia et Encelado fumantem impresserit Aetnen.
ille iacet lacerae complexus fragmina turris,
torvus adhuc visu memorandaque facta relinquens 10
gentibus atque ipsi non inlaudata Tonanti.
quantus Apollineae temerator matris Averno
tenditur ; ipsae horrent, si quando pectore ab alto
emergunt, volucres immensaque membra iacentis
spectant, dum miserae crescunt in pabiila fibrae : 15
sic gravat iniectus terras hostiliaque urit
arva et anhelantem caelesti sulpure campum.
respirant Thebae, templisque iacentia surgunt
agmina ; iam finis votis finisque supremis
planctibus, et natos ausae deponere matres. 20

At vaga palantes^ campo fuga volvit Achivos.
nee iam hostes turmae aut ferrum mortale timetur :
^ palantes w : pallentes PQ.

« Tityos.
390

BOOK XI

When great-souled Capaneus had spent the fury of
his unrighteous valour and gasped forth the le\'in-
fire that lodged \\-ithin him, and when the long track
of avenging flame that marked his fall to earth had
left its brand upon the walls : \'ictorious Jove with
his right hand composed the shaken vault, and
with his countenance restored the light of heaven.
The gods welcome him, as though he were breathless
and wear}' after Phlegra's fight, or had piled smoking
Aetna upon Enceladus. Grasping the fragment of
a shattered tower the hero lies, with a scowl yet upon
his face, and leaving deeds for all the world to tell
of, deeds that even the Thunderer might praise. As
vast as in Avemus lies outstretched the defiler of
Apollo's mother,'' whom even the birds behold aghast
when they emerge from his cavernous breast and view
his huge extended hmbs, while the wTctched fibres
grow again to feed them : so biu"dens he the earth,
flung prostrate, and scars the hostile fields and the
plain that gasps v\ith the heavenly sulphur. Thebes
draws breath once more, and the bowed suppliants
rise in the temples ; vows and desperate wailing
have an end, and the mothers dare to put down their
httle ones.

But the Achaeans are swept over the plain in
scattered, aimless rout. No more do they fear the

391

STATIUS

omnibus ante oculos irae lovis, omnibus ardent
arma metu galeaeque tonant,^ visusque paventes
ipse sequi et profugis opponere luppiter ignes. 25
instat Agenoreus miles caelique tumultu
utitur : indomitos ut cum Massyla per arva
armenti reges magno leo fregit hiatu
et contentus abit ; rauci tunc comminus ursi,
tunc avidi venere lupi, rabieque remissa 30

lambunt degeneres alienae vulnera praedae.
liinc premit Eurymedon, cui rusticus horror in armis,
rustica tela manu, patriumque agitare tumultus :
Pan illi genitor ; tener hinc conatibus annos
egreditur iuvenemque patrem puer aequat Alatreus:
felices ambo, sed fortunatior ille, 36

quem genuisse iuvat ; nee iam dignoscere promptum,
quae magis arma sonent, quo plus eat hasta lacerto.

Artatur denso fugientum examine vallum,
quas volvis, Gradive, vices ? modo moenia Cadmi 40
scandebant : sua nunc defendunt tecta Pelasgi !
ceu redeunt nubes, ceu circumflantibus austris
alternus procumbit ager, ceu gurgite cano
nunc retegit bibulas, nunc induit aestus harenas.
exspirat^ late pubes Tirynthia, alumni 45

exuvias imitata dei ; trux maeret ab astris
Amphitryoniades Nemeaea in sanguine terga
et similes ramos similesque videre pharetras.
stabat in Argolicae ferrato culmine turris
egregius lituo dextri Mavortis Enyeus^ 50

pre
^ tenant Pw : tremunt Q : tenant -D {with tremunt written
over).

^ exspirat P : procumbit to : expirat (cumbit written over) D.
* Enyeus P : enipeus w.

392

THEBAID, XL 23-50

squadrons of the foe or mortal steel : all have the
anger of Jove before their eyes, all in their terror see
their armour blazing and hear his thimder ringing
in their helmets ; Jove himself seemed to pursue
and to oppose his fires to their flight. The warriors
of Agenor press hard upon them, and use the tumult
of the sky : as when upon Massylian meads a lion
has crushed \\ithin his mighty jaws the untamed
monarchs of the herd, and departs, his hunger sated ;
then growling bears draw nigh and greedy wolves,
and with abated rage cowardly lap the blood of an
alien prey. Here Eur^medon pursues, vrith armour
rustic and uncouth and rustic weapons in his hand
and native skill to arouse panic terrors — his sire
was Pan ; there goes Alatreus forth, tender in vears
for such emprise, and though a boy, matching his
youthful father : fortunate both, but happier he who
delights in such progeny ; nor is it easy to discern
whose weapons ring the louder, from whose arm
more mightily flies the spear.

The ramparts are thronged with a dense mass of
fugitives. What changes dost thou bring, Gradivus !
But lately the Pelasgians were climbing Cadmus' walls,
now they defend their own ! Even so the clouds
return, so when the south %\'inds are blowing field
after field is swept by the blast, so the surge now
uncovers, now clothes with its white foam the thirsty
sand. Far and \\'ide perish the Tirynthian soldier}-,
that counterfeit the spoils of their'native god; the
stem son of Amphitryon mourns from the stars above
to see the Nemean skins and the clubs and quivers
like his own all drenched in blood. Upon the iron-
clad summit of the Argive tower stood Enyeus,
foremost to cheer to prosperous battle with the

39s

ST ATI us

hortator ; sed tunc miseris dabat utile signum
suadebatque fugam et tutos in castra receptus :
cum subitum obliquo descendit ab acre vulnus,
urgentisque sonum laeva manus aure retenta est,^
sicut erat ; fugit in vacuas iam spiritus auras, 55

iam gelida ora tacent, carmen tuba sola peregit.

lamquepotens scelerumgeminaeque exercitagentis
sanguine Tisiphone fraterna cludere quaerit
bella acie^ : nee se tanta in certamina fidit
sufficere, inferna comitem ni sede Megaeram 60

et consanguineos in proelia suscitet angues.
ergo procul vacua concedit^ valle solumque
ense fodit Stygio terraeque immurmurat absens
nomen et — Elysiis signum indubitabile regnis —
crinalem attollit longo stridore cerasten : 65

caeruleae dux ille comae, quo protinus omnis
horruit audito tellus pontusque polusque,
et pater Aetnaeos iterum respexit ad ignes.
accipit ilia sonum ; stabat tunc forte parenti
proxima, dum coetu Capaneus laudatur ab omni 70
Ditis et insignem Stygiis fovet amnibus umbram.
protinus abrupta terrarum mole sub astris
constitit, exsultant manes, quantumque profundae
rarescunt tenebrae, tantum de luce recessit.
excipit atra soror dextraeque innexa profatur : 75
" hac, germana, tenus Stygii metuenda parentis
imperia et iussos potui tolerare furores,

^ Line o-t omitted by P.

^ acie conj. Klotz : tuba P, certainly corrupt and probably
from l. 56 : pyra Fostgate : manu Imhof.

^ concedit PBL : consedit w, which is unsuitable in
sense ; vacua concedit valle may be paralleled by ibam via
sacra.

394

THEBAID, XI. 51-77

trumpet, but then he was giving welcome signal to
the distressed, and urging their flight and safe
retirement to the camp : when suddenly through the
air fell a sidelong blow, and as he sped the sound his
hand, just as it was, was fixed to his left ear ; already
his spirit flies forth upon the empty breeze, already
his frozen lips are silent, the trumpet completed its
call alone.

And now Tisiphone, haxing wrought her crimes
and weary of the bloodshed of two peoples, seeks to
conclude the fight with the brothers' conflict ; nor
trusts she her own strength for so dire a fray, unless
she can rouse from her infernal abode her companion
Megaera and her kindred snakes to battle. There-
fore she withdrew to an empty vale afar, and dug
into the ground her Stygian blade, and muttered
into the earth the name of the absent one, and — a
sign indubitable to the Elysian realm — raised aloft
a homed serpent from her hair vvith long-drawn
hisses : he was the prince ot her caerulean tresses,
and straightway hearing liim earth shuddered and sea
and sky, and the Father glanced again at his Aetnaean
fires." The other heard the sound : by chance she
was standing near her sire, while Capaneus was be-
lauded by the whole train of Dis, and refreshed his
glorious shade in the Stygian streams. Forthwith
she broke through the massive earth, and stood be-
neath the stars ; the ghosts rejoice, and as the nether
darkness grows less thick, so wanes the light above.
Her fell sister receives her, and clasps her hand and
speaks : " Thus far, my sister, have I been able to
sustain our Stygian father's dread commands and

" i.e., he looks again for his thunderbolts, after using one
against Capaneus.

395

ST ATI us

sola super terras hostilique obvia mundo,

dum vos Elysium et faciles compescitis umbras.

nee pretium deforme morae cassique labores : 80

hoc quodcumque madent campi, quod sanguine

fumant
stagna, quod innumero Lethaea examine gaudet
ripa, meae vires, mea laeta insignia, sed quid
haec ego ? Mars habeat, volgataque iactet Enyo.
vidisti — Stygiis certe manifestus in umbris — 85

sanguine foedatum rictus atroque madentem
ora ducem tabo : miseri insatiabilis edit
me tradente caput, modo nempe horrendus ab astris
descendit vos usque fragor : me sacra premebat
tempestas, ego mixta viri furialibus armis 90

bella deum et magnas ridebam fulminis iras.
sed iam — efFabor enim — longo sudore fatiscunt
corda, soror, tardaeque manus ; hebet infera caelo
taxus et insuetos angues nimia astra soporant.
tu, cui totus adhuc furor exsultantque recentes 95
Coqyti de fonte comae, da iungere vires,
non solitas acies nee Martia bella paramus,
sed fratrum — licet alma Fides Pietasque repugnent,
vincentur — fratrum stringendi comminus enses.
grande opus ! ipsae odiis, ipsae discordibus armis 100
aptemur. quid lenta venis ? agedum elige, cuius
signa feras. ambo faciles nostrique ; sed anceps
volgus et adfatus matris blandamque precatu
Antigonen timeo, paulmn ne nostra retardent

" She despises such mean triumphs, and proceeds to
compare her own. '' From which her torch was made

396

THEBAID, XI. 78-104

the frenzy laid upon me, alone upon the earth and
exposed to a hostile world, while ye in Elysium con-
strain the unresisting ghosts. No mean reward is
mine for my pains, my labours are not vain : this
deep-drenched battle-field, these waters that reek
with blood, the countless swarms that gladden
Lethe's bank — these are the tokens of my power,
my signs of triumph. But what care I for these ?
Let Mars enjoy them, let Enyo boast and spread
the story." Thou sawest — manifest surely was he
in the Stygian shades — the chief whose jaws were
fouled with blood, whose face dripped back corrup-
tion ; insatiable, he ate the head of his hapless foe,
which I did give him. Just now — was it not so ? —
the sound of a terrible din came down to you from
the stars : me did that a\\'ful storm assail, 'twas I who
mingling with the hero's fury-stricken arms laughed
at the warring gods and the le\in's mighty wrath.
But now, sister, long toil — I confess it — has wearied
out my spirit, and my arm is slow ; the infernal yew *
languishes in the air of heaven, and the too strong
influence of the stars drowses my unaccustomed
snakes. Thou who still hast all thy rage, whose
tresses are still riotous and fresh from Cocytus' fount,
join thou thy strength to mine. 'Tis no common
fray or Martian battle that we prepare, but brothers
— though kindly Faith and Duty resist, they will be
o'ercome — ay, brothers shall draw the sword in
combat hand-to-hand. A noble work ! Gird we our-
selves with deadly hate, with armed discord. Dost
thou hesitate ? Nay, choose which banner thou wilt
bear. Both are comphant and will do our ^nll ; but
the mob is double-minded, and I fear his mother's
words and Antigone's persuasive tongue, lest they

397

STATIUS

consilia. ipse etiam, qui nos lassare precando 105
suetus et ultrices oculorum exposcere Diras,
iam pater est : coetu fertur iam solus ab omni
flere sibi. atque adeo moror ipsa inrumpere Thebas
adsuetumque larem. tibi pareat impius exsul,
Argolieumque impelle nefas ; neu mitis Adrastus 110
praevaleat plebesque, cave, Lernaea moretur.
vade, et in alternas inimica reverter e pugnas."

Talia partitae diversum abiere sorores :
ut Notus et Boreas gemino de cardine mundi,
hie nive Rhipaea, Libycis hie pastus harenis, 115

bella cient : clamant amnes, freta, nubila, silvae,
iamque patent strages ; plangunt sua damna coloni,
et tamen oppressos miserantur in aequore nautas.
illas ut summo vidit pater altus Olympo
incestare diem, trepidumque Hyperionis orbem 120
subfundi maculis, torvo sic incohat ore :
" vidimus armiferos, quo fas erat usque, furores,
caelicolae, licitasque acies, etsi impia bella
unus init aususque^ mea procumbere dextra.
nunc par infandum miserisque incognita terris 125
pugna subest : auferte oculos ! absentibus ausint
ista deis lateantque lovem ; sat funera mensae
Tantaleae et sontes vidisse Lycaonis aras
et festina polo ducentes astra Mycenas.
nunc etiam turbanda dies : mala nubila, tellus, 130

^ aususque Pw : dignusque QC and {written over
aususque) D.

"An imaginary mountain range at the N. limit of the world.

* Tantalus cut up and boiled Pelops his son, and set him
before the gods as a meal ; Lycaon, father of Callisto,
offered human meat to Jove ; the sun turned away from

398

THEBAID, XL 105-130

somewhat hinder our design. Ay, even he, wlio is
wont to weary us with his entreaties and call on the
Furies to avenge his eyes, already feels his father-
hood ; already they say he weeps alone, far from
the haunts of men ; ay, verily, I like not to invade
Thebes and the abode I know so well ^^ithout thy
succour. Command thou the impious exile, incite
the Argive to the crime ; see that the mild Adrastus
prevail not, nor the Lemean host delay thee. Go,
and return to the mutual fray — my foe ! "

Their duties thus assigned, the sisters went their
different ways : as from the two poles of the world
South ^nnd and North make war, one nurtured on
Rhipaean " snows, the other on Libyan sands : rivers,
seas, clouds and woods resound, and soon is the ruin
seen, the husbandmen lament their losses, yet pity
the sailors whelmed upon the deep. When from
Olympus' top the exalted Sire beheld them pollute
the air, and saw Hj-perion's frightened orb be-
flecked and tainted, \\ith stern utterance he thus
began : " Ye heavenly ones, we have seen armed
fury pushed to the uttermost bound of right, and a
war that yet was lawful, though one man engaged in
impious conflict and dared to fall by my right hand.
But now a duel unspeakable approaches, a combat
yet unknown to miserable earth : look not upon it !
Let no gods countenance such a crime, let it be hid
from Jove ; enough is it to have seen the deadly
feast of Tantalus and the guilty altars of Lycaon,
and Mycenae bringing the stars in hurried train upon
the sky.** Now once again must day be troubled ;
accept, O Earth, these baleful clouds, and let the sky

Mycenae when Atreus set the flesh of Thyestes' sons before
their father ; hence the sudden appearance of the stars.

399

ST ATI us

accipe, secedantque poli : stat parcere mundo
caelitibusque^ meis ; saltern ne virginis almae
sidera, Ledaei videant neu talia fratres."
sic pater omnipotens, visusque nocentibus arvis
abstulit, et dulci terrae earuere sereno. 135

lamque per Argolieas Erebo sata virgo cohortis
vestigat Polynieis iter portisque sub ipsis
invenit, incertum leto tot iniqua fugane
exeat, et dubios turbarant omina sensus :
viderat, obscura vallum dum nocte pererrat 140

aeger consilii curisque novissima volvens,
coniugis Argiae laeeram cum lampade maesta
effigiem — sunt monstra deum, sic ire parabat,
has latura viro taedas erat ! — : ergo roganti,
quae via quisve dolor, cur maesta insignia, tantum 145
fleverat atque manu tacitos averterat ignes.
scit mentem vidisse nefas ; etenim unde Mycenis
adforet et vallum coniunx inopina subiret ?
sed fati monitus vicinaque funera sentit,
ac sentire timet, cum vero Acherontis aperti 150
Dira ter admoto tetigit thoraca flagello,
ardet inops animi, nee tam considere regno,
quam scelus et caedem et perfossi^ in sanguine fratris^
exspirare cupit, subitusque adfatur Adrastum :
" sera quidem, extremus socium gentisque superstes
Argolicae, consulta, pater, iam rebus in artis 156

^ caelitibusque Pw : sideribusque B and D {with caelesti-
busque written over).

^ perfossi in Pw : perfossum (fusus written over) D :
perfusus conj. Housman.

' fratris Pw : D has fratrem written over.

400

THEBAID, XI. 131-156

be veiled ; it is my will to spare heaven and my own
deities ; let not at least the star of the kindly maid *
behold such deeds, nor the Ledaean brethren."
So spake the omnipotent Sire and turned his gaze
away from the guilty fields, and the earth lacked its
joyous light serene.

Meanwhile the daughter of Erebus hastes on the
track of Polynices through the Argolic cohorts, and
finds him even at the gate, uncertain whether to
avoid so many horrors by death or flight. Omens
too had troubled his doubting mind : wandering by
the rampart in the hours of darkness, distressed at
heart and brooding in deep despair, he had seen the
phantom of his wife Argia, with tresses torn and a
doleful torch in her hand — a sign from heaven ! ay,
that was her intent, such were the torches she was
to bring her spouse !— so, when he asked why she
was come and what her grief, what meant these
emblems of woe, she did but weep and hide the flame
in silence. He knows 'twas but a mental \-ision of
ill, for how could his spouse have come from Mycenae
and draw nigh the wall, nor any know ? But he is
aware of Fate's admonishing and his approaching
doom, and fears to be aware. But when the Fury of
yawning Acheron thrice smote her lash against his
corslet, he raged without restraint, and yearned
not to be seated on his throne, but for crime and
carnage and to expire in his slaughtered kinsman's
blood, and suddenly he accosts Adrastus : " Late
though it be, O father, and in our extremity, I am at
length resolved, who am the last survivor of my
comrades and the folk of Argos : then had been the

" Astraea, cf. Silv. i. 4. 2 " videt alma pios Astraea," and
note ad loc. She was frequently identified with Justice.
VOL. n 2d 401

STATIUS

adgredior ; tunc tempus erat, cum sanguis Achivum
integer, ire ultro propriamque capessere pugnam,
non plebis Danaae florem regumque verendas
obiectare animas, ut lamentabile tantis 160

urbibus induerem capiti decus. aspera quando
praeteriit virtus, nunc saltern exsolvere fas sit,
quae merui. scis namque, socer, licet alta recondas
volnera et adflictum generi vereare pudorem :
ille ego sum, qui te pacem et pia iura regentem —
infelix utinamque aliis datus urbibus hospes ! — 166
extorrem patria regnoque — sed exige tandem
supplicium : fratrem suprema in bella — quid horres ?
decretum est fixumque — voco ; desiste morari,
nee poteris. non si atra parens miseraeque sorores
in media arma cadant, non si ipse ad bella ruenti 171
obstet et exstinctos galeae pater ingerat orbes,
deficiam. anne bibam superest quodcumque cruoris
Inachii et vestris etiamnum mortibus utar ?
vidi ego me propter ruptos telluris hiatus, 175

nee subii ; vidi exanimum fecique nocentem
Tydea ; me Tegea regem indefensa reposcit,
orbaque Parrhasiis ululat mihi mater in antris.
ipse nee Ismeni ripas, dum stagna cruentat
Hippomedon, Tyrias potui nee scandere turres, 180
dum tonat, et tecum, Capaneu, miscere furores,
quis tantus pro luce timor ? sed digna rependam.
conveniant ubi quaeque^ nurus matresque Pelasgae
longaevique patres, quorum tot gaudia carpsi
orbavique domos : fratri concurro, quid ultra est ?

^ ubi qusieque Ileinsius : ubicumque Pw, see Aen. vii. 400,
Theb. xii. 23.

" The construction (i.e., " now behold thee exiled," etc., or
some such word) is dehberately broken off to mark his
excitement.
402

THEBAID, XI. 157-185

time, when the Achaean blood was yet unshed, to
step boldly forth and venture single combat, nor
expose the Danaan flower and the sacred lives of
princes, that I might crown me with a glory that was
the woe of mighty cities. But now since the stern
hour of valour is past, now at least let me be allowed
to pay what I deserve. For well thou knowest,
father, though deep thou dost hide thy wounds and
dost revere thy son-in-law's misery and shame : I am
he, who, while thou wert ruUng in peace and justice
- — ah I wretch that I am, would some other city had
been my host ! — exiled from country and throne " —
but exact thy punishment at last : I challenge my
brother — why dost thou start ? I am resolved — to
the death ! nay, hinder me not, nor wilt thou be
able. Not if my sad mother and unhappy sisters
were to fling themselves between our weapons, not
even if my sire were to oppose me as I rushed to
battle and cast his sightless orbs upon my helm,
should I give way. Shall I drink all that remains
of Inachian blood, and even yet draw profit from your
deaths ? I saw the earth yawn and gape on my
account, nor went I to the rescue ; I saw Tydeus
dead and caused his guilt ; defenceless Tegea de-
mands of me her prince, and his bereaved mother
cries out against me in Parrhasian caves. I had not
the spirit to scale Ismenos' banks while Hippomedon
stained its streams with gore, nor the Tyrian towers
amid the thunder and join my rage to thine, O
Capaneus. Why such craven fear for my own life ?
But I will make due recompense. Let all the
Pelasgian brides and mothers and aged sires assemble,
all whom I have robbed of so many joys, and
whose homes I have despoiled — I fight my brother !

403

ST ATI us

spectent et votis victorem Eteoclea poscant. 186

iamque vale, coniunx, dulcesque valete Mycenae !
at tu, care socer — nee enim omnis culpa malorum
me penes, et superi mecum Parcaeque nocentes — ,
sis lenis cineri, meque haec post proelia raptuni 190
alitibus fratrique tegas^ urnamque reportes —
hoc tantum — et natae melius conubia iungas."

Ibant in lacrimas, veluti cum vere reverso
Bistoniae tepuere nives, submittitur ingens
Haemus et angustos Rhodope descendit in amnes.
coeperat et leni senior mulcere furentem 196

adloquio : scidit orsa novo terrore cruenta
Eumenis, alipedemque citum fataliaque arma
protinus, Inachii voltus expressa Pherecli,
obtulit ac fidas exclusit casside voces. 200

ac super haec : " abrumpe moras, celeremus ! et ilium
adventare ferunt portis." sic omnia vicit,
conreptumque iniecit equo ; volat aequore aperto
pallidus instantemque deae circumspicit umbram.

Sacra lovi merito Tyrius pro fulmine ductor 205
nequiquam Danaos ratus exarmasse ferebat.
nee pater aetherius divomque has ullus ad aras,
sed mala Tisiphone trepidis inserta ministris
adstat et inferno praevertit vota Tonanti.
"summe deum, tibi namque meae primordia Thebae —
liveat infandum licet Argos et aspera luno — 211

debent, Sidonios ex quo per litora raptor
turbasti thiasos, dignatus virgine nostra

1 tegas Pw : negas Q : neges N {both written over tegas).

» The dative after " tegas " may be explained by the same
use of analogy that we have seen before (here = dat. after
verbs of rescuing from).

" i.e., Pluto.
404

THEBAID, XL 18&-213

what more remains to do ? Let them look on, and
pray for Eteocles' victory. And now farewell, my
wife, and farewell, sweet Mycenae I But thou, be-
lov^ed sire — for mine is not all the blame for these
ills, but Fate and the gods share the guilt with me
— be gentle to my ashes, rescue my body after the
battle and shield it from the birds and from my
brother," and bring home my urn, 'tis all I ask, and,
for thy daughter, unite her in worthier wedlock."

They fell to weeping, as when with returning spring
the Bistonian snows are warmed and mighty Haemus
melts and Rhodope is all dissolved into the straitened
rivers. And the aged king had begun to soothe his
rage vWth gentle words : but the cruel Fury broke
off his speech with new terrors, and straightway, in
the shape of Inachian Phereclus, brought his swift
wing-footed steed and fatal arms, and "with his helmet
closed his ears to trusty counsels. Then " Haste ! "
she cried, " delay not ! He too, so they say, is
marching on the gates ! " Thus, all scruples over-
come, she seizes him and sets him upon his steed ;
ashen pale, he scours the open plain, and glances back
to descry the looming shadow of the goddess.

The Tyrian chieftain was offering in vain to Jove
the sacrifice that his hghtning stroke had won, think-
ing that the Danaans were disarmed. But neither
the celestial sire nor any of the gods were at his altars,
but baneful Tisiphone mingling v\ith the affrighted
attendants stands near, and to the infernal Thunderer *
turned aside his prayers. " Supreme of gods, to
whom my Thebes owes its origin — though accursed
Argos and angry Juno be jealous — since thou as a
ravisher didst break up the revels on the Sidonian
shore, and deign to bear on thy back a maiden of

405

STATIUS

terga premi et placidas falsum mugire per undas !
nee te vana fides iterum Cadmeia adeptum 215

conubia et Tyrios nimium inrupisse penates :
tandem, inquam, soceros dilectaque moenia gratus
respicis adsertorque tonas ; ceu regia caeli
adtemptata tui, sic te pro turribus altis
vidimus urgentem nubes, laetique benignum 220

fulmen et auditos proavis adgnoscimus ignes.
accipe nunc pecudes et magni turis acervos
votivumque marem ; dignas sed pendere grates
baud mortale opus est ; certent tibi reddere Bacchus
noster et Alcides, illis haec moenia servas." 225

dixerat : ast illi niger ignis in ora genasque
prosiluit raptumque comis diadema cremavit.
tunc ferus ante ictum spumis delubra cruentat
taurus et obstantum mediis e coetibus exit
turbidus insanoque ferens^ altaria cornu. 230

difFugiunt famuli, et regem solatur haruspex.
ipse instaurari sacrum male fortis agique
imperat, et magnos ficto premit ore timores.
qualis ubi implicitum Tirynthius ossibus ignem
sensit et Oetaeas membris accedere vestes, 235

vota incepta tamen libataque tura ferebat
durus adhuc patiensque mali ; mox grande coactus
ingemuit, victorque furit per viscera Nessus.
Nuntius exanimi suspensus pectora cursu

^ -que ferens PB : feriens w.

" With Semele ; the same reference in i. 220-22 1 .
* i.e., the poison of Nessus's shirt, given by him in treachery
to Deianira, and by her as a love-charm to Hercules. Nessus

406

THEBAID, XI. 214-239

our race and to utter feigned lo^^■ings over the
tranquil seas ! Nor vainly do we believe that thou
a second time didst enjoy Cadmean wedlock" and
invade the Tj-rian dwelUngs in overpowering might :
at length, at length thou dost gratefully regard thy
kinsmen and the walls thou lovest, and sendest thy
thunder to avenge ; as though the heavenly palace
had suffered assault, we saw thee rolhng cloud on
cloud to succour our lofty towers, and gladly we
recognize thy kindly brand, and the lightnings that
our sires once heard of old. Receive now our flocks
and high-piled incense and our votive bull ; worthy
recompense is not in mortal power ; let our own
Bacchus and Alcides strive to repay thee, for them
thou dost preserve these walls." He spoke, but
the murky flame leapt forth against his face and
cheeks, and seized and burnt the diadem on his
locks. Then still unsmitten the angry bull beflecked
the shrine with bloody foam, and dashed wildly
through the opposing concourse, bearing the altar
upon his frenzied horns. The ministers scatter, and
the soothsayer strives to console the king. Faint-
heartedly he commands the rite to be renewed and
carried through, and with feigned countenance
screens his anxious fears. As when the Tirynthian
felt the fire enwrap his bones and the Oetaean robe
cling to his limbs, he continued the offering he had
begun and poured the incense, still resolute and
enduring the agony ; soon beneath the stress he
groaned aloud, while triumphant Nessus * raged
throughout his vitals.

Aepytus, in excited breathless haste, comes run-
was a centaur slain by Hercules' poisoned arrows, and here
he takes his revenge.

407

STATIUS

Aepytus ad regem portae statione relicta 240

tendit et haec trepido vix intellectus anhelat :
" rumpe pios cultus intempestivaque, rector,
sacra deum : frater muris circum omnibus instat
portarumque moras frenis adsultat et hastis,
nomine te crebro, te solum in proelia poscens." 245
flent maesti retro comites, et uterque loquenti
adgemit et pulsis exercitus obstrepit armis.
ille vocat : " nunc tempus erat, sator optime divom!
quid meruit Capaneus ? " turbatus inhorruit altis
rex odiis, mediaque tamen gavisus in ira est. 250

sic ubi regnator post exsulis otia tauri
mugitum hostilem summa tulit aure iuvencus
adgnovitque minas, magna stat fervidus ira
ante gregem spumisque animos ardentibus efflat, 254
nunc pede torvus humum, nunc cornibus aera findens ;
horret ager, trepidaeque exspectant proelia valles.
Nee desunt regni comites : " sine, moenia pulset
inritus." " ille autem fractis hue audeat usque
viribus ? " " hie miseris furor est instare periclo,
nee librare metus et tuta odisse." " resiste 260

hie fretus solio, nos propulsabimus hostem,
nos bellare iube." sic proxima turba, sed ardens
ecce aderat luctu dicturusque omnia belli
libertate Creon : urit fera corda Menoeceus ;
nulla patri requies, ilium quaeritque tenetque ; 265
ilium sanguineos proflantem pectore rivos
aspicit et saeva semper de turre cadentem.
ut dubium et pugnas cunctantem Eteoclea vidit :

" i.e., to hurl the thunderbolt. It should have been kept
for Polynices, in comparison with whom Capaneus had done
nothing.

408

THEBAID, XL 240-268

ning ^^ith news to the king, his post by the gate
abandoned, and scarcely understood pants out these
words to the anxious prince : " Break off thy pious
worship and the untimely sacrifice, O king I Thy
brother rides threatening round thy walls, and
with spear and bridle assails thy hindering gates,
and flinging many a challenge calls thee, thee alone
to battle." Behind him his sorrowing comrades
weep, each echoing the speaker with their groans,
while the host clash arms and rage against the foe.
The monarch prays : " Now was the time," most
righteous sire of the gods I What did Capaneus
deserve ? " A thrill of profound hatred shook the
king, yet he rejoices in mid rage : as when a
chieftain-bull after the repose of his rival's exile
hears with ear alert the bellow of his enemy, and
knows his challenge, he stands consumed viith mighty
■N^Tath before the herd, and pants forth his valour
in hot foam, now fiercely tearing the ground with his
hoof, now the air with his horns ; the meadows quake,
and the affrighted vales await the conflict.

Nor are his friends less moved : " Let him batter
the walls in vain I " " Can he dare so far with
shattered forces ? " " 'Tis madness prompts the
wretches to court danger, weigh no fears and detest
safety." " Stay thou assured upon thy throne, we
will repulse the foe, bid us make war ! " So speak
those near him, but lo ! Creon was at hand, aflame
with grief and claiming for his tongue a warrior's
licence ; Menoeceus galls his heart to fierceness, no
peace does the father know ; him he seeks and
clutches, him he beholds panting the bloody stream
from his breast, and ever falling from the cruel tower.
And when he saw Eteocles in doubt and shrinking

409

ST ATI us

"ibis," ait, "neque te ulterius fratremque ducemque,
pessime, funeribus patriae lacrimisque potentem,
Eumenidum bellique reum, patiemur inulti. 271

sat tua non acquis luimus periuria divis.
urbem armis opibusque gravem et modocivibus artam,
ceu caelo deiecta^ lues inimicave tellus,^
hausisti vacuamque tamen sublimis obumbras ? 275
deest tibi^ servitio plebes : hos ignis egentes
fert humus, hos pelago patrius iam detuht amnis ;
hi quaerunt artus, illi anxia vuhiera eurant.
redde agedum miseris fratres natosque patresque,
redde arvis domibusque viros ! ubi maximus Hypseus
finitimusque Dryas, ubi Phocidos arma sonorae 281
Euboicique duces ? illos tamen aequa duclli
fors tulit ad manes : at tu, pudet ! hostia regni,
hostia, nate, iaces, ceu mutus et e grege sanguis,
ei mihi ! primitiis ararum^ et rite nefasto 285

libatus iussusque mori : et cunctabitur ultra
iste nee adverse nunc saltern Marte vocatus
stabit ? an in pugnas alium iubet ire profanus
Tiresias iterumque meos oracula nectit 289

in gemitus ? quid enim misero super unicus Haemon ?
ille iube subeat, tuque hinc spectator ab alta
turre sede ! quid saeva fremis famulamque cohortem
respectas ? hi te ire volunt, hi pendere poenas ;
ipsa etiam genetrix ipsaeque odere sorores.

^ deiecta P : demissa w : deiecta (demissa written over) D,
cf. Silv. i. 2. 154.

2 tellus Pw : labes, tabes edd. Garrod conj. inhiulcave t.
unnecessarily.

* deest tibi Owen : deest Pw : iam deest Weher.

* ararum PB : armorum, annorum w.

410

THEBAID, XI. 269-294

from the fight : " Thou shalt go," he cries, " not,
villain, shall we unavenged endure thee longer, thee
the brother and tlie prince, made powerful by thy
countr\''s tears and sufferings, guilty of Heaven's
Furies and the war. Long enough have we atoned
thy perjuries to the angry gods. This city, once
full of arms and wealth, and thronged vrith citizens,
hast thou like a heaven-sent pestilence or plague of
earth drained to nothing, yet castest thy tall shadow
o'er its emptiness ? Folk are lacking to be thy
slaves : some lie on earth unbumt, others their
native stream has already borne down to the sea ;
some seek their limbs, others tend anxious wounds.
Come, restore to our wretched people their brothers,
fathers, sons, restore husbands to their homes and
farmsteads ! Where now is mighty Hypseus, where
is our neighbour Drj'as, where are the arms of
echoing Phocis and the Euboean chiefs ? Yet them
the impartial fate of war hath slain, but thou, my
son — O shame ! — hest the victim, ay, the victim
of the throne, like some mute beast of the herd, alas !
sprinkled with the first-fruits at the altar's un-
hallowed rite and bidden die : and doth he still
waver, and now at least when summoned refuse the
challenge ? or does the wicked Tiresias bid another
go to battle, and devise a second oracle to bring me
woe ? Yes, why is Haemon alone left to his unhappy
sire ? Command him to go, and sit thou on a lofty
tower to watch the spectacle ! Why dost thou rage
and look round upon thy retinue .' These would
have thee go, ay, and pay the penalty ; even thy
mother and thy sisters hate thee. Thy brother

411

ST ATI us

in te ardens frater ferrum mortemque minatur 295
saevaque portarum convellit claustra, nee audis^ ? "

Sic pater infrendens, miseraque exaestuat ira.
ille sub haec " non fallis," ait, " nee te inclyta nati
fata movent : canere ilia patrem et iactare decebat.
sed spes sub lacrimis, spes atque occulta cupido 300
his latet : insano praetendis funera voto,
meque premis frustra vacuae ceu proximus aulae.
non ita Sidoniam Fortuna reliquerit urbem,
in te ut sceptra cadant, tanto indignissime nato.
nee mihi difficilis praesens vindicta ; sed arma, 305
arma prius, famuli ! coeant in proelia fratres.
vult gemitus lenii'e Creon : lucrare furorem ;
victori mihi cuncta lues." sic iurgia paulum
distulit atque ensem, quem iam dabat ira, repressit.
ictus ut incerto pastoris vulnere serpens 310

erigitur gyro longumque e corpore toto
virus in ora legit ; paulum si devius hostis
torsit iter, cecidere minae tumefactaque frustra
colla sedent, irasque sui bibit ipse veneni.

At genetrix primam funestae sortis ut amens 315
expavit famam — nee tarde credidit — ibat
scissa comam voltusque et pectore nuda cruento,
non sexus decorisve memor ; Pentheia qualis
mater ad insani scandebat culmina montis,
promissum saevo caput adlatura Lyaeo. 320

^ audis Pu} : audes BLK.

" Agave, who tore her son, the king of Thebes, in pieces
for trying to suppress the Bacchic worship.

412

THEBAID, XL 295-320

hotly threatens thee with the sword and death, and
rends the stern barriers of thy gates — dost thou not
hearken ? "

Thus spoke the father, gnashing his teeth, in trans-
ports of misery and rage. The other in reply :
" Thou dost not fool me, nor art thou moved by thy
son's renowned death : that song of woe, those
vaunts did but befit a father. But ambition lurks
beneath those tears, ambition and concealed desire :
thou art making his death a mask for thy mad hopes,
and dost press me hard, as though succeeding to the
vacant throne. Not so utterly has Fortune left the
Sidonian city that the sceptre should fall to thee, O
most unworthy of so brave a son ! Nor would
revenge be difficult even now, but first — arms, arms,
my servants I Let the brothers meet in battle. Creon
would have some balm for his sorrow : take advan-
tage of my rage ; when I am victorious thou shalt
pay me all." Thus for a while he put off the quarrel,
and thrust back the sword that wrath had put into
his hand. As a serpent, struck at a venture and
wounded by a shepherd, lifts up its coils erect, and
from all its length of body draws the poison to its
mouth : but should the foe bend his course but a
little, the threats abate, the vainly swollen neck
subsides, and it swallows back the venom of its own
anger.

But when his mother heard the first news of the
calamity in appalled dismay — nor was she slow to
beheve it — she went '^^'ith face and tresses torn, and
naked, blood-stained breast, reckless of sex and
dignity: just as the mother of Pentheus " climbed
the heights of the frenzied mount to bring the
promised head to fierce Lyaeus. Neither her

413

STATIUS

non comites, non ferre piae^ vestigia natae
aeque valent : tantum miserae dolor ultimus addit
robur, et exsangues crudescunt luctibus anni.
iamque decus galeae, iam spicula saeva ligabat
ductor et ad lituos hilarem intrepidumque tubarum
prospiciebat equum, subito cum apparuit ingens 326
mater, et ipse metu famulumque expalluit omnis
coetus, et oblatam retro dedit armiger hastam.
" quis furor ? unde iterum regni integrata resurgit
Eumenis ? ipsi etiam post omnia, comminus ipsi 330
stabitis ? usque adeo geminas duxisse cohortes
et facinus mandasse parum est ? quo deinde redibit
victor ? in hosne sinus ? o diri coniugis olim
felices tenebrae ! datis, improba lumina, poenas.
haec spectanda dies ? quo, saeve, minantia flectis
ora ? quid alternus voltus pallorque ruborque 336
mutat, et obnixi frangunt mala murmura dentes ?
me miseram,vinces ! prius haectamen armanecesseest
experiare domi ; stabo ipso in limine porta e
auspicium infelix scelerumque immanis imago. 340
haec tibi canities, haec sunt calcanda, nefande,
ubera, perque uterum sonipes hie matris agendus.
parce : quid oppositam capulo parmaque repellis ?
non ego te contra Stygiis feralia sanxi
vota deis, caeco nee Erinyas ore rogavi. 345

exaudi miseram : genetrix te, saeve, precatur,
non pater ; adde moram sceleri et metire, quod audes.
sed pulsat muros germanus et impia contra

^ piae P : ipsae w : piae D (with ipsae written over).
414

THEBAID, XL 321-348

maidens nor her devoted daughters can keep pace
with her, such strength does despair lend to the un-
happy woman, her enfeebled years grow \igorous with
grief. And already the chief was fastening on him
the glory^ of his helm, and taking his sharp javelins,
and regarding his steed that rejoiced at the trumpets
nor feared the bugle's blast, when on a sudden his
mother appeared, mighty to behold, and he and all
his company grew pale with fear, and his squire took
back the spear he was proffering. " What madness
is this ? Whence hath returned the Evil Spirit of
this realm, restored again to life ? Must ye then
fight each other at the last ? Is it too little to have
led rival hosts and given the word for slaughter ?
And afterwards, what home awaits the victor ?
these arms of mine ? O my dread spouse, blest
hereafter in thy blindness I now pay ye the penalty,
my guilty eyes ! Must I then see this day ? Whither,
ruthless one, turnest thou thy threatening gaze ?
Why do flush and pallor alternate on thy countenance,
and thy clenched teeth stifle angrj^ mutterings ?
Ah, woe is me ! thou wilt prevail ! yet first must
thou test thy arms at home : I will stand in the
threshold of the gate, a baneful omen and dread
image of calamity. These hoarj' locks, these breasts
must needs be trampled by thee, accursed one, and
o'er thy mother's womb this steed be driven. Ah !
spare ! why dost thou repel me from thy path with
shield and sword ? No solemn curses have I uttered
against thee to the Stygian gods, nor invoked the
Furies with sightless prayer. Hear me in my dis-
tress ! 'tis thy mother, not thy sire entreats thee,
cruel one ! Stay thy guilt, and take the measure
of such madness. But thy brother — dost thou say ?

415

ST ATI us

bella ciet. non mater enim, non obstat eunti
ulla soror ; te cuncta rogant, hie plangimus omnes.
ast ibi vix unus pugnas dissuadet Adrastus, 351

aut fortasse iubet : tu limina avita deosque
linquis et a nostris in fratrem amplexibus exis ? "

At parte ex alia tacitos obstante tumultu
Antigone furata gradus — nee casta retardat 355

virginitas — volat Ogygii fastigia muri
exsuperare furens ; senior comes haeret eunti
Actor, et hie summas non duraturus ad arces.
utque procul visis paulum dubitavit in armis,
adgnovitque — nefas ! — iacuhs et voce superba 360
tecta incessentem, magno prius omnia planctu
implet et ex muris ceu descensura profatur :
" comprimetela manu paulumque hancrespiceturrem,
frater, et horrentes refer in mea lumina cristas !
agnoscisne hostes ? sic annua pacta fidemque 365
poscimus ? hi questus, haec est bona causa modesti
exsuhs ? Argolicos per te, germane, penates —
nam Tyriis iam nullus honos — per si quid in ilia
dulce domo, submitte animos : en utraque gentis
turba rogant ambaeque acies ; rogat ilia suorum 370
Antigone devota malis suspectaque regi,
et tantum tua, dure, soror. saltem ora trucesque
solve genas ; liceat voltus fortasse supremum
noscere^ dilectos et ad haec lamenta videre,
anne fleas, ilium gemitu iam supplice mater 375
frangit et exsertum dimittere dicitur ensem :
tu mihi fortis adhuc ? mihi, quae tua nocte dieque

^ noscere w : nosce (i written over) P : nosci Housman.
416

THEBAID, XL 349-377

— beats at the walls, and raises impious war against
thee. Ay, for no mother, no sister doth prevent
him ; but thee all beseech, here all make lament.
Yonder scarce Adrastus alone dissuades from battle,
or perchance doth urge it ; wilt thou leave thy
ancestral gate and the gods, and from my very
embrace go forth against thy brother ? "

But in another region Antigone glides silently by
stealth through all the tumult— nor does maidenly
chastity delay her — and hastes in eagerness to climb
to the summit of the Ogygian wall ; old Actor
follows close behind, though his strength avails not
to reach the tower's height. Awhile she hesitated
at the sight of the host afar, then recognized him,
alas ! as with proud taunt and javelin he assailed
the city ; first her waihngs fill the air, then, as
though about to leap down from the wall, she cries :
" Put up thy weapons and look but a moment at this
tower, my brother, and turn thy bristhng crest to
face my eyes ! Is it enemies thou findest ? Is it
thus we demand good faith and yearly pact ? Is this
an innocent exile's just complaint and righteous
cause ? By thy Argive home, O brother — for thy
Tyrian home thou shghtest — by any joy thou hast
therein, be softened : lo ! both the armies, either
folk entreat thee ! Antigone, faithful to her kins-
men's sufferings and suspected by the king, and sister
but to thee, hard-hearted one, entreats thee ! Remit
at least thy frowning looks ; let me perchance for
the last time behold the face I love, and see whether
thou dost weep at my lament. Him even now doth
our mother urge with supphant tears, and doth put
back, they say, his naked blade : art thou still
stubborn to me, to me who night and day weep for

VOL. n 2 E 417

STATIUS

exsilia erroresque fleo, iamiamque tumentem
placavi tibi saepe patrem ? quid crimine solvis
germanum ? nempe ille fidem et stata foedera rupit,
ille nocens saevusque suis ; tamen ecce vocatus 381
non venit." his paulum furor elanguescere dictis
coeperat, obstreperet quamquam atque obstaret

Erinys ;
iam submissa manus, lente iam flectit habenas,
iani tacet ; erumpunt gemitus, lacrimasque fatetur
cassis ; hebent irae, pariterque et abire nocentem 386
et venisse pudet : subito cum matre repulsa
Eumenis eiecit fractis Eteoclea portis
clamantem : " venio solumque, quod ante vocasti,
invideo ; ne incesse moras, gravis arma tenebat 390
mater ; io patria, o regum incertissima tellus,
nunc certe victoris eris ! " nee mitior ille
" tandem " inquit, "scis, saeve, fidem et descendis in

aequum ?
o mihi nunc primum longo post tempore, frater,
congredere : hae leges, haec foedera sola supersunt."
sic hostile tuens fratrem ; namque uritur alto 396
corde, quod innumeri comites, quod regia cassis
instratusque ostro sonipes, quod fulva metallo
parma micet, quamquam haud armis inhonorus et ipse
nee palla volgare nitens : opus ipsa novarat 400

Maeoniis Argia modis ac poUice docto
stamina purpureae sociaverat aurea telae.

lamque in pulvereum Furiis hortantibus aequor
prosiliunt, sua quemque comes stimulatque monetque.
frena tenent ipsae phalerasque et lucida comunt 405

" i.e., by one of the Furies.
418

THEBAID, XI. 378-405

thy wandering exile, and have ofttimes appeased
thy father's wrath even as it rose against thee ?
Why dost thou free thy brother of guilt ? Verily
he broke faith and his sworn word, guilty is he and
cruel to his own ; yet lo ! he comes not to thy
challenge." At these words his rage began some-
what to grow faint though the Fury upbraided and
resisted ; already he has relaxed liis arm, now he
wheels his horse less sharply, now he falls silent ;
groans burst from him, his casque confesses tears,
his ire is blunted, and he feels shame both to depart
and to have come in guilt : when suddenly the Fiend,
thrusting his mother aside, shatters the gate and
hurls forth F>teocles crying : " I come, and only
grudge thee thou wert the first to challenge ; chide
not my delay, my mother hung upon my arms and
stayed me ; what ho I my country, land of thy
monarchs most unsure, now assuredly thou shalt be
the victor's ! " The other in no milder strain : " At
last, ruffian, dost thou keep faith, and come down
into fair field ? O once again after many a day my
brother, engage ! no law, no treaty but this remains."
So spoke he, scowhng at his kinsman in hostile mood ;
for in his heart he chafes at the other's numerous
train, and his royal helm and the purple trappings of
his charger, and his buckler's glancing gold — though
he himself was not meanly armed, and his cloak
shone with no common lustre : Argia herself had
wrought it in Maeonian fashion, and with skilled
finger had woven strands of gold in the purple web.
And now at the Furies' impulse, they dash forward
to the dusty plain, each goaded and inspired by his
companion." These guide the reins themselves, and
arrange the trappings and the shining arms, and

419

STATIUS

arma manu mixtisque iubas serpentibus augent.
stat consanguineum campo scelus, unius ingens
bellum uteri, coeuntque pares sub casside voltus.
signa pavent, siluere tubae, stupefactaque Martis
cornua ; ter nigris avidus regnator ab oris 410

intonuit terque ima soli concussit, et ipsi
armorum fugere dei : nusquam inclyta Virtus,
restinxit Bellona faces, longeque paventes
Mars rapuit currus, et Gorgone cruda virago
abstitit,^ inque vicem Stygiae subiere^ sorores. 415
prominet excelsis volgus miserabile tectis,
cuncta madent lacrimis et ab omni plangitur arce.
hinc questi vixisse senes, hinc pectore nudo
stant matres parvosque vetant adtendere natos.
ipse quoque Ogygios monstra ad gentilia manes 420
Tartareus rector porta iubet ire reclusa.
montibus insidunt patriis tristique corona
infecere diem et vinci sua crimina gaudent.

Illos ut stimulis ire in discrimen apertis
audiit et sceleri nullum iam obstare pudorem, 425
advolat et medias immittit Adrastus habenas,
ipse quidem et regnis multum et venerabilis aevo.
sed quid apud tales, quis nee sua pignora curae,
exter honos^ ? tamen ille rogat : " spectabimus ergo

hoc,
Inachidae Tyriique, nefas ? ubi iura deique, 430

bella ubi ? ne perstate animis. te deprecor, hostis —

1 abstitit w : obstitit PBNK.

^ subiere Bentley : rubuere Pu : rediere Schrader,

^ exter honos PNK late mss. : externos w.

420

THEBAID, XI. 40fr-431

entwine their snakes amid the horses' manes. Set
there upon the field is the crime of kindred blood,
the dread conflict of one womb, beneath their helms
the faces of brothers meet in battle. The banners
quake, the trumpets are silent, and the Martian
horns are struck dumb ; thrice from the regions of
gloom thundered their impatient monarch and shook
the depths of earth, and even the deities of battle
fled ; renoA\'ned \irtue was nowhere seen, Bellona
put out her torches, Mars drove afar his affrighted
chariot, and the Maid^ shrank away with her fierce
Gorgon-head, and into their places came the Stygian
sisters. The ^vretched common folk stand high
upon the house-tops, no place but is wet with tears,
no tower but sounds ^vith lamentations. Here old
men complain that they have Hved so long, there
mothers stand Avith bosoms bare, and forbid their
httle ones to view the fray. The king of Tartarus
himself orders the gates to be set open, and the
Ogygian ghosts to attend their kindred's monstrous
deeds. Seated upon their native hills they pollute
the day ^\•ith grisly band, and rejoice that their o^\^l
crimes should be surpassed.

When Adrastus heard that the princes were rush-
ing to the perilous fight ^^ith open taunts, and that
shame could no longer hinder the ghastly deed, he
hastens to the spot and himself drove between them,
himself full-reverend both in monarchy and years.
But what could a stranger's influence avail ^^^th those
who recked not even of their loved ones ? Yet he
entreats : " Shall we then behold tliis horror, sons
of Inachus and Tyre ? In the name of justice and
the gods, in the name of war — persist not in your
« Pallas.

421

STATIUS

quamquam, haec ira sinat, nee tu mihi sanguine

longe — ,
te, gener, et iubeo ; sceptri si tanta cupido est,
exuo regales habitus, i, Lernan et Argos
solus habe ! " non verba magis suadentia frangunt
accensos, sumptisque semel conatibus obstant, 436
quam Scytha curvatis erectus fluctibus umquam
Pontus Cyaneos vetuit concurrere montes.
ut periisse preces geminoque ad proelia fusos
pulvere cornipedes explorarique furentum 440

in digitis amenta videt, fugit omnia linquens,
castra, viros, generum, Thebas, ac fata monentem
conversumque iugo propellit Ariona : qualis
demissus curru laevae post praemia sortis
umbrarum custos mundique novissimus heres 445
palluit, amisso veniens in Tartara caelo.

Non tamen indulsit pugnae cunctataque primo
substitit in scelere et paulum f'ortuna morata est.
bis cassae periere viae, bis comminus actos^
avertit bonus error equos, puraeque nefandi 450

sanguinis obliquis ceciderunt ictibus hastae.
tendunt frena manu, saevis calcaribus urgent
immeritos ; movet et geminas venerabile divom
prodigium turmas, alternaque murmura volvont
mussantes : iterare acies, procurrere saepe 455

impetus et totum miseris opponere bellum.

lamdudum terris coetuque offensa deorum
aversa caeli Pietas in parte sedebat,
non habitu, quo nota prius, non ore sereno,^

^ actos CO : ictos P. ^ I. 459 omitted in some itss.

" To prevent the horses from swerving.

^ For the translation of this word see note on x. 780.
Here it has reference to the ties of natural affection (hence
her appeal to Nature), which the brothers are breaking.
422

THEBAID, XI. 432-459

fury ! Thee, foeman, I beseech — although, did thy
rage suffer thee, thou too art not far from me in
blood — thee, son-in-law, I command as well ; if thy
lust of power is so great, I put off this royal robe, go
take Lerna and Argos for thyself alone ! " But his
persuasion no more abates their kindled rage, or
checks their once-determined purpose, than did the
Scythian Pontus ever stay the Cyanean rocks from
clashing, though it rose high \v'ith arching waves.
When he sees his prayers are fruitless, and the teams
galloping in twofold dust to battle, and the frenzied
princes feeling their hold on the javehn-strap, he
flees away leaving all, camp, army, son-in-law and
Thebes, and drives Arion forward, though he turn
him in the yoke and give fateful warning : even as
the warden of the shades and the third heir of the
world, after the lot's unkind apportioning, leapt
down from his chariot and grew pale, for he was come
to Tartarus and heaven was lost for ever.

Yet would not Fortune suffer the fray, but halted
at the opening of the crime, and delayed awhile.
Twice were their onslaughts wasted, twice did a
kindly mischance divert their charging steeds, and
their flung darts fell aside pure of unnatural blood.
They strain at the reins," with savage goads they
incite their innocent teams ; then too an awful
prodigy of heaven stirs the armies, and from this
side and that roll murmurs through the muttering
hosts ; often do they burn to renew the fight, to dash
forward and to set their whole array in the wretches'
path.

Long time, offended alike by earth and the com-
pany of the gods, had Piety ^ been sitting in a
remote region of the heavens, with unwonted

423

STATIUS

sed vittis exuta comam, fraternaque bella, 460

ceu soror infelix pugnantum aut anxia mater,
deflebat, saevumque lovem Parcasque nocentes
vociferans, seseque polls et luce relicta
descensuram Erebo et Stygios iam malle penates.
"quid me," ait," ut saevis animantum ac saepedeorum
obstaturam animis, princeps Natura, creabas ? 466
nil iam ego per populos, nusquam reverentia nostri.
o furor, o homines diraeque Prometheos artes !
quam bene post Pyrrham tellus pontusque vacabant^ !
en mortale genus ! " dixit, speculataque tempus 470
auxilio " temptemus," ait, " licet inrita coner."
desiluitque polo, niveus sub nubibus atris^
quamquam maesta deae sequitur vestigia limes.
vix steterat campo, subita mansuescere pace
agmina sentirique nefas ; tunc ora madescunt 475
pectoraque, et tacitus subrepsit fratribus horror,
arma etiam simulata gerens cultusque viriles,
nunc his, nunc illis "agite, ite, obsistite," clamat,
" quis nati fratresque domi, quis pignora tanta !
hie quoque — nonne palam est ultro miserescere
divos ?— 480

tela cadunt, cunctantur equi, Fors ipsa repugnat."

Nonnihil impulerat dubios, ni torva notasset
Tisiphone fraudes caelestique ocior igne
adforet increpitans : " quid belli obverteris ausis,

^ vacabant w : vocabat P : vacarent DN.
^ atris Schroder : altis Pw.
424

THEBAID, XL 460-484

dress and troubled countenance, and fillets stripped
from off her hair : she bewailed the fraternal strife,
as though a hapless sister or anxious mother of
the fighters, and loudly chiding cruel Jove and the
guilty Fates protested she would leave heaven and
the light of day, and descend to Erebus, for already
she preferred the abodes of Styx. " Why, sovereign
Nature, didst thou create me to oppose the passions
of h\ing folk and often of the gods ? Nought am I
any more among men, nowhere am I reverenced.
Ah ! what fury ! alas ! mankind, alas ! dread
Promethean skill ! How blessed was the vacancy
of earth and sea after Pyrrha's time ! Behold the
race of mortals ! " She spoke, and watching an
occasion for her aid : " Let me but try," she cried,
" though my attempt be fruitless." Down from
the pole she leapt, and beneath the darkened clouds
a snow-white track followed the footsteps of the
goddess, sad though she was. Scarce had she set
foot upon the plain, when a sudden peace stilled
the fury of the warriors, and they were conscious of
their crime ; then tears bedewed faces and breasts,
and a silent horror stole upon the brethren. Clad
in feigned armour also and manly dress she cries now
to these, now to those : " Forward ! be moving !
withstand them ! ye who have sons at home or
brothers, or pledges held so dear. Even here — is it
not plain, the gods unasked are pitiful ? — weapons
are falling, steeds wavering, and Chance herself
resists."

She had somewhat stirred the doubting lines, had
not grim Tisiphone marked her deceit, and s\vifter
than fire from heaven darted to her side, reproaching
her : "" Why hinderest thou the bold deeds of war, O

425

ST ATI us

numen iners pacique datum ? cede, improba : noster
hie campus nosterque dies ; nunc sera nocentes 486
defendis Thebas. ubi tunc, cum bella cieret
Bacchus et armatas furiarent orgia matres ?
aut ubi segnis eras, dum Martius impia serpens
stagna bibit, dum Cadmus arat, dum victa cadit
Sphinx,! 490

dum rogat Oedipoden genitor, dum lampade nostra
in thalamos locasta venit ? " sic urget, et ultro
vitantem aspectus etiam pudibundaque longe
ora reducentem premit adstridentibus hydris
intentatque faces ; deiectam in lumina pallam 495
diva trahit magnoque fugit questura Tonanti.
Tunc vero accensae stimuHs maioribus irae :
arma placent, versaeque volunt spectare cohortes.
instaurant crudele nefas ; rex impius aptat
tela et funestae casum prior occupat hastae. 500

ilia viam medium clipei conata per orbem
non perfert ictus atque alto vincitur auro.
tunc exsul subit et clare funesta precatur :
" di, quos efFosso non inritus ore rogavit
Oedipodes flammare^ nefas, non improba posco^ 505
vota : piabo manus et eodem pectora ferro
rescindam, dum me moriens hie sceptra tenentem
linquat et hunc secum portet minor umbra dolorem."
hasta subit velox equitis femur inter equique
ilia, letum utrique volens* ; sed plaga sedentis 510
laxato vitata genu, tamen inrita voti

^ dum victa cadit Sphinx w : dum victa cadit Pi : dum
semina surgunt P2.

^ fiammare late mss., Heinsius : flammate w,

' posco w : poscet P.

* letum utrique volens co : lentum utrimque volans P.

426

THEBAID, XI. 485-511

sluggard, peace-devoted deity ? Hence, shameless
one ! this battle-field, this day is mine ; too late now
defendest thou guilty Thebes. Where wert thou
then when Bacchus made war and the orgies drove
the matrons to arms and madness ? Where wert
thou idling, while the snake of Mars drank the un-
hallowed flood, while Cadmus ploughed, while the
Sphinx fell defeated, while Oedipus was questioned
by his sire," while by my torch's h'ght Jocasta was
entering the marriage-chamber ? " So she upbraids,
and threatens her with hissing hydras and brandished
torch, as she shrinks from her gaze and far withdraws
her shamefast face ; down over her eyes the goddess
draws her mantle and flees to lay her complaint
before the mighty Thunderer.

Then verily are they kindled to yet more fiery
■WTath ; battle pleases, and the armies, changed once
more, are willing to look on. They begin anew the
savage work : the impious monarch aims his dart,
and first dares the fortune of the deadly spear ;
but striving to find a way through the middle of the
shield it strikes not home, but is bafiled by the solid
gold. Then the exile advances, and utters loud a
deadly prayer : " Ye gods, whom blinded Oedipus
besought not vainly to blow the blaze of crime, I
make no wTongful plea ; with this same steel vriW
I atone my deed and rend my breast, so that my
rival die and leave me with the sceptre in my grasp,
and, my vassal in the shades, take that sorrow with
him to the tomb." The swift javelin flies between
horseman's thigh and horse's flank, willing death
for both, but the blow was foiled by the rider's bent

" When they met at the cross-roads. The serpent of Mars
was slain by Cadmus after it had killed some of his men.

427

STATIUS

cuspis in obliquis invenit volnera costis.
it praeceps sonipes strictae contemptor habenae
arvaque sanguineo scribit rutilantia gyro,
exsultat fratris credens hunc ille cruorem : 515

credit et ipse metu ; totis iamque exsul habenis
indulget, caeeusque avidos inlidit in aegrum
cornipedem cursus. miscentur frena manusque
telaque, et ad terram turbatis gressibus ambo
praecipitant. ut nocte rates, quas nubilus auster 520
implicuit, frangunt tonsas mutantque^ rudentes,
luctataeque diu tenebris hiemique sibique,
sieut erant, imo pariter sedere profundo :
haec pugnae facies. coeunt sine more, sine ax*te,
tantum animis iraque, atque ignescentia cernunt 525
per galeas odia et voltus rimantur acerbo
lumine : nil adeo mediae telluris, et enses
impliciti innexaeque manus, alternaque saevi
murmura ceu lituos rapiunt aut signa tubarum.
fulmineos veluti praeceps cum comminus egit 530
ira sues strictisque erexit tergora^ saetis :
igne tremunt oculi, lunataque dentibus uncis
ora sonant ; spectat pugnas de rupe propinqua
Venator pallens canibusque silentia suadet :
sic avidi incurrunt ; necdum letalia miscent 535

volnera, sed coeptus sanguis, facinusque peractum est.
nee iam opus est Furiis ; tantum mirantur et adstant
laudantes, hominumque dolent plus posse furores,
fratris uterque furens cupit adfectatque cruorem
et nescit manare suum ; tandem inruit exsul, 540

mutantque P : nectuntque Wilkins : miscentque Slater.
* tergora Heinsius : pectora Pu.

428

THEBAID, XL 512-540

knee, yet the spear-point baffled of its vow found a
wound slantwise in the horse's ribs. Scorning the
tightened rein the steed darts headlong away, and
traces a bloody curve along the reddened field. The
other exults, thinking it his brother's gore, and so
thinks he himself in fear ; and now the exile shakes
free all his rein, and dashes in bhnd, impetuous
onslaught against the wounded charger. Arms,
bridles, weapons are all mingled in confusion, both
horses lose their footing and are thrown to earth.
Even as at night two ships that the cloudy South
\\'ind has locked together break oars, entangle ropes,
and, struggling ^^^th each other and the storm through
the long darkness, sink even as they are together tc
the depths : such was the appearance of the fight.
Without skill or fashion, only in wrath and fury they
engage, and see through their helms the flames of
hate, and search with fiery glance each other's
countenance : no interval of ground divides them,
swords are entangled, arms interlocked, and they
catch the sound of each other's cries hke bugle or
trumpet-call. As when rage has set lightning-swift
boars rushing headlong to the fight, and raised the
bristles erect upon their backs, fire quivers in their
eyes, and the curved tusks of crescent shape ring
loud ; from a neighbouring height the anxious
hunter watches the fray, and bids his hounds be
silent : so bloodthirstily do they attack, nor yet do
they deal mortal wounds, but the blood flows, the
crime is accomplished. No more need is there of
Furies : they only marvel and praise as they watch,
and grieve that human rage exceeds their own.
Each in furious lust seeks his brother's life-blood,
nor knows his own is flowing ; at last the exile rushes

429

ST ATI us

hortatusque manum, cui fortior ira nefasque
iustius, alte ensem germani in corpore pressit,
qua male iam plumis imus tegit inguina thorax,
ille dolens nondum, sed ferri frigore primo
territus in clipeum turbatos colligit artus ; 545

mox intellecto magis ac magis aeger anhelat
volnere. nee parcit cedenti atque increpat hostis :
" quo retrahis, germane, gradus? hoc languida somno,
hoc regnis efFeta quies, hoc longa^ sub umbra
imperia ! exsiho rebusque exercita egenis 550

membra vides ; disce arma pati nee fidere laetis."

Sic pugnant miseri ; restabat lassa nefando
vita duci summusque cruor, poterantque parumper
stare gradus ; sed sponte ruit fraudemque supremam
in media iam morte parat. clamore Cithaeron 555
erigitur, fraterque ratus vicisse levavit
ad caelum palmas : " bene habet ! non inrita vovi,
cerno graves oculos atque ora natantia leto.
hue aliquis propere sceptrum atque insigne comarum,
dum videt." haec dicens gressus admovit et arma,
ceu templis decus et patriae laturus ovanti, 561

arma etiam spoliare cupit ; nondum ille peractis
manibus ultrices animam servabat in iras.
utque superstantem pronumque in pectora sensit,
erigit occulte ferrum vitaeque labantis 565

relliquias tenues odio supplevit, et ensem
iam laetus fati^ fraterno in^ corde reliquit.

^ hoc . . . hoc . . • hoc longa P : o . . . et . . . longaque w.

2 fati PS : fratri oo.

3 fraterno in PNSQ2: frater non KlQl : frater sub BD:
gelido sub K2.

" " Feathers " was the name given to small pieces of
metal arranged scale-wise on the piece of skin or linen
forming the basis of the cuirass ; cf, Virg. Aen. xi. 770.

* i.e., of the onlookers.
430

THEBAID, XL 541-567

in, and calling on his right arm, whose ire is more
valiant and which has the greater justice in his crime,
drove his sword deep into his kinsman's body, where
the corslet's lowest rim now gives with feathers '' but
ill protection to the groin. The other, not yet in
pain, but frightened by the first cold of the steel,
withdraws his shaken limbs behind his buckler, but
soon more and more conscious of the wound he gasps
and labours ; nor does his foe spare him as he gives
way, but taunts him : " Whither art thou retreating,
brother ? Behold the somnolent languor, the ex-
hausted sleep of kings ! See there long years of
sheltered rule ! But here thou seest limbs hardened
by want and exile ! Learn to be schooled in arms,
nor trust to fortune ! "

So fight the hapless ones ; life yet remained,
though feeble, in the wicked king, and his last drops
of blood, and awhile he could have stayed upright ;
but purposely he falls, and even in the moment of
death devises his last fraud. Cithaeron is startled by
a shout,* and his brother thinking he has conquered
raises his hands to heaven : " 'Tis well, my vow is
heard ; his eyes are heavy, and his face swims in
death. Come, somebody, quick, away with the
sceptre and the ornament of his locks, while he yet
sees ! " So speaking he drew nigh, and would fain
also take his arms, as though to bear them to grace
the shrines of his victorious land ; but the other's
life was not yet spent, and he retained still breath
enough to wTeak his avenging wTath ; and when he
knew that he was standing over him and stooping
to his body, he raises his weapon unperceived and
calhng up his hatred to strengthen the weak remnants
pf his failing life, now glad to die, he left the sword

431

ST ATI us

ille autem : " vivisne an adhuc manet ira superstes,
perfide, nee sedes umquam meriture quietas ?
hue meeum ad manes ! illie quoque paeta^ reposeam,
si modo Agenorei stat Gnosia iudicis urna, 571

qua reges punire datur." nee plura locutus
concidit et totis fratrem gravis obruit armis.

Ite truces animae funestaque Tartara leto
polluite et cunctas Erebi eonsumite poenas ! 575

vosque malis hominum, Stygiae, iam parcite, divae :
omnibus in terris scelus hoc omnique sub aevo
viderit una dies, monstrumque infame futuris
exeidat, et soH memorent haec proelia reges.

At genitor sceleris comperto fine profundis 580

erupit tenebris, saevoque in Umine profert
mortem imperfectam : veteri stat sordida tabo
utraque^ canities, et durus sanguine crinis
obnubit furiale caput ; procul ora genaeque
intus et efFossae squalent vestigia lucis. 585

virgo autem impositae sustentat pondera laevae,
dextra sedet baculo. quaUs si puppe rehcta
exosus manes pigri sulcator Averni
exeat ad superos solemque et pallida turbet
astra, nee ipse diu fortis patiensque supemi 590

aeris ; interea longum cessante magistro
crescat opus, totisque^ exspectent saecula ripis :
talis init campum, comitique extrema gementi

^ pacta w : parta P.

* utraque w, Priscian : hirtaque Heinsius : atraque,
tetraque edd.

* totisque P : tostisque, solisque, tota atque edd.

" i.e., Minos, who was son of Europa, daughter of Agenor,
432

THEBAID, XL 568-593

in his brother's heart. But he : " Livest thou still,
and doth thy malice yet survive, thou treacherous
one, who wilt never merit an abode of peace ? This
way with me to the shades ! There too will I demand
my rights, if but the Gnosian urn of the Agenorean
judge " still stands, whereby kings may be punished."
No more he spake, but fell, and crushed his brother
beneath all his armed weight.

Go, savage souls, and pollute baleful Tartarus by
your death, and exhaust all the punishments of
Erebus ! And O ye Stygian goddesses, spare now
the afflictions of mankind ; in every land and
throughout all ages let one day only have seen so
dread a crime ; let posterity forget the infamous
horror, and kings alone recount that combat.

But the sire, when he knew the horrid deed was
over, burst out from his gloom profound, and in the
dread gateway displays his hving corpse ; his grey hair
and beard are filthy and matted with ancient gore,
and locks congealed with blood veil his fury-haunted
head ; deep-sunken are his cheeks and eyes, and
foul the traces of the sight's uprooting. The maid *
sustains his left arm that leans its weight upon her ;
his right is supported by a staff. 'Tis even as though
the furrower of sluggish Avernus through loathing
of the shades should leave his bark and come up to
the world above and affright the sun and the pale
stars, though himself unable long to endure the air
of heaven ; meanwhile the long tale grows as the
ferryman dallies, and all along the banks the ages
await him : in such wise does he come forth upon the
plain, and to his comrade 'mid her utter woe : " Lead

king of Tyre. Gnosus or Cnossus was a city of Crete,
where Minos ruled. * Antigone.

VOL. II 2 F 4.33

STATIUS

" due," ait, " ad natos patremque recentibus, oro,
inice funeribus ! " cunctatur nescia virgo, 595

quid paret ; impediunt iter implicitosque morantur
arma, viri, currus, altaque in strage seniles
deficiunt gressus et dux miseranda laborat.
ut quaesita diu monstravit corpora clamor
\irginis, insternit totos frigentibus artus. 600

nee vox ulla seni : iacet immugitque cruentis
vulneribus, nee verba diu temptata sequuntur.
dum tractat galeas atque ora latentia quaerit,
tandem muta diu^ genitor suspiria solvit :

tarda meam, pietas, longo post tempore mentem 605
percutis ? estne sub hoc hominis dementia corde ?
vincis io miserum, vincis, Natura, parentem !
en habeo gemitus lacrimaeque per arida serpunt
volnera et in molles sequitur manus impia planctus.
accipite infandae iusta exsequialia mortis, 610

crudeles, nimiumque mei ! nee noscere natos
adloquiumque aptare licet ; die, virgo, precanti,
quem teneo ? quo nunc vestras ego saevus honore
prosequar inferias ? o si fodienda redirent
lumina et in voltus saevire ex more potestas ! 615
heu dolor, heu iusto magis exaudita parentis
vota malaeque preces ! quisnam fuit ille deorum,
qui stetit orantem iuxta praereptaque verba
dictavit Fatis ? furor ilia et movit Erinys
et pater et genetrix et regna oculique cadentes ; 620
nil ego : per Ditem iuro dulcesque tenebras
immeritamque ducem, subeam sic Tartara digna

^ muta diu PDN : multa furens w.
434

THEBAID, XI. 594-622

me," he cries, '• to my sons, I pray, and set their
father on the new-slain corpses." The maiden hesi-
tates, not knowing what he purposes ; arms, men, and
cliariots block their way, and entangle and delay
them, and the old man's steps falter in the high-
piled carnage, and his hapless guide hath sore ado.
But when the virgin's shriek betrayed the long-
sought bodies, he flung his full length on the cold
limbs. No word the old man spake : he lies and
moans upon their bloody wounds, nor do the long-
attempted words follow. At length while he gropes
and searches for the faces hidden within their helms
the father found utterance for his long-silent grief :
Late after so long time art thou come, affection,
to sway my heart ? Doth mercy dwell in this human
breast ? Ah ! thou hast conquered, Nature, con-
quered this unhappy father ! Behold, I weep, and
my tears steal oyer these dry wounds, this sinful
hand follows with womanly beating of my breast.
Receiye these fitting obsequies of your unhallowed
deaths, O cruel ones, too truly mine ! I cannot
recognize my sons, nor suit my words — tell me,
daughter, I beg, which am I holding ? With what
honours now can one so cruel as I perform your rites ?
Oh, if my eyes could be restored for me to rend them !
Oh, if I could wreak my rage upon my countenance
as once I did ! Ah, woe ! alas, for a parent's prayers
and curses granted too faithfully ! What god was
it stood by when I prayed, and caught my words and
told them to the Fates ? 'Twas madness caused
those ills, and the Fury, and my father and my mother
and my kingdom and my falling eyes — not I I By
Dis I swear it, and by the darkness that I loyed and
this my innocent guide, so may I go to Tartarus by a

435

STATIUS

morte, nee irata fugiat me Laius umbra.
ei mihi, quos nexus fratrum, quae volnera tracto !
solvite quaeso manus infestaque vincula tandem 625
dividite, et medium nunc saltern admittite patrem."
talia dequestus paulatim insumpserat iras
mortis, et occulte telum, ni nata vetaret,
quaerebat ; sed cauta manu subtraxerat enses
Antigone, furit inde senex : " ubi noxia tela ? 630
heu Furiae ! num totum abiit in corpora ferrum ? "
dicentem comes aegra levat mutumque dolorem
ipsa premit, saevum gaudens planxisse parentem.

OHm autem inceptae clamore exterrita pugnae
regina extulerat notum penetralibus ensem, 635

ensem sceptriferi spolium lacrimabile Lai.
multaque cum superis et diro questa cubili
et nati furiis et primi coniugis umbris,
luctata est dextra, et prono vix pectore ferrum
intravit tandem : venas perrumpit aniles 640

volnus et infelix lustratur sanguine lectus.
illius exili stridentem in pectore plagam
Ismene conlapsa super lacrimisque comisque
siccabat plangens : qualis Marathonide silva
flebilis Erigone caesi prope funera patris 645

questibus absumptis tristem iam solvere^ nodum
coeperat et fortes ramos moritura ligabat.

Et iam laeta ducum spes elusisse duorum
res Amphionias alio sceptrumque maligna
transtulerat Fortuna manu, Cadmique tenebat 650

^ solvere w : vulnere P, volvere, involvere, iungere edd.
But Lemaire's laxare ut se strangularet is clearly right.

436

THEBAID, XI. 623-650

worthy death, and Laius' shade not angrily shun my
presence ! Woe is me, what brotherly embraces
are these, what are these wounds I feel ? Loose
your hands, I entreat, and relax at last these deadly
bonds, now at least let your sire come between you."
Amid such laments he little by little had become in
mood for death, and secretly, lest his daughter
should prevent him, sought a weapon ; but prudent
Antigone had '«■ithdra^^^l their swords from his reach.
Then the old man in >vrath : " Where are the
weapons of death ? Alas ! ye Furies I has the blade
sunk all its length into their bodies ? " His feeble
comrade lifts him as he speaks, and hides her own
mute sorrow, rejoicing that grief has touched her
savage sire.

But the queen, terrified by the shout that marked
the fight begun, had then brought forth from her
chamber the famous sword, the sword that was the
lamentable spoil of sceptred Laius. And Avith
much complaining of the gods above and her dire
couch and her son's madness and the shade of her
first lord she strove ■with her right hand, yet scarce
at length as she leaned forward did the steel make
entrance to her breast ; the wound rent her aged
veins, and the ill-fated couch is purged in blood. As
the blade grated upon her skinny bosom Ismene fell
upon her and weeping stanched the wound \vith her
hair and tears : as when in the Marathonian glade
sorrowful Erigone wept her fill for her slain sire,
and already was untying the fatal girdle, and bent
on death was fastening it to the sturdy boughs.

And now, rejoicing to have foiled the hopes of both
the princes. Fortune -with spiteful hand had trans-
ferred elsewhere the sceptre of Amphion's realm,

437

STATIUS

iura Creon. miser heu bellorum terminus ! illi
pugnarant fratres. hunc et Mavortia clamant
semina, et impensus patriae paulo ante Menoeceus
conciliat populis. scandit fatale tyrannis
flebilis Aoniae solium : pro blanda potestas 655

et sceptri malesuadus amor ! numquamne priorum
haerebunt documenta novis ? iuvat ecce nefasto
stare loco regimenque manu tractare cruentum !
quid, melior Fortuna, potes ? iam flectere patrem
incipit atque datis abolere Menoecea regnis. 660

primum adeo saevis imbutus moribus^ aulae
indicium specimenque sui iubet igne supremo
arceri Danaos, nudoque sub axe relinqui
infelix bellum et tristes sine sedibus umbras,
mox reducem Ogygiae congressus limine portae 665
Oedipodem extimuit paulum, seseque minorem
confessus tacite, promptamque coercuit iram ;
sed redit in regem caecumque audentius hostem
increpitans "procul," inquit, " abi, victoribus omen
invisum, et Furias averte ac moenia lustra 670

discessu Thebana tuo ! spes longa peracta est :
vade, iacent nati. quae iam tibi vota supersunt ? "
Horruit instinctu rabido, steteruntque trementes
ceu visu squalore^ genae,^ seniumque recessit.
tunc natam baculumque manu dimisit, et irae 675
innixus tumido vocem de pectore rumpit :
" iamne vacat saevire, Creon ? modo perfida regna
fortunaeque locum nostrae, miserande, subisti,

^ imbutus moribus late mss., Bartli : imbutum moribus P :
imbutus amoribus oi.

* squalore P : praesente w. ^ genae u> : comae P.
438

THEBAID, XL 651-678

and Creon held the power of Cadmus. Ah. miserable
end of war I for him had the brothers fought. Him
does the seed of Mars proclaim, and Menoeceus
lately offered to save the state endears him to the
people. He ehmbs the throne of distressful Aonia,
that brings death to tyrants : ah, flattering power I
ill-counselling ambition I Will new rulers ne'er take
heed by the examples of the old ? Lo I he delights
to stand in the accursed spot, and exert a bloody
<wav. What availest thou, kindlier Fortune ? Al-
ready he begins to blunt the feelings of a sire, and
once upon the throne to ^^^pe Menoeceus from his
heart. First, imbued ^^rith the savage customs of
the palace, as proof and sample of his rule, he bids
the Danaans be debarred from funeral fire, and the
unhappy host he left under the bare vault, and their
sad shades \\ithout a resting-place. Next, meeting
the returning Oedipus in the entrance of the Ogygian
gate, he quailed for a moment, and owned his lesser
rank in silence, and checked his ready ire ; but soon
he resumes the king, and more boldly chiding his
blind foe : " Avaunt," he cried, " hateful omen to
the conquerors, keep far hence thy Furies, and purify
the Theban walls by thy departure I Fulfilled is
thy long-enduring hope : go, for thy sons lie dead ;
what wishes hast thou left ? "

A thrill of frenzy shook him, his squalid cheeks
stood quivering as though he saw, and his old age
fell from him. Then thrusting away his daughter
and his staff, sustained by >\Tath alone, he utters a
crv in the indignation of his heart : " Hast thou
already time to be cruel, Creon ? Camest thou but
lately by treacher}^ to my throne and place of rank,
miserable wretch, and art so soon permitted to

439

STATIUS

et tibi iam fas est regum calcare ruinas ?

iam tumulis victos, socios iam moenibus arces ? 680

macte, potes digne Thebarum sceptra tueri.

haec tua prima dies, sed cur nova eontrahis amens

iura ? quid anguste tantos metiris honores ?

exsilium intendis. timida inclementia regum

ista ! feros avidus quin protinus imbuis enses ? 685

crede, licet, veniat cupidus parere satelles

intrepidusque seeet non evitantia colla.

incipe ! an exspectas, ut pronus supplice dextra

sternar et immitis domini vestigia quaeram ?

finge autem temptare, sines ? mihine uUa minaris

supplicia, aut ullos reris superesse timores ? 691

linquere tecta iubes ? caelum terramque reliqui

sponte, atque ultricem crudelis in ora retorsi

non ullo cogente manum : quid tale iubere,

rex inimice, potes ? fugio excedoque nefandis 695

sedibus ; an refert, quo funera longa measque

transportem tenebras ? ne non gens cuncta precanti

concedat, patriae quantum miser incubo terrae ?

sed dulces Thebae. nimirum hie clarior ortus,

et meliora meos permulcent sidera voltus, 700

hie genetrix natique. habeas Thebana regasque

moenia, quo Cadmus, quo Laius omine rexit

quoque ego ; sic thalamos, sic pignora fida capessas,

nee tibi sit virtus fortunam evadere dextra,

sed lucem deprensus ames. satis omina sanxi. 705

due, age, nata procul. quid te autem luctibus addo ?

" Literally " I have hallowed good omens for you enough,"
ironically, of course; for the phrase cf. 1. 344 " vota sanxi."
440

THEBAID, XL 679-706

trample on the ruin of kings ? Already dost thou
debar the conquered from burial, our kinsmen from
their city ? Well done I thou canst worthily defend
the sceptre of Thebes ! This is thy first day of power,
but why dost thou foolishly restrict thy new authority?
Why grudgingly measure out so great an office ?
Thou threatenest exile : that is but timorous harsh-
ness in a monarch I Why dost thou not forth\vith
imbue thy greedy blade ? Thou hast the power,
beheve me ! some minion would come eager to obey,
and fearlessly sever my unresisting neck. Begin
then ! or dost thou expect me to fall prostrate and
with suppliant hand grope for my stem master's
feet ? But did I try, wouldst thou allow me ? Canst
thou threaten me ^\'ith any punishments, or think
that any terrors yet remain for me ? Dost thou bid
me leave the palace ? Heaven and earth I have
left of my own ^v^ll, and uncompelled turned my fierce
avenging hand on my ovm eyes : what canst thou
command to equal that, mahcious monarch ? I take
my flight, and leave an unhallowed land ; what
matters it whither I convey my bUndness and my
lingering death ? Do I fear lest any people refuse
to grant my prayer for as much of their soil as my
miserable corpse ^\^ll cover ? But Thebes is sweet :
ay, verily, here my birth is more reno^^^led, here
kindlier stars dehght my \ision, here are my mother
and my sons ! Nay, keep thou Thebes and rule it,
yviih Cadmus' fortune and Laius' and mine ; in such
wise marr}', and beget loyal sons ! and lack the
courage to escape by thy oa\ti hand the blows of
Fortune, but when thou art in the toils, then hold
hfe dear. There, 'tis enough of blessings ** I come,
daughter, lead me far away ; yet why do I make thee

441

STATIUS

da, rex magne, ducem." timuit miseranda relinqui
Antigone mutatque preces : " felicia per te
regna, verende Creon, sanctasque Menoeceos umbras :
da veniam adflieto dictisque ignosce superbis. 710
hunc morem fandi longae fecere querellae ;
nee soli ferus iste tibi : sic fata deosque
adloquitur, durus luctu, facilisque nee ipsi
saepe mihi ; pridem indoniito sub pectore vivit
libertas misera et saevae spes aspera mortis. 715

et nunc ecce tuas inritat callidus iras
suppliciumque cupit ; sed tu maioribus, oro,
imperii potiare bonis, altusque iacentes
praetereas, et magna ducum vereare priorum
funera. et hie quondam solio sublimis et armis 720
saeptus opem miseris et iura, potentibus^ aequus
supplicibusque, dabat, cui nunc ex agmine tanto
una comes, necdum exsul erat. felicibus hione
obstat ? in hunc odiis et regni viribus exis,
hunc abigis tectis ? an ne prope limina clarum 725
ingemat et votis intempestivus oberret ?
pone metum, procul usque tua submotus ab aula
flebit ; ego erectum subigam et servire docebo,
coetibus abducam solaque in sede recondam.
exsul erit. nam quae migrant! externa patebunt
moenia ? vis Argos eat hostilesque Mycenas 731

squalidus inreptet, victique ad limen Adrasti
Aonias referat clades, tenuemque precetur

^ potentibus PBDNS : petentibus KQ.
442

THEBAID, XI. 707-733

share my sorrows ? Give me a guide , great sovereign ! ' '
Hapless Antigone fears to be left behind, and pleads
in different wise : " By thy heaven-blest throne,
revered Creon, and Menoeceus' sacred shade, pardon
him in his affliction, forgive his proud words. Long
grievance hath given him this style of speech ; nor
is he thus harsh to thee alone, even so addresses he
the gods and Fate ; his distress hath hardened him,
even to me he is often discourteous ; in his untame-
able heart there long hath dwelt a stifled freedom
and a savage longing for pitiless death. And now
behold in his cunning he rouses up thy anger and
desires thee to punish him ; but do thou, I pray, enjoy
the greater blessings of thy realm, and in thy lofty
state o'erlook the fallen, and have reverence for the
mighty ruins of former kings. He too was once
lifted high upon a throne and hedged AWth arms, and,
impartial alike to great and humble, gave succour
and justice to the vTetched — who now has but one
companion maid out of all his armies ; not yet did
he know exile. Can he oppose thy happiness ?
Dost thou proceed against him with hatred and thy
kingdom's might ? Dost thou drive him from thy
house ? Is it lest he groan too loudly at thy gate
and meet thee with importunate prayers ? Fear
not that : far removed from thy hall will he lament ;
I will subdue his proud spirit and teach him sub-
mission, I will take him from the gatherings of men
and hide him in a place of sohtude. An outlaw will
he be ; for e'en should he wander, what foreign walls
will open to him ? Wouldst thou have him go to Argos
and crawl a beggar into hostile Mycenae, or tell of
the slaughter of the Aonians at the gate of con-
quered Adrastus, and entreat some scrap of succour

443

STATIUS

rex Thebanus opem ? miserae quid crimina gentis
pandere, quid casus iuvat ostentare pudendos ? 735
conde, precor, quodcumque sumus, nee longa preeamur
dona, Creon : miserere senis, maestosque parentis
hie, precor, hie manes indulge ponere : certe
Thebanos sepelire licet." sic orat humique
volvitur ; abducit genitor saevumque minatur 740
indignans veniam. qualis leo rupe sub alta,
quem viridem quondam silvae montesque^ tremebant,
iam piger et longo iacet exarmatus ab aevo,
magna tamen facies et non adeunda senectus ;
et si demissas veniat mugitus ad aures, 745

erigitur meminitque sui, viresque solutas^
ingemit et campis alios regnare leones.

Flectitur adfatu, sed non tamen omnia rector
supplicis indulget lacrimis partemque recidit 749

muneris. "baud," inquit, " patriis prohibebere longe
finibus, occursu dum non pia templa domosque
commacules. habeant te lustra tuusque Cithaeron ;
atque haec ecce tuis tellus habitabilis umbris,
qua bellum geminaeque iacent in sanguine gentes."
sic ait, et ficto comitum volgique gementis 755

adsensu limen tumidus regale petebat.

Interea pulsi vallum exitiale Pelasgi
destituunt furto ; nulli sua signa suusque
ductor : eunt taciti passim et pro funere pulchro
dedecorem amplexi vitam reditusque pudendos. 760
nox favet et grata profugos amplectitur umbra.

^ silvae montesque w : -que amnesque PBQK.
^ solutas PBDN2Q, D (with peractas written over) :
peractas KNS.

44.4.

THEBAID, XI. 734-761

for a Theban king ? Doth it please thee that he
should recount the crimes of our unhappy race, and
show forth all his shameful plight ? Conceal us, I
pray, whate'er we are — no lengthy boon, O Creon :
pity his old age, and grant me here, ay, here, I beg,
to lay to rest my sire's unhappy spirit. Surely
Thebans may have burial I " So prays she, prostrate
on the ground ; her father leads her away, ^ith angry
words and scorning pardon. Even as a Hon, whom
once in his youth the woods and mountains trembled
at, now lies sluggish beneath a lofty rock and dis-
armed by length of years : yet even in age is he
terrible of aspect and not to be approached, and
should the noise of lo^^•ing come to his languid ears,
he springs up and remembers himself, and groans
that his strength is broken, and that other lions lord
it upon the plains.

The monarch is moved by her plea, yet grants not
ever}'thing to the supphant's tears, but cuts short
a part of his bounty. " Thou shalt not," he cries,
" be kept far from the boundaries of thy land, so be
it thou defile not with thy presence its sacred shrines
and homes. Let the wilds of thy Cithaeron hold
thee ; and lo ! this land is a fit dwelling for thy dark-
ness, where the fight was fought and two races lie
in blood." So he speaks, and in haughty pride, amid
the feigned applauding of his train and the weeping
folk, sought the palace gate.

Meanwhile the routed Pelasgians steal away from
their fatal camp ; none has his own ensigns or chief
to follow ; silently in scattered rout they go, and in-
stead of a glorious death they cherish dishonoured
life and a shameful home-coming. Night favoiu^s the
fugitives and shrouds them in welcome gloom

445

LIBER XII

Nondum cuncta polo vigil inclinaverat astra
ortus et instanteni cornu tenuiore videbat
Luna diem, trepidas ubi iam Tithonia nubes
discutit ac reduci magnum parat aethera Phoebo :
agmina iam raris Dircaea penatibus errant, 5

noctis questa moras ; quamvis tunc otia tandem
et primus post bella sopor, tamen aegra quietem
pax fugat et saevi meminit victoria belli,
vix primo proferre gradum et munimina valli
solvere, vix totas reserare audacia portas ; 10

stant veteres ante ora metus campique vacantis
horror : ut adsiduo iactatis aequore tellus
prima labat, sic attoniti nil comminus ire
mirantur fusasque putant adsurgere turmas.
sic ubi perspicuae scandentem limina turris 15

Idaliae volucres fulvum aspexere draconem,
intus agUnt natos et feta cubilia valiant
unguibus imbellesque citant ad proelia pinnas ;
mox ruerit licet ille retro, tamen aera nudum
Candida turba timet, tandemque ingressa volatus 20
horret et a mediis etiamnum respicit astris.

Itur in exsanguem populum bellique iacentis

" The Dawn (Aurora), husband of Tithonus.
'' Doves, sacred to Venus.

446

BOOK XII

Not yet had the wakeful dawn put all the stars to
flight from heaven, and the moon was beholding the
approach of day with fading horn, what time Tithonia*
scatters the clouds in hurrying rout, and prepares the
wide firmament for the return of Phoebus : already
Dircean bands stray forth from their scanty dwellings,
complaining of the tardy night ; although not till
then had they rested, or gained their first sleep
after battle, yet a troubled peace forbids repose, and
victory still remembers the horrors of war. Scarce
at first dare they to step forth and destroy the ram-
part works, scarce wholly to unbar the gates ; the
old fears rise before them, and the dread of the
deserted plain : just as to men long tossed on ocean
earth heaves at first, so are they spellbound and
amazed that nought assails them, and fancy that the
slain hosts rise up again. So when Idalian birds *
have seen a tawny snake climbing the threshold of a
conspicuous tower, they drive their little ones within
and wall the nestling brood behind their talons, and
stir their unwarlike wings to battle ; and though he
soon retreat, yet the white flock fears the empty
air, and when at last they venture flight they thrill
with terror and still look back from the mid-vault of
heaven.

Forth they go to the bloodless multitude and the

447

STATIUS

relliquias, quacumquei dolor luctusque cruenti
exegere duces ; hi tela, hi corpora, at ilU
caesorum tantum ora vident alienaque iuxta 25

pectora ; pars currus deflent viduisque loquuntur,
hoc solum quia restat, equis ; pars oscula figunt
vulneribus magnis et de virtute queruntur..
frigida digeritur strages : patuere recisae
cum capuHs hastisque manus mediisque sagittae 30
luminibus stantes ; multis vestigia caedis
nulla, ruunt planctu pendente et ubique parato.
at circum informes truncos miserabile surgit
certamen, qui iusta ferant, qui funera ducant.
saepe etiam hostiles— lusit Fortuna parumper— 35
decepti flevere viros ; nee certa facultas
noscere, quern miseri vitent calcentve cruorem.
at quibus est inlaesa domus vacuique doloris,^
aut deserta vagi Danaum tentoria lustrant
immittuntque faces, aut— quae post bella facultas^—
quaerunt, dispersus iaceat quo pulvere Tydeus, 41
an rapti pateat specus auguris, aut ubi divum
hostis, an aetheriae vivant per membra favillae.
iam lacrimis exempta dies, nee serus abegit
Vesper : amant miseri lamenta malisque fruuntur. 45
nee subiere domos, sed circum funera pernox
turba sedet, vicibusque datis alterna gementes
igne feras planctuque fugant ; nee dulcibus astris
victa, nee adsiduo coierunt lumina fletu.
tertius Aurorae pugnabat Lucifer, et iam 50

montibus orbatis, lucorum gloria, magnae

^ quacumque PD late uss. : qua quemque w.
/^ doloris Gronovius {sc. et qui): dolores Pw: dolore
Uemsius. 3 facultas PDN : voluptas cu.

448

THEBAID, XII. 23-51

remnants of the fallen host, wherever grief and in-
dignation, blood-stained guides, impel them ; some
behold the weapons, some the bodies, others but the
faces of the slain, with strangers' hmbs near by ;
some mourn their chariots, and address — all they
can do — the \Aidowed steeds ; others imprint kisses
on gaping wounds, and bewail the valour of the dead.
They sort out the cold heaps of slain : severed hands
appear with lances and sword-hilts in their grip, and
arrows fixed in eyes ; many find no traces of their
dead, and rush about, with grief ever ready and on
the verge. But around the unsightly corpses a piti-
able strife arises, who shall perform the rites and
make their funeral. Often too were they deceived —
Fortune mocking them awhile — and wept for foe-
men ; nor was it easy to tell what carnage to avoid
and what to trample. But those whose homes have
suffered not, and who are spared all anguish, either
stray around the deserted tents of the Danaans and
set them afire, or — so far as they can after battle —
search where lies the dust-bespattered Tydeus,
whether the chasm of the ravished augur still be
gaping, where is the enemy of the gods, 'and whether
the heavenly embers still glow among his limbs.
Already the dayhght faded upon their tears, nor did
late Vesper drive them away ; in their misery they
love their lamentation and feast upon their sorrow.
Nor return they to their homes, but sit all night about
the corpses, and bewailing them by turns ward off
the beasts by fires and sounds of woe ; nor did their
eyes close yielding to the sweet influence of the stars,
nor through constant weeping. For the third time
Aurora strove with the \Ioming Star, and already
the mountains are despoiled, and mighty trunks of
VOL. II 2 G 4-49

STATIUS

Teumesi venere trabes et arnica Cithaeron
silva rogis ; ardent excisae viscera gentis
molibus exstructis : supremo munere gaudent
Ogygii manes ; queritur miserabile Graium 55

nuda cohors vetitumque gemens circumvolat ignem.
accipit et saevi manes Eteoclis iniquos
haudquaquam regalis honos, Argivus haberi
frater iussus adhuc atque exsuP pellitur umbra.

At non plebeio fumare Menoecea busto 60

rex genitor Thebaeque sinunt, nee robora vilem
struxerunt de more rogum ; sed bellicus agger
curribus et clipeis Graiorumque omnibus armis
sternitur ; hostiles super ipse, ut victor, acervos,
pacifera lauro crinem vittisque decorus 65

accubat : haud aliter, quam cum poscentibus astris
laetus in accensa iacuit Tirynthius Oeta.
spirantes super inferias captiva Pelasgum
corpora frenatosque pater, solacia forti^
bellorum, mactabat equos ; his arduus ignis 70

palpitat, et gemitus tandem erupere paterni :
" o nisi magnanimae nimius te laudis inisset
ardor, Echioftios mecum venerande penates
atque ultra recture puer, venientia qui nunc
gaudia et ingratum regni mihi munus acerbas ! 75
tu superum convexa licet coetusque perenni —
credo equidem — virtute colas, mihi flebile semper
numen eris : ponant aras excelsaque Thebae
templa dicent ; uni fas sit lugere parenti.
et nunc heu quae digna tibi sollemnia quasve 80

largiar exsequias ? nee si fatale potestas

^ exsul a Heidelberg commentator : exsule Pui.
2 forti PBDQl : fortes KQS: fortis N : sorti late Mss.
450

THEBAID, XII. 52-81

Teuinesus, the glory of the groves, and the timber
of Cithaeron, friend of the funeral pyre, is come ;
on high-%\Tought piles blaze the bodies of the ruined
race : the Ogygian ghosts rejoice at the last tribute ;
but the unburied troop of Greeks raise pitiable
lament, and moaning flit about the forbidden fires.
Nor does the cruel spirit of fierce Eteocles receive
the honours of a prince ; his brother by command is
held an Argive still, and his outlawed shade is driven
away.

But Menoeceus is not suffered by Thebes or the
king his father to burn upon a \'ulgar pyre, no heap
of logs forms a common, customary mound, but a
warlike pile of chariots and shields and all the
weapons of the Greeks is raised ; on the massed
trophies of the foe he himself like a conqueror is laid,
his locks adorned \\ith peace-bringing laurel and
woollen fillets : just as when the Tirynthian, sum-
moned by the stars, laid him down with joy on
kindled Oeta. Thereon did his sire sacrifice yet
h\ing victims, Pelasgian captives and bridled steeds,
a solace to his warlike valour ; upon them the tower-
ing flames quiver, and at last his father's groans
burst forth : " Ah ! had not overmastering desire
of noble praise possessed thee, my son, thou hadst
been revered alike ^\ith me, ay, even ruled Echion's
city, but now thou embitterest my coming joys and
the ungrateful burden of a realm. Though thy un-
failing virtue dwell in heaven amid the companies
of the gods — as I verily believe — yet, I shall ever
mourn thee, deity as thou art : let Thebes build
altars and dedicate lofty fanes ; suffer thy sire alone
to lament thee. And now, alas, what worthy rites,
what funeral pomp can I la\-ish on thy tomb ? I

451

STATIUS

Argos et impulsas cineri miscere Mycenas,
meque super, cui vita — nefas ! — et sanguine nati
partus honos. eademne dies, eadem impia bella
te, puer, et diros misere in Tartara fratres ? 85

et nunc Oedipodi par est fortuna doloris
ac mihi ? quam similes gemimus, bone luppiter,

umbras !
accipe, nate, tui nova libamenta triumphi,
accipe et hoc regimen dextrae frontisque superbae
vincula, quae patri minimum laetanda^ dedisti, 90
regem te, regem tristes Eteocleos umbrae
aspiciant." simul haec dicens crinemque manumque
destruit, accensaque iterat violentius ira :
" saevum agedum immitemque vocent, si funera

Lernae
tecum ardere veto ; longos utinam addere sensus 95
corporibus caeloque animas Ereboque nocentes
pellere fas, ipsumque feras, ipsum unca volucrum
ora sequi atque artus regum^ monstrare nefandos !
ei mihi, quod positos humus alma diesque resolvet.
quare iterum repetens iterumque edico : suprema
ne quis ope et flammis ausit iuvisse Pelasgos ; 101
aut nece facta luet numeroque explebit adempta
corpora ; per superos magnumque Menoecea iuro."
dixit, et abreptum comites in tecta ferebant.

Flebihs interea vacuis comitatus ab Argis — 105
fama trahit miseras — orbae viduaeque ruebant
Inachides ceu capta manus ; sua volnera cuique,

^ minimum laetanda P : nimium gestanda w.
* regum cj : ferrum P : Garrod conj. fratrum . . . vorandos.

452

THEBAID, XII. 82-107

could not. even had I power to mingle baneful Argos
and stricken Mycenae with thy ashes, and fling my-
self upon them, who have gained life — ah ! horror !
— and royal state by the blood of my son ! Hath
one day, one same unhallowed war sent thee, boy,
and those dread brothers to Tartarus together ?
Are Oedipus now and I in equal plight of sorrow ?
Like indeed are the shades we mourn, O righteous
Jove ! Receive, my son, new offerings to grace thy
triumph, receive this ruling sceptre of my right hand
and this haughty crown that binds my brow, thy gifts
unto thy sire — small joy indeed to him I As king,
ay, king let the sullen shade of Eteocles behold
thee ! " So speaking he strips head and hand, and
with A^Tath inflamed continues in more violent
strain : " Come then, let them call me fierce and
heartless, if I forbid the Lemaean dead to bum A\ith
thee ; would I could put lingering life AAithin their
bodies and drive their guilty souls from heaven and
Erebus, and myself, ay myself go search for wild
beasts and birds with hooked mouths, and show them
the accursed limbs of the princes ! Woe is me, that
the kindly earth and the lapse of time will resolve
them where they lie ! Wherefore again and again
I repeat my stern decree : let none venture to give
the aid of final fire to the Pelasgians, or he will atone
his deed by death, and fill up the tale of corpses : by
the gods above and by great Menoeceus I swear it ! "
He spoke, and his companions dragged him away and
bore him to the palace.

Meanwhile a sorroAA'ful band of Inachian women,
widowed and bereaved — draA\Ti, hapless ones, by
the sad tidings — were hastening, hke a captive
throng, from desolated Argos ; each had her own

453

ST ATI us

par habitus cunctis, deiecti in pectora crines
accinctique sinus ; manant lacera ora cruentis
unguibus, et molles planctu crevere lacerti. 110

prima per attonitas nigrae regina catervae,
tristibus inlabens famulis iterumque resurgens,
quaerit inops Argia vias ; non regia cordi,
non pater : una fides, unum Polynicis amati
nomen in ore sedet ; Dircen infaustaque Cadmi 115
moenia posthabitis velit incoluisse Mycenis.
proxima Lernaeo Calydonidas agmine mixtas
Tydeos exsequiis trahit baud cessura sorori
Deipyle ; scelus ilia quidem morsusque profanes
audierat miseranda viri, sed cuncta iacenti 120

infelix ignoseit amor, post aspera visu,
ac deflenda tamen, digno plangore Nealce
Hippomedonta ciens. vatis mox impia coniunx
heu vacuos positura rogos. postrema gementum
agmina Maenaliae ducit comes orba Dianae, 125

et gravis Euadne : dolet haec queriturque labores
audacis pueri, magni memor ilia mariti
it torvum lacrimans summisque irascitur astris.
illas et lueis Hecate speculata Lycaeis
prosequitur gemitu, duplexque ad litus euntes 130
planxit ab Isthmiaco genetrix Thebana sepulcro,
noctivagumque gregem, quamvis sibi luget, Eleusin
flevit et arcanos errantibus extulit ignes.
ipsa per aversos ducit Saturnia calles
occultatque vias, ne plebs congressa suorum 135

" Statius seems to mean Demeter here, though "Eleusin"
in vii. 411 above means the town of Eleusis.

* Juno.
454

THEBAID, XII. 108-135

wounds, all were in similar plight, with hair hanging
down upon their bosoms and high-girt raiment ; their
faces torn by their cruel nails were streaming, their
tender arms were swollen ^vith beating. First of her
stricken sisters, helpless Argia, queen of the sable-
clad company, seeks her path, sinking upon her
sorro^^ing maidens and anon strugghng to her feet ;
no thought has she of her sire or royal home ; one
devotion fills her heart, one name, that of her be-
loved Polvnices, is on her lips ; she would fain forget
Mycenae and make Dirce and Cadmus' ill-starred
city her abode. Next Deipyle, as eager as her sister,
brings Calydonian women mingling ^\"ith the train of
Lerna to Tydeus' obsequies ; she had heard, un-
happy one ! of her husband's crime and impious
gnawing, but love in affliction forgives the slain one
all. After her Nealce, AA-ild of aspect, yet rousing
tearful compassion, bewails Hippomedon -vWth the
grief that is his due. Then comes the seer's un-
righteous spouse, doomed alas ! to build an empty
pyre. The bereft comrade of Maenahan Diana leads
the rearmost companies of the mourners, and Evadne,
bitter at heart : the one in querulous sorrow for the
exploits of her daring boy, the other mindful of her
mighty lord goes fiercely weeping and in MTath
against high heaven. Hecate beheld them from her
Lycean groves and bore them tearful company, and
as they approached the double shore the Theban
mother lamented from her Isthmian tomb ; the
Eleusinian," though sorrowing for herself, wept for
the night- wandering multitude, and showed her
mystic fires to guide their errant course. The
Saturnian ^ herself leads them through hidden paths
and conceals their going, lest her own folk should

455

STATIUS

ire vetet pereatque ingentis gloria coepti.
nee non functa ducum refovendi corpora curam
Iris habet, putresque arcanis roribus artus
ambrosiaeque rigat sucis, ut longius obstent 139

exspectentque rogum et flammas non ante fatiscant.

Squalidus ecce genas et inani vulnere pallens
Ornytus — hie socio desertus ab agmine, tardat
plaga recens — timido secreta per avia furto
debile carpit iter fractaeque innititur hastae.
isque ubi mota novo stupiiit loca sola tumultu 145
femineumque gregem, quae iam super agmina Lernae
sola videt, non ille viam causasve requirit,
quippe patent, maesto sed sic prior occupat ore :
" quo, miserae, quo fertis iter ? funusne peremptis
speratis cineremque viris ? stat pervigil illic 150

umbraruni custos inhumataque corpora regi
adnumerat. nusquam lacrimae, procul usque fugati
accessus hominum : solis avibusque ferisque
ire licet, vestrisne Creon dabit aequus honorem
luctibus ? immitis citius Busiridos aras 155

Odrysiique famem stabuli Siculosque licebit
exorare deos ; rapiet fortasse precantes,
si mens nota mihi, nee coniugialia supra
funera, sed caris longe mactabit ab umbris. 159

quin fugitis, dum tuta via est, Lernamque reversae
nomina, quod superest, vacuis datis orba sepulcris
absentesque animas ad inania busta vocatis ?
aut vos Cecropiam— prope namque et Thesea fania est

" Busiris, king of Egypt, sacrificed strangers to the gods,
till slain by Hercules ; the Odrysian (Thracian) horses of
Diomede ate human flesh ; the Sirens, who ate unwary
seamen, were supposed to have lived on the coast of Sicily
(c/. Silv. ii. 1. 10).

456

THEBAID, XII. 136-163

meet them and forbid them passage, and the glory of
their great enterprise be lost. Moreover, Iris is
bidden cherish the dead bodies of the princes, and
laves their decaying hmbs ^\^th mysterious dews and
ambrosial juices, that they may resist the longer and
await the p^TC, nor perish before the flames have
seized them.

Lo ! Ornytus, haggard of face and pale from a
gaping wound — he had lost his friends and was
hampered by a recent blow — feebly picks his way in
timid stealth through pathless deserts, leaning upon
a broken spear. When in amaze he beheld the soli-
tudes stirred by strange tumult and the train of
women, all that he sees sur\'i\'ing of the host of
Lerna, he inquires not of their journey or its cause —
'tis clear enough — but in mournful accents thus
accosts them : " Whither, hapless ones, whither are
ye journeying ? Do ye hope for funeral fires for
yoiu- dead heroes ? A sentinel of the slain stands
there unsleeping, and keeps count of the unburied
corpses for the king. Tears are there nowhere, all
men that venture nigh are driven far away ; only
beasts and birds are suffered to approach. Will the
just Creon pay respect to your grief ? Sooner may
one prevail upon the merciless altars of Busiris or
the ravening Odrysian stall or the Sicilian deities " ;
perchance he will carry off the suppliants, if I know
his mind, nor >\ill he slay you upon the bodies of
your lords, but far from the spirits ye love. Nay,
flee, while your road is safe, return to Lerna and
carve — this ye yet can do — the names of your lost
ones on empty sepulchres, and call the absent ghosts
to untenanted tombs. Or implore Cecropian succour
— they say that Theseus draws nigh, returning in

4f57

STATIUS

Thermodontiaco laetum remeare triumpho —
imploratis opem ? bello cogendus et amis 165

in mores hominemque Creon." sic fatus, at illis
horruerunt lacrimae, stupuitque immanis eundi
impetus, atque uno voltus pallore gelati.^
non secus adflavit molles si quando iuvencas
tigridis Hyrcanae ieiunum murmur, et ipse 170

auditu turbatus ager, timor omnibus ingens,
quae placeat, quos ilia fames escendat in armos.

Continuo discors vario sententia motu
scinditur : his Thebas tumidumque ambire Creonta,
his placet Actaeae si quid dementia gentis 175

adnuat ; extremum curarum ac turpe reverti.
hie non femineae subitum virtutis amorem
colligit Argia, sexuque immane relicto
tractat opus : placet — egregii spes dura pericli ! —
comminus infandi leges accedere regni, 180

quo Rhodopes non ulla nurus nee alumna nivosi
Phasidis innuptis vallata cohortibus iret.
tunc movet arte dolum, quo semet ab agmine fido
degreget, immitesque deos regemque cruentum
contemptrix animae et magno temeraria luctu 185
provocet ; hortantur pietas ignesque pudici.
ipse etiam ante oculos omni manifestus in actu,
nunc hospes miserae, primas nunc sponsus ad aras,
nunc mitis coniunx, nunc iam sub casside torva
maestus in amplexu multumque a limine summo 190
respiciens : sed nulla animo versatur imago
crebrior, Aonii quam quae de sanguine campi

^ gelati PBQ : notati D (gelati written over) B marg. K.

" i.e., over the Amazons.

* " ilia fames," that hunger, i.e. hungry beast ; cf.
" timor," vii. 746.

<= i.e., no Amazon and no Medea.

458

THEBAID, XII. 164-192

triumph from Wctory on Thermodon's banks." By
force of arms alone \\i\\ Creon learn humanity." So
he spoke, but they were horrified amid their tears,
and their great zest of going was struck -sWth dismay,
and all their faces were frozen in one pallor. Even
so when the hungry roar of a HjTcanian tigress
comes wafted on the wind to gentle heifers, at the
sound terror seizes the countryside, and all are filled
with mighty fear, which shall please her, whose
shoulders shall feel the ravening beast * upon them.
Straightway opinion is di\ided by many a dis-
cordant impulse : some ^^■ish to supphcate Thebes
and haughty Creon, others to see if the clemency of
the Attic folk will grant them aught ; return seems
cowardly and is last in their thoughts. Hereupon
Argia conceives a sudden passion for more than
womanly valour, and neglecting her sex designs a
mightv emprise : she purposes — cruel expectation
of unequalled peril 1 — to come to grips %Wth the law
of the impious realm, whither no maid of Rhodope,
no child of snow}' Phasis ringed round by virgin
cohorts would go.*^ Then she devises a cunning ruse
whereby to separate herself from her faithful train,
and in contempt of her life and in the rashness of
overpowering grief to challenge the merciless gods
and the cruel king ; devotion and chaste passion
urge her on. He himself too appears before her
eyes, manifest in every act, now as her guest, un-
happy girl ! now pledging his hand at the first holy
rites, now her kindly spouse, and now grirply helmed
and mournful in her embrace and oft looking back
from the outer threshold of the gate : but no image
more frequently haunts her mind than that which
comes, stripped of its annour, from the blood of the

459

STATIUS

nuda venit poscitque rogos. his anxia mentem

aegrescit furiis et, qui castissimus ardor,

funus amat ; tunc ad comites conversa Pelasgas : 195

" vos," ait, " Actaeas acies Marathoniaque arma

elicite, adspiretque pio Fortuna labori :

me sinite Ogygias, tantae quae sola ruinae

causa fui, penetrare domos et fulmina regni

prima pati ; nee surda ferae pulsabimus urbis 200

limina : sunt illic soeeri mihi suntque sorores

coniugis, et Thebas haud ignoranda subibo.

ne tantum revocate gradus : illo impetus ingens

auguriumque animi." necplura,unumqueMenoeten —

olim hie virginei custos monitorque pudoris — 205

eligit et, quamquam rudis atque ignara locorum,

praecipites gressus, qua venerat Ornytus, aufert.

atque ubi visa procul socias hquisse malorum,

" anne," ait, " hostiles ego te tabente^ per agros —

heu dolor ! — exspectem, quaenam sententia lenti

Theseos ? an bello proceres, an dexter haruspex 211

adnuat ? interea funus decrescit. et uncis

alitibus non hos potius supponimus artus ?

et nunc me duram, si quis tibi sensus ad umbras,

me tardam Stygiis quereris, fidissime, divis. 215

heu si nudus adhuc, heu si iam forte sepultus :

nostrum utrumque nefas ; adeo vis nulla dolenti,

Mors nusquam saevusve^ Creon ? hortaris euntem,

Ornyte ! " sic dicens magno Megareia praeceps

arva rapit passu, demonstrat proxima quisque 220

^ tabente P : labente w.
* sa.QVMS\'& Kohlmann : sae\TisneP: saevusque w.

" Marathon is a village of Attica ; the epithet probably
has reference to Theseus, who performed an exploit there.

460

THEBAID, XII. 193-220

Aonian battle-field and cries for burial. Her soul
fretted >vith such frenzy she sickens, and 'svith purest
passion woos the grave ; then, turning to her
Pelasgian comrades, " Do you," she says, " call forth
the Attic hosts and Marathonian <* arms, and may
Fortune favour your devoted toil : suffer me to
penetrate the OgA'gian abodes, who was the sole
cause of ruin, and endure the first terrors of the
monarch ; nor shall I beat at the city's doors in
vain ; the parents and the sisters of my lord are
there : not as a stranger shall I enter Thebes. Only
call me not back : my keen desire urges me thither,
and gives me good omen." Without more words
she selects Menoetes alone — once the guardian and
counsellor of her maiden modesty — and though ^^ith-
out experience or knowledge of the country, hurries
on wth headlong speed by the way that Ornytus
had come. And when she seemed to have left afar
the comrades of her woes, " Could I wait," she cried,
" for the pleasure of tardy Theseus, while thou — ah,
sorrow ! — art mouldering on the enemy's fields ?
Would his chieftains, would his cunning soothsayer
assent to war ? Meanwhile thy body doth decay.
Rather than that shall I not give my o\«i limbs for
the taloned birds to tear ? Even now, if thou hast
any feeling in the world of shades, thou art complain-
ing, faithful spouse, to the deities of Styx that I am
hard-hearted, that I am slow in coming. Alas ! if
thou still art bare, alas I if perchance already buried :
mine is the crime in either case ; hath sorrow then
no power ? Is death, or fierce Creon, all a dream ?
Ornytus, thou dost cheer me on my way ! " So
speaking, she hastens with rapid pace over the fields
of Megara ; folk that she meets point out her path,

461

STATIUS

obvius horrescitque habitus miseramque veretur.
vadit atrox visu, nil corde nee aure^ paveseens,
et nimiis confisa^ malis propiorque timeri :
noete velut Plirygia cum lamentata resultant
Dindyma, pinigeri rapitur Simoentis ad amnem 225
dux vesana chori, cuius dea sanguine lecto
ipsa dedit ferrum et vittata fronde notavit.

lam pater Hesperio flagrantem gurgite currum
abdiderat Titan, aliis rediturus ab undis,
cum tamen ilia gravem luctu fallente laborem 230
nescit abisse diem : nee caligantibus arvis
terretur, nec^ frangit iter per et invia saxa
lapsurasque trabes nemorumque arcana, sereno
nigra die, caecisque incisa novalia fossis,
per fluvios secura vadi somnosque ferarum 235

praeter et horrendis infesta cubilia monstris.
tantum animi luctusque valent ! pudet ire Menoeten
tardius, invalidaeque gradum miratur alumnae,
quas non ilia domos pecudumque hominumque

molesto*
pulsavit gemitu ! quotiens amissus eunti 240

limes, et errantem comitis solacia flammae
destituunt gelidaequa facem vicere tenebrae !
iamque supinantur fessis lateque fatiscunt
Penthei devexa iugi, cum pectore anhelo
lam prope deficiens sic incipit orsa Menoetes : 245
" haud procul, exacti si spes non blanda laboris,

^ aure Pw : ore Lachnmnn.

* confisa w : confixa P {Klotz cf. ii. 572).

^ nee Pw : Garrod conj, sed ; frangere here — to break
off, to check.

* molesto Heinsius : modesto Pw.

" The votaries of Cybele cut themselves with knives in
honour of the goddess.
462

THEBAID, XII. 221-246

awe-struck at her miserable plight. With grim
countenance she strides onward, terrified by no
sound without or panic within, with all the con-
fidence of utter despair, and rather feared than
fearing : as when upon a night in Phrygia Dindymus
resounds ^vith waihng, and the crazy leader of the
women's revel speeds to the waters of pine-rearing
Simois — she to whom the goddess herself gave the
knife, selecting her for bloodshed, and marked her
viith the wool-bound wTeath."

Already had father Titan hidden his flaming
chariot in the Hesperian flood, to emerge again
from other waves, yet she, her weary toil beguiled
by grief, knows not that the day is ended ; nor does
the gathering gloom of the fields affray her, but
unchecked she fares o'er pathless rocks, past boughs
that threaten to fall, through mysterious forests,
pitch-dark even in cloudless day, over plough-lands
scarred with hidden dykes, plunging heedless through
rivers, past sleeping beasts and dangerous lairs of
fearful monsters. So great is the strength of passion
and of grief ! Menoetes is ashamed of his slower
pace, and marvels at the gait of his frail ward. What
abodes of beasts or men echoed not to her grievous
plaint ? How often did she lose the track as she went,
how often did the solace of the companion flame
desert her straying steps, and the cold darkness
swallow up the torchlight ? And now the slopes of
Pentheus' ridge * lie beside their weary path, and
broaden into plain, when Menoetes nigh faiUng
and with panting breast thus begins to speak : " Not
far away, Argia, if the hope inspired by the toils

* i.e.. the slopes of Cithaeron; c/. "Tibur supinum," Hor.
C. iii. 4. -'3.

463

ST ATI us

Ogygias, Argia, domos et egena sepulcri
busta iacere reor ; grave comminus aestuat aer
sordidus, et magnae redeunt per inane volucres.
haec ilia est crudelis humus, nee moenia longe. 250
cernis, ut ingentes murorum porrigat umbras
campus, et e speculis moriens intermicet ignis ?
moenia sunt iuxta ; modo nox magis ipsa tacebat,
solaque nigrantes laxabant astra tenebras."
horruit Argia, dextramque ad moenia tendens : 255
" urbs optata prius, nunc tecta hostilia Thebae,
et tamen, inlaesas si reddis coniugis umbras,
sic quoque dulce solum, cernis, quo praedita cultu,
qua stipata manu, iuxta tua limina primum 259

Oedipodis magni venio nurus ? improba non sunt
vota : rogos hospes planctumque et funera posco.
ilium, oro, extorrem regni belloque fugatum,
ilium, quem solio non es dignata paterno,
redde mihi ! tuque, oro, veni, si manibus uUa
effigies errantque animae post membra solutae,^ 265
tu mihi pande vias, tuaque ipse ad funera deduc,
si merui ! " dixit, tectumque adgressa propinquae
pastorale casae reficit spiramina fessi
ignis, et horrendos inrumpit turbida campos.
qualis ab Aetnaeis accensa lampade saxis 270

orba Ceres magnae variabat imagine flammae
Ausonium Siculumque latus, vestigia nigri
raptoris vastosque legens in pulvere sulcos ;
ilhus insanis ululatibus ipse remugit

^ solutae Pu) : soluta Baehrens : Garrod conj. prope m.
solutae.

" One of the Giants, imprisoned by Jupiter under Aetna.
464

THEBAID, XII. 247-274

we have endured deceive not, lie, methinks, the
Ogygian dwellings and the bodies that lack sepulture ;
from close at hand come waves of hea\"ily-tainted
air, and mighty birds are returning through the void.
'Tis indeed that cruel battle-field, nor is the city far
distant. Seest thou how the plain outstretches the vast
shadow of the walls, and how the dying fires flicker
from the watch-towers ? The city is hard by : night
herself was more silent but a moment past, and only
the stars broke through the pitchy gloom." Argia
shuddered, and stretched out her right hand toward
the walls : " O city of Thebes, once longed-for, but
now the dwelhng of our foes, yet, if thou givest back
my dead spouse uninjured, even so a soil beloved :
seest thou in what garb arrayed, by what a train
accompanied. I, the daughter-in-law of mighty
Oedipus, for the first time approach thy gates ? No
unhallowed wash have I ; a stranger, I beg but for
a p)Te, a corpse, and leave to mourn. Him restore
to me, I pray, who was exiled from his realm and
conquered in the fight, him, whom thou deemedst
not worthy of his father's throne ! And come thou
too, I beg, if spirits have any shape, and souls can
wander freed from their bodies, show me the way,
and lead me thyself to thy own corpse, if I have so
deserved ! " She spoke, and entering the pastoral
shelter of a neighbouring cottage kindles anew the
breath of the d^ing brand, and impetuously rushes
forth upon the awful plain. Even so did the bereaved
Ceres light her torch and from Aetna's rocks cast the
shifting glare of the mighty flame here over Sicily,
there over Ausonia, as she followed the traces of the
dark ra\'isher and the great wheel-furrows in the
dust ; Enceladus" himself re-echoes her wild waitings,
VOL. II 2 H 4/65

ST ATI us

Enceladus ruptoque vias inluminat igni : 275

Persephonen amnes silvae freta nubila clamant,
Persephonen tantum Stygii tacet aula mariti.

Admonet adtonitam fidus meminisse Creontis
altor et occulto submittere lampada furto.
regina Argolicas modo formidata per urbes, 280

votum immane procis spesque augustissima gentis,
nocte sub infesta, nullo duce et hoste propinquo,
sola per ofFensus armorum et lubrica tabo
gramina, non tenebras, non circumfusa tremiscens
concilia umbrarum atque animas sua membra
gementes 285

saepe gradu caeco ferrum calcataque tela
dissimulat, solusque labor vitasse iacentes,
dum funus putat omne suum, visuque sagaci
rimatur positos et corpora prona supinat
incumbens, queriturque parum lucentibus astris. 290

Forte soporiferas caeli secreta per umbras
luno, sinu magni semet furata mariti,
Theseos ad muros, ut Pallada flecteret, ibat,
supplicibusque piis faciles aperiret Athenas.
atque ubi per campos errore fatiscere vano 295

immeritam Argian supero respexit ab axe,
indoluit visu, et lunaribus obvia bigis
advertit vultum^ placidaque ita voce locuta est :
" da mihi poscenti munus breve, Cynthia, si quis
est lunonis honos^ ; certe lovis improba iussu 300
ter noctem Herculeam — veteres sed mitto querellas :
en locus officio, cultrix placitissima^ nostri
Inachis Argia cernis qua nocte vagetur

^ vultum P : currum oi.

^ lunonis honos u : iuvenis P.

^ placitissima Gronovius : placidissima Pw.

466

THEBAID, XII. 275-303

and illumines her path \\-ith bursting fire ; " Perse-
phone " cry woods and rivers, seas and clouds : only the
palace of her Stygian lord calls not " Persephone ".

Her faithful supporter warns the distracted dame
to remember Creon and keep low her torch in stealthy
hiding. She who of late was feared as queen through-
out Argive cities, the ambitious hope of suitors and
sacred promise of her race, through all the terrors of
the night, without a guide and in the presence of the
foe, goes on alone, o'er obstacles of arms, o'er grass
all shppery vrith gore, trembling not at the gloom nor
at troops of spirits hovering around or ghosts bewaiUng
their ovm hmbs, oft treading blindly but unheeding
on swords and weapons ; she labours but to avoid
the fallen, and thinks even,' corpse the one she
seeks, while \Wth keen glance she searches the slain,
and bending down turns bodies on their backs, and
complains to the stars that they give not hght
enough.

By chance Juno, stealing herself from the bosom of
her mighty lord, was faring through the slumbrous
darkness of the sky to Theseus' walls, that she might
move Pallas to yield and Athens to give gracious
welcome to the pious supphants ; and when from the
height of heaven she beheld the innocent Argia ex-
hausted by fruitless wandering o'er the plain, she
was grieved at the sight, and encountering the lunar
team she faced them and spoke thus with calm
accents : " Grant me a little boon, O Cynthia, if
Juno can command respect ; 'tis true that at Jove's
bidding, thou shameless one, that threefold night
when Hercules — but I will let old quarrels be ; now
canst thou do me a service. Argia, daughter of
Inachus, my favourite votary — seest thou in what a

467

ST ATI us

nee reperire virum densis queat aegra tenebris ?
et tibi nimbosum languet iubar : exsere quaeso 305
cornua, et adsueto propior premat orbita terras,
hunc quoque, qui curru madidas tibi pronus habenas
ducit, in Aonios vigiles demitte Soporem."
vix ea, cum scissis magnum dea nubibus orbem
protulit ; expavere umbrae, fulgorque recisus 310
sideribus ; vix ipsa tulit Saturnia flammas.

Primum per campos infuso lumine pallam
coniugis ipsa suos noscit miseranda labores,
quamquam texta latent sufFusaque sanguine maeret
purpura ; dumque deos vocat et de funere caro 315
hoc superesse putat, videt ipsum in pulvere paene
calcatum. fugere animus visusque sonusque,
inclusitque dolor lacrimas ; tum corpora toto
sternitur in voltus animamque per oscula quaerit
absentem, pressumque comis ac veste cruorem 320
servatura legit, mox tandem voce reversa :
" hunc ego te, coniunx, ad debita regna profectum
ductorem belli generumque potentis Adrasti
aspicio, taHsque tuis occurro triumphis ?
hue adtolle genas defectaque lumina : venit 325

ad Thebas Argia tuas ; age, raoenibus indue
et patrios ostende lares et mutua redde
hospitia. heu quid ago ? proiectus caespite nudo
hoc patriae telluris habes. quae iurgia ? certe

" i.e., as the soul is fled ("absentem"), she gathers up
some of his blood.
468

THEBAID, XII. 304-329

night she roams, nor yriih faihng strength can find her
spouse in the thick darkness ? Thy beams too are
faint ^^ith shrouding vapour ; show forth thy horns,
I pray thee, and let thy orbit approach the earth
nearer than is thy wont. This Sleep, too, who lean-
ing forward plies for thee thy humid chariot-reins,
send him upon the Aonian watchmen." Scarce had
she spoken, when the goddess cleft the clouds and
displayed her mighty orb ; the shadows started in
terror, and the stars were shorn of their radiance ;
scarce did Saturnia herself endure the brightness.

First by the hght that floods the plain she recog-
nizes her husband's cloak, her ovm handiv^ork, poor
woman I though the texture is hidden and the
purple mourns to be suffused with blood ; and while
she calls upon the gods, and thinks that this is all
that is left of the beloved corpse, she catches sight
of himself, nigh trampled into the dust. Her spirit
quailed, and \ision and speech fled, and grief thrust
back her tears ; then she falls prostrate about his
face, and seeks with kisses for his departed soul,
and pressing the blood from his hair and raiment
gathers it up to treasure." At last as her voice
returns : " My husband, is it he who once marched
captain of the war to the realm that was his due, is it
the son-in-law of powerful Adrastus whom I now
behold ? Is this the manner in which I go to meet
thy triumph ? Raise hither thy countenance and
thy sightless eyes : Argia has come to thy Thebes ;
lead me then inside thy city, show me thy father's
halls and make me welcome in thy turn. Alas I
what am I doing ? thou Uest on the naked earth,
and this is all that thou dost o\vn of thy native land.
\Miat were those quarrels ? 'Tis sure thy brother

469

STATIUS

imperium non frater habet. nullasne tuorum 330
movisti lacrimas ? ubi mater, ubi inclyta fama
Antigone ? mihi nempe iaces, mihi vietus es uni !
dicebam : quo tendis iter ? quid sceptra negata
poscis ? habes Argos, soceri regnabis in aula ;
hie tibi longus honos, hie indivisa potestas. 335

quid queror ? ipsa dedi bellum maestumque rogavi
ipsa patrem, ut talem nunc te complexa tenerem.
sed bene habet, superi, gratum est, Fortuna ; peracta
spes longinqua viae : totos invenimus artus.
ei mihi, sed quanto deseendit vulnus hiatu ! 340

hoc frater ? qua parte, precor, iacet ille nefandus
praedator ? vincam volueres — sit adire potestas —
excludamque feras ; an habet funestus et ignes ?
sed nee te flammis inopem tua terra videbit :
ardebis lacrimasque feres, quas ferre negatum 345
regibus, aeternumque tuo famulata sepulcro
durabit deserta fides, testisque dolorum
natus erit, parvoque torum Poly nice fovebo."

Ecce alios gemitus aUamque ad busta ferebat
Antigone miseranda facem, vix nacta petitos 350

moenibus egressus ; illam nam tempore in omni
adtendunt vigiles et rex iubet ipse teneri,
contractaeque vices et crebrior excubat ignis,
ergo deis fratrique moras excusat et amens,
ut paulum immisso cessit static horrida somno, 355
erumpit muris : fremitu quo territat agros
virginis ira leae, rabies cui libera tandem

" i.e., the guards succeed each other at shorter intervals
and the watchfires are kindled more frequently.

470

THEBAID, XII. 330-357

holcls not dominion here. Didst thou move none of
thine own to tears .' Where is thy mother ? Where the
famed Antigone ? \'erily 'tis for me thou hest dead,
for me alone thou didst suffer defeat I I asked thee :
Whither marchest thou ? Why demandest thou the
sceptre denied thee ? Thou hast Argos and ^^ilt reign
in my father's hall; long honours await thee here,
and undivided power. But why do I complain ?
Myself I gave thee war, and with my own lips begged
it of my sorrowing sire — that now I might hold
thee thus in my embrace. But it is well, ye gods ;
I thank thee, Fortune ; the distant hope of my
wandering is fulfilled : I have found his body whole.
Ah ! what a deep and gaping wound I Was this his
brother's work ? Were lies, I pray, that infamous
robber ? I would outdo the birds, might I but
approach him, and keep the beasts away I Hath the
fell \illain fire as well ? But thee thy land shall not
behold undowered of flame ; burn thou shalt, and
tears that may not weep for kings shall rain on thee,
and desolate love shall endure and aye tend thy
sepulchre ; thy son shall be the witness of my sorrow,
a little Polynices shall cherish thy couch for me."

Lo ! with another torch and other sounds of woe
liapless Antigone drew nigh the dead, ha\"ing scarce
won from the town the escape she longed for ;
for ever do guards attend her, and the king himself
bids her be held fast ; the times of watching are
shortened and more frequent glow the fires." There-
fore she makes excuse for her delaying to the gods
and her brother, and frantically, so soon as the rough
sentinels relaxed one whit their ^^gilance, burst from
out the walls : ^\"ith such a cry does the virgin Uoness
terrify the countryside, her fury free at last, when

471

STATIUS

et primus sine matre furor, nee longa morata est,
quippe trucem campum et, positus quo pulvere frater,
noverat : atque illam contra videt ire Menoetes, 360
cui vacat, et carae gemitus compescit alumnae,
cum tamen erectas extremus virginis aures
accessit sonus, utque atra sub veste comisque
squalentem et crasso foedatam sanguine vultus
astrorum radiis et utraque a lampade vidit : 365

" cuius," ait, " manes, aut quae temeraria quaeris
nocte mea ? " nihil ilia diu, sed in ora mariti
deicit inque suos pariter velamina vultus,
capta metu subito paulumque oblita doloris.
hoc magis increpitans suspecta silentia perstat 370
Antigone, comitemque premens ipsamque ; sed ambo
deficiunt fixique silent, tandem ora retexit
Argia, corpusque tamen complexa profatur :
' ' si quid in hoc veteri bellorum sanguine mecum
quaesitura venis, si tu quoque dura Creontis 375

iussa times, possum tibi me confisa fateri.
si misera es — certe lacrimas lamentaque cemo — ,
iunge, age, iunge fidem : proles ego regia Adrasti —
ei mihi ! num quis adest ? — cari Polynicis ad ignes,
etsi regna vetant— ." stupuit Cadmeia virgo 380
intremuitque simul, dicentemque occupat ultro :
" mene igitur sociam — pro fors ignara ! — malorum,
mene times ? mea membra tenes, mea funera plangis.
cedo, tene, pudet heu ! pietas ignava sororis !
haec prior — ! " hie pariter lapsae iunctoque per
ipsum 385

" i.e., Antigone's.

472

THEBAID, XII. 358-385

for the first time her mother shares not in her rage.
Not long did she tarry, for she knew the cruel plain
and where her brother lay in the dust : Menoetes,
as he stands unbusied, marks her as she comes,
and hushes the groans of his dear ward. But when
the latest sob reached the maiden's ° uplifted ears,
and when she saw by the stars' rays and the
hght of either torch her mourning raiment and dis-
hevelled hair and face all foul >^ith congealed gore,
she cried : " Whose body seekest thou in this night
that is mine ? Who art thou, daring woman ?
Nought answered the other a long while, but cast
her raiment about her husband's face and likewise
her o^^'n, a prey to sudden fear and awhile forgetful
of her sorrow. Antigone, chiding her suspected
silence, persists the more, and urges her comrade
and herself; but both are lost in utter silence. At
last Argia unveiled her face and spoke, yet still
clasped the body : " If thou comest to seek aught
\\ith me in this stale blood of battle, if thou also
fearest Creon's harsh commands, I can A\-ith confidence
reveal myself to thee. If thou art A^TCtched — and
surely I behold tears and signs of grief — come join
with me in friendship ; Adrastus' royal seed am I
— ah I is any near ? — at the pyre of my beloved
PoljTiices, though kingdoms set their ban—" the
Cadmean maiden started in amaze and trembled, and
broke in upon her speech : " Is it I then whom thou
dost fear ? — how bhnd is chance ! — I, the partner of
thy woes ? Mine are the hmbs thou boldest, mine
the corpse thou dost bewail. Take him, he is thine I
Ah, shame I Ah, for the cowardly devotion of a
sister ! She came before me — ! " Side by side
they fall, and together embracing the same body

473

STATIUS

amplexu miscent avidae lacrimasque comasque,
partitaeque artus redeunt alterna gementes
ad vultum et cara vicibus cervice fruuntur.
dumque modo haec fratrem memorat, nunc ilia

maritum,
mutuaque exorsae Thebas Argosque renarrant, 390
longius Argia miseros reminiscitur actus :
" per tibi furtivi sacrum commune doloris,
per socios manes et conscia sidera iuro :
non hie amissos, quamquam vagus exsul, honores,
non gentile solum, carae non pectora matris, 395

te cupiit unam noctesque diesque locutus
Antigonen ; ego cura minor facilisque relinqui.
tu tamen ex celsa sublimem forsitan arce
ante nefas Grais dantem vexilla maniplis
vidisti, teque ille acie respexit ab ipsa 400

ense salutatam et nutantis vertice coni :
nos procul. extremas sed quis deus egit in iras ?
nil vestrae valuere preces ? tibine iste negavit
oranti ? " causas ac tristia reddere fata
coeperat Antigone ; fidus comes admonet ambas : 405
" heia agite inceptum potius ! iam sidera pallent
vicino turbata die, perferte laborem,
tempus erit lacrimis, accenso flebitis igne."

Haud procul Ismeni monstrabant murmura ripas,
qua turbatus adhuc et sanguine decolor ibat. 410

hue laceros artus socio conamine portant
invalidae, iungitque comes non fortior ulnas.
sic Hyperionium tepido Phaethonta sorores

474

THEBAID, XII. 386-413

mingle greedily their tears and tresses, and share
his Hnibs between them, and anon return %\-ith
united lament to his face and glut themselves by
turns upon his well-loved breast. And while they
recall the one her brother and the other her spouse,
and each tells to each the tale of Argos and of Thebes,
Argia in longer strain brings to mind her oa^ti sad
story : " By the sacred communion of our stolen
mourning, by our common dead and the \\-itnessing
stars I swear to thee : not his lost crown, nor his
native soil, nor his dear mother's breast did he desire,
wandering exile though he was, but thee alone ; of
thee, Antigone, he spake by night and day ; I was a
lesser care and easily rehnquished. Yet didst thou
perchance before the horrid deed from a lofty turret
behold him towering high and giving the Grecian
companies their banners, and he looked back at
thee from the very hne of battle, and saluted thee
\\-ith his sword and the nodding summit of his helm :
but I was far away. But what god drove them to
the extremity of ^\Tath ? Did your prayers nought
avail ? Did the other refuse thy own entreaty ? "
Antigone had begun to set forth the causes and the
cruelty of fate, but the faithful comrade warned
them : " Nay finish rather your task ! Already the
stars are pahng in rout before the approaching day ;
complete your toil, the time for tears will come ;
kindle the fire, then weep your fill."

Not far away a roar betrayed the channel of
Ismenos where he was flowing still discoloured and
befouled by gore. Hither >\ith united effort they
feebly bear the mangled hmbs, while their companion
as weak as they adds his arm to theirs. So did his
sisters lave the smoking Phaethon, Hyperion's son,

475

STATIUS

fumantem lavere Pado ; vixdum ille sepulcro
conditus, et flentes stabant ad flumina silvae. 415
ut sanies purgata vado membrisque reversus
mortis honos, ignem miserae post ultima quaerunt
oscula ; sed gelidae circum exanimesque favillae
putribus in foveis, atque omnia busta quiescunt.
stabat adhuc seu forte rogus, seu numine divum, 420
cui torrere datum saevos Eteocleos artus,
sive locum monstris iterum Fortuna parabat,
seu dissensuros servaverat Eumenis ignes.
hie tenuem nigris etiamnum advivere lucem
roboribus pariter cupidae videre, simulque 425

flebile gavisae ; nee adhuc, quae busta, repertum,
sed placidus quemcumque^ rogant mitisque supremi
admittat cineris consortem et misceat umbras.

Ecce iterum fratres : primos ut contigit artus
ignis edax, tremuere rogi et novus advena busto 430
pellitur ; exundant diviso vertice flammae
alternosque apices abrupta luce coruscant.
pallidus Eumenidimi veluti commiserit ignes
Orcus, uterque minax globus et conatur uterque
longius ; ipsae etiam commoto pondere paulum 435
secessere trabes. conclamat territa virgo :
" occidimus, functasque manu stimulavimus iras.
frater erat : quis enim accessus ferus hospitis umbrae
pelleret ? en clipei fragmen semiustaque nosco
cingula, frater erat ! cernisne, ut flamma recedat 440
concurratque tamen ? vivunt odia improba, vivunt.
nil actum bello ; miseri, sic, dum arma movetis,

^ quemcumque P : quicumque w.

" His sisters were turned into poplars.
476

THEBAID, XII. 414-442

in the heated Padus : scarce was he interred, when a
weeping grove rose by the river-side." When the
filth was purged in the stream and the body was
once more beautiful in death, the \\Tetched women
after the last kisses searched for fire, but dead and
cold were the ashes in the mouldering pits, and all
the p}Tes were silent. Still there remained one
funeral pile, whether by chance or heaven's ^nll, that
had been fated to burn the limbs of fierce Eteocles —
whether Fortune once more gave opportunity for
portents, or the Fury had spared the fires for mutual
strife. Here both in their eagerness beheld a feeble
glow still alive among the blackened timbers, and
together wept tears of joy ; nor yet knew they whose
the pyre, but prayed, whosesoe'er it be, that he be
favourable and graciously admit a partner to his
latest ashes and unite their ghosts.

Once more behold the brothers : as soon as the
devouring fire touched the body, the pile shook, and
the newcomer is driven from the pjTe ; a flame
streams up ^vith double head, each darting tongues
of flashing light. As though pale Orcus had set in
conflict the torches of the Eumenides, each ball of
fire threatens and strives to outreach the other ;
the very timbers, with all their massive weight, were
moved and gave way a space. The maiden cries out
in terror : " We are undone ; ourselves we have
stirred his wrath in death. It was his brother ;
who else would be so cruel as to spurn the approach
of a stranger ghost ? Lo ! I recognize the broken
buckler and the charred sword-belt, ay, it was liis
brother ! Seest thou how the flame shrinks away
and yet rushes to the fight ? AHve, ay, ahve is that
impious hatred. The war was in vain : while thus

477

ST ATI us

vicit nempe Creon ! nusquam iam regna, quis ardor ?
cui furitis ? sedate minas ; tuque exsul ubique
semper inops aequi, iam cede : hoc nupta precatur,
hoc soror, aut saevos mediae veniemus in ignes." 446

Vix ea, cum subitus campos tremor altaque tecta
impuUt adiuvitque rogi discordis hiatus,
et vigilum turbata quies, quibus ipse malorum
fingebat simulacra sopor : ruit ilicet, omnem 450

prospectum lustrans armata indagine miles,
illos instantes senior timet unus ; at ipsae
ante rogum saevique palam sprevisse Creontis
imperia et furtum claro plangore fatentur
securae, quippe omne vident fluxisse cadaver. 455
ambitur saeva de morte animosaque leti
spes furit : haec fratris rapuisse, haec coniugis artus
contendunt vicibusque probant: " ego corpus," " ego

ignes,"
" me pietas," " me duxit amor." deposcere saeva
supplicia et dextras iuvat insertare catenis. 460

nusquam ilia alternis modo quae reverentia verbis,
iram odiumque putes ; tantus discordat utrimque
clamor, et ad regem, qui deprendere, trahuntur.

At procul Actaeis dextra iam Pallade muris
luno Phoroneas inducit praevia matres 465

attonitas, non ipsa minus, coetumque gementem
conciliat populis et fletibus addit honor em.
478

THEBAID, XII. 443-467

ye strive, unhappy ones, Creon has conquered after
all ! Gone is your realm, why then such fury ? For
whom do ye rage ? Appease your anger. And thou,
everywhere an exile, ever debarred from justice,
yield at last ; this is thy wife's and thy sister's prayer,
else shall we leap into the fierce flame to part you."

Scarce had she spoken, when a sudden tremor shook
the plain and the lofty roofs, and increased the chasm
of the discordant pyre, while the watchmen, whose
very sleep shaped images of woe, started from repose :
straightway the soldiers rush forth, and with a ring
of arms search the whole countryside. As they draw
nigh, the old man alone has fear ; but the women
openly before the pyre confess to have spurned fierce
Creon's command, and with loud cry admit their
secret deed, careless, for they see that already the
whole body is consumed. Ambitious are they for cruel
destruction, and a spirited hope of death is aflame
within them : they contend that they stole, the one
her consort's, the other her kinsman's limbs, and
prove their case by turns : " I brought the body,"
" but I the fire," " I was led by affection," " I by
love." They delight to ask for cruel punishment
and to thrust their arms into the chains. Gone is
the reverence that but now was in the words of
each ; \\Tath and hatred one would deem it, so loud
on either side rise the cries of discord ; they even
drag their captors before the king.

But far away Juno leads the distraught Phoronean
dames — herself no less distraught — to the walls of
Athens, having gained at last the goodwill of Pallas,
and goes before them on the road ; she gives the
train of mourners favour in the people's sight and
inspires reverence for their tears. With her own

479

STATIUS

ipsa manu ramosque oleae vittasque precantes

tradit, et obtenta submittere lumina palla

et praeferre docet vacuas sine manibus urnas. 470

omnis Erechtheis^ efFusa penatibus aetas

tecta viasque replent : unde hoc examen et una

tot miserae ? necdum causas novere malorum,

iamque gemunt. dea conciliis se miscet utrisque

cuncta docens, qua gente satae, quae funera plangant

quidve petant ; variis nee non adfatibus ipsae 476

Ogygias leges immansuetumque Creonta

multum et ubique fremunt. Geticae non plura

queruntur
hospitibus tectis truneo sermone volucres,
cum duplices thalamos et iniquum Terea clamant.

Urbe fuit media nulli concessa potentum 481

ara deum ; mitis posuit Clementia sedem,
et miseri fecere sacram ; sine supplice numquam
ilia novo, nulla damnavit vota repulsa.
auditi quicumque rogant, noctesque diesque 485

ire datum et solis numen placare querellis.
parca superstitio : non turea flamma, nee altus
accipitur sanguis : lacrimis altaria sudant,
maestarumque super libamina secta comarum
pendent et vestes mutata sorte relictae. 490

mite nemus circa, cultuque insigne verendo
vittatae laurus et supplicis arbor olivae.
nulla autem effigies, nulli commissa metallo
fornxa dei, mentes habitare et pectora gaudet.
semper habet trepidos, semper locus horret egenis

^ Erechtheis late Mss., Heinsius : et Acteis w.

" Nightingales, see note on viii. 616. Tereus, king of
Thrace, ravished Philomela, sister of his wife Procne ;
" truneo," because she cut out her own tongue.

480

THEBAID, XII. 468-495

hand she gives them boughs of olive and supplicating
fillets, and teaches them to hide their faces in their
robes and bear before them urns untenanted by the
dead. A multitude of every age streams forth from
the Erechthean homes and fills the housetops and
the streets ; whence comes this swarm ? Whence so
many mourners together ? Not yet do they know
the cause of their distress, yet are already weeping.
With either concourse the goddess mingles and tells
them of all : of what race they are sprung, what
deaths they are bewaihng, and what they seek ; they
themselves too in various converse make everywhere
loud outcry against the Ogygian laws and inhuman
Creon. No lengthier plaint do the Getic birds "
utter upon the foreign housetops in mutilated speech,
when they exclaim against the treachery of the
wedding bower and Tereus' cruel deed.

There was in the midst of the city an altar belong-
ing to no god of power * ; gentle Clemency had there
her seat, and the wretched made it sacred ; never
lacked she a new suppliant, none did she condemn or
refuse their prayers. All that ask are heard, night
and day may one approach and win the heart of the
goddess by complaints alone. No costly rites are
hers ; she accepts no incense flame, no blood deep-
welling ; tears flow upon her altar, sad off'erings of
severed tresses hang above it, and raiment left when
Fortune changed. Around is a grove of gentle trees,
marked by the cult of the venerable, wool-entwined
laurel and the suppliant olive. No image is there, to
no metal is the di\'ine form entrusted, in hearts and
minds does the goddess dehght to dwell. The
distressed are ever nigh her, her precinct ever swarms

* For this passage see vol. i. Introduction, pp. xvi, xxvi.

VOL. II 2 1 i8T

STATIUS

coetibus, ignotae tantum felicibus arae. 496

fama est, defenses acie post busta paterni
numinis Herculeos sedem fundasse nepotes.
fama minor factis : ipsos nam credere dignum
caelicolas, tellus quibus hospita semper Athenae, 500
eeu leges hominemque novum ritusque sacrorum
seminaque in vacuas hinc descendentia terras,
sic sacrasse loco commune animantibus aegris
confugium, unde procul starent iraeque minaeque
regnaque, et a iustis Fortuna recederet aris. 505

iam tunc innumerae norant altaria gentes :
hue victi bellis patriaque a sede fugati,
regnorumque inopes scelerumque errore nocentes
conveniunt pacemque rogant ; mox hospita sedes
vicit et Oedipodae Furias et funus Olynthi^ 510

texit et a misero matrem submovit Oreste.
hue volgo monstrante locum manus anxia Lernae
deveniunt, cedunt^ miserorum turba priorum.
vix ibi, sedatis requierunt pectora curis :
ceu patrio super alta grues Aquilone fugatae 515

cum videre Pharon ; tunc aethera latius implent,
tunc hilari clangore sonant ; iuvat orbe^ sereno
contempsisse nives et frigora solvere Nilo.

lamque domos patrias Scythicae post aspera gentis
proelia laurigero subeuntem Thesea curru 520

^ et funus Olynthi Pu : funusque Coloni Imhof : et funus^
Onitae tersit Unger, quod patrem siium occidit Schol. D.
^ cedunt Kohlmann : caedunt Pi : caedit or cedit ui.
' orbe CO : ore P.

" He refers to the gift of the knowledge of agriculture,}
which Triptolemus brought to Attica, and the worship of
Demeter which he instituted there. The " new man " ap-

482

I

THEBAID, XII. 49«>-o20

with needy folk, only to the prosperous is her slirine
unknoA^Ti. Fame says that the sons of Hercules,
saved in battle after the death of their diWne sire,
set up this altar ; but Fame comes short of truth :
'tis right to believe that the heavenly ones them-
selves, to whom Athens was ever a welcoming land,
as once they gave laws and a new man and sacred
ceremonies and the seeds that here descended upon
the empty earth," so now sanctified in this spot a
conmion refuge for travaihng souls, whence the wTath
and threatenings of monarchs might be far removed,
and Fortune depart from a shrine of righteousness.
Already to countless races were those altars kno^^'n ;
hither came flocking those defeated in war and
exiled from their country, kings who had lost their
realms and those guilty of grievous crime, and sought
for peace ; and later this abode of kindliness o'er-
came the rage of Oedipus and sheltered the murder
of Olynthus and defended hapless Orestes from his
mother. Hither guided by the common folk comes
the distressful band of Lema, and the crowd of
previous votaries give way before them. Scarce
were they arrived, when their troubles were soothed
and their hearts had rest : even as cranes chased
o'er the deep by their native North >vind, beholding
Pharos, spread in denser array over the sky and raise
a joyful clamour ; they dehght beneath a cloudless
heaven to think scorn of snows, and to loose the grip
of winter by the banks of Nile.

And now Theseus, dra>^"ing nigh his native land in
laurelled car after fierce battling with the Scythian

pears to be Triptolemus himself. Athens boasted to have
always been a refuge for the distressed, e.g. for Orestes and
Oedipus ; Olynthus is not otherwise known.

483

ST ATI us

laetifici plausus missusque ad sidera vulgi
clamor et emeritis hilaris tuba nuntiat armis.
ante ducem spolia et, duri Mavortis imago,
virginei currus cumulataque fercula cristis
et tristes ducuntur equi truncaeque bipennes, 525
quis nemora et solidam Maeotida caedere suetae,
corytique leves portantur et ignea gemmis
cingula et informes dominarmn sanguine peltae.
ipsae autem nondum trepidae sexumve fatentur,
nee vulgare gemunt aspernanturque precari, 530

et tantuni innuptae quaerunt delubra Minervae.
primus amor niveis victorem cernere vectum
quadriiugis ; nee non populos in semet agebat
Hippolyte, iam blanda genas patiensque mariti
foederis, banc patriae ritus fregisse severos 535

Atthides oblique secum mirantur operto
murmure, quod nitidi crines, quod pectora palla
tota latent, magnis quod barbara semet Athenis
miseeat atque hosti veniat paritura^ marito.

Paulum et ab insessis maestae Pelopeides aris 540
promovere gradum seriemque et dona triumphi
mirantur, victique animo rediere mariti.
atque ubi tardavit currus et ab axe superbo
explorat causas victor poscitque benigna
aure preces, ausa ante alias Capaneia coniunx : 545
" belliger Aegide, subitae cui maxima laudis
semina de nostris aperit Fortuna ruinis,
non externa genus, dirae nee conscia noxae
turba sumus : domus Argos erat regesque mariti,

^ paritura w : placitura P.

" i.e., of the Amazons, the tribe of warrior-maids of
Scythia, cf. v. 144; the Maeotis is the Sea of Azov.

484

THEBAID, XII. 521-349

folk, is heralded by glad applause and the heaven-
flung shout of the populace and the merry trump
of warfare ended. Before the chief are borne
his spoils, and virgin chariots " that recall the grim
War-God, and wagons heaped ^^•ith crests and
downcast steeds and broken axes, wherewith the
foe were wont to cleave the forests and frozen
Maeotis, hght quivers too are borne and baldricks
fiery with gems and targes stained with the blood
of the warrior-maids. They themselves, still un-
afraid, admit no thought of sex, and scorn to entreat
nor utter mean lament, only they seek the shrine
of unwedded Minerva. The first passion of the folk
is to behold the conqueror, drawn by his four snow-
white steeds ; Hippolyte too drew all toward her,
friendly now in look and patient of the marriage-
bond. With hushed whispers and sidelong gaze the
Attic dames marvel that she has broken her country's
austere laws, that her locks are trim, and all her
bosom hidden beneath her robe, that though a
barbarian she mingles with mighty Athens, and comes
to bear offspring to her foeman-lord.

The sorrowful daughters of Pelops moved a short
space from the altars where they sat, and marvelled
at the triimiph with its train of spoils, and their
vanquished lords came once more to their minds.
And when the conqueror halted the chariots and
from his proud car inquired the causes that had
brought them and with kind attention bade them
make their request, the ^\^fe of Capaneus dared speak
before the others : " WarUke son of Aegeus, for
whom Fortune opens up vast fields of unexpected
glor)^ through our ruin, no strangers by race are we,
nor guilty of any heinous crime ; our home was

485

STATIUS

non utinam et fortes ! quid enim septena movere
castra et Agenoreos opus emendare penates ? 551
nee querimur caesos : haec bellica iura vicesque
armorum ; sed non Siculis exorta sub antris
monstra nee Ossaei hello cecidere bimembres.
mitto genus clarosque patres : hominum, inclyte
Theseu, 555

sanguis erant, homines, eademque in sidera, eosdem
sortitus animarum alimentaque vestra creati,
quos vetat igne Creon Stygiaeque a limine portae,
ceu sator Eumenidum aut Lethaei portitor amnis,
submovet ac dubio caelique Erebique sub axe 560
detinet. heu princeps Natura ! ubi numina, ubi illest
fulminis iniusti iaculator ? ubi estis, Athenae ?
septima iam surgens trepidis Aurora iacentes
aversatur equis ; radios declinat et horret
stelligeri iubar omne poli ; iam comminus ipsae 565
pabula dira ferae campumque odere volueres
spirantem tabo et caelum ventosque gravantem.
quantum etenim superesse rear ? nuda ossaputremque
verrere permittat saniem. properate, verendi
Cecropidae ; vos ista decet vindicta, priusquam 570
Emathii Thracesque dolent,^ quaeque exstat ubique
gens arsura rogis manesque habitura supremos.
nam quis erit saevire modus ? bellavimus, esto ;
sed cecidere odia et tristes mors obruit iras.
tu quoque, ut egregios fama cognovimus actus, 575
non trucibus monstris Sinin infandumque dedisti
^ dolent Pw : adolent Baehrens : volent Lemaire.

<• i.e., Cyclopes or Centaurs.
486

THEBAID, XII. 550-576

Argos, and our husbands princes, would they had
not been brave also ! \Miat need was there to
arouse a sevenfold host, and chastise the city of
Agenor ? We complain not that they were slain :
that is the law of war and the fortune of the fight ;
but they were no monsters risen from Sicihan dens
or twyformed creatures of Ossa " who fell in the
battle. Of their race and famous sires I speak
not ; they were men, renowned Theseus, and of the
seed of men, born to the selfsame stars to the same
human lot, the same food and drink as ye are : yet
Creon denies them fire, and like the father of the
Furies or the ferryman of Lethe's stream debars
them from the Stygian gate and keeps them hovering
doubtfully between the worlds of heaven and hell.
Alas I sovereign Nature I \Miere are the gods ?
\Miere is the hurler of the unrighteous brand ?
\Miere art thou, Athens ? Already the seventh
dawn shrinks with frightened steeds from their
corpses ; the stany pole shudders in all its splendours
and withdraws its rays ; already the very birds and
prowling beasts loathe the horrid carrion and the
battle-field that reeks of corruption and hea\-ily
taints the breezes and the air. How much indeed
remains ? let him but permit me to sweep up bare
bones and putrid gore I Make haste, ye worthy
sons of Cecrops I such a vengeance becomes you,
before the Emathians and Thracians suffer, and every
race of men that would fain be burnt on p}Tes and
be given the last rites of death. For what limit ^vill
he set to his fury ? We made war, I grant it ; but
hatred is assuaged, and death has put an end to
sullen wrath. Thou also, for so Fame hath taught
us of thy noble deeds, didst not give Sinis and the

487

STATIUS

Cercyona, et saevum velles Scirona crematum.
credo et Amazoniis Tanain fumasse sepulcris,
undehaecarma refers, sed et hune dignare triumphum.
da terris unum caeloque Ereboque laborem, 580

si patrium Marathona metu, si teeta levasti
Cressia, nee fudit vanos anus hospita fletus.
sic tibi non ullae socia sine Pallade pugnae,
nee sacer invideat paribus Tirynthius actis,
semper et in curru, semper te mater ovantem 585
cernat, et invictae nil tale precentur Athenae."

Dixerat ; excipiunt cunctae tenduntque precantes
cum clamore manus ; rubuit Neptunius heros
permotus lacrimis ; iusta mox concitus ira
exclamat : " quaenam ista novos induxit Erinys 590
regnorum mores ? non haec ego pcctora liqui
Graiorum abscedens, Scythiam Pontumque nivalem
cum peterem ; novus unde furor ? victumne putasti
Thesea, dire Creon ? adsum, nee sanguine fessum
crede ; sitit meritos etiamnum haec hasta cruores.
nulla mora est ; verte hune adeo, fidissime Phegeu,
cornipedem, et Tyrias invectus protinus arces 597
aut Danais edice rogos aut proelia Thebis."
sic ait oblitus bellique viaeque laborum,
hortaturque suos viresque instaurat anhelas : 600

ut nnodo conubiis taurus saltuque recepto
cum posuit pugnas, alio si forte remugit
bellatore nemus, quamquam ora et colla cruento
imbre madent, novus arma paratcampumquelacessens

" Hecale, who entertained Theseus when he went out to
slay the Marathonian bull.

* Theseus was a son of Neptune, according to some
legends.

488

THEBAID, XII. 577-604

unutterable Cercyon to cruel monsters, and wert
willing to let fierce Sciron bum. I ween too that
Tanais smoked ^vith Amazonian pyres, whence thou
hast brought this host : deem then this triumph also
worthy of thee. Devote one exploit to earth and
heaven and hell alike, if thou didst save thy native
Marathon from fear, and the halls of Crete, and
if the aged dame " that welcomed thee shed not
her tears in vain. So may no battles of thine lack
Pallas' aid, nor the di\ine TintTithian en\y thy
equal exploits, may thy mother ever behold thee
triumphant in thy car, and Athens know not defeat
nor ever make a prayer Uke mine ! "

She spoke : they all with hands outstretched make
clamorous echo to her words ; the Neptunian hero *
flushed, deeply stirred by their tears ; soon fired by
righteous anger he cries : " What Fury has inspired
this strange unkingly conduct ? Not so minded were
the Greeks at my departure, when I sought Scythia
and the Pontic snows : whence this new madness ?
Thoughtest thou Theseus conquered, fell Creon ? I
am near at hand, think me not blood-weary ; even
yet my spear thirsts for righteous slaughter. I
make no delay ; turn on the instant thy galloping
steed, most trusty Phegeus, speed to the T\Tian
towers and proclaim that the Danai must bum or
Thebes must fight." So speaks he, forgetful of the
labours of warfare and the march, and encourages
his men and inspires their exhausted strength anew :
as when a bull has lately won back his brides and
pasture and ceased from battle, if by chance another
glade resound \vith a warrior's loN^ing, then, though
his neck and breast be dripping with the bloody
rain, he prepares afresh for war and pawing the plain

489

STATIUS

dissimulat gemitus et vulnera pulvere celat. 605

ipsa metus Libycos servatricemque Medusam
pectoris incussa movit Tritonia parma.
protinus erecti toto simul agmine Thebas
respexere angues ; necdum Atticus ire parabat
miles, et infelix expavit classica Dirce. 610

Continue in pugnas baud solum accensa iuventus,
qui modo Caucasei comites rediere triumphi :
omnis ad arma rudes ager exstimulavit alumnos.
conveniunt ultroque ducis vexilla sequuntur,
qui gelidum Braurona viri, qui rura lacessunt 615
Monychia et trepidis stabilem Piraeea nautis
et nondum Eoo clarum Marathona triumpho.
mittit in arma manus gentilibus hospita divis
Icarii Celeique domus viridesque Melaenae,
dives et Aegaleos nemorum Parnesque benignus 620
vitibus et pinguis melior Lycabessos olivae.
venit atrox Alaeus et olentis arator Hymetti,
quaeque rudes thyrsos hederis vestistis, Acharnae.
linquitur Eois longe speculabile proris
Sunion, unde vagi casurum in nomina ponti 625

Cressia decepit false ratis Aegea velo.
hos Salamin populos, illos Cerealis Eleusin
horrida suspensis ad proelia misit aratris,
et quos Callirhoe noviens errantibus undis
implicat, et raptae qui conseius Orithyiae 630

celavit ripis Geticos Elisos amores.
ipse quoque in pugnas vacuatur coUis, ubi ingens
lis superum, dubiis donee nova surgeret arbor

" Medusa and the Gorgons lived in Libya.
'' Bacchus and Demeter.

* Acharnae was famous for the ivy that decked the thjTsi,
or wands of the Bacchanals.

'' Aegeus, father of Theseus, threw himself into the sea

490

THEBAID, XII. 605-633

hides his groaning and conceals his wounds in dust.
Tritonia herself smote upon her buckler and shook
the Libyan terror," the Medusa that guards her
bosom. Straightway all the serpents rose erect
together, and in a mass looked towards Thebes ; not
yet were the Attic warriors on the march, and already
ill-fated Dirce trembled at the trumpets' sound.

At once not only are they inflamed to war who were
returned from sharing the Caucasian \ictory : all
the countryside stirred up its untrained sons to war.
They flock together and of their O'wti accord follow
their prince's standard : the men who spare not
chilly Brauron and the Monychian fields and Piraeus,
firm ground for frightened sailors, and Marathon,
not yet famous for her Eastern triumph. The home-
steads of Icarius and of Celeus that entertained their
native gods * send troops to battle, green Melaenae
too, and Aegaleos, rich in forests, and Parnes, friend
of vines, and Lycabessos, richer in the juicy ohve.
Violent Alaeus came, and the ploughman of fragrant
Hymettus, thou, too, Acharnae, who didst clothe the
bare wands in ivy." Sunion, far seen of Eastern
prows, is left behind, whence Aegeus fell,'' deceived
by the lying sails of the Cretan bark, and gave a
name to the wandering main. These folk from
Salamis, those from Eleusis, Ceres' towTi, were sent,
their ploughs hung up, to the dreadful fray, and they
whom Callirhoe enfolds with her nine errant streams,
and Ehsos who privy to Orithyia's rape concealed
beneath his banks the Thracian lover.* That hill
too is emptied for the fight, where gods strove
mightily, until a new tree rose from the doubting

(whence called Aegean), thinking that his son had perished
in Crete. • Boreas, the north wind.

491

STATIUS

rupibus et longa refugum mare frangeret iimbra.
isset et Arctoas Cadmea ad moenia ducens 635

Hippolyte turmas : retinet iam certa tumentis
spes uteri, coniunxque rogat dimittere curas
Martis et emeritas thalanio sacrare pharetras.

Hos ubi velle acies et dulci gliscere ferro
dux videt, utque piis raptim dent oscula natis 640
amplexusque breves, curru sic fatur ab alto :
" terrarum leges et mundi foedera mecum
defensura cohors, dignas insumite mentes^
coeptibus : hac omnem divumque hominumque favorem
Naturamque ducem coetusque silentis Averni 645
stare palam est ; illic Poenarum exercita Thebis
agmina et anguicomae ducunt vexilla sorores.
ite alacres tantaeque, preeor, confidite causae."
dixit, et emissa praeceps iter incohat hasta :
qualis Hyperboreos ubi nubilus institit axes 650

luppiter et prima tremefecit sidera bruma,
rumpitur Aeolia et longam indignata quietem
tollit hiemps animos ventosaque sibilat Arctos ;
tunc montes undaeque fremunt, tunc proelia caecis^
nubibus et tonitrus insanaque fulmina gaudent. 655

Icta gemit tellus, virides gravis ungula campos
mutat, et^ innumeris peditumque equitumque catervis
exspirat protritus ager, nee pulvere crasso
armorum lux victa perit, sed in aethera longum
frangitur, et mediis ardent in nubibus hastae. 660

^ insumite mentes w : consumite amantes P.
^ caecis P : caesis a; : quassis Koch.
* mutat et Pw : atterit N.

" The Acropolis of Athens, scene of the strife between
Athene and Poseidon (god of the sea) ; Athene gained the
victory by her gift of the olive-tree.

* Veterans on their discharge ("emeriti ") were accustomed
to dedicate their arms in a temple

492

THEBAID, XII. 634-660

rocks and cast its long shadow on the retreating sea."
Hippolyte too would have led her Northern squadrons
to the Cadmean walls, but the already certain hope
of her swelling womb restrains her, and her spouse
entreats her to dismiss the thoughts of battle and
in the marriage-bower to dedicate her Avar-spent
quiver.''

When the chief perceives them in warhke mood
and ablaze ^Aith joyous steel, how they give hurried
kisses and brief embraces to their lo\ing children,
he speaks thus from his lofty chariot : " Soldiers,
who Avill defend Anth me the laws of nations and the
covenants of heaven, take courage worthy of our
emprise ! For us, 'tis clear, stands the favour of all
gods and men, Nature our guide and the silent
multitudes of Avernus : for thena the troops of the
Furies, that Thebes has marshalled, and the snake-
haired Sisters bring forth their banners. Onward
in warlike spirit, and trust, I pray you, in a cause so
noble ! " He spake, and hurhng his spear dashed
forth upon the road : as when Jupiter plants his
cloudy footsteps upon the Hyperborean pole and
makes the stars tremble at the oncoming of winter,
Aeoha"^ is riven, and the storm, indignant at its long
idleness, takes heart, and the North whistles vrith the
hurricane ; then roar the mountains and the waves,
clouds battle in the bhnd gloom, and thunders and
crazed hghtnings revel.

The smitten earth groans, the hea^-y hoof changes
the aspect of the verdant plains, and the crushed
fields expire beneath countless troops of horse and
foot, nor is the gleam of armour lost in the thick dust,
but flashes far into the air, and the spears burn amid
• The abode of Aeolus, king of the winds.

STATIUS

noctem adeo placidasque operi iunxere tenebras,
certamenque immane viris, quo concita tendant
agmina, quis visas proclamet ab aggere Thebas,
cuius in Ogygio stet princeps lancea muro.
at procul ingenti Neptunius agmina Theseus 665

angustat elipeo, propriaeque exordia laudis
centum urbes umbone gerit centenaque Cretae
moenia, seque ipsum monstrosi ambagibus antri
hispida torquentem luctantis colla iuvenci
alternasque manus circum et nodosa ligantem 670
bracchia et abducto vitantem cornua vultu.
terror habet populos, cum saeptus imagine torva^
ingreditur pugnas : bis Thesea bisque cruentas
caede videre manus ; veteres reminiscitur actus
ipse tuens sociumque gregem metuendaque quondam
limina, et absumpto pallentem Gnosida filo. 676

Saevus at interea ferro post terga revinctas
Antigonen viduamque Creon Adrastida leto
admovet ; ambae hilares et mortis amore superbae
ensibus intentant iugulos regemque cruentum 680
destituunt : cum dicta ferens Theseia Phegeus
adstitit. ille quidem ramis insontis olivae
pacificus, sed bella ciet bellumque minatur,
grande fr emens ,nimiumque memor mandantis et ipsum
iam prope, iam medios operire cohortibus agros 685
ingeminans. stetit ambiguo Thebanus in aestu
curarum, nutantque minae et prior ira tepescit.
tunc firmat sese, fictumque ac triste renidens :

^ imagine torva w : in agmine torvo P.

" Theseus's exploits in Crete (slaying of the Minotaur)
were the prelude to his still greater subsequent fame.

THEBAID, XII. 661-688

the clouds. Night too and the quiet shades they add
to their toil, and the warriors mightily strive how
they may speed the army's march, who 'may pro-
claim from a hillock the first sight of Thebes, whose
lance mil first stand fixed in the Ogygian rampart.
But from afar Theseus, son of Neptune, dwarfs the
ranks with his huge shield, and bears upon its boss
the hundred cities and hundred walls of Crete, the
prelude to his o^^Tl reno^%■n,'' and himself in the wind-
ings of the monstrous cave t\\isting the shaggy neck
of the strugghng bull, and binding him fast \nt\\
sinewy arms and grip of either hand, and avoiding the
horns with head dra\\Ti back. Terrified are the folk
when he goes to battle 'neath the shelter of that
grim device, to behold Theseus in double shape and
his hands twice drenched in gore ; he himself recalls
his deeds of old, the band of comrades and the once-
dreaded doorway and the pale face of the Gnosian
maid as she followed out the clue.

But meanwhile the ruthless Creon leads onward
to death Antigone and the widowed daughter of
Adrastus, their hands fettered behind them ; both
cheerful and proudly eager for death, they hold
out their necks to the swords and baffle the cruel
king, when lo I bearing Theseus' message Phegeus
stood there. All peaceful he with innocent olive-
branch, but war is his intent, and war he threatens
in loud and angry tones, and well remembering his
lord's commands repeats that he ^\•ill soon be nigh
at hand in person, soon covering the countryside as
he passes with all his cohorts. The Theban stood in
doubt amid surging cares, his anger wavers and his
first wTath grows cool. Then steeling his heart, and
with a feigned and sullen smile he answered : " Too

495

ST ATI us

" parvane prostratis " inquit, " documenta Mycenis
sanximus? en iterum, qui moenia nostra lacessant. 690
accipimus, veniant ; sed ne post bella querantur :
lex eadem victis." dicit ; sed pulvere crasso
caligare diem et Tyrios iuga perdere montes
aspicit ; armari populos tamen armaque ferri
ipse iubet pallens, mediaeque in sedibus aulae 695
Eumenidas subitas flentemque Menoeeea cernit
turbidus impositosque rogis gaudere Pelasgos.
quis fuit ille dies ? tanto cum sanguine Thebis
pax inventa perit ? patriis modo fixa revellunt
arma deis, clipeisque obducunt peetora fractis, 700
et galeas humiles et adhuc sordentia tabo
spicula : non pharetris quisquam, non ense decorus,
non spectandus equo ; cessat fiducia valli,
murorum patet omne latus, munimina portae
exposcunt : prior hostis habet ; fastigia desunt : 705
deiecit Capaneus ; exsanguis et aegra inventus
iam nee coniugibus suprema nee oscula natis
iungit, et attoniti nil optavere parentes.

Atticus interea, iubar ut clarescere ruptis
nubibus et solem primis aspexit in armis, 710

desilit in campum, qui subter moenia nudos
adservat manes, dirisque vaporibus aegrum
aera pulverea penitus sub casside dueens
ingemit et iustas belli flammatur in iras.
hunc saltem miseris ductor Thebanus honorem 715
largitus Danais, quod non super ipsa iacentum
corpora belligeras acies Martemque secundum
miscuit ; aut^ lacera ne quid de strage nefandus

^ aut Pw : at Grotius.
496

THEBAID, XII. 689-718

slight assurance then did we give of Mycenae's ruin ?
Lo I here come others to vex our walls ! Let them
come I We take the challenge ! But let them not
whine when they are beaten ; one law awaits the
conquered." He speaks, but sees the daylight wane
in thickening dust, and the sharp outUnes fade from
the Tyrian hills ; yet in pale anxiety he bids his
people arm and go to war, and suddenly beholds in
his palace-hall the Furies, and Menoeceus weeping,
and the Pelasgians exultant on their pyres. Ah !
fatal day ! when peace gained for Thebes at such
a price of blood is lost again ! They tear down the
arms lately hung in their native shrines, and shield
their bodies with pierced bucklers, don mutilated
helms and take up gore-encrusted spears ; none is
gay with quiver or sword, none is glorious to behold
upon his charger ; no trust is there in the pahsade,
the city walls are all agape, the gates cry for defences ;
the former foe hath them in possession ; the battle-
ments are gone : Capaneus hath o'erthrown them ;
strengthless and faint, the warriors no more give
the last kisses to wives or children, nor do their
dazed parents utter any prayer.

Meanwhile the Attic chief, beholding the rays
burst through the clouds in growing splendour and
the sun first glint upon the arms, leaps down into
the plain where by the walls the dead still lie un-
buried, and breathing beneath his dusty helm the
dread vapours of the tainted air he groans and is
inflamed to righteous rage for war. This honour
at least did the Theban chieftain pay to the hapless
Danaans, that he engaged not the warring hosts
in a second battle o'er the very bodies of the fallen ;
or else, that his impious lust might lose naught of

VOL. II 2 k 497

STATIUS

perderet, eligitur saevos potura cruores
terra rudis ? iamque alternas in proelia gentes 720
dissimilis Bellona ciet ; non clamor utrimque,
non utrimque tubae : stat debilis altera pubes
submissos enses nequiquam amentaque dextris
laxa tenens ; cedunt tellure, armisque reductis
ostentant veteres etiamnum in sanguine plagas. 725
iam nee Cecropiis idem ductoribus ardor,
languescuntque minae et virtus secura residit :
ventorum velut ira minor, nisi silva furentes
impedit, insanique tacent sine litore fluctus.

Ut vero aequoreus quercum Marathonida Theseus
extulit, erectae cuius crudelis in hostes 731

umbra cadit campumque trucem lux cuspidis implet :
ceu pater Edonos Haemi de vertice Mavors
impulerit currus, rapido mortemque fugamque
axe vehens, sic exanimes in terga reducit 735

pallor Agenoridas ; taedet fugientibus uti
Thesea, nee facilem dignatur dextra cruorem.
cetera plebeio desaevit sanguine virtus,
sic iuvat exanimis proiectaque praeda canesque
degeneresque lupos : magnos alit ira leones. 740

attamen Olenium Lamyrumque, hunc tela pharetra
promentem, hunc saevi tollentem pondera saxi
deicit, et triplici confisos robore gentis
Alcetidas fratres, totidem quos eminus hastis
continuat ; ferrum consumpsit pectore Phyleus, 745
ore momordit Helops, umero transmisit lapyx.
iamque et quadriiugo celsum petit Haemona curru,

" i.e., that the carnage might be greater on a fresh field.
498

THEBAID, XII. 719-747

mangled carnage," does he choose a \irgin field
to drink up the streams of gore ? Already in far
different ^^^se Bellona summons the armies to mutual
fight : here only is heard the battle-cry, here only
the trumpet-blast ; there frail warriors stand, ^\ith
drooping ineffectual swords and loosened slings ;
they give way, and dra\\ing back their armour dis-
play old wounds yet bleeding. Already even the
Cecropian chiefs have lost their ardour for the fray,
their temper wanes and confident valour flames less
high ; just as the vTath of the winds is weakened, if
no forest impede their raging blasts, and the furious
billows are silent where there is no shore.

But when Theseus, bom of the main, held aloft his
Marathonian oaken shaft, whose cruel shadow as he
lifted it fell upon the foe, and the spear-point flashed
o'er the battle-field afar — as though father Mavors
were driWng his Edonian chariot down from Haemus'
summit, with Death and Panic riding upon his hurry-
ing axle, even so does pale fear drive the sons of
Agenor in terror-stricken rout ; but Theseus disdains
to do battle with the fugitives, his right hand thinks
scorn of easy victims. The rest of the gallant host
sate their rage in common slaughter. Even so dogs
and coward wolves delight in prey that lies cowering
at their feet, while anger is the strength of mighty
lions. Yet he slays Olenius and LamATus, the one
as he takes arroMS from his quiver, the other as he
raises a great stone aloft, and the sons of Alcetus,
trusting in their threefold might, whom he pierces
at long range with as many spears. Phyleus re-
ceived the spear-point in his breast, Helops bit the
iron with his teeth, the missile sped through the
shoulder of lapyx. And now he makes for Haemon

499

STATIUS

horrendumque manu telum rotat : ille paventes
obliquavit equos ; longo perlata tenore
transiit hasta duos, sitiebat vulnera nee non 750

tertia, sed medio cuspis temone retenta est.
Sed solum votis, solum clamore tremendo^
omnibus in turmis optat vocitatque Creonta.
atque hunc diversa bellorum in fronte maniplos
hortantem dictis frustraque extrema minantem 755
conspicit ; abscedunt comites : sed Thesea iussi
linquebant fretique deis atque ipsius armis ;
ille tenet revocatque suos ; utque aequa notavit
hinc atque hinc odia, extrema se colligit ira,
iam letale furens, atque audax morte futura : 760
" non cum peltiferis," ait, " haec tibi pugna puellis,
virgineas ne crede manus : hie cruda virorum
proelia, nos magnum qui Tydea quique furentem
Hippomedonta neci Capaneaque misimus umbris
pectora. quae bellum praeceps amentia suasit, 765
improbe ? nonne vides, quos ulciscare, iacentes ? "
sic ait, et frustra periturum missile summo
adfixit clipeo. risit vocesque manumque
horridus Aegides, ferrataque arbore magnos
molitur iactus, nee non prius ore superbo 770

intonat : " Argolici, quibus haec datur hostia, manes,
pandite Tartareum chaos ultricesque parate
Eumenidas, venit ecce Creon ! " sic fatus, et auras
dissipat hasta tremens ; tunc qua subtemine duro
multiplicem tenues iterant thoraca catenae, 775

incidit : emicuit per mille foramina sanguis

^ tremendo late Mss., Heinsius : premendo P: fremendo w.

" i.e., Amazons.
500

THEBAID, XII. 748-776

riding aloft in four-horsed car, and whirls the terrible
javeUn \nih his arm ; the other swerved his frightened
steeds, but the spear, far-flung, struck home, and
piercing two of them thirsted for yet a third wound,
but the point was stayed by the intervening pole.

But Creon alone is the object of his hopes and
prayers, him alone he summons ^^•ith terrible challenge
amid all the squadrons of the field ; he perceives him
on a battle-front afar, exhorting his troops and utter-
ing desperate threats in vain. His comrades flee
away, but those of Theseus leave him at his bidding,
relpng on the gods and the prowess of their chief ;
Creon restrains his men and calls them back, but
seeing that he is hated by either side alike, he nerves
himself to a last outburst of rage, inspired now by
the frenzy of doom and emboldened by inevitable
death : " 'Tis with no targe-bearing girls " thou doest
battle here ; no maiden's hands are ours, be sure ;
here is the stern strife of men who have sent great
Tydeus and furious Hippomedon to death, and the
vast bulk of Capaneus to the shades. What headlong
madness drove thee to fight, thou reckless fool ?
Seest thou not their corpses whom thou wouldst
avenge ? " So he spoke, and lodged his missile
fruitlessly in the buckler's edge. But the terrible
son of Aegeus laughed at his words and deed alike,
and poising his iron-clad shaft for a mighty blow first
proudly cried in thunderous accents : " Ye Argive
spirits, to whom I offer this \'ictini, open \\ide the
void of Tartarus, bring forth the Avenging Furies,
lo I Creon comes I " He spoke, and the quivering
spear rends the air ; then, where with iron weft the
slender chains combine to form the manifold cuirass,
it falls ; through a thousand meshes spirts upward

501

STATIUS

impius ; ille oculis extremo errore solutis
labitur. adsistit Theseus gravis armaque tollens :
" iamne dare exstinctis iustos," ait, " hostibus ignes,
iam vietos operire placet ? vade atra dature 780

supplicia extremique tamen secure sepulcri."

Accedunt utrimque pio vexilla tumultu
permiscentque manus ; medio iam foedera bello,
iamque hospes Theseus ; orant succedere muris
dignarique domos. nee tecta hostilia victor 785

aspernatus init ; gaudent matresque nurusque
Ogygiae, qualis thyrso bellante subactus
mollia laudabat iam marcidus orgia Ganges,
ecce per adversas Dircaei verticis umbras
femineus quatit astra fragor, matresque Pelasgae
decurrunt : quales Bacchea ad bella vocatae 791

Thyiades amentes, magnum quas poscere credas
aut fecisse nefas ; gaudent lamenta novaeque
exsultant lacrimae ; rapit hue, rapit impetus illuc,
Thesea magnanimum quaerant prius, anne Creonta,
anne suos : vidui ducunt ad corpora luctus. 796

Non ego, centena si quis mea pectora laxet
voce deus, tot busta simul vulgique ducumque,
tot pariter gemitus dignis conatibus aequem :
turbine quo sese caris impleverit^ audax 800

ignibus^ Euadne fulmenque in pectore magno
quaesierit ; quo more iacens super oscula saevi
corporis infelix excuset Tydea coniunx ;
ut saevos narret vigiles Argia sorori ;

^ impleverit P : instraverit w.
^ ignibus w -. ictibus P.

" i.e., of Bacchus, warring in the East.
502

\

THEBAID, XII. 777-804

the accursed blood ; he sinks, his eyes open in the
last spasm of death. Theseus stands over him in
stern wrath, and spoiling him of his armour speaks :
" Now art thou pleased to give dead foes the fire that
is their due ? Now wilt thou bury the vanquished ?
Go to thy dreadful reckoning, yet be assured of thy
ovm burial."

From either side the banners meet and mingle in
friendly tumult ; on the very field of war a treaty is
made, and Theseus is now a welcome guest ; they
beg him to approach their walls and to deem their
homes Avorthy of his presence. The \-ictor disdains
not to set foot in the dwelUngs of his foes ; the
Ogygian dames and maidens rejoice : even as, o'er-
come by the warring thyrsus," Ganges by now
drunken applauded womanly revels. Lo ! yonder on
the shady heights of Dirce a shout of women shakes
the vault, and the Pelasgian matrons come running
down : like raving Thj'iads are they, summoned to
Bacchus' wars, demanding, thou mightest deem, or
ha\ing done some deed of horror ; their waihng is
of joy, fresh tears gush forth ; they dart now here,
now there, doubting whether first to seek great-
hearted Theseus, or Creon, or their own kinsmen ;
their >\idowed grief leads them to the dead.

I could not, even if some god gave hundredfold
utterance to my heart, recount in worthy strains so
vast a funeral of chieftains alike and conmion folk,
so many lamentations united : how fearless Evadne
with impetuous bound had her fill of the fires she
loved and sought the thunderbolt in that mighty
breast, how as she lay and showered kisses on his
terrible form his unhappy spouse made excuse for
Tydeus ; how Argia tells her sister the story of the

503

STATIUS

Arcada quo planctu genetrix Erymanthia clamet,
Arcada, consumpto servantem sanguine vultus, 806
Arcada, quern geminae pariter flevere cohortes.
vix novus ista furor veniensque implesset Apollo,
et mea iam longo meruit ratis aequore portum.

Durabisne procul dominoque legere superstes, 810
o mihi bissenos multum vigilata per annos
Thebai ? iam certe praesens tibi Fama benignum
stravit iter coepitque novam monstrare futuris.
iam te magnanimus dignatur noscere Caesar,
Itala iam studio discit memoratque iuventus. 815

vive, precor ; nee tu divinam Aeneida tempta,
sed longe sequere et vestigia semper adora.
mox, tibi si quis adhuc praetendit nubila livor,
occidet, et meriti post me referentur honores.

504

THEBAID, XII. 805-819

cruel watchmen, yviih what lament the Erymanthian
mother bewails the Arcadian, the Arcadian, who keeps
his beauty though all his blood be spent, the
Arcadian, wept for by either host alike. Scarce
would new inspiration or Apollo's presence sustain
the task, and my httle bark has voyaged far and
deserves her haven.

WUt thou endure in the time to come, O my
Thebaid, for twelve years object of my wakeful toil,
wilt thou survive thy master and be read ? Of a
truth already present Fame hath paved thee a
friendly road, and begun to hold thee up, young as
thou art, to future ages. Already great-hearted
Caesar deigns to know thee, and the youth of Italy
eagerly learns and recounts thy verse. O live, I
pray ! nor rival the divine Aeneid, but follow afar
and ever venerate its footsteps. Soon, if any envy
as yet o'erclouds thee, it shall pass away, and, after
I am gone, thy well-won honours shall be duly paid.

505

ACHILLEID

ACHILLEIDOS

LIBER I

Magnanimum Aeaciden formidatamque Tonanti

progeniem et patrio vetitam succedere caelo,

diva, refer, quamquam acta viri multum inclita cantu

Maeonio, sed plura vacant : nos ire per omnem

— sic amor est— heroa velis Scyroque latentem 5

Dulichia proferre tuba nee in Hectore tracto

sistere, sed tota iuvenem deducere Troia.

tu modo, si veterem digno deplevimus haustu,

da fontes mihi, Phoebe, novos ac fronde secunda

necte comas: neque enim Aonium nemus advena pulso

nee mea nunc primis augescunt tempora vittis. 11

scit Dircaeus ager meque inter prisca parentum

nomina cumque suo numerant Amphione Thebae.

At tu, quern longe primum stupet Itala virtus
Graiaque, cui geminae florent vatumque ducuraque 15
certatim laurus — olim dolet altera vinci — ,
■da veniam ac trepidum patere hoc sudare parumper

" Zeus would have married Thetis, had it not been declared
that their son would be mightier than Zeus himself.

*■ i.e., the Iliad of Homer.

" i.e., of Ulysses (see line 873). Dulichium was part of his
kingdom.

'' Of the Muses. ' A fountain at Thebes

f " altera," that of poetry ; Domitian fancied himself both
508

4

ACHILLEID

BOOK I

Tell, O goddess, of great-hearted Aeacides and of
the progeny that the Thunderer feared and forbade
to inherit his father's heaven." Highly reno\Mied
are the warrior's deeds in Maeonian song,* but more
remains untold : suffer me — for such is my desire — -
to recount the whole story of the hero, to summon
him forth from his hiding-place in Sc}tos with the
Duhchian trumpet,'^ and not to stop short at the
dragging of Hector, but to lead the youth through
the whole tale of Troy. Only do thou, O Phoebus, if
with a worthy draught I drained the former fount,
vouchsafe new springs and weave my hair with
propitious chaplets ; for not as a newcomer do I seek
entrance to the Aonian** grove, nor are these the first
fillets that magnify my brow. The fields of Dirce*
know it, and Thebes counts my name among her fore-
fathers of old time and with her own Amphion.

But thou whom far before all others the pride of
Italy and Greece regards with reverent awe, for
whom the laurels twain of poet and warrior-chief
flourish in mutual rivalry — already one of them
grieves to be surpassed^ — grant pardon, and allow
me anxiously to toil in this dust awhile. Thine is

as a poet and a general, but would be better flattered by
being called more brilliant in the latter capacity.

509

STATIUS

pulvere. te longo necdum fidente paratu
molimur magnusque tibi praeludit Achilles.

Solverat Oebalio classem de litore pastor 20

Dardanus incautas blande populatus Amyclas
plenaque materni referens praesagia somni
culpatum relegebat iter, qua condita ponto
fluctibus invisis iam Nereis imperat Helle :
cum Thetis Idaeos — heu numquam vana parentum
auguria ! — expavit vitreo sub gurgite remos. 26

nee mora, et undosis turba comitante sororum
prosiluit thalamis : fervent coeuntia Phrixi
litora et angustum dominas non explicat aequor.

Ilia ubi^ discusso primum subit aera ponto : 30

" me petit haec, mihi classis," ait, " funesta minatur,
agnosco monitus et Protea vera locutum.
ecce novam Priamo facibus de puppe levatis
fert Bellona nurum : video iam mille carinis
Ionium Aegaeumque premi ; nee sufficit, omnis 35
quod plaga Graiugenum tumidis coniurat Atridis :
iam pelago terrisque meus quaeretur Achilles,
et volet ipse sequi. quid enim cunabula parvo
Pelion et torvi commisimus antra magistri ?
illic, ni fallor, Lapitharum proelia ludit 40

^ ilia ubi w : ilia P.

" Part of the usual prologue to an epic, cf. Theh. i. 17.

* i.e., of Laconia.

" Hecuba, before she bore Paris, dreamed that she was
bearing a burning torch which set fire to Troy.

"* The Hellespont was so called after Helle, who was
drowned there while fleeing with her brother Phrixus upon
the ram with fleece of gold.
510

ACHILLEID, I. 18-40

the theme thereat ^\-ith long nor yet confident pre-
paration I am labouring, and great Achilles plays the
prelude unto thee."

The Dardan shepherd had set sail from the Oebalian
shore,* having MTought sweet havoc in thoughtless
Amyclae, and fulfilling the presage of his mother's "
dream was retracing his guilty way, where Helle **
deep sunk below the sea and now a Nereid holds
sway over the detested waves :_when Thetis — ah !
never vain are a parent's auguries !— started ^\'itl^'
terror beneath the glassy flood at the Idaean oars.*
Without delay she sprang forth from her watery,
bower, accompanied by her train of sisters.: the
narro^\^ng shores of Phrixus swarm, and the straitened
sea has not room for its mistresses.

As soon as she had shaken the brine from off her,
and entered the air of heaven : " There is danger to
me," said she, " in yonder fleet, and threat of deadly
Tiarm; I recognize the truth of Proteus' warnings.
LoT Bellona brings from the v^ssgL-amid uplifted
torches a jie^I^iigEter^IivIaw to^riam. ; already 1
see the Ionian and Aegean seas pressed by a thousand
keels ; nor does it suffice that all the country of the
Grecians conspires A^ith the proud sons of Atreus,
soonjwilljny Achilles be sojaght for by land and sea,
ay^ and himself \\"ilT A\-ish to follow them. Why in-
deed did I suffer Pelion and the stern master's cave ^
to cradle hi§. infant years ? There, if I mistake not,
he plays, the rogue, at the battle of the Lapiths,

' Because his fleet was built of wood of Mt. Ida. So
" Rhoeteae " (line 44) from the promontory near Troy.
f Chiron's.

511

STATIUS

improbus et patria iam se metitur in hasta.
o dolor, o seri materno in corde timores !
non potui infelix, cum primum gurgite nostro
Rhoeteae cecidere trabes, attollere magnum
aequor et incesti praedonis vela profunda 45

tempestate sequi cunctasque inferre sorores ?
nunc quoque — sed tardum, iam plena iniuria raptae.
ibo tamen pelagique deos dextramque secundi,
quod superest, complexa lovis per Tethyos annos
grandaevumque patrem supplex miseranda rogabo 50
unam hiemem." dixit magnumque in tempore regem
aspicit. Oceano veniebat ab hospite, mensis
laetus et aequoreo difFusus nectare vultus —
unde hiemes ventique silent cantuque, quieto
armigeri Tritones eunt scopulosaque cete 55

Tyrrhenique greges circumque infraque rotantur
rege salutato ; placidis ipse arduus undis
eminet et triplici telo iubet ire iugales.
illi spumiferos glomerant a pectore cursus,^
pone natant delentque pedum vestigia cauda — 60
cum Thetis : " o magni genitor rectorque profundi,
aspicis in quales miserum patefeceris usus
aequor ? eunt tutis terrarum crimina velis,
ex quo iura freti maiestatemque repostam
rupit lasonia puppis Pagasaea rapina. 65

en aliud furto scelus et spolia hospita portans
navigat iniustae temerarius arbiter Idae,
eheu quos gemitus terris caeloque daturus,

^ cursus P : fluctus w.

" i.e., Neptune. * i.e., of the Tyrrhenian sea.

512

ACHILLEID, I. 41-68

and already takes his measure with his father's
spear. O sorrow ! O fears that came too late to sl.'^ -^.-j
mother !s.jieartXl Coiild I no I, unhappy ^Kat Tlim, ^y^
when first the timber of Rhoeteum was launched .
upon my flood, have raised^ a mighty sea and pursued
^dth a tempest on the deep the adulterous robber's
sails and led on all my sisters against him ? Even
now — but 'tis too late, the outrage hath been
wrought in full. Yet will I go, and cUnging to the
gods of ocean and the right hand of second Jove" —
nought else remains — entreat him in piteous sup-
pUcation by the years of TetKys and ms aged sire
for one sfngte^Tofm." She spdte, an3ropportunely
beheld the niighty monarch ; he was coming from
Oceanus his host, gladdened by the banquet, and his
countenance suffused -svith the nectar of the deep :
wherefore the \vinds and tempests are silent and
with tranquil song proceed the Tritons who bear
his armour and the rock-like sea-monsters and the
Tyrrhenian herds,*" and gambol around and below
him, saluting their king ; he towers on high above
the peaceful waves, urging on his team with his
three-pronged spear : frontwise they run at furious
speed amid showers of foam, behind they swim and
blot out their footprints with their tails : — when
Thetis : " 0 sireand ruler of the miglity„d_eep.,_ae^lu
tHoiT to what uses thou liasrTna3e_ a J^ayjo'er^the
llapless^cean ? The crimes of the nations pass by
with unmolested sails, since the Pagasaean bark broke
through the sanctions of tlie waters and profaned
their hallowed majesty on Jason's quest of plunder.
Lo^ " eighted A^ith another wicked theft, the ^spoils
o. pitahty, sails the daring arbiter of unjust Ida,
<», Jined to cause what sorrow alas ! to heaven and
VOL. n 2l 518

STATIUS

quos mihi ! sic Phrygiae pensamus gaudia palmae,
hi Veneris mores, hoc gratae munus alumnae ? 70
has saltern — num semideos nostrumque reportant
Thesea? — si quis adhuc undis honor, obrue puppes,
aut permitte fretum ! nulla inclementia ; fas sit
pro nato timuisse mihi. da pellere luctus,^
nee tibi de tantis placeat me fluctibus unum^ 75

litus et Iliaci scopulos habitare sepulcri."
Orabat laniata genas et pectore nudo
caeruleis obstabat equis. sed rector aquarum
invitat curru dictisque ita mulcet amicis :
" ne pete Dardaniam frustra, Theti, mergere classem :
fata vetant, ratus ordo deis miscere cruentas 81

Europamque Asiamque manus, consultaque belh
luppiter et tristes edixit caedibus annos.
quern tu illic natum Sigeo in pulvere, quanta
aspicies victrix Phrygiarum funera matrum, 85

cum tuus Aeacides tepido modo sanguine Teucros
undabit^ campos, modo crassa exire vetabit
flumina et Hectoreo tardabit funere currus
impelletque manu nostros, opera inrita, muros !
Pelea iam desiste queri thalamosque minores : 90
crederis peperisse lovi ; nee inulta dolebis
cognatisque utere fretis : dabo tollere fluctus,

^ pellere luctus P : tollere fluctus w.

* fluctibus unum w: fluctibus unam P : fletibus udam,
neptibus unam, fluctibus imum edd.

* undabit w : undavit P : Garrod conj. turpabit.

" Is this the way we are paying for the victory of Veni''-
on Ida ? " alumnae," i.e. Helen. sea.

514

^ji V.

ACHILLEID, I. 69-92

earth, and what to me ! Is it thus we requite the
joy of the Phrygian triumph,* is this the way of
Venus, is this her gift to her dear ward ? These
ships at least-^na demigods nor our ovn\ Theseus do
they carry home * — o'erwhelm, if thou still hast any
regard for the waters, or give the sea into my power ;
rio^fUeTfy do I purpose ; suffer me to fear for my "^f^
own son. Grant me to drive away my sorrow, nor j^^P'^^
let it be thy pleasure that out of all the seas I find a
home in but a single coast, and the rocks of an
Ilian tomb/

With torn cheeks she made her prayer, and with
bare bosom would fairi hinder tTie cerulean steeds.
But the rulerjDif the seas invites her into his chariot,
and soothes her thus with friendly words : "■ Seek
not in vainrTh'etis, to sink the Dardanian fleet : the
fates forbid it, 'tis the sure ordinance of heaven that
Europe and Asia should join in bloody conflict, and
Jupiter hath issued his decree of war and appointed
years of drear}' carnage. What prowess of thy son
in the Sigean dust, what vast funeral trains of
PhrA'gian matrons shalt thou victoriously behold,
when thy Aeacides shall flood the Trojan fields with
streaming blood, and anon forbid the choked rivers
to flow and check his chariot's speed with Hector's
corpse and mightily o'erthrow my walls,'* my useless
toil ! Cease now to complain of Peleus and thy
inferior wedlock : thy child shall be deemed begotten
of Jove ; nor shalt thou suffer unavenged, but shalt
use thy kindred seas : I will grant thee to raise the

' They are no Argonauts, nor Theseus, who, according to
one legend, was the son of Neptune.

' i.e., haunt a rocky shore by the tomb of my son Achilles.
"* Neptune had helped Apollo to build the walls of Troy.

515

STATIUS

cum reduces Danai nocturnaque signa Caphereus
exseret et dirum pariter quaeremus Ulixen."

Dixerat. ilia gravi vultum demissa repulsa, 95
quae iam excire fretum et ratibus bellare parabat
Iliacis, alios animo^ commenta paratus,
tristis ad Haemonias detorquet brachia terras,
ter conata manu, liquidum ter gressibus aequor
reppulit et niveas feriunt vada Thessala plantas. 100
laetantur montes et conubialia pandunt
antra sinus lateque deae Sperchios abundat
obvius et dulci vestigia circuit unda.
ilia nihil gavisa locis, sed coepta fatigat
pectore consilia et sellers pietate magistra 105

longaevum Chirona petit, domus ardua montem
perforat et longo suspendit Pe'lion arcu ;
pars exhausta manu, partem sua ruperat aetas.
signa tamen divumque tori et quem quisque sacravit
accubitu genioque locum monstrantur : at intra 110
Centauri stabula alta patent, non aequa nefandis
fratribus. hie hominum nullos experta cruores
spicula nee truncae bellis genialibus orni
aut consanguineos fracti crateres in hostes,
sed pharetrae insontes et inania terga ferarum. 115
haec quoque dum viridis ; nam tunc labor unus inermi
nosse salutiferas dubiis animantibus herbas,
aut monstrare lyra veteres heroas alumno.

Et tunc venatu rediturum in limine prime
^ animo P : iterum w.

" A promontory at the southern end of Euboea, on which
many Greek ships were wrecked when returning from Troy,
because NaupHus, king of Euboea, showed false lights.

'' He offended Poseidon, who sought to destroy him ; see
Odyssey, xiii. 125 sq.

" i.e., at the marriage- feast of Peleus and Thetis.

516

ACHILLEID, I. 93-119

billows, when the Danaans return and Caphereus"
shows forth his nightly signals and we search together
for the terrible Ulysses.^ "

He spoke ; but she, downcast at the stern refusal,
for but now she was preparing to stir up the waters .^v-
and make war upon the Ilian craft, de\ised in her^v^
mind another plan, and sadly turned her strokes ^^^«^
toward the Haemonian land. Thrice strove she ^^^th ^ i
her arms, thrice spurned the clear water yviih her '^
feet, and the Thessahan waves are washing her snow-
white ankles. The mountains rejoice, the marriage-
bowers fling open their recesses, and Spercheus in
■wide, abundant stream flows to meet the goddess
and laps her footsteps with his fresh water. _She
delights notjnjhe^scejie, but wearies her mind with
schemes essayed, andTJaught cunning by her devoted '-'
loy^leetejout the aged Thifon. His lofty home
bores deep into the mountain, beneath the long,
overarching vault of Pelion ; part had been hollowed
out by toil, part worn away by its own age. Yet
the images and couches of the gods are sho\^'n, and
the places that each had sanctified by his rechning
and his sacred presence "^ ; -within are the Centaur's
wide and lofty stalls, far different from those of his
•wicked brethren. Here are no spears that have
tasted human blood, nor ashen clubs broken in festal
conflict, nor mixing-bowls shattered upon kindred
foemen, but innocent quivers and mighty hides of
beasts. These did he take while yet in the prime
of age ; but now, a warrior no more, his only toil
was to learn the herbs that bring health to creatures
doubting of their hves, or to describe to his pupil upon
liis lyre the heroes of old time.

On the threshold's edge he awaited his return from

517

STATIUS

opperiens properatque dapes largoque serenat 120
igne domum : cum visa procul de litore surgens^
Nereis ; erumpit silvis — dant gaudia vires —
notaque^ desueto crepuit senis ungula campo.
tunc blandus dextra atque imos demissus in armos
pauperibus tectis inducit et admonet antri. 125

lamdudum tacito lustrat Thetis omnia visu
nee perpessa moras : " ubinam mea pignora, Chiron,
die," ait, " aut cur ulla puer iam tempora ducit
te sine ? non merito trepidus sopor atraque matri
signa deum et magnos utinam mentita timores ? 130
namque modo infensos utero mihi contuor enses,
nunc planctu hvere manus, modo in ubera saevas
ire feras ; saepe ipsa — nefas ! — sub inania natum
Tartara et ad Stygios iterum fero mergere fontes.
hos abolere metus magici iubet ordine sacri 135

Carpathius vates puerumque sub axe peracto^
secretis lustrare fretis, ubi Utora summa
Oceani et genitor tepet inlabentibus astris
Pontus. ibi ignotis horrenda piacula divis
donaque — sed longum cuncta enumerare vetorque ;
trade magis ! " sic ficta parens : neque enim ille
dedisset, 141

si molles habitus et tegmina foeda fateri
ausa seni. tunc ipse refert : " due, optima, quaeso,
due genetrix humihque deos infringe precatu.

^ surgens PE : mater w.

* notaque P : motaque w. ^ peracto P : probato w.

" Proteus, from his abode in the Carpathian sea. " axe
peracto," the bound or Hmit of the sky, i.e., beneath the
horizon, not necessarily western, though that is the meaning
here (1. 138).

* Here obviously = Oceanus, not the Euxine.

518

ACHILLEID, I. 120-144

hunting, and was urging the laying of the feast and
brightening his abode with lavish fire : when far off
the Nereid was seen climbing upward from the shore ;
he burst forth from the forests — ^joy speeds his going
— and the well-known hoof-beat of the sage rang on
the now unwonted plain. Then bowing down to his
horse's shoulders he leads her with courtly hand
within his humble dwelHng and warns her of the cave.
Long tinie has Thetis been scaniiing every corner
with silent glance : then, impatient of delay, she
cries : " Tell me, Chiron, where is my darling ? Why
)j^ spends the boy any time apart from thee ? Is it
not with reason that my sleep is troubled, and
terrible portents from the gods and fearful panics —
would they were false I — afflict his mother's heart ? T -
For now I behold swords that threaten to pierce my
womb, now my arms are bruised with lamentation,^^
now savage beasts assail my breasts ; often — ah,
horror ! — I seem to take my son down to the void of
Tartarus, and dip him a second time in the springs
ofSfyx^^ The^CSrpalliian seef "T)ids me banish these
terrorsrby the ordinance of a magic rite, and purify
the lad in secret waters Tieyond the bound of heaven's
vault, where is the farthest shore of Ocean and father
Pontus^is warmed by the ingliding stars. There
awful ^crifices and gifts to gods unknown — but 'tis
long to recount all, and I am forbidden ; give him
to me rather." Thus spoke his mother in lying
speech — nor would he have given him up, had she
dared to confess to the old man the soft raiment and
dishonourable garb.* Then he rephes : " Take him,
I pray,"Crbest'pflpai*ents, take him, and assuage the
gods with humble entreaty. For thy hopes are
' See 11. 326 sq.

519

STATIUS

nam superant tua vota modum placandaque multum
invidia est. non addo metum, sed vera fatebor : 146
nescio quid magnum — nee me patria omina fallunt —
vis festina parat tenuesque supervenit annos.
olim at ferre minas avideque audire solebat
imperia et nostris procul haud discedere ab antris :
nunc ilium non Ossa capit, non Pelion ingens 151

Thessaliaeve nives.^ ipsi mihi saepe queruntur
Centauri raptasque domos abstractaque coram
armenta et semet campis fluviisque fugari :
insidiasque et bella parant tumideque^ minantur. 155
olim equidem Argoos pinus cum Thessala reges
hac veheret, iuvenem Alciden et Thesea vidi —
sed taceo." figit gelidus Nereida pallor :
ille aderat multo sudore et pulvere maior,
et tamen arma inter festinatosque labores 160

dulcis adhuc visu : niveo natat ignis in ore
purpureus fulvoque nitet coma gratior auro.
necdum prima nova lanugine vertitur aetas,
tranquillaeque faces oculis et plurima vultu
mater inest : qualis Lycia venator Apollo 165

cum redit et saevis permutat plectra pharetris.
forte et laetus adest — o quantum gaudia formae
adiciunt ! — : fetam Pholoes sub rupe leaenam
perculerat ferro vacuisque reliquerat antris
ipsam, sed catulos adportat et incitat ungues. 170
quos tamen, ut fide genetrix in limine visa est,
abicit exceptamque avidis circumligat ulnis,
iam gravis amplexu iamque aequus vertice matri.

^ Thessaliaeve nives w: Pharsaliaeve nives P: thessaliae
iuvenes E.

* tumideque Kohlmann : timideque P : tumidique w.

" " purpureus," as in Virgil's " lumenque iuventae pur-
pureum " {Aen. i. 590), also cf. Hor. C. iii. 3. 12.

520

ACHILLEID, I. 145-173

pitched too high, and envy needs much appeasing. I
add not to thy fears, but will confess the truth : some
swift and violent deed — the forebodings of a sire
deceive me not — is preparing, far beyond his tender
years. Formerly he was wont to endure my anger,
and listen eagerlv to my commands nor wander far
from my cave : now Ossa carmot contain him, nor
mighty Pehon and all the snows of Thessaly. Even
the Centaurs often complain to me of plundered
homes and herds stolen before their eyes, and that
they themselves are driven from field and river ;
they de\-ise \iolence and fraud, and utter angry
threats. Once when the Thessalian pine bore hither
the princes of the Argo, I saw the young Alcides and
Theseus — but I say no more." Cqldjpallor seized
the daughter of Nereug : lo ! he was come, made

Targer bymuch dustand sweat, and yet for all his
weapons and hastened labours still pleasant to the
sight ; a radiant glow ^ shimmers on his snow-white
countenance, and his locks shine more comely than
tawny gold. The bloom of youth is not yet changed
by new-springing down, a tranquil flame bums in his
glance, and there is much of his mother in his look :
even as when the hunter Apoilo-retums from Lycia
and exchanges liis fierce quiver for the quill. By
chancp ton hp is in joyful mood — '^h, how _joy en-
hances beauty ! — ; beneath Pholoe's cliff he had

"IfrickelT a lioness lately dehvered and had left her
in the empty lair, but had brought the cubs and was
making them show their claws. Yet when he sees
his mother on the well-known threshold, away he
throws them, catches her up and binds her in his
longing arms, already violent in his embrace and
equal to her in height. Patroclus follows him, bound

521

ST ATI us

insequitur magno iam tunc conexus amore
Patroclus tantisque extenditur aemulus actis, 175
par studiis aevique modis, sed robore longe,
et tamen aequali visurus Pergama fato.

Protinus ille subit rapido quae proxima saltu
flumina fumantesque genas crinemque novatur
fontibus : Eurotae qualis vada Castor anhelo 180

intrat equo fessumque sui iubar excitat astri.
miratur comitque senex, nunc pectora mulcens,
nunc fortes umeros : angunt sua gaudia matrem.
tunc libare dapes Baccheaque munera Chiron
orat et attonitae varia oblectamina nectens 185

elicit extremo chelyn et solantia curas
fila movet leviterque expertas pollice chordas
dat puero. canit ille libens immania laudum
semina : quot tumidae superarit iussa novercae
Amphitryoniades, crudum quo Bebryca caestu 190
obruerit Pollux, quanto circumdata nexu
ruperit Aegides Minoia bracchia tauri,
maternos in fine toros superisque gravatum
Pelion : hie victo risit Thetis anxia vultu.
nox trahit in somnos, saxo conlabitur ingens 195

Centaurus blandusque umeris se innectit Achilles,
quamquam ibi fida parens, adsuetaque pectora mavult.

At Thetis undisonis per noctem in rupibus astans,
quae nato secreta velit, quibus abdere terris
destinet, hue illuc divisa niente volutat. 200

522

ACHILLEID, I. 174-200

to him even then by a strong affection, and strains
to rival all his mighty doings, well-matched in the
pursuits and ways of youth, but far behind in
strength, and vet to pass to Pergamum >vith equal
fate.

Straightway vriih rapid bound he hies him to the
nearest river, and freshens in its waters his steaming
face and hair : just as Castor enters the shallows of
Eurotas on his panting steed, and tricks out anew
the weary splendours of his star. The old m&e
marvels as he adorns him, caressing now his breast,
now his sti'ong shoulders : her very joy pierces his
mother's heart. Then Chiron prays her to taste the
banquet and the gifts of Bacchus, and contriving
various amusements for her beguiling at last brings
forth the lyre and moves the care-consoling strings,
and trying the chords lightly with his finger gives
them to the boy. Gladly he sings of the mighty
causes of noble deeds : how many behests of his
haughty stepmother the son of Amphitryon per-
formed, how Pollux with his glove smote down the
cruel Bebryx, with what a grip the son of Aegeus
enfolded and crushed the limbs of the Minoan bull,
lastly his own mother's marriage-feast and Pelion
trodden by the gods. Then Thetis relaxedher
anxious countenance and smiled. Xight draws them
on to slvunber : the huge Centaur lays him do^^-n on
a stony couch, and Achilles lovinglv twines his arms
about his shoulders — though his laithful parent is
there — and prefers the wonted breast.
-T— But Thetis, standing by night upon the sea-echoing
rocks, this way and that divides her purpose, and
ponders in what hiding-place she will set lier son, in
what countiy^slie shall choose to conceal him. Nearest

ST ATI us

proxima, sed studiis multum Mavortia Thrace ;

nee Maeetum gens dura placet laudumque daturi

Cecropidae stimulos, nimium opportuna carinis

Sestos Abydenique sinus : placet ire per altas

Cycladas . hie spretae Myconosque humilisque Seriphos

et Lemnos non aequa viris atque hospita Delos 206

gentibus. imbelli nuper Lycomedis ab aula

virgineos coetus et litora persona ludo

audicrat, duros laxantem Aegaeona nexus

^"issa sequi centumque dei numerare catenas. 210

haec placet, haec timidae tellus tutissima matri.

qualis vicino volucris iam sedula partu

iamque timens, qua fronde domum suspendat inanem,

providet hie ventos, hie anxia cogitat angues,

hie homines : tandem dubiae placet umbra, novisque

vix stetit in ramis et protinus arbor amatur. 216

Altera consilio superest tristemque fatigat
cura deam, natum ipsa sinu complexa per undas
an magno Tritone ferat, ventosne volucres
advocet an pelago solitam Thaumantida pasci. 220
elicit inde fretis et murice frenat acuto
delphinas biiugos, quos illi maxima Tethys
gurgite Atlanteo pelagi sub valle sonora
nutrierat ; — nullis vada per Neptunia glaucae
tantus honos formae nandique potentia nee plus 225
pectoris humani — iubet hos subsistere pleno

" The Athenians.

* See the story of Hypsipyle, Theb. v. 48 sq.

' King of Scyros.

<* Also named Briareus, one of the sons of Uranus, put in
chains by Cronos, and set free by Zeus ; Thetis went in
search of him to bring aid to Zeus when threatened by
the other Olympians (see Hesiod, Theog. 502 ; Homer, II.
i. 398 sqq.). " centum," because he had a hundred arms.

' Iris, i.e. the rainbow, that seems to draw moisture from

524

ACHILLEID, I. 201-226 l^ \

/
is Thrace, but steeped in the passionate love of war ;
nor does the hardy folk of Macedon please her, nor
the sons of Cecrops,** sure to excite to noble deeds,
nor Sestos and the bay of Abydos, too opportune for / ^-c
ships ; she decides to roam the lofty Cyclades. Of-^ . v
these she spurns Myconos and humble Seriphos, and^ ^
Lemnos cruel to its men,* and Deles, that gives all ''^^i^
the world a welcome. Of late from the unwarhke >0>^
palace of Lycomedes '^ had she heard the sound of
maiden bands and the echo of their sport along the
shore, what time she was sent to follow Aegaeon "*
freed from his stubborn bonds and to count the
hundred fetters of the god.— ~^his land finds favour, -V

and seems safesiL^to Jthe 4imid, mother -Even so a ^

bird already taking anxiouTTfiought, as her deliverj-
dfaws nigh, on what branch to hang her empty home,
^ere foresees \vinds, there bethinks her fearfully of
snakeSj_andJJierje_ofLmen ;_^ at last in her doubt a
shady spot finds favour ; scarce has she alighted on
the boughs, and straightway loves the tree.

One more care abides in her mind and troubles
the sad goddess, whether she shall carry her son in
her ovra. bosom o'er the waves, or use great Triton's
aid, whether she shall summon the swift winds to
help her, or the Thaumantian « that is wont to drink
the main. Then she calls out from the waves^ajjd
bridles with a sharp-edged shell her team ofdolphin^^^
twain, which Tethys, mighty queen, had nourished
for her in an echoing vale beneath the sea ; — ^none
throughout all Neptune's watery realm had such
^renown forjtheir sea-green beauty, nor -greater speed
"^ of swimming, nor more of human sense ; — these she

the sea, cf. Ovid. ^let. i. 271 " concipit Iris aquas alimentaque
nubibus adfert." Iris was the daughter of Thaumas.

525

ST ATI us

litore, ne nudae noceant contagia terrae.

ipsa dehinc toto resolutum pectore Achillen,

qui pueris sopor, Haemonii de rupibus antri

ad placidas deportat aquas et iussa tacere 230

litora : monstrat iter totoque efFulgurat orbe

Cynthia, prosequitur divam celeresque recursus

securus pelagi Chiron rogat^ udaque celat

lumina et abreptos subito iamiamque latentes

erecto prospectat equo, qua cana parumper 235

spumant signa fugae et hquido perit orbita ponto.

ilium non alias rediturum ad Thessala Tempe

iam tristis Pholoe, iam nubilus ingemit Othrys

et tenuior^ Spercheos aquis speluncaque docti

muta senis ; quaerunt puerilia carmina Fauni 240

et sperata diu plorant conubia Nymphae.

Iam premit astra dies humilique ex aequore Titan
rorantes evolvit equos et ab aethere magno
sublatum curru pelagus cadit, at vada mater
Scyria iamdudum fluctus emensa tenebat, 245

exierantque iugo fessi delphines erili :
cum pueri tremefacta quies oculique patentes
infusum sensere diem, stupet aere primo,
quae loca, qui fluctus, ubi Pelion ? omnia versa
atque ignota videt dubitatque agnoscere matrem. 250
occupat ilia manu blandeque adfata paventem :
"si mihi, care puer, thalamos sors aequa tulisset,
quos dabat, aetheriis ego te complexa tenerem

^ rogat w : rotat P.
* tenulor Postgate : senior P : tenuis w.

" " rotat " would presumably mean " gallops quickly
back," which would have no point here.
* Both mountains of Thessaly.

526

ACHILLEID, I. 227-253

halts in the deep shore-water, lest they take harm
from the touch of naked earth. Then in her own
arms she carries Achilles, his body utterly relaxedJa
a bov s sluinBeiFj^bm the rocks of the Haemonian
cave dm^Ti to the placid waters and the beach that
she had bidden be silent ; Cynthia lights her way
and shines out with full orb. Chiron escorts " the
goddess, and careless of the sea entreats her speedy
return, and hides his moistened eyes and high upon
his horse's body gazes out towards them as suddenly
they are whirled away, and now — and now are lost
to \iew, where for a short while the foamy marks of
their going gleam white and the wake dies away into
the water}- main. Him destined never more to
return to Thessalian Tempe now mournful Pholoe
bewails, now cloudy Othrj-s,* and Spercheos with
diminished flood and the silent grotto of the sage ;
the Fauns listen for his boyish songs in vain, and the
Nymphs bemoan their long-hoped-for nuptials.

Now day o'ervvhelms the stars, and from the low
and level main Titan wheels heavenward his dripping
steeds, and down from the expanse of air falls the
sea that the chariot bore up ; but long since had the
mother traversed the waves and gained the ScjxiaD
shores, and the wear\' dolphins had been loosed from
their mistress'~}'oke : when the boy's ileep was
stirred, and his opening eyes grew conscious oflthe
inpouring~day . ffT "amaze at the light that greets
hinr-fee- ask*, where is he, What are these waves,
,where~is Pelion ? All he beholds is diiferent and
':jnknown, andlie hesitates to_recognize his mother.
Quickly she caresses him and soothes his fear : " lfiloJj^ray\
dear lad, a kindly lot had brough^ me the wedlock > r\ _,
that it offered, in the fields of Heaven should I be ''^^

527

STATIUS

sidus grande plagis, magnique puerpera caeli
nil humilis Parcas terrenaque fata vererer. 255

nunc impar tibi, nate, genus, praeclusaque leti
tantum a matre via est ; quin et metuenda propinquant
tempora et extremis admota pericula metis,
cedamus, paulumque animos submitte viriles
atque habitus dignare meos. si Lydia dura 260

pensa manu mollesque tulit Tirynthius hastas,
si decet aurata Bacchum vestigia palla
verrere, virgineos si luppiter induit artus,
nee magnum ambigui fregerunt Caenea sexus :
hae^ sine, quaeso, minas nubemque exire malignam.^
mox iterum campos, iterum Centaurica reddam 266
lustra tibi: per ego hoc decus eb ventura iuventae
gaudia, si terras humilemque experta maritum
te propter, si progenitum Stygos amne severe
armavi — totumque utinam ! — , cape tuta parumper
tegmina nil nocitura animo. cur ora reducis 271

quidve parant oculi ? pudet hoc mitescere cultu ?
per te, care puer, cognata per aequora iuro,
nesciet hoc Chiron." sic horrida pectora tractat
nequiquam mulcens ; obstat genitorque roganti 275
nutritorque ingens et cruda exordia magnae
indolis. efFrenae tumidum velut igne iuventae
si quis equum primis submittere temptet habenis :
ille diu campis fluviisque et honore superbo

^ hac Postgate : hae P : has w.
* nubemque malignam P : numenque malignum w.

" Hercules spun wool for Omphale in Lydia.

* Jupiter disguised himself as Diana to gain possession of
Callisto (Ovid, Met. ii. 425).

" First a girl, Caenis, then a man, then a woman again
(Ovid, Met. xii. 189 ; Virg, Aen. vi. 448),

528

I

ACHILLEID, I. 254-279

holding thee, a glorious star, in my en^race, nor a
cgIe^iaJjfn6TheT~shbul3 T f e arTh e^To^vT^^F a tps or the

i^estinie^' of earth. But now unequal isuiy birth,
my son. and only on thy mother's side is the way
of death barred for thee ; moreover, times of terror
draw nigh, and peril hovers about the utmost goal.
Retire we then, relax awhile thy mighty spirit,
and scorn not this raiment of mine. If the Tirj-nthian
took in his rough hand Lydian wool and women's
wan3s7" if it becomes Bacchus to trail a gold-em-
broidered robe behind him, if Jupiter put on a
woman's form,* and doubtful sex weakened not the
mighty Caeneus,*^ this way, I entreat thee, suffer me
to<;^scape the threatening, baleful cloud. Soon will
I resTofethy plains and the fields where the Centaurs
roam : bv this beauty of thine _and the coming joys
of youth I prav thee, ifjbr thv sake}! endured the
earth and an inglorious mate,if at thy birth I fortified
thee^-ith the stem wateES_pLStyx <* — ay, would I had
wholly I — take these^^sa^robes) awhile, they will in
no Svise harm thy valour! W'hydost thou turn away ?
What means that glance ? Art thou ashamed to
soften thee in this garb ? Dear lad, I swear it by
my kindred waters, Chiron shall know nought of
this." So doth she work on his rough heart, vainly

'cajoling ; the thought of his sire and his great
teacher oppose her prayer and the rude beginnings
of his mighty spirit. Even so, should one try to
subdue with earliest rein a horse full of the mettle-
some fire of ungoverned youth, he haWng long de-
Ughted in stream and meadow and his ox^m proud

"» Thetis plunged the infant Achilles in the waters of Styx,
and thereby made his body immune from harm — all except
the left heel by which she held him.

VOL. 11 2 M 529

STATIUS

gavisus non colla iugo, non aspera praebet 280

ora lupis dominique fremit captivus inire
imperia atque alios miratur discere cursus.

Quis deus attonitae fraudes astunique parenti
contulit ? indocilem quae mens detraxit Achillem ?
Palladi litoreae celebrabat Scyros honorum 285

forte diem, placidoque satae Lycomede sorores
luce sacra patriis, quae rara licentia, muris
exierant dare veris opes divaeque severas
fronde ligare comas et spargere floribus hastam.
omnibus eximium formae decus, omnibus idem 290
cultus et expleto teneri iam fine pudoris
virginitas matura toris annique tumentes.
sed quantum virides pelagi Venus addita Nymphas
obruit, aut umeris quantum Diana relinquit
Naidas, effulget tantum regina decori 295

Deidamia chori pulchrisque sororibus obstat.
illius et roseo flammatur purpura vultu
et gemmis lux maior inest et blandius aurum :
atque ipsi par forma deae est,^ si pectoris angues
ponat et exempta pacetur casside vultus. 300

hanc ubi ducentem longe socia agmina vidit,
trux puer et nullo temeratus pectora motu
deriguit totisque novum bibit ossibus ignem.
nee latet haustus amor, sed fax vibrata medullis
in vultus atque ora redit lucemque genarum 305

tingit et impulsum tenui sudore pererrat.

^ deae est Kohlmann : deae w : deest P.
530

f

ACHILLEID, I. 280-306

beauty, gives not his neck to the yoke, nor his fierce
mouth to the bridle, and snorts with rage at passing
beneath a master's sway and marvels that he learns
another gait. , /^^ ^

What god endupf^th^ Hp-spairing mother with
4^raud and cunniTig? What de\'ice drew Achilles
from his stubborn purpose ? It chanced that Scyros
was keeping festal day in honour of Pallas, guardian
of the shore, and that the sisters, offspring of peace-
loving Lycomedes, had on this sacred morn gone
forth from their native town— ^a licence rarely given
— to pay tribute of the spring, and bind their grave
tresses with the leaf of the goddess and scatter flowers
u^ii her spear. All were of rarest beauty, all clad
alike and all in lusty youth, their years of girlish
modesty now ended, and maidenhood ripe for the
marriage-couch. But as far as ^'enus by comparison
doth surpass the green Nymphs of the sea, or as
Diana rises taller by head and shoulders than the
Naiads, so doth Deidamia, queen of the lovely choir,
outshine and dazzle her fair sisters. The bright
colour flames upon her rosy countenance, a more
brilliant light is in her jewels, the gold has a more
anuring gleam ; as beauteous were the goddess her-
self, 3yould she but lay aside the serpents on her
breast, and doff her helm and pacify her brow. WTien
he beheld her far in advance of her attendant train,
the lad, ungentle as he was and heart-whole from
any touch of passion, stood spellbound and drank in
strange fire through all his frame. Nor does the
love he has imbibed lie hidden, but the flame pulsat-
ing in his inmost being returns to his face and colours
the glow upon his cheeks, and as he feels its power
runs o'er his body with a light sweat. As when the

531

STATIUS

lactea Massagetae veluti cum pocula fuscant

sanguine puniceo vel ebur corrumpitur ostro :

sic variis manifesta notis — palletque rubetque —

flamma repens. eat atque ultro ferus hospita sacra

dissiciat turbae securus et immemor aevi, 311

ni pudor et iunctae teneat reverentia matris.

ut pater armenti quondam ductorque futurus,

cui nondum toto peraguntur cornua gyro,

cum sociam pastus niveo candore iuvencam 315

aspicit, ardescunt animi primusque per ora

spumat amor, spectant hilares obstantque magistri.

Occupat arrepto iam conscia tempore mater :
" hasne inter simulare choros et bracchia ludo
nectere, nate, grave est ? gelida quid tale sub Ossa
Peliacisque iugis ? o si mihi iungere curas 321

atque alium portare sinu contingat Achillen ! "
mulcetur laetumque rubet visusque protervos
obliquat vestesque manu leviore repellit.
aspicit ambiguum genetrix cogique^ volentem 325
iniecitque sinus ; tum colla rigentia mollit
submittitque graves umeros et fortia laxat
bracchia et impexos certo domat ordine crines
ac sua dilecta cervice monilia transfert ;
et picturato cohibens vestigia limbo 330

incessum motumque docet fandique pudorem.
qualiter artifici victurae pollice cerae
accipiunt formas ignemque manumque sequuntur :
talis erat divae natiun mutantis imago,
nee luctata diu ; superest nam plurimus illi 335

^ cogique Ueinsius : cogitque Pw.
532

ACHILLEID, I. 307-335

Massagetae darken milk-white bowls with blood-red
dye, or ivory is stained >\-ith purple, so by varying ^^
signs of blush and pallor does the sudden fire betray >*^
its presence. He would rush forward and unprovoked j^M"^
fiercely break up the ceremonies of his hosts, reckless fyu^^
of the crowd and forgetful of his years, did not shame ^/^
restrain him and awe of the mother by his side. As '
when a bullock, soon to be the sire and leader of a
herd, though his horns have not yet come full circle,
perceives a heifer of sno\\y whiteness, the comrade
of his pasture, his spirit takes fire, and he foams at
the mouth with his first passion ; glad at heart the

herdsmen watch him and check his fury.

Seizing^ the moment his mother purposely accosts
him : " Is it too hard a thing, my son, to make
pretence, of dancing and join hands in sport among /
these maidens ? Hast thou aught such 'neath Ossa
and the crags of Pehon ? O, if it were my lot to
match two lo\"ing hearts, and to bear another Achilles
iTTTny^fms'I " He is softened, and blushes for joy,
and with sly and sidelong glance repels the robes less
certainly. His mother sees him in doubt and wilUngn
to be compelled, and casts the raiment o'er him ; 1
then she softens his stalwart neck and bows his '. JL
strong shoulders, and relaxes the muscles of his arms, ; .y
and tames and orders duly his uncombed tresses, and ~^
sets~Rer~own necklace about the neck she loves ;
then keeping his step -s^ithin the embroidered skirt
she teaches him gait and motion and modesty of
speech. Even as the waxen images that the artist's
thumb will make to live take form and follow the
fire and the hand that carves them, such was the
picture of the goddess as she transformed her son.
Nor dldTshe struggle_long ; , for plenteous charm re-

533

STATIUS

invita virtute decor, fallitque tuentes
ambiguus tenuique latens discrimine sexus.

Procedunt, iterumque monens iterumque fatigans
blanda Thetis : " sic ergo gradum, sic ora manusque,
nate, feres comitesque modis imitabere fictis, 340
ne te suspectum molli non misceat aulae
rector et incepti pereant mendacia furti."
dicit et admoto non distat comere tactu.
sic ubi virgineis Hecate lassata Therapnis
ad patrem fratremque redit, comes haeret eunti 345
mater et ipsa umeros exsertaque bracchia velat ;
ipsa arcum pharetrasque locat vestemque latentem
deducit sparsosque tumet componere crines.

Protinus adgreditur regem atque ibi testibus aris
"hanctibi," ait," nostrigermanam, rector, Achillis 350
— nonne vides, ut torva genas aequandaque fratri ? —
tradimus : arma umeris arcumque animosa petebat
ferre et Amazonio conubia pellere ritu.
sed mihi curarum satis est pro stirpe virili :
haec calathos et sacra ferat, tu frange regendo 355
indocilem sexuque tene, dum nubilis aetas
solvendusque pudor ; neve exercere protervas^
gymnadas aut lustris nemorum concede vagari.
intus ale et similes inter seclude puellas ;
litore praecipue portuque arcere memento. 360

^ protervas w : catervas P.
534

ACHILLEID, I. 336-360

mains to him though his manhood brook it not, and
he baffles beholders by the puzzle of his sex that by
a narrow margin hides its secret.

They go forward, and Thetis unsparingly plies her
counsels and persuasive words :_ " Thus then, my son,
must thou manage thy gait, thus thy features and
thy hands, and imitate thy comrades and counterfeit
their ways, lest the king suspect thee and admit thee
not to the women's chambers, and the crafty ciinning>
of our enterprise be lost." So speaking she delays
not to put correcting touches to his attire. Thus
when Hecate " returns wearied to her sire and brother
from Therapnae, haunt of maidens, her mother bears
her company as she goes, and with her own hand
covers her shoulders and bared arms, herself arranges
the bow and quiver, and pulls down the girt-up robe,
and is proud to trim the disordered tresses.

Straightway she accosts the monarch, and there in
the presence of the altars : J^jlereiO king, " she says,
" I present to thee the sister of my Acliilles— seest
thou notJiow proud her glance and like her brother's ?
— so high her spirit, she begged for arms and a bow
to carry on her shoulders, and like an Amazon to
spurntne tTaoughFofwedTock. But my son is enough
care for me ; let her carry the baskets at the sacrifice,
do thou control and tame her wilfulness, and keep
Jierjto her sex, till the time for marriage come and
the end of her maiden modest}* ; nor suffer her to
engage in wanton -v^TCStling-matches, nor to frequent
the woodland haunts. Bring her up indoors, in
seclusion among girls of her own age ; above all
remember to keep her from the harbour and the

" Another name for Diana.

535

STATIUS

vidisti modo vela Phrygum : iam rriutua iura
fallere transmissae pelago didicere carinae."

Accedit dictis pater ingenioque parentis
occultum Aeaciden — quis divum fraudibus obstet ? —
accipit ; ultro etiam veneratur supplice dextra 365
et grates electus agit : nee turba piarum
Scyriadum eessat nimio defigere visu
virginis ora novae, quantum cervice comisque
emineat quantumque umeros ac pectora fundat.
dehinc sociare chores castisque accedere sacris 370
hortantur, ceduntque loco et contingere gaudent.
qualiter Idaliae volucres, ubi mollia frangunt
nubila, iam longum caeloque domoque gregatae,
si iunxit pinnas diversoque hospita tractu
venit avis, cunctae primum mirantur et horrent : 375
mox propius propiusque volant, atque aere in ipso
paulatim fecere suam plausuque secundo
circueunt hilares et ad alta cubilia ducunt.

Digreditur multum cunctata in limine mater,
dum repetit monitus arcanaque murmura figit 380
auribus et tacito dat verba novissima vultu.
tunc excepta freto longe cervice reflexa
abnatat et blandis adfatur litora votis :
" cara mihi tellus, magnae cui pignora curae
depositumque ingens timido commisimus astu, 385
sis felix taceasque, precor, quo more tacebat
Creta Rheae : te longus honos aeternaque cingent
templa nee instabili fama superabere Delo ;

" i.e., of Paris.

* Doves, as sacred to Venus, who had a shrine at Idahum.

" When she gave birth to Zeus.

•^ Delos floated till made fast by Apollo.

536

ACHILLEID, I. 361-388

shore. Lately thou sawest the Phrygian " sails :
already ships that have crossed the sea have learnt
treason to mutual loyalties."

The sire accedes to her words, and receives the
disguised Achilles by his mother's ruse — who can
resist when gods deceive ? Nay more, he venerates
her A^ith a suppliant's hand, and gives thanks that
he was chosen ; nor is the band of duteous ScjT-ian
maidens slow to dart keen glances at the face of their
new comrade, how she o'ertops them by head and
neck, how broad her expanse of breast and shoulders ;
then they invite her to join the dance and approach
the holy rites, and make room for her in their ranks
and rejoice to be near her. Just as IdaHan birds,**
clea\ing the soft clouds and long since gathered in
the sky or in their homes, if a strange bird from some
distant region has* joined them ^ving to wing, are at
first all filled with amaze and fear ; then nearer and
nearer they fly, and while yet in the air have made
him one of them and hover joyfully around with
favouring beat of pinions and lead him to their lofty
resting-places.

Long, ere she .departs, lingers the mother at the
gate, while she repeats adxice and implants whispered
secrets in his ear and in hushed tones gives her last
counsels. Then she plunges into the main, and gazing
"back swims far away, and entreats A\ith flattering
prayers the island-shore : " O land that I love, to
whom by flinid cunnipg^ I have committed the
pledge of my anxious care, a trust that is great
indee375ayst thou prosper and be silent, I beg, as
Crete was silent for Rhea "^ ; enduring honour and
everlasting shrines shall gird thee, nor shalt thou be
surpassed by unstable ** Delos ; sacred alike to wind

537

ST ATI us

et ventis et sacra fretis interque vadosas
Cycladas, Aegaeae frangunt ubi saxa procellae, 390
Nereidum tranquilla domus iurandaque nautis
insula, ne solum Danaas admitte carinas,
ne, precor ! hie thiasi tantum et nihil utile bellis,
■ — hoc famam narrare doce — dumque arma parantur
Dorica et alternum Mavors interfurit orbem, 395

— cedo equidem — sit virgo pii Lycomedis Achilles."

Interea meritos ultrix Europa dolores
dulcibus armorum furiis et supplice regum
conquestu flammata movet ; quippe ambit Atrides
ille magis, cui nupta domi, facinusque relatu 400

asperat Iliacum : captam sine Marte, sine armis
progeniem cael' Spartaeque potentis alumnam,
iura fidem superos una calcata rapina.
hocfoedus Phrygium,haec geminaecommerciaterrae?
quid maneat populos, ubi tanta iniuria primos 405
degrassata duces ? — coeunt gens omnis et aetas :
nee tantum exciti, bimari quos Isthmia vallo
claustra nee undisonae quos circuit umbo Maleae,
sed procul admotas Phrixi qua semita iungi
Europamque Asiamque vetat ; quasque ordine gentes
litore Abydeno maris alligat unda superni. 411

fervet amor belli concussasque erigit urbes.
aera domat Temese, quatitur navalibus ora
Eubois, innumera resonant incude Mycenae,
Pisa novat currus, Nemee dat terga ferarum, 415

Cirrha sagittiferas certat stipare pharetras,

" Because daughter of Zeus by Leda.
* See note on Silv. i. 1. 42.

538

ACHILLEID, I. 389-416

and wave shalt thou be, and calm abode of Nereids
among the shaTIows of the Cyclades, where the rocks
are shattered by Aegean storms, an isle that sailors
swear by — only admit no Danaan keels, I beg I
' Here are only the wands of Bacchus, nought that
avails for war ; ' that tale bid rumour spread, and
while the Dorian armaments make ready and Mavors
rages from world to world — he may, for aught I care
— Tet_Achilles.^he_ the -jaaaiden -daughter of good
Lycomedes."

Meanwhile avenging Europe, inflamed by war's
sweet frenzy and the monarchs' complaining en-
treaties, excites her righteous ire ; more earnestly
pleads that son of Atreus whose spouse abides at
home, and by his telling makes the Ilian crime more
grievous : how without aid of Mars or force of arms
the daughter of heaven " and child of mighty Sparta
was taken, and justice, good faith and the gods
spurned by one deed of rapine. Is this then Phrj-gian
honour ? Is this the intercourse of land with land ?
What awaits the common folk, when wrong so deadly
attacks the foremost chieftains ? All races, all ages
flock together : nor are they only aroused whom the
Isthmian barrier with its rampart fronting on two
seas encloses and Malea's wave-resounding promon-
tory, but where afar the strait of Phrixus sunders
Europe and Asia ; and the peoples that fringe
Abydos' shore, bound fast by the waters of the
upper sea. The war-fever rises high, thrilling the
agitated cities. Temese * tames her bronze, the
Euboean coast shakes with its dockyards, Mycenae
echoes with innumerable forges, Pisa makes new
chariots, Xemea gives the skins of wild beasts, Cirrha
vies in packing tight the arrow-bearing quivers,

539

STATIUS

Lerna graves clipeos caesis vestire iuvencis.
dat bello pedites Aetolus et asper Acarnan,
Argos agit turmas, vacuantur pascua ditis
Arcadiae, frenat celeres Epiros alumnos, 420

Phocis et Aoniae iaculis rarescitis umbrae,
murorum tormenta Pylos Messenaque tendunt.
nulla immunis humus ; velluntur postibus altis
arma olim dimissa patrum, flammisque liquescunt
dona deum : ereptum superis Mars efferat aurum. 425
nusquam umbrae veteres : minor Othrys et ardua sidunt
Taygeta, exuti viderunt aera montes.
iam natat omne nemus : caeduntur robora classi,
silva minor remis. ferrum lassatur in usus
innumeros, quod rostra liget, quod muniat arma, 430
belligeros quod frenet equos, quod mille catenis
squalentes nectat tunicas, quod sanguine fumet
vulneraque alta bibat, quod conspirante veneno
impellat mortes ; tenuant umentia saxa
attritu et pigris addunt mucronibus iras. 435

nee modus aut arcus lentare aut fundere glandes
aut torrere sudes galeasque attollere conis,
hos inter motus pigram gemit una quietem
Thessalia et geminis incusat fata querellis,
quod senior Peleus nee adhuc maturus Achilles. 440

lam Pelopis terras Graiumque exhauserat orbem
praecipitans in transtra viros insanus equosque
Bellipotens. fervent portus et operta carinis
stagna suasque hiemes classis promota suosque
540

ACHILLEID, I. 417-444

Lema in covering heavy shields ^^ith the hides of
slaughtered bullocks. Aetolia and fierce Acarnania
send infantry to war, Argos collects her squadrons,
the pasture-lands of rich Arcadia are emptied, Epiros
bridles her s^^ift - footed nurslings," ye shades of
Phocis and Aonia grow scant by reason of the javelins,
Pylos and Messene strain their fortress-engines. No
land but bears its burden ; ancestral weapons long
renounced are torn from lofty portals, gifts to the
gods melt in the flame ; gold reft from di\'ine keeping
^Iars turns to fiercer use. Nowhere are the shady
haunts of old : Othrys is lesser grown, lofty Taygetus
sinks low, the shorn hills see the light of day. Now
the whole forest is afloat : oaks are hewn to make a
fleet, the woods are diminished for oars. Iron is
forced into countless uses, for riveting prows, for
armour of defence, for bridling chargers, for knitting
rough coats of mail by a thousand links, to smoke
with blood, to drink deep of wounds, to drive death
home in conspiracy with poison ; they make the
dripping whetstones thin A\ith grinding, and add
A\Tath to sluggish sword-points. No limit is there to
the shaping of bows or heaping up of bullets or the
charring of stakes or the heightening of helms with
crests. Amid such commotion Thessaly alone be-
wails her indolent repose, and brings a twofold
complaint against the Fates, that Peleus is too old
and Achilles not yet ripe of age.

Already the lord of war had drained the land of
Pelops and the Grecian world, madly flinging aboard
both men and horses. All aswarm are the harbours
and the bays in\'isible for shipping, and the mo\ing

» Cf. Virgil Georg. i. 57 " Eliadum palmas Epiros
equanim."

541

STATIUS

attollit fluctus ; ipsum iam puppibus aequor 445

deficit et totos consumunt carbasa ventos.

Prima ratis Danaas Hecateia congregat Aulis,
rupibus expositis longique crepidine dorsi
Euboicum scandens^ Aulis mare, litora multum
montivagae dilecta deae, iuxtaque Caphereus 450
latratum pelago tollens caput, ille Pelasgas
ut vidit tranare rates, ter monte ter undis
intonuit saevaeque dedit praesagia noctis.
coetus ibi armorum Troiae fatalis, ibi ingens
iuratur bellum, donee sol annuus omnes 455

conficeret metas. tunc primum Graecia vires
contemplata suas ; tunc sparsa ac dissona moles
in corpus vultumque coit et rege sub uno
disposita est. sic curva feras indago latentes
claudit et admotis paulatim cassibus artat. 460

illae ignem sonitumque pavent difFusaque linquunt
avia miranturque suum decrescere monteni,
donee in angustam ceciderunt undique vallem ;
inque vicem stupuere greges socioque timore
mansuescunt : simul hirtus aper, simul ursa lupusque
cogitur et captos contempsit cerva leones 466

Sed quamquam et gemini pariter sua bella capessant
Atridae famamque avida virtute paternam
Tydides Sthenelusque premat, nee cogitet annos
Antilochos septemque Aiax umbone coruscet 470

armenti reges atque aequum moenibus orbem.
consiliisque armisque vigil contendat Ulixes :
omnis in absentem belli manus ardet Achillem,
nomen Achillis amant, et in Hectora solus Achilles

^ scandens Pw : scindens Menke, but cf. Theb. 11. 44.

" Cf. note on 1. 93.

^ i.e., the seven bullocks whose hides went to make his
shield.

542

ACHILLEID, I. 445-474

fleet stirs its own storms and billows ; the sea itself
fails the vessels, and their canvas swallows up every
breath of wind.

Aulis, sacred to Hecate, first gathers together the
Danaan fleet, Aulis, whose exposed cliff and long-
projecting ridge climb the Euboean sea, coast beloved
by the mountain-wandering goddess, and Caphereus,
that raises his head hard by against the barking
waves. He, when he beheld the Pelasgian ships sail
by, thrice thundered from peak to wave, and gave
presage of a night of fury.** There assembles the
armament for Troy's undoing, there the vast array
is sworn, while the sun completes an annual course.
Then first did Greece behold her own might ; then a
scattered, dissonant mass took form and feature, and
was marshalled under one single lord. Even so does
the round hunting-net confine the hidden beasts, and
graduallv hem them in as the toils are drawn close.
They in panic of the torches and the shouting leave
their wide pathless haunts, and marvel that their
o^^Ti mountain is shrinking, till from every side they
pour into the narrow vale ; the herds startle each
other, and are tamed by mutual fear ; bristly boar
and bear and wolf are driven together, and the hind
despises the captured lions.

But although the twain Atridae make war in their
own cause together, though Sthenelus and Tydeus'
son surpass in eager valour their fathers' fame, and
Antilochus heeds not his years, and Ajax shakes upon
his arm the seven leaders of the herd * and the circle
vast as a city-wall, though Ulysses, sleepless in counsel
and deeds of arms, joins in the quarrel, yet all the
host yearns ardently for the absent Achilles, lovingly
they dwell upon Achilles' name, Achilles alone is

543

STATIUS

poscitur, ilium unum Teucris Priamoque loquuntur
fatalem, quis enim Haemoniis sub vallibus alter 476
creverit effbssa reptans nive ? cuius adortus^
cruda rudimenta et teneros formaverit annos
Centaurus ? patrii propior cui linea caeli,
quemve alium Stygios tulerit secreta per amnes 480
Nereis et pulchros ferro praestruxerit artus ?
haec Graiae castris iterant traduntque eohortes,
cedit turba ducum vincique haud maesta fatetur.
sic cum pallentes Phlegraea in castra coirent
caelicolae iamque Odrysiam Gradivus in hastam 485
surgeret et Libycos Tritonia tolleret angues
ingentemque manu curvaret Delius arcum,
stabat anhela metu solum Natura Tonantem
respiciens — quando ille hiemes tonitrusque vocaret
nubibus, igniferam quot fulmina posceret Aetnen ?

Atque ibi dum mixta vallati plebe suorum 491

et maris et belli consultant tempera reges,
increpitans magno vatem Calchanta tumultu
Protesilaus ait — namque huic bellare cupido
praecipua et primae iam tunc data gloria mortis — :
" o nimium Phoebi tripodumque oblite tuorum, 496
Thestoride, quando ora deo possessa movebis
iustius aut quianam^ Parcarum occulta recludis^ ?
cernis ut ignotum cuncti stupeantque fremantque*
Aeaciden ? sordent vulgo Calydonius heros 500

^ adortus Pw : ad ortus E : ab ortu Q {correction from
ad ortus). ^ quianam P : quaenam oj.

* recludis Garrod : recludes Pw.

* fremantque E : premantque Pc<>.

" Scene of the battle of gods and giants, part of Macedonia,
also called Pallene. * i-e., Thracian.

" I have adopted Garrod's reading here, giving " recludo "
the meaning of " conceal " ; " quaenam . . . recludes "
would mean " What mysteries wilt thou reveal ? "
544.

ACHILLEID, I. 475-500

called for against Hector, him and none other do
they speak of as the doom of Priam and of Troy.
For who else grew up from infancy crawling on fresh-
dug snow in the Haemonian valleys ? Whom else
did the Centaur take in hand and shape his rude
beginnings and tender years ? Whose line of ancestry
runs nearer heaven ? WTiom else did a Nereid take
by stealth through the Stygian waters and make his
^air limbs impenetrable to steel ? Such talk do the
Grecian cohorts repeat and interchange. The band
of chieftains yields before him and gladly owns defeat.
So when the pale denizens of heaven flocked into the
Phlegraean camp,** and already Gradivus was tower-
ing to the height of his OdrA'sian '' spear and Tritonia
raised her. Libyan snakes and the Delian strongly
bent his mighty bow, Nature in breathless terror
stood looking to the Thunderer alone — when would
he summon the lightnings and the tempests from
the clouds, how many thunderbolts would he ask of
fiery Aetna }

There, while the princes, surrounded by the
mingled multitudes of their folk, hold counsel of
times for sailing and for war, Protesilaus amid great
tumult rebukes the prophet Calchas and cries — for
to him was given the keenest desire to fight, and the
glory even then of suffering death the first : " O son
of Thestor, forgetful of Phoebus and thy own tripods,
when vn\t thou open thy god-possessed lips more
surely, or why dost thou hide the secret things of
Fate "^ ? Seest thou how all are amazed at the un-
known Aeacides and clamour for him ? The Caly-
donian hero "* seems as nought in the people's eyes,

** Diomede.
VOL. II 2 N 545

STATIUS

et magno genitus Telamone Aiaxque secundus,
nos quoque : sed Mayors et Troia arrepta probabunt.
ilium neglectis — pudet heu ! — ductoribus omnes
belligerum ceu numen amant. die ocius aut eur
serta eomis et multus honos ? quibus abditus oris
quave iubes tellure peti ? nam fama nee antris 506
Chironis patria nee degere Peleos aula,
heia, inrumpe deos et fata latentia vexa,
laurigerosque ignes, si quando, avidissimus hauri !
arma horrenda tibi saevosque remisimus enses, 510
numquam has imbelles galea violabere vittas :
sed felix numeroque ducum praestantior omni,
si magnum Danais per te^ deprendis^ Achillem."

lamdudum trepido eircumfert lumina m'otu
intrantemque deum primo pallore fatetur 515

Thestorides ; mox igne genas et sanguine torquens^
nee socios nee castra videt, sed caecus et absens
nunc superum magnos deprendit in aethere coetus,
nunc sagas adfatur aves, nunc dura sororum
licia, turiferas modo consulit anxius aras 520

flammarumque apicem rapit et caligine sacra
pascitur. exsiliunt crines rigidisque laborat
vitta comis, nee colla loco nee in ordine gressus.
tandem fessa tremens longis mugitibus ora

^ per te Garrod (from own us.) : pro te Pu.

* deprendis Garrod {from own MS.) : deprehendis E:
dependis P : portendis w. See Garrod ad loc. P is faulty
in these lines.

' torquens Poo : terpens Garrod.

" Garrod rightly remarks that there is no question here
546

ACHILLEID, I. 501-524

and so too Ajax bom of mighty Telamon and lesser
Ajax, so do we also : but Mars and the capture of
Troy ^^ill prove the truth. Slighting their leaders —
for shame I — they all love him as a deitv of war.
Quickly speak, or why are thy locks enwTeathed and
held in honour ? In what coasts lies he hidden ? In
what land must we seek him ? For report has it that
he is living neither in Chiron's cave nor in the halls
of Peleus his sire. Come, break in upon the gods,
harn>- the fates that lie concealed I Quaff greedily,
if ever thou dost, thy draughts of laurelled fire I We
have relieved thee of dread arms and cruel swords,
and never shall a helm profane thy unwarhke locks,
yet blest shalt thou be and foremost of all our chiefs,
if of thyself thou dost find great Achilles for the
Danaans." "

Long since has the son of Thestor been glancing
roimd about him with excited movements, and by
his first pallor betrayed the incoming of the god ;
soon he rolls fiery, bloodshot eyes, seeing neither
his comrades nor the camp, but blind and absent
from the scene he now overhears the mighty councils
of gods in the upper air, now accosts the prescient
birds, now the stem sisters' threads, now anxiously
consults the incense-laden altars, and quickly scans
the shooting flames and feeds upon the sacred
vapours.* His hair streams out, and the fillet totters
on his stiffened locks, his head rolls and he staggers
in his gait. At last trembUng he looses his weary

of which is to serse in the campaign (implied by " pro te
depend is ") ; see 11. 510, 511. The question is " Where is
Achilles ? "

* This was a KarvofiavTiia, or divination by the smoke of
the altar-fire, as in Theb. x. 598. The altar of Apollo would
be crowned with laurel (<•/. 509).

547

STATIUS

solvit, et oppositum vox eluctata furorem est : 525
" quo rapis ingentem magni Chironis alumnum
femineis, Nerei, dolis ? hue mitte : quid aufers ?
non patiar : meus iste, meus. tu diva profundi,
^et me Phoebus agit. latebris quibus abdere temptas
eversorem Asiae ? video per Cyeladas altas 530

attonitam et turpi quaerentem litora furto.
occidimus : plaeuit Lycomedis conscia tellus.
o scelus ! en fluxae veniunt in pectora vestes.
scinde, puer, scinde et timidae ne cede parenti.
ei mihi raptus abit ! quaenam haec procul improba
virgo ? " 535

Hie nutante gradu stetit amissisque furoris
viribus ante ipsas tremefactus conruit aras.
tunc haerentem Ithacum Calydonius occupat heros :
" nos vocat iste labor : neque enim conies ire recusem,
si tua cura trahat. licet ille sonantibus antris 540
Tethyos aversae gremioque prematur aquosi
Nereos : invenies. tu tantum providus astu
tende animum vigilem fecundumque erige pectus :
non mihi quis vatum dubiis in casibus ausit
fata videre prior." subicit gavisus Ulixes : 545

" sic deus omnipotens firmet, sic adnuat ilia
virgo paterna tibi ! sed me spes lubrica tardat :
grande equidem armatum castris inducere Achillem ;
sed si fata negent, quam foedum ac triste reverti !
vota tamen Danaum non intemptata relinquam 550

^ Lines 529-661 only in PE and late mss,, not in u.

" i.e., himself and Ulysses; "cura" seems to recognize J
Ulysses' hesitation. . \

548 ■

ACHILLEID, I. 525-550

lips from their long bello-wings, and his voice has
struggled free from the resisting frenzy : " Whither
bearest thou, O Nereid, by thy woman's guile great
Chiron's mighty pupil ? Send him hither : why dost
thou carry him away ? I \n\\ not suffer it : mine is
he, mine ! Thou art a goddess of the deep, but I
too am inspired by Phoebus. In what hiding-places
triest thou to conceal the destroyer of Asia ? I see
her all bewildered among the Cyclades, in base
stealth seeking out the coast. We are ruined ! The
accomplice land of Lycomedes finds favour. Ah !
horrid deed ! see, flowing garments drape his breast.
Rend them, boy, rend them, and yield not to thy
timid mother. Woe, woe ! he is rapt away and is
gone ! Who is that wicked maiden yonder ? "

Here tottering he ceased, the madness lost its
force, and with a shudder he collapsed and fell before
the altar. Then the Calydonian hero accosts the
hesitating Ithacan : " 'Tis us<^ that task summons;
for I could not refuse to bear thee company, should
thy thought so lead thee. Though he be sunk in the
echoing caves of Tethys far removed and in the bosom
of waterj' Nereus, thou >vilt find him. Do thou but
keep alert the cunning and foresight of thy watchful
mind, and arouse thy fertile craft : no prophet,
methinks, would make bold in perplexity to see the
truth before thee." Ulysses in joy makes answer :
" So may almighty God bring it to pass, and the
virgin guardian of thy sire grant to thee ! But fickle
hope gives me pause ; a great enterprise is it indeed
to bring Achilles and his arms to our camp, but
should the fates say nay, how woeful a disgrace were
it to return ! Yet will I not leave unventured the
fulfilment of the Danaans' desire. Ay, verily, either

5i9

STATIUS

iamque adeo aut aderit mecum Peleius heros,
aut verum penitus latet et sine Apolline Calchas."

Conclamant Danai stimulatque Agamemno vo-
lentes :
laxantur coetus resolutaque murmure laeto
agmina discedunt. quales iam nocte propinqua 555
e pastu referuntur aves, vel in antra reverti
melle novo gravidas mitis videt Hybla catervas.
nee mora, iam dextras Ithacesia carbasus auras
poscit, et in remis hilaris sedere iuventus.

At procul occultum falsi sub imagine sexus 560
Aeaciden furto iam noverat una latenti
Deidamia virum ; sed opertae conscia culpae
cuncta pavet tacitasque putat sentire sorores.
namque ut virgineo stetit in grege durus Achilles
exsolvitque rudem genetrix digressa pudorem, 565
protinus elegit comitem, quamquam omnis in ilium
turba coit, blandeque novas nil tale timenti
admovet insidias : illam sequiturque premitque
improbus, illam oculis iterumque iterumque resumit.
nunc nimius lateri non evitantis inhaeret, 570

nunc levibus sertis, lapsis nunc sponte canistris,
nunc thyrso parcente ferit, modo dulcia notae
fila lyrae tenuesque modos et carmina monstrat
Chironis ducitque manum digitosque sonanti
infringit citharae, nunc occupat ora canentis 575

et ligat amplexus et mille per oscula laudat.

550

ACHILLEID, I. 551-576

the Pelean hero shall accompany me hither, or the
truth lies deep indeed and Calchas hath not spoken
by Apollo."

The Danai shout applause, and Agamemnon urges
on the MilHng pair ; the gathering breaks up, and
the dispersing ranks depart ^ith joyful murmurs,
even as at nightfall the birds v-'ing their way home-
ward from the pastures, or kindly Hybla sees the
swarms returning laden with fresh honey to their
cells. Without delay the canvas of the Ithacan is
already calUng for a favouring breeze, and the merry-
crew are seated at the oars.

But far away Deidamia — and she alone — ^had learnt
in stolen secrecy the manhood of Aeacides, that lay
hid beneath the show of a feigned sex ; conscious of
guilt concealed there is nought she does not fear,
and thinks that her sisters know, but hold their
peace. For when Achilles, rough as he was, stood
amid the maiden company, and the departure of his
mother rid him of his artless bashfulness, straightway
although the whole band gathers round him, he
chose her as his comrade and assails >\ith new and
>\inning A^iles her unsuspecting innocence ; her he
follows, and persistently besets, toward her he ever
and again directs his gaze. Now too zealously he
clings to her side, nor does she avoid him, now he
pelts her >\ith light garlands, now >Wth baskets that
let their burden fall, now with the thyrsus that
harms her not, or again he shows her the sweet
strings of the lyre he knows so well, and the gentle
measures and songs of Chiron's teaching, and guides
her hand and makes her fingers strike the sounding
harp, now as she sings he makes a conquest of her
lips, and binds her in his embrace, and praises her

5.51

STATIUS

ilia libens discit, quo vertice Pelion, et quis
Aeacides, puerique auditum nomen et actus
adsidue stupet et praesentem caijtat Achillem.
ipsa quoque et validos proferre modestius artus 580
et tenuare rudes attrito pollice lanas
demonstrat reficitque colos et perdita dura^
pensa manu ; vocisque sonum pondusque tenentis,
quodque fugit comites, nimio quod lumine sese
figat et in verbis intempestivus anhelet, 685

miratur : iam iamque dolos aperire parantem
virginea levitate fugit prohibetque fateri.
sic sub matre Rhea iuvenis regnator Olympi
oscula securae dabat insidiosa sorori
frater adhuc, medii donee reverentia cessit 590

sanguinis et versos germana expavit amores.

Tandem detecti timidae Nereidos astus.
lucus Agenorei sublimis ad orgia Bacchi
stabat et admissum caelo nemus : huius in umbra
alternam renovare piae trieterida matres 595

consuerant scissumque pecus terraque revulsas
ferre trabes gratosque deo praestare furores,
lex procul ire mares : iterat praecepta verendus
ductor, inaccessumque viris edicitur antrum,
nee satis est : stat fine dato metuenda sacerdos 600
exploratque aditus, ne quis temerator oberret
agmine femineo. tacitus sibi risit Achilles,
ilium virgineae ducentem signa catervae

^ perdita dura E, late mss. : perfida durat P.

" The courting of Juno by the youthful Jupiter is also
mentioned Theb. x. 61 sq.

^ From Agenor, king of Tyre, from whom Semele, his
mother, was descended.
552

ACHILLEID, I. 577-603

amid a thousand kisses. With pleasure does she
learn of Pelion's summit and of Aeacides, and hearing
the name and exploits of the youth is spellbound in
constant wonder, and sings of Achilles in his very
presence. She in her turn teaches him to move his
strong hmbs viiih more modest grace and to spin out
the un^vTought wool by rubbing \^ith his thiunb, and
repairs the distaff and the skeins that his rough hand
has damaged ; she marvels at the deep tones of his
voice, how he shuns aU her fellows and pierces her
with too-attentive gaze and at all times hangs breath-
less on her words ; and now he prepares to reveal
the fraud, but she hke a fickle girl avoids him, and
will not allow him to confess. Even so beneath his
mother Rhea's rule the young prince of OljTnpus gave
treacherous kisses to his sister ; he was still her
brother and she thought no harm, until the reverence
for their common blood gave way, and the sister
feared a lover's passion."

At length the timorous_Nereijd.'s^ running was laid
bare. There stood a lofty grove, scene of the rites
'ofAgenorean ' Bacchus, a grove that reached to
heaven ; within its shade the pious matrons were
wont to renew the recurrent three-yearly festival,
and to bring torn animals of the herd and uprooted
saphngs, and to offer to the god the frenzy wherein
he took delight. The law bade males keep far away ;
the reverend monarch repeats the command, and
makes proclamation that no man may draw nigh the
sacred haunt. Nor is that enough ; a venerable
priestess stands at the appointed hmit and scans the
approaches, lest any defiler come near in the train
of women ; Achilles laughed silently to himself. His
comrades wonder at him as he leads the band of

553

STATIUS

magnaque difficili solventem bracchia motu
— et sexus pariter decet et mendacia matris — 605
mirantur comites. nee iam pulcherrima turbae
Deidamia suae tantumque admota superbo
vincitur Aeacide, quantum premit ipsa sorores.
ut vero e tereti demisit nebrida collo
errantesque sinus hedera coilegit et alte 610

cinxit purpureis flaventia tempora vittis
vibravitque gravi redimitum missile dextra,
attonito stat turba metu sacrisque relictis
ilium ambire libet pronosque attollere vultus. 614
talis, ubi ad Thebas vultumque animumque remisit
Euhius et patrio satiavit pectora luxu,
serta comis mitramque levat thyrsumque virentem
armat et hostiles invisit fortior Indos.
Scandebat roseo medii fastigia eaeli
Luna iugo, totis ubi somnus inertior alis 620

defluit in terras mutumque amplectitur orbem :
consedere chori paulumque exercita pulsu
aera tacent, tenero cum solus ab agmine Achilles
haec secum : " quonam timidae commenta parentis
usque feres ? primumque imbelli caroere perdes 625
florem animi ? non tela licet Mavortia dfcxtra,
non trepidas agitare feras. ubi campus et amnes
Haemonii ? quaerisne meos, Sperchie, natatus
promissasque comas ? an desertoris alumni 629

nullus honos ? Sty giasque procul iam raptus ad umbras
dicor, et orbatus plangit mea funera Chiron ?

" i.e., the thyrsus.

* There is a sort of inverted comparison here : the warUke
Achilles putting on Bacchic garb is compared to effeminate
Bacchus making ready for war.

554

ACHILLEID, I. 604-631

virgins and moves his mighty arms with awkward
motion — his own sex and his mother's counterfeit
ahke become him. No more is Deidamia the fairest
of her company, and as she surpasses her own sisters,
so does she herself own defeat compared -svith proud
Aeacides. But when he let the fawn-skin hang from
his shapely neck, and \Aith i\y gathered up its
flowing folds, and bound the purple fillet high upon
his flaxen temples, and ^\'ith powerful hand made the
enAvreathed missile " quiver, the crowd stood awe-
struck, and lea\ing the sacred rites are fain to
throng about him, uphfting their bowed heads to
gaze. Even so Euhius, what time he has relaxed
at Thebes his martial spirit and frowning brow, and
sated his soul with the luxur}' of his native land,
takes chaplet and mitre from his locks, and arms
the green thyrsus for the fray, and in more martial
guise sets out to meet his Indian foes.*

The Moon in her rosy chariot was cUmbing to the
height of mid-heaven, when drowsy Sleep gUded
down with full sweep of his pinions to earth and
gathered a silent world to his embrace : the choirs
reposed, the stricken bronze awhile was mute, when
Achilles, parted in solitude from the \irgin train, thus
spoke with himself: " How long wilt thou endure the
precepts of thy anxious mother, and waste the first
flower of thy manhood in this soft imprisonment ?
No weapons of war mayst thou brandish, no beasts
mayst thou pursue. Oh I for the plains and valleys
of Haemonia I Lookest thou in vain, Spercheus, for
my swimming, and for my promised tresses ? Or
hast thou no regard for the foster-child that has
deserted thee ? Am I already spoken of as borne
to the Stygian shades afar, and does Chiron in

555

STATIUS

tu nunc tela manu, nostros tu dirigis arcus
nutritosque mihi scandis, Patrocle, iugales :
ast ego pampineis difFundere brachia thyrsis
et tenuare colus — pudet haec taedetque fateri ! — 635
iam scio. quin etiani dilectae virginis ignem
aequaevamque facera captus noctesque diesque
dissimulas. qiionam usque premes urentia pectus
vulnera, teque marem — pudet heu ! — nee amore

probaris^ ?
Sic ait ; et densa noctis ga\'isus in umbra 640

tempestiva suis torpere silentia furtis
vi potitur votis et toto pectore veros
admovet amplexus ; vidit chorus omnis ab alto
astrorum et tenerae rubuerunt cornua Lunae.
ilia quidem clamore nemus montemque replevit : 645
sed Bacchi comites, discussa nube soporis,
signa choris indicta putant ; fragor undique notus
tollitur, et thyrsos iterum vibrabat Achilles,
ante tamen dubiam verbis solatus amicis :
" ille ego — quid trepidas ? — , genitum quern caerula

mater 650

paene lovi^ silvis nivibusque immisit alendum
Thessalicis. nee ego hos cultus aut foeda subissem
tegmina, ni primo tu visa^ in litore : cessi
te propter, tibi pensa manu, tibi molUa gesto
tympana, quid defies magno nurus addita ponto ?

^ probaris P : probabis late uss.

^ paene lovi Gustafsson: paene iovis P : Penei E : Peneis
late Mss. : Paeoniis conj. Wilamowitz.
* tu visa E : te vias P : te visa late mss.

" Thetis nearly became the wife of Jove, so that Achilles
556

ACHILLEID, I. 632-655

solitude bewail my death ? Thou, O Patroclus, now
dost aim my darts, dost bend my bow and mount
the team that was noxirished for me ; but I have
learnt to fling ^\-ide my arms as I grasp the vine-
wands, and to spin the distaiF-thread — ah ! shame
and vexation to confess it ! Nay more, night and
day thou dost dissemble the love that holds thee,
and thy passion for the maid of equal years. How
long Avilt thou conceal the wound that galls thy
heart, nor even in love — for shame ! — prove thy own
manhood ? "

So he speaks ; and in the thick darkness of the
night, rejoicing that the unstirring silence gives
timely aid to his secret deeds, he gains by force his
desire, and vrith all his \igour strains her in a real
embrace ; the whole choir of stars beheld from on
high, and the horns of the young moon blushed red.
She indeed filled grove and mountain with her cries,
but the train of Bacchus, dispelhng slumber's cloud,
deemed it the signal for the dance ; on every side
the famihar shout arises, and Achilles once more
brandishes the thyrsus ; yet first vrith. friendly speech
he solaces the anxious maid : " I am he — why fearest
thou r — whom my cerulean mother bore wellnigh to
Jove," and sent to find my nurture in the woods and
snows of Thessaly. Nor had I endured this dress
and shameful garb, had I not seen thee on the sea-
shore ; 'twas for thee I did submit, for thee I carry
skeins and bear the womanly timbrel. Why dost
thou weep who art made the daughter-in-law of
mighty ocean ? Why dost thou moan who shalt bear

was " nearly " his son. An oracle warned Jove that the son
thus born would destroy him. Wilamowitz's conjecture
" Paeoniis " is attractive.

557

STATIUS

quid gemis ingentes caelo paritura nepotes ? 656

sed pater — : ante igni ferroque excisa iacebit
Scyros et in tumidas ibunt haec versa procellas
moenia, quam saevo mea tu conubia pendas
funere : non adeo parebimus omnia matri."^ 660
Obstipuit tantis regina exterrita monstris, 662

quamquam olim suspeeta fides, et comminus ipsum
horruit et facies multum mutata fatentis.^
quid faciat ? casusne suos ferat ipsa parenti 665

seque simul iuvenemque premat, fortassis acerbas
hausurum poenas ? et adhue in eorde manebat
ille diu deceptus amor : silet aegra premitque
iam commune nefas ; unam placet addere furtis
altricem sociam, precibus quae victa duorum 670

adnuit. ilia astu tacito raptumque pudorem
surgentemque uterum atque aegrosin pondere menses
occuluit, plenis donee stata tempora metis
attulit et partus index Ivucina resolvit.

^ lamque per Aegaeos ibat Laertia flexus 675

puppis, et innumeras mutabant Cycladas aurae^ :
iam Paros Olearosque latent ; iam raditur alta
Lemnos et a tergo decrescit Bacchica Naxos,
ante oculos crescente Samo ; iam Delos opacat
aequor : ibi e celsa libant carchesia puppi 680

responsique fidem et verum Calchanta precantur.

^ After line 660 follows only in Q by a late hand the line
vade sed ereptum celes taceasque pudorem, "go, but conceal
and be silent of thy ravished honour."

^ Lines 663-664 bracketed by Garrod as spurious.

* The old editors began Book II. here.

* innumeras mutabant Cycladas aurae Koestlin : in-
numerae m. Cyclades auras Pu: innumerae mutabat
Cyclados oras Garrod.

558

ACHILLEID, I. 65fr-681

valiant grandsons to OhTnpus " ? But thy father —
Scyros shall be destroyed by fire and sword and these
walls shall be in ruins and the sport of wanton winds,
ere thou pay by cruel death for my embraces : not
so utterly am I subject to my mother."

Horror-struck was the princess at such dark
happenings, albeit long since she had suspected his
good faith, and shuddered at his presence, and his
countenance was changed as he made confession.
What is she to do .' Shall she bear the tale of her
misfortune to her father, and ruin both herself and
her lover, who perchance would suffer untimely
death ? And still there abode within her breast the
love so long deceived. Silent is she in her grief,
and dissembles the crime that both now share aUke ;
her nurse alone she resolves to make a partner in
deceit, and she, yielding to the prayers of both,
assents. With secret cunning she conceals the rape
and the swelling womb and the burden of the months
of ailing, till Lucina brought round by token the
appointed season, her course now fully run, and gave
deliverance of her child.

And now the Laertian^ bark was threading the
winding ways of the Aegean, while the breezes
changed one for another the countless Cyclades ;
already Paros and Olearos are hid, now they skirt
lofty Lemnos and behind them Bacchic Naxos is lost
to view, while Samos grows before them ; now Delos
darkens the deep, and there from the tall stem they
pour cups of libation, and pray that the oracle be
true and Calchas undeceived. The Wielder of the

Peleus was descended from Zeus ; cf. 869, 899.
* Because Ulvsses was son of Laertes.

559

STATIUS

audiit Arquitenens Zephyrumque e vertice Cynthi
impulit et dubiis pleno dedit omina velo.

•° it pelago secura ratis : quippe alta Tonantis

iussa Thetin certas fatorum vertere leges 685

arcebant aegram lacrimis ac multa timentem,
quod non erueret pontum ventisque fretisque
omnibus invisum iam tunc sequeretur Ulixem.

IS Frangebat radios humili iam pronus Olympo

Phoebus et Oceani penetrabile litus anhelis 690

promittebat equis, cum se scopulosa levavit
Scyros ; in banc totos emisit puppe rudentes
dux Laertiades sociisque resumere pontum

20 imperat et remis Zephyros supplere cadentes.

accedunt iuxta, et magis indubitata magisque 695
Scyros erat placidique super Tritonia custos
litoris. egressi numen venerantur amicae
Aetolusque Ithacusque deae. tunc providus heros,

25 hospita ne subito terrerent moenia coetu,

puppe iubet remanere suos ; ipse ardua fido 700

cum Diomede petit, sed iam praevenerat arcis
litoreae servator Abas ignotaque regi
ediderat, sed Graia tamen, succedere terris

30 carbasa. procedunt, gemini ceu foedere iuncto
hiberna sub nocte lupi : licet et sua pulset 705

natorumque fames, penitus rabiemque minasque
dissimulant humilesque meant, ne nuntiet hostes
cura canum et trepidos moneat vigilare magistros.
560

ACHILLEID, I. 682-708

Bow " heard them, and from the top of Cynthus sent
a zephyr flying and gave the doubting ones the good
omen of a bellying sail. The ship sails o'er the sea
untroubled ; for the Thunderer's high comriiands_
suffered not THeti5~to' overturn the sure decrees of
Fate, faint as she was with tears, and ToreFodiiig^
fnuch because she couId~n6t" excite theTnain and
straightway pursue tlieTiated Ulysses with all her
winds and waves.

Already Phoebus, stooping low upon the verge of
Olympus, was sending forth broken rays, and prom-
ising to his panting steeds the yielding shore of
Ocean, when rocky Scyros rose aloft ; the Laertian
chieftain from the stern let out all sail to make it,
and bade his crew resume the deep and with their
oars supply the failing zephyrs. Nearer they draw,
and more undoubtedly, more surely was it Scyros,
and Tritonia * above, the guardian of the tranquil
shore. They disembark, and venerate the power of
the friendly goddess, Aetolian and Ithacan alike.
Then the prudent hero, lest they should frighten the
hospitable walls >vith sudden throng, bids his crew
remain upon the ship ; he himself mth trusty
Diomede ascends the heights. But already Abas,
keeper of the coastal tower, had gone before them
and given tidings to the king, that unknown sails,
though Greek, were drawing nigh the land. For-
ward they go, Uke two wolves leagued together on
a ^^•inter's night : though their cubs' hunger and
their own assails them, yet do they utterly dissemble
ravening rage, and go slinking on their way, lest the
alertness of the dogs announce a foe and warn the
anxious herdsmen to keep vigil.

» ApoUo. " Cf. 1. 285.

VOL. II 2 o 56 1

ST ATI us

35 Sic segnes heroes eunt campumque patentem,
qui medius portus celsamque interiacet urbem, 710
alterno sermone terunt ; prior occupat acer
Tydides : " qua nunc verum ratione paramus
scrutari ? namque ambiguo sub pectore pridem

40 verso, quid imbelles thyrsos mercatus et aera

urbibus in mediis Baccheaque terga mitrasque 715
hue tuleris varioque aspersas nebridas auro.
hisne gravem Priamo Phrygibusque armabis Achillem?
lUi subridens Ithacus paulum ore remisso :

45 " haec tibi, virginea modo si Lycomedis in aula est
fraude latens, ultro confessum in proeha ducent 720
Peliden ; tu cuncta citus de puppe memento
ferre, ubi tempus erit, cKpeumque his iungere donis,
qui pulcher signis auroque asperrimus ; hasta^

50 haec^ sat erit : tecum htuo bonus adsit Agyrtes
occultamque tubam tacitos adportet in usus." 725

Dixerat, atque ipso portarum in Hmine regem
cernit et ostensa pacem praefatus ohva :
" magna, reor, pridemque tuas pervenit ad aures

55 fama trucis belh, regum placidissime, quod nunc
Europamque Asiamque quatit. si nomina forte 730
hue perlata ducum, fidit quibus ultor Atrides :
hie tibi, quern tanta mehorem stirpe creavit
magnanimus Tydeus, Ithacis ego ductor Ulixes.

60 causa viae — metuam quid enim tibi cuncta fateri,
cum Graius notaque fide celeberrimus unus^ — 735

^ hasta P : ardet w : astat E, Garrod and conj. Kohlmann.
^ haec Pw : nee Garrod.
^ unus w : imus PE.
562

ACHILLEID, I. 709-735

So with slow pace the heroes move, and with
mutual converse tread the open plain that lies be-
tween the harbour and the high citadel ; first keen
Tydides speaks : " By what means now are we pre-
paring to search out the truth? For in perplexity of
mind have I long been pondering why thou didst buy
those unwarlike wands and cymbals in the city marts,
and didst bring hither Bacchic hides and turbans, and
fawn-skins decked \Wth patterns of gold. Is it with
these thou wilt arm Achilles to be the doom of Priam
and the Phrygians ? "

To him with a smile and somewhat less stern of
look the Ithacan repUed : " These things, I tell thee, if
only he be lurking among the maidens in Lycomedes'
palace, shall draw the son of Peleus to the fight, ay,
self-confessed ! Remember thou to bring them all
quickly from the ship, when it is time, and to join to
these gifts a shield that is beautiful ^\-ith carving and
rough with work of gold ; this spear \\i\\ suffice ; let
the good trumpeter Agyrtes be with thee, and let
him bring a hidden bugle for a secret purpose."

He spoke, and spied the king in the very threshold
of the gate, and displaying the olive first announced
his peaceful purpose : " Loud report, I ween, hath
long since reached thy ears, O gentle monarch, of
that fierce war which now is shaking both Europe
and Asia. If perchance the chieftains' names have
been borne hither, in whom the avenging son of
Atreus trusts, here beholdest thou him whom great-
hearted Tydeus begot, mightier even than so great
a sire, and I am Ulysses the Ithacan chief. The
cause of our voyage — for why should I fear to
confess all to thee, who art a Greek and of all men
most renowned by sure report ? — is to spy out the

56s

STATIUS

explorare aditus invisaque litora Troiae,
quidve parent." medio sermone intercipit ille :
" adnuerit Fortuna, precor, dextrique secundent

65 ista dei ! nunc hospitio mea tecta piumque

inlustrate larem." simul intra limina ducit. 740

nee mora, iam mensas famularis turba torosque
instruit. interea visu perlustrat Ulixes
scrutaturque domum, si qua vestigia magnae

70 virginis aut dubia facies suspecta figura ;

porticibusque vagis errat totosque penates, 745

ceu miretur, adit : velut ille cubilia praedae
indubitata tenens muto legit arva Molosso
venator, videat donee sub frondibus hostem

75 porrectum somno positosque in caespite dentes.

Rumor in arcana iamdudum perstrepit aula, 750
virginibus qua fida domus, venisse Pelasgum
ductores Graiamque ratem sociosque receptos.
iure^ pavent aliae ; sed vix nova gaudia celat

80 Pelides avidusque novos heroas et arma

vel talis vidisse cupit. iamque atria fervent 755

regali strepitu et picto discumbitur auro,
cum pater ire iubet natas comitesque pudicas
natarum. subeunt, quales Maeotide ripa,

85 cum Scythicas rapuere domos et capta Getarum
moenia, sepositis epulantur Amazones armis. 760

tum vero intentus vultus ac pectora Ulixes
perlibrat visu, sed nox inlataque fallunt

^ iure Pw : aure Garrod (Theb. i. 366).
5Q^

ACHILLEID, I. 736-762

approaches to Troy and her hated shores, and what
their schemes may be." Ere he had finished the
other broke in upon him : " May Fortune assist thee,
I pray, and propitious gods prosper that enterprise !
Now honour my roof and pious home by being my
guests." Therewith he leads them within the gate.
Straightway numerous attendants prepare the couches
and the tables. Meanwhile Ulysses scans and searches
the palace with his gaze, if anywhere he can find
trace of a tall maiden or a face suspect for its doubtful
features; uncertainly he wanders idly in the galleries
and, as though in wonder, roams the whole house
through ; just as yon hunter, having come upon his
prey's undoubted haunts, scours the fields with his
silent Molossian hound, till he behold his foe stretched
out in slumber 'neath the leaves and his jaws resting
on the turf.

Long since has a rumour been noised throughout
the secret chamber where the maidens had their safe
abode, that Pelasgian chiefs are come, and a Grecian
ship and its mariners have been made welcome.
With good reason are the rest affrighted ; but Pehdes
scarce conceals his sudden joy, and eagerly desires
even as he is to see the newly-arrived heroes and
their arms. Already the noise of princely trains fills
the palace, and the guests are reclining on gold-
embroidered couches, when at their sire's command
his daughters and their chaste companions join the
banquet ; they approach, like unto Amazons on the
Maeotid shore, when, having made plunder of Scythian
homesteads and captured strongholds of the Getae,
they lay aside their arms and feast. Then indeed
does Ulysses with intent gaze ponder carefully both
forms and features, but night and the lamps that are

565

STATIUS

lumina et extemplo latuit mensura iacentum.
93 at tamen erectumque genas oculisque vagantem
nuUaque virginei servantem signa pudoris 765

defigit comitique obliquo lumine monstrat.
quod nisi praecipitem blando complexa moneret
Deidamia sinu nudataque pectora semper
95 exsertasque manus umerosque in veste teneret

et prodire toris et poscere vina vetaret 770

saepius et fronti crinale reponeret aurum,
Argolicis ducibus iam tunc patuisset Achilles.
Ut placata fames epulis bis terque repostis,

ICX3 rex prior adloquitur paterisque hortatur Achivos :
" invideo vestris, fateor, decora inclita gentis 775

Argolicae, coeptis : utinam et mihi fortior aetas,
quaeque fuit, Dolopas cum Scyria litora adortos
perdomui fregique vadis, quae signa triumphi

los vidistis celsa murorum in fronte, carinas !

saltem si suboles, aptum quam mittere bello — ^ 780
nunc ipsi viresque meas et cara videtis 782

pignora : quando novos dabit haec mihi turba
nepotes ? "

no dixerat, et sellers arrepto tempore Ulixes :

" haud spernenda cupis ; quis enim non visere gentes
innumeras variosque duces atque agmina regum 786
ardeat ? omne simul roburque decusque potentis
Europae meritos ultro iuravit in enses.

115 rura urbesque vacant, niontes spoliavimus altos,
omine fretum longa velorum obtexitur umbra ; 790

^ After line 780 occurs only in late uss. : possem,
plena forent mihi gaudia ; namque iuvarem, " / could
{belonging to the aposiopesis), my joy would be full ; for I
would help."
566

ACHILLEID, I. 763-790

brought in deceive him, and their stature is hidden
as soon as they redine. One nevertheless vrith. head
erect and wandering gaze, one who preserves no
sign of virgin modesty, he marks, and with sidelong
glance points out to his companion. But if Deidamia,
to warn the hasty youth, had not clasped him to her
soft bosom, and ever covered with her own robe his
bare breast and naked arms and shoulders, and many
a time forbidden him to start up from the couch and
ask for v\ine, and replaced the golden hair-band on
his brow, Achilles had even then been revealed to
the Argive chieftains.

When hunger was assuaged and the banquet had
twice and three times been renewed, the monarch
first addresses the Achaeans, and pledges them with
the wine-cup : " Ye famous heroes of the Argolic
race, I en\y, I confess, your enterprise ; would that
I too were of more valiant years, as when I utterly
subdued the Dolopes who attacked the shores of
Scyros, and shattered on the sea those keels that ye
beheld on the forefront of my lofty walls, tokens of
my triumph ! At least if I had offspring that I could
send to war, — but now ye see for yourselves my
feeble strength and my dear children : ah, when \n\\
these numerous daughters give me grandsons ? " He
spoke, and seizing the moment crafty Ulysses made
reply : " Worthy indeed is the object of thy desire ;
for who would not burn to see the countless peoples
of the world and various chieftains and princes with
their trains ? All the might and glory of powerful
Europe hath sworn together willing allegiance to our
righteous amis. Cities and fields aUke are empty,
we have spoiled the lofty mountains, the whole sea
lies hidden beneath the far-spread shadow of our

567

STATIUS

tradunt arma patres, rapit inrevocata iuventus.
non alias umquam tantae data copia famae
fortibus aut campo maiore exercita virtus."

1 20 aspicit intentum vigilique haec aure trahentem,
cum paveant aliae demissaque lumina flectant, 795
atque iterat : " quisquis proavis et gente superba,
quisquis equo iaculoque potens, qui praevalet arcu,
omnis honos illic, illic ingentia certant

115 nomina : vix timidae matres aut agmina cessant
virginea ; a ! multum steriles damnatus in annos 800
invisusque deis, si quern haec nova gloria segnem
praeterit." exisset stratis, ni provida signo
Deidamia dato cunctas hortata sorores

130 liquisset mensas ipsum complexa. sed haeret

respiciens Ithacum coetuque novissimus exit. 805
ille quidem incepto paulum ex sermone remittit,
pauca tamen iungens : "at tu tranquillus in alta
pace mane carisque para conubia natis,

135 quas tibi sidereis divarum vultibus aequas

fors dedit. ut me olim taciturn reverentia tangit !
is decor et formae species permixta virili." 811

occurrit genitor : " quid si aut Bacchea ferentes
orgia, Palladias aut circum videris aras ?

140 et dabimus, si forte novus cunctabitur auster."

excipiunt cupidi et tacitis spes addita votis. 815

cetera depositis Lycomedis regia curis

tranquilla sub pace silet, sed longa sagaci

nox Ithaco, lucemque cupit somnumque gravatur.

568

ACHILLEID, I. 791-818

sails ; fathers give weapons, youths snatch them and
are gone beyond recall. Never was offered to the
brave such an opportunity for high reno^\'n, never had
valour so wide a field of exercise." He sees him all
attentive and drinking in his words with vigilant ear,
though the rest are alarmed and turn aside their
downcast eyes, and he repeats : " Whoever hath
pride of race and ancestry, whoever hath sure javehn
and vahant steed, or skill of bow, all honour there
awaits him, there is the strife of mighty names :
scarce do timorous mothers hold back or troops of
maids ; ah ! doomed to barren years and hated of
the gods is he whom this new chance of glory passes
by in idle sloth." Up from the couches had he
sprung, had not Deidamia, watchfully giving the sign
to summon all her sisters, left the banquet clasping
him in her arms ; yet still he lingers looking back at
the Ithacan, and goes out from the company the last
of all. Ulysses indeed leaves unsaid somewhat of
his purposed speech, yet adds a few words : " But
do thou abide in deep and tranquil peace, and find
husbands for thy beloved daughters, whom fortune
has given thee, goddess-like in their starry counten-
ances. What awe touched me anon and holds me
silent .'' Such charm and beauty joined to manhness
of form ! " The sire replies : " What if thou couldst
see them performing the rites of Bacchus, or about
the altars of Pallas? Ay, and thou shalt, if perchance
the rising south wind prove a laggard." They eagerly
accept his promise, and hope inspires their silent
prayers. All else in Lycomedes' palace are at rest
in peaceful quiet, their troubles laid aside, but to the
cunning Ithacan the night is long ; he yearns for
the day and brooks not slumber,

569

STATIUS

145 Vixdum exorta dies et iam comitatus Agyrte

Tydides aderat praedictaque dona ferebat. 820

nee minus egressae thalamo Scyreides ibant
ostentare choros promissaque saei'a verendis
hospitibus. nitet ante alias regina comesque

150 Pelides : qualis Siculae sub rupibus Aetnae

Naidas Ennaeas inter Diana feroxque 825

Pallas et Elysii lucebat sponsa tyranni,
iamque movent gressus thiasisque Ismenia buxus
signa dedit, quater aera Rheae, quater enthea pulsant

155 terga manu variosque quater legere recursus. 829
tunc thyrsos pariterque levant pariterque reponunt
multiplicantque gradum, modo quo Curetes in actu
quoque pii Samothraces eunt, nunc obvia versae
pectine Amazonio, modo quo citat orbe Lacaenas

160 Delia plaudentesque suis intorquet Amyelis.

tunc vero, tunc praecipue manifestus Achilles 835
nee servare vices nee bracchia iungere curat ;
tunc molles gressus, tunc aspernatur amictus
plus solito rumpitque choros et plurima turbat.

165 sic indignantem thyrsos acceptaque matris

tympana iam tristes spectabant Penthea Thebae. 840

Solvuntur laudata cohors repetuntque paterna
limina, ubi in mediae iamdudum sedibus aulae
munera virgineos visus tractura locarat

" i.e., Theban (from the river Ismenos), i.e. Bacchic.

* Here = Cybele, worshipped by the Corybantes with very
noisy rites.

* The Curetes were priests of Jupiter (Zeus) in Crete ; the
Samothracians celebrated mysteries in honour of the Cabiri.

"* " pecten " was the name of a dance in which, one may
gather, two opposing Hnes met and passed through each
other.

« Pentheus, king of Thebes, tried to put down the Bacchus-
worship of which his mother Agave was a votary. " tristes,"

570

ACHILLEID, I. 819-843

Scarce had day dawned, and already the son of
Tydeus accompanied by Ag}'Ttes was present bring-
ing the appointed gifts. The maids of Scyros too
went forth from their chamber and advanced to
display their dances and promised rites to the
honoured strangers. Brilliant before the rest is the
princess vdih Pelides her companion : even as be-
neath the rocks of Aetna in Sicily Diana and bold
Pallas and the consort of the Elysian monarch shine
forth among the nymphs of Enna. Already they
begin to move, and the Ismenian " pipe gives the
signal to the dancers ; four times they beat the
cymbals of Rhea,* four times the maddening drums,
four times they trace their manifold ^\^ndings. Then
together they raise and lower their wands, and com-
plicate their steps, now in such fashion as the Curetes
and devout Samothracians use,*^ now turning to face
each other in the Amazonian comb,'* now in the ring
wherein the Delian sets the Laconian girls a-dancing,
and whirls them shouting her praises into her own
Amyclae. Then indeed, then above all is Achilles
manifest, caring neither to keep his turn nor to join
arms ; then more than ever does he scorn the delicate
step, the womanly attire, and breaks the dance and
mightily disturbs the scene. Even so did Thebes
already sorro^\^ng behold Pentheus spurning the
wands and the timbrels that his mother welcomed.*

The troop disperses amid applause, and they seek

again their father's threshold, where in the central

h amber of the palace the son of Tydeus had long

-iace set out gifts that should attract maidens'

eyes, the mark of kindly welcome and the guerdon

as though with apprehension of his fate (he was torn in
pieces by his own mother in her frenzy).

571

STATIUS

170 Tydides, signum hospitii pretiumque laboris ;

hortaturque legant, nee rex placidissimus arcet. 845
heu simplex nimiumque rudis, qui callida dona
Graiorumque dolos variumque ignoret Ulixem !
hie aliae, quas sexus iners naturaque ducit,

175 aut teretes thyrsos aut respondentia temptant

tympana, gemmatis aut nectunt tempora limbis : 850
amna vident magnoque putant donata parenti.
at ferus Aeacides, radiantem ut comminus orbem,
caelatum pugnas — saevis et forte rubebat

iSo bellorum maculis — adclinem conspicit hastae,

infremuit torsitque genas, et fronte relicta 855

surrexere comae ; nusquam mandata parentis,
nusquam occultus amor, totoque in pectore Troia est.
ut leo, materno cum raptus ab ubere mores

1S5 accepit pectique iubas hominemque vereri

edidicit nullasque rapi nisi iussus in iras, 860

si semel adverso radiavit lumine ferrum,
eiurata fides domitorque inimicus : in ilium
prima fames, timidoque pudet servisse^ magistro.

19' ut vero accessit propius luxque aemula vultum

reddidit et simili talem se vidit in auro, 865

horruit erubuitque simul. tunc acer Ulixes
admotus lateri summissa voce : " quid haeres ?
scimus," ait, " tu semiferi Chironis alumnus,

iP5 tu caeli pelagique nepos, te Dorica classis,

te tua suspensis exspectat Graecia signis, 870

ipsaque iam dubiis nutant tibi Pergama muris.
heia, abrumpe moras : sine perfida palleat Ide,
et iuvet haec audire patrem, pudeatque dolosam

^ pudet servisse EQ : iuvet servire P : rubet servire Krohn.
572

ACHILLEID, I. 844-873

of their toil ; he bids them choose, nor does the
peaceful monarch say them nay. Alas I how simple
and untaught, who knew not the cunning of the gifts
nor Grecian fraud nor Ulysses' many wiles I There-
upon the others, prompted by nature and their ease-
loving sex, try the shapely wands or the timbrels
that answer to the blow, and fasten jewelled bands
around their temples ; the weapons they behold, but
think them a gift to their mighty sire. But the bold
son of Aeacus no sooner saw before him the gleaming
shield enchased with battle-scenes — by chance too it
shone red with the fierce stains of war — and leaning
against the spear, than he shouted loud and rolled
his eyes, and his hair rose up from his brow ; for-
gotten were his mother's words, forgotten his secret
love, and Troy fills all his breast. As a lion, torn from
his mother's dugs, submits to be tamed and lets his
mane be combed, and learns to have awe of man and
not to fly into a rage save when bidden, yet if but
once the steel has glittered in his sight, his fealty is
forsworn, and his tamer becomes his foe : against
him he first ravens, and feels shame to have served
a timid lord. But when he came nearer, and the
emulous brightness gave back his features and he
saw himself mirrored in the reflecting gold, he thrilled
and blushed together. Then quickly went Ulysses
to his side and whispered : " Why dost thou hesitate ."*
We know thee, thou art the pupil of the half-beast
Chiron, thou art the grandson of the sky and sea ;
thee the Dorian fleet, thee thy own Greece awaits
with standards uplifted for the march, and the very
walls of Pergamum totter and sway for thee to over-
turn. Up ! delay no more ! Let perfidious Ida
::row pale, let thy father delight to hear these

573

STATIUS

200 sic pro te timuisse Thetin." iam pectus amictu
laxabat, cum grande tuba sic iussus Agyrtes 875

insonuit : fugiunt disiectis undique donis
implorantque patrem commotaque proelia credunt.
illius intactae cecidere a pectore vestes,

205 iam clipeus breviorque manu consumitur hasta,

— mira fides ! — Ithacumque umeris excedere visus 880
Aetolumque ducem : tantum subita arma calorque
Martius horrenda confundit luce penates.
immanisque gradu, ceu protinus Hectora poscens,

210 stat medius trepidante domo : Peleaque virgo

quaeritur. ast alia plangebat parte retectos 885

Deidamia dolos, cuius cum grandia primum
lamenta et notas accepit pectore voces,
haesit et occulto virtus infracta calore est.

215 demittit clipeum regisque ad lumina versus

attonitum factis inopinaque monstra paventem, 890
sicut erat, nudis Lycomedem adfatur in armis :
" me tibi, care pater. — dubium dimitte pavorem ! —
me dedit alma Thetis : te pridem tanta manebat

220 gloria ; quaesitum Danais tu mittis Achillem,

gratior et magno, si fas dixisse, parente 895

et dulci Chirone mihi. sed corda parumper
hue adverte libens atque has bonus accipe voces :
Peleus te nato socerum et Thetis hospita iungunt,

225 adlegantque suos utroque a sanguine divos.

unam virgineo natarum ex agmine poscunt : 900

" " consumitur," a vivid use of the word ; " is consumed,
or used up by " his hand, which is too mighty for it.

574

ACHILLEID, I. 874-900

tidings, and guileful Thetis feel shame to have so
feared for thee." Already was he stripping his body
of the robes, when Agyrtes, so commanded, blew a
great blast upon the trumpet : the gifts are scattered,
and they flee and fall Avith prayers before their sire
and believe that battle is joined. But from his breast
the raiment fell without his touching, already the
shield and puny spear are lost in the grasp of his
hand " — marvellous to believe ! — and he seemed to
surpass by head and shoulders the Ithacan and the
Aetohan chief : with a sheen so awful does the sudden
blaze of arms and martial fire dazzle the palace-hall.
Mighty of limb, as though forthwith summoning
Hector to the fray, he stands in the midst of the
panic-stricken house : and the daughter of Peleus is
sought in vain. But Deidamia in another chamber
bewailed the discovery of the fraud, and as soon as
he heard her loud lament and recognized the voice
that he knew so well, he quailed and his spirit was
broken by his hidden passion. He dropped the shield,
and turning to the monarch's face, while Lycomedes
is dazed by the scene and distraught by the strange
portent, just as he was, in naked panoply of arms,
he thus bespeaks him : " 'Twas I, dear father, I whom
bounteous Thetis gave thee — dismiss thy anxious
fears ! — long since did this high renown await thee ;
'tis thou who wilt send Achilles, long sought for, to
the Greeks, more welcome to me than my mighty
sire — if it is right so to speak — and than beloved
Chiron. But, if thou ^^^lt, give me thy mind awhile,
and of thy favour hear these words : Peleus and
Thetis thy guest make thee the father-in-law of
their son, and recount their kindred deities on either
side ; they demand one of thy train of virgin

575

ST ATI us

dasne ? an gens humilis tibi degeneresque videmur ?
non renuis ; iunge ergo manus et concipe foedus
atque ignosce tuis. tacito iam cognita furto

230 Deidamia mihi ; quid enim his obstare lacertis,

qua potuit nostras possessa repellere vires^ ? 905

me luere ista iube ; pono arma et reddo Pelasgis
et maneo, quid triste fremis ? quid lumina mutas ?
iam socer es " — natum ante pedes prostravit et addit :

235 " iamque avus : immitis quotiens iterabitur ensis !
turba sumus." tunc et Danai per sacra fidemque 910
hospitii blandusque precum compellit Ulixes.
ille, etsi carae comperta iniuria natae
et Thetidis mandata movent prodique videtur

240 depositum tarn grande deae, tamen obvius ire

tot metuit fatis Argivaque bella morari ; 915

fac velit : ipsam illic matrem sprevisset Achilles,
nee tamen abnuerit genero se iungere tali :
vincitur. arcanis efFert pudibunda tenebris

245 Deidamia gradum, veniae nee protinus amens

credit et opposite genitorem placet Achille. 920

Mittitur Haemoniam, magnis qui Pelea factis
impleat et classem comitesque in proelia poscat.
nee non et geminas regnator Scyrius alnos

250 deducit genero viresque excusat Achivis.

tunc epulis consumpta dies, tandemque retectum 925
foedus et intrepidos nox conscia iungit am antes.

^ repellere vires Kohlmann : repellere vir P : evadere
flammas w.

" i.e., there was not only Achilles for Lycomedes to slay,
but his daughter and his grandson also.

576

ACHILLEID, I. 901-926

daughters : dost thou give her ? or seem we a mean
and coward race ? Thou dost not refuse. Join then
our hands, and make the treaty, and pardon thy own
kin. Already hath Deidamia been known to me in
stolen secrecy ; for how could she have resisted these
arms of mine, how once in my embrace repel my
might ? Bid me atone that deed : I lay down these
weapons and restore them to the Pelasgians, and I
remain here. Why these angry cries ? Why is thy
aspect changed ? Already art thou my father-in-
law " — he placed the child before his feet, and added :
" and already a grandsire ! How often shall the
pitiless sword be plied ! We are a multitude ! " "
Then the Greeks too and Ulysses \Wth his persuasive
prayer entreat by the holy rites and the sworn word
of hospitality. He, though moved by the discovery
of his dear daughter's wrong and the command of
Thetis, though^ seeming to betray the goddess and
so grave a trust, yet fears to oppose so many destinies
and delay the Argive war — even were he fain,
AchUles had~spufhed even his mother then. Xor is
he unwilling to take unto himself so great a son-in-
law : he is won. Deidamia comes shamefast from her
dark priv-acy, nor in her despair believes at first his
pardon, and puts forward Achilles to appease her sire,
A messenger is sent to Haemonia to give Peleus
full tidings of these great events, and to demand
ships and comrades for the war. Moreover, the
Scyrian prince launches two vessels for his son-in-law,
and makes excuse to the Achaeans for so poor a
show of strength. Then the day was brought to its
end with feasting, and at last the bond was made
known to all, and conscious night joined the now
fearless lovers.

VOL. II 2 p 577

STATIUS

lUius ante oculos nova bella et Xanthus et Ide
Argolicaeque rates atque ipsas cogitat undas

255 auroramque timet : cara cervice mariti

fusa novi lacrimas iam solvit et occupat artus. 930
" aspiciamne iterum meque hoc in pectore ponam,
Aeacide ? rursusque tuos dignabere partus ?
an tumidus Teucrosque lares et capta reportans

2fo Pergama virgineae noles meminisse latebrae ?

quid precer, heu ! timeamve prius ? quidve anxia
mandem, 935

cui vix flere vacat ? modo te nox una deditque
inviditque mihi ! thalamis haec tempora nostris ?
hicne est liber hymen ? o duleia furta dolique,

265 o timor ! abripitur miserae permissus Achilles.
i — neque enim tantos ausim revocare paratus — , 940
cautus, nee vana Thetin timuisse memento,
felix nosterque redi ! nimis improba posco :
iam te sperabunt lacrimis planctuque decorae

270 Troades optabuntque tuis dare colla catenis

et patriam pensare toris aut ipsa placebit 945

Tyndaris, incesta nimium laudata rapina.
ast egomet primae puerilis fabula culpae
narrabor famulis aut dissimulata latebo.

275 quin age, due comitem ; cur non ego Martia tecum
sign a feram ? tu thyrsa^ manu Baccheaque mecum
sacra, quod infelix non credet Troia, tulisti. 951

attamen hunc, quem maesta mihi solacia linquis,
^ thyrsa P : pensa ui.

" i.e., Deidamia's.
578

ACHILLEID, I. 927-952

Before her " eyes new wars and Xanthus and Ida
pass, and the Argolic fleet, and she imagines the
very waves and fears the coming of the dawn ; she
flings herself about her new lord's beloved neck, and
at last clasping his limbs gives way to tears : " Shall I
see thee again, and lay myself on this breast of thine,
O son of Aeacus ? Wilt thou deign once more to
look upon thy offspring ? Or wilt thou proudly bring
back spoils of captured Pergamum and Teucrian
homes and wish to forget where thou didst hide thee
as a maid ? What should I entreat, or alas ! what
rather fear ? How can I in my anxiety lay a behest
on thee, who have scarce time to weep ? One single
night has given and grudged thee to me ! Is this
the season for oiu* espousals ? Is this free wedlock ?
Ah ! those stolen sweets I that cunning fraud ! Ah !
how I fear ! Achilles is given to me only to be torn
away. Go ! for I would not dare to stay such mighty
preparations; go^ and be cautious, and remember
that the fears of Thetis were not vain ; go, and good
luck be with thee, and come back mine ! Yet too
bold is my request : soon the fair Trojan dames will
sigh for thee with tears and beat their breasts, and
pray that they may offer their necks to thy fetters,
and weigh thy couch against their homes, or Tyn-
daris * herself will please thee, too much belauded
for her incestuous rape. But I shall be a story to
thy henchmen, the tale of a lad's first fault, or I shall
be disowned and forgotten. Nay, come, take me as
thy conu-ade ; why should I not carry the standards
of Mars A\ith thee ? Thou didst carr}' with me the
wands and holy things of Bacchus, though ill-fated
Troy beheve it not. Yet this babe, whom thou dost
* Helen, daughter of Tyndareus.

579

STATIUS

hunc saltern sub corde tene et concede precanti

hoc solum, pariat ne quid tibi barbara coniunx,

ne qua det indignos Thetidi captiva nepotes." 955

talia dicentem non ipse immotus Achilles

solatur iuratque fidem iurataque fletu

spondet et ingentes famulas captumque reversus

Ilion et Phrygiae promittit munera gazae.

inrita ventosae rapiebant verba procellae. 960

580

ACHILLEID, I. 953-960

leave as my sad solace — keep him at least within
thy heart, and grant this one request, that no foreign
\^ife bear thee a child, that no captive woman give
unworthy grandsons to Thetis." As thus she speaks,
Achilles, moved to compassion himself, comforts her,
and gives her his sworn oath, and pledges it Avith
tears, and promises her on his return tall hand-
maidens and spoils of Ilium and gifts of Phrvgian
treasure. The fickle breezes swept his words un-
fulfilled away.

581

LIBER II

^^ Exuit implicitum tenebris umentibus orbem
Oceano prolata dies, genitorque coruscae
lucis adhuc hebetem vicina nocte levabat

290 et nondum excusso rorantem lampada ponto.

et iam punicea nudatum pectora palla 5

insignemque ipsis, quae prima invaserat, armis
Aeaciden^quippe aura vocat cognataque suadent
aequora — prospectant cuncti iuvenemque ducemque

295 nil ausi meminisse pavent ; sic omnia visu

mutatus rediit, ceu numquam Scyria passus 10

litora Peliacoque rates escendat ab antro.
tunc ex more deis — ita namque monebat Ulixes —
aequoribusque austrisque litat fluctuque sub ipso

300 caeruleum regem tauro veneratur avumque

Nerea : vittata genetrix placata iuvenca. 15

hie spumante salo iaciens tumida exta profatur ;

" paruimus, genetrix, quamquam baud toleranda

iubebas^,
paruimus nimiimi : bella ad Troiana ratesque

305 Argolicas quaesitus eo." sic orsus et alno

insiluit penitusque noto stridente propinquis 20

abripitur terris : et iam ardua ducere nubes
incipit et longo Scyros discedere ponto.

^ iubebas w : puberis P : iuberes E : pararis Klotz.
582

BOOK II

Day arising from Ocean set free the world from dank
enfolding shades, and the father of the flashing light
upraised his torch still dimmed by the neighbouring
gloom and moist with sea-water not yet shaken off.
And now all behold Aeacides, his shoulders stripped
of the scarlet robe, and glorious in those very arms
he first had seized — for the \\ind is calling and his
kindred seas are urging him — and quake before the
youthful chieftain, not daring to remember aught ;
so wholly changed to the sight hath he come back,
as though he had ne'er experienced the shores of
ScvTos, but were embarking from the Pehan cave.
Then duly — for so Ulysses counselled — he does sacri-
fice to the gods and the waters and south ^vinds, and
venerates with a bull the cerulean king below the
waves and Nereus his grandsire : his mother is
appeased with a garlanded heifer. Thereupon cast-
ing the swollen entrails on the salt foam he addresses
her : " Mother, I have obeyed thee, though thy
commands were hard to bear ; too obedient have I
been : now they demand me, and I go to the Trojan
war and the Argolic fleet." So speaking he leapt
into the bark, and was swept away far from the
neighbourhood of land by the whistling south wind ;
already lofty Scyros begins to gather mist jibout her,
and to fade from sight over the long expanse of sea.

583

ST ATI us

Turre procul summa lacrimis comitata sororum

310 commissumque^ tenens et habentem nomina Pyrrhum
pendebat coniunx oculisque in carbasa fixis 25

ibat et ipsa freto, et puppem iam sola videbat.
ille quoque obliques dilecta ad moenia vultiis
declinat viduamque doniuin gemitusque relictae

315 cogitat : occultus sub corde renascitur ardor

datque locum virtus, sentit Laertius heros 30

maerentem et plaeidis adgressus flectere dictis :
" tene," inquit, " magnae vastator debite Troiae,
quern Danaae classes, quern divum oraeula poscunt,

320 erectumque manet reserato in limine Bellum,

callida femineo genetrix violavit amictu 35

commisitque illis tam grandia furta latebris
speravitque fidem ? nimis o suspensa nimisque
mater ! an haec tacita virtus torperet in umbra,

325 quae vix audito litui clangore refugit

et Thetin et comites et quos suppresserat ignes ? 40
nee nostrum est, quod in arma venis sequerisque

precantes :
venisses- — " dixit, quem talibus occupat heros
Aeacius : " longum resides exponere causas

330 maternumque nefas ; hoe excusabitur ense

Scyros et indecores, fatorum crimina, cultus. 45

tu potius, dum lene fretum zephyroque fruuntur
carbasa, quae Danais tanti primordia belli,
ede : libet iustas hinc sumere protinus iras."

335 hie Ithacus paulum repetito longius orsu :

" fertur in Hectorea, si talia credimus, Ida^ 50

electus formae certamina solvere pastor

^ commissum P : confessum w.
* Ida P : ora w.
584

ACHILLEip, II. 23-51

Far away on the summit of a tower with weeping
sisters round her his wife leaned forth, holding her
precious charge, who bore the name of Pyrrhus, and
with her eyes fixed on the canvas sailed herself upon
the sea, and all alone still saw the vessel. He too
turned his gaze aside to the walls he held dear, he
thinks upon the widowed home and the sobs of her
he had left : the hidden passion glows again within
his heart, and martial ire gives place. The Laertian
hero perceives him sorrowing, and draws nigh to
influence him with gentle words : " Was it thou, O
destined destroyer of great Troy, whom Danaan
fleets and divine oracles are demanding, and War
aroused is awaiting with unbarred portals — was it
thou whom a crafty mother profaned with feminine
robes, and trusted yonder hiding-place with so great
a secret, and hoped the trust was sure ? O too
anxious, O too true a mother ! (Zkuild -such valour

lie inert and l^idden^that scarce hearing the trumpet-
blast fled fronl Thetis and companions and the heart's
unspoken passiorTF^ Nor is it due to us that thou
comest to the war, and compliest with our prayers ;
thou wouldst have come — ," he spoke, and thus the
Aeacian hero takes up the word : " 'Twere long to set
forth the causes of my tarrying and my mother^s
crime ; this sword shall make excuse for Scyros and
my dishonourable garb, the reproach of destiny. Do
thou rather, while the sea is peaceful and the sails
enjoy the zephyr, tell how the Danaans began so
great a war : I would fain draw straightway from
thy words a righteous anger." Then the Ithacan,
tracing far back the beginning of the tale : "A
shepherd, they say — if we believe such things — was
chosen in Hector's domain of Ida to end a strife of

ST ATI us

sollicitas tenuisse deas nee torva Minervae
ora nee aetherii sociam reetoris amico

34'^ lumine, sed solam nimium vidisse Dionen.

atque adeo lis ilia tuis exorta sub antris 55

coneilio superum, dum Pelea dulce maritat
Pelion, et nostris iam tunc promitteris armis.
ira quatit vietas ; petit exitialia index

345 praemia : raptori faciles monstrantur Amyclae.

ille Phrygas lucos, matris penetralia caedit 60

turrigerae veritasque^ solo procumbere pinus
praecipitat terrasque freto delatus Achaeas
hospitis Atridae — pudet heu miseretque potentis

35° Europae ! — spoliat thalamos, Helenaque superbus
navigat et captos ad Pergama devehit Argos. 65

inde date passim varias rumore per urbes,
undique inexciti sibi quisque et sponte coimus
ultores : quis enim inlicitis genialia rumpi

355 pacta dolis facilique trahi conubia raptu

ceu pecus armentumve aut viles messis acervos 70
perferat ? haec etiam fortes iactura moveret.
non tulit insidias divum imperiosus Agenor
mugitusque sacros et magno numine vectam

360 quaesiit Europen aspernatusque Tonantem est

ut generum ; raptam Scythico de litore prolem 75
non tuHt Aeetes ferroque et classe secutus
semideos reges et ituram in sidera puppim :
nos Phryga semivirum portus et litora circum

365 Argolica incesta volitantem puppe feremus ?

^ veritasque P : vetitasque w.

" Medea. The Argo was set in heaven as a constellation
by Pallas.
586

ACHILLEID, II. 52-79

beauty, and while he kept the goddesses in anxious
doubt looked not with friendly eye upon Minerva's
fro\\'ning countenance nor on the consort of the
heavenly ruler, but gazed overmuch on Dione alone.
And verily that quarrel arose in thy o^vn glades, at
a gathering of the gods, when pleasant Pelion made
marriage-feast for Peleus, and thou even then wert
promised to our armament. Wrath thrills the van-
quished ones : the judge demands his fateful reward,
and compliant Amyclae is sho^vn to the ravasher.
He cuts down the Phrygian groves, the secret haunts
of the turret-cro^^'ned mother, and flings down pines
that fear to fall to earth, and borne o'er the sea to
Achaean lands he plunders the marriage-chamber of
his host the son of Atreus — ah ! shame and pity on
proud Europe ! — and exulting in Helen puts to sea
and brings home to Pergamum the spoils of Argos.
Then, as the rumours spread far and wide through
the cities, of our own will, none urging us, we gather,
each for himself, from ever)' side for vengeance ; for
who could endure the unlawful, crafty breaking of
the marriage-bond, or a consort carried oif in un-
resisted rape, as though a beast of the flock or herd,
or some poor heap of harvest-corn } Such a loss
would shake even a valiant heart. Masterful Agenor
endured not the treachery of the gods, but went
in quest of sacred lo^nngs and Europa riding on a
mighty god, and scorned the Thunderer as a son-in-
law ; Aeetes endured not the rape of his daughter "
from the Scj'thian shore, but with ships and steel
pursued the princes and the vessel fated to join the
stars : shall we endure a Phrygian eunuch hovering
about the coasts and harbours of Argos with his
incestuous bark ? Are our horses and men so utterly

587

STATIUS

usque adeo nusquam arma et equi, fretaque invia
Grais ? 80

quid si nunc aliquis patriis rapturus ab oris
Deidamian eat viduaque e sede revellat
attonitam et magni claniantem nomen Achillis ? *

370 illius ad capulum rediit manus ac simul ingens

impulit ora rubor : tacuit contentus Ulixes. 85

Excipit Oenides : " quin, o dignissima caeli
progenies, ritusque tuos elementaque primae
indolis et, valida mox accedente iuventa,

375 quae solitus laudum tibi semina pandere Chiron,
virtutisque aditus, quas membra augere per artes, 90
quas animum, sociis niultumque faventibus edis ?
sit pretium longas penitus quaesisse per undas
Scyron et his primos arma ostendisse lacertis.^ "

380 Quern pigeat sua facta loqui ? tamen ille modeste
incohat, ambiguus paulum propiorque coacto : 95

" dicor et in teneris et adhuc reptantibus^ annis,
Thessalus ut rigido senior me monte recepit,
non ullos ex more cibos hausisse nee almis

385 uberibus satiasse famem, sed spissa leonum

viscera semianimisque lupae traxisse medullas. 100
haec mihi prima Ceres, haec laeti munera Bacchi,
sic dabat ille pater, mox ire per invia secum
lustra gradu maiore trahens visisque docebat

39J adridere feris nee fracta ruentibus undis

saxa nee ad vastae trepidare silentia silvae. 105

iam tunc arma manu, iam tunc cervice pharetrae,

^ his primos arma ostendisse lacertis Wilamowitz : his
primum arma ostendisse lacertis P : armos (is) tendisse QKC :
primum me arma ost. Schenkel.

^ reptantibus P : restantibus w : crescentibus edd.

" i.e., Chiron.
588

ACHILLEID, II. 80-106

vanished ? Are the seas so impassable to Greeks ?
What if someone now were to carry off Deidamia
from her native shores, and tear her from her lonely
chamber in dire dismay and crying on the name of
great Achilles ? " His hand flew to the sword-hilt,
and a dark flush surged over his face : Ulysses was
silent and content.

Then spoke Oenides : " Nay, O thou worthiest
progeny of heaven, tell us, thy admiring friends, of
the ways in which thy spirit first was trained, and as
the vigour of thy youth increased what stirring
themes of glory Chiron was wont to recount to thee,
and how thy valour grew, by what arts he made
strong thy limbs or fired thy courage ; let it be
worth while to have sought Scyros over long leagues
of sea, and to have first shown weapons to those
arms of thine."

Who would find it hard to tell of his own deeds r
Yet he begins modestly, somewhat uncertain and
more like one compelled : " Even in my years of
crawling infancy, when the Thessalian sage received
me on his stark mountain-side, I am said to have
devoured no wonted food, nor to have sated my
hunger at the nourishing breast, but to have gnawed
the tough entrails of lions and the bowels of a half-
slain she-wolf. That was my first bread, that the
bounty of joyous Bacchus, in such wise did that
father of mine <' feed me. Then he taught me
to go with him through pathless deserts, dragging
me on with mighty stride, and to laugh at sight
of the wild beasts, nor tremble at the shattering
of rocks by rushing torrents or at the silence of
the lonely forest. Already at that time weapons
were in my hand and quivers on my shoulders,

589

STATIUS

et ferri properatus amor durataque multo
sole geluque cutis ; tenero nee fluxa cubili

395 membra, sed ingenti saxum commune magistro.
vix mihi bissenos annorum torserat orbes 110

vita rudis, volucres cum iam praevertere cervos
et Lapithas cogebat equos praemissaque cursu
tela sequi ; saepe ipse gradu me praepete Chiron.

400 dum velox aetas, campis admissus agebat

omnibus, exhaustumque vago per gramina passu 115
laudabat gaudens atque in sua terga levabat.
saepe etiam primo fluvii torpore iubebat
ire supra glaciemque levi non frangere planta.

405 hoc puerile decus. quid nunc tibi proelia dicam
silvarum et saevo vacuos iam murmure saltus ? 120
numquam ille imbelles Ossaea per avia dammas
sectari aut timidas passus me cuspide lyncas
sternere, sed tristes turbare cubilibus ursos

410 fulmineosque sues, et sicubi maxima tigris

aut seducta iugis fetae spelunca leaenae. 125

ipse sedens vasto facta exspectabat in antro,
si sparsus nigro remearem sanguine ; nee me
ante nisi inspectis admisit ad oscula telis.

415 iamque et ad ensiferos vicina pube tumultus

aptabar, nee me ulla feri Mavortis imago 130

praeteriit. didici, quo Paeones arma rotatu,
quo Macetae sua gaesa citent, quo turbine contum
Sauromates falcemque Getes arcumque Gelonus

420 tenderet et flexae Balearicus actor habenae

" " admissus," cf. the common phrase " admisso equo."
590

ACHILLEID, II. 107-134

the love of steel grew apace within me, and my
skin was hardened by much sun and frost ; nor
were my limbs weakened by soft couches, but I
shared the hard rock with my master's mighty
frame. Scarce had my raw youth turned the
wheel of twice six years, when already he made me
outpace swift hinds and Lapith steeds and running
overtake the flung dart ; often Chiron himself, while
yet he was swift of foot, ohased me at full gallop "
with headlong speed o'er all the plains, and when I
was exhausted by roaming over the meads he praised
me joyously and hoisted me upon his back. Often
too in the first freezing of the streams he would bid
me go upon them with light step nor break the ice.
These were my boyhood's glories. Why now should
I tell thee of the woodland battles and of the glades
that know my fierce shout no more .'' Never would he
suffer me to follow unwarlike does through the path-
less glens of Ossa, or lay low timid lynxes with my
spear, but only to drive angry bears from their rest-
ing-places, and boars with lightning thrust ; or if
anywhere a mighty tiger lurked or a lioness with
her cubs in some secret lair upon the mountain-side,
he himself, seated in his vast cave, awaited my ex-
ploits, if perchance I should return bespattered with
dark blood ; nor did he admit me to his embrace
before he had scanned my weapons. And already I
was being prepared for the armed tumults of the
neighbouring folk, and no fashion of savage warfare
passed me by. I learnt how the Paeonians whirl
and fling their darts and the Macetae their javelins,
with how fierce a rush the Sarmatian plies his pike
and the Getan his falchion- how the Gelonian draws
his bow, and how the Balearic wielder of the pliant

591

STATIUS

quo suspensa trahens libraret vulnera tortu 135

inclusumque suo distingueret aera gyro,
vix memorem cunctos, etsi bene gessimus, actus,
nunc docet ingentes saltu me iungere fossas,

425 nunc caput aerii scandentem prendere montis,

quo fugitur per plana gradu, simulacraque pugnae 140
excipere immissos scutato^ umbone molares
ardentesque errare^ casas peditemque volantes
sistere quadriiugos. memini, rapidissimus ibat

430 imbribus adsiduis pastus nivibusque solutis

Sperchios vivasque trabes et saxa ferebat : 145

cum me ille immissum, qua saevior impetus undae,
stare iubet contra tumidosque repellere fluctus,
quos vix ipse gradu totiens obstante tulisset.

435 stabam equidem, sed me referebat concitus amnis
et latae caligo fugae : ferus ille minari 150

desuper incumbens verbisque urgere pudorem.
nee nisi iussus abi : sic me sublimis agebat
gloria, nee duri tanto sub teste labores.

440 nam procul Oebalios in nubila condere discos

et liquidam nodare palen et spargere caestus, 155
ludus erat requiesque mihi ; nee maior in istis
sudor, Apollineo quam fila sonantia plectro
cum quaterem priscosque virum mirarer honores.

445 quin etiam sucos atque auxiliantia morbis

gramina, quo nimius staret medicamine sanguis, 160
quid faciat somnos, quid hiantia vulnera claudat,
quae ferro cohibenda lues, quae cederet herbis,

^ scutato P : curvato w. ^ errare P : Intrare w.

« Cf. Theb. iv. 67.

* i.e., he had four legs to withstand the torrent.
"^ See note on Silv. v. 3. 53 ; but it may simply mean
Spartan, as being a sport much practised in Sparta.

ACHILLEID, II. 13.5-162

thong keeps the missile swinging round with balanced
motion, and as he savings it marks out a circle in the
air.* Scarce could I recount all my doings, successful
though they were ; now he instructs me to span huge
dykes by leaping, now to climb and grasp the airy
mountain-peak, with what stride to run upon the
level, how to catch flung stones in mimic battle on
my shielded arm, to pass through burning houses,
and to check flying four-horse teams on foot.
Spercheus, I remember, was flo\\'ing with rapid
current, fed full with constant rains and melted
snows and carrying on its flood boulders and living
trees, when he sent me in, there where the waves
rolled fiercest, and bade me stand against them and
hurl back the swelling billows that he himself could
scarce have borne, though he stood to face them ^^^th
so many a limb.* I strove to stand, but the violence
of the stream and the dizzy panic of the broad spate
forced me to give ground ; he loomed o'er me from
above and fiercely threatened, and flung taunts to

hame me. Nor did I depart till he gave me word,
~o far did the lofty love of fame constrain me, and my
toils were not too hard with such a witness. For to
fling the Oebalian'' quoit far out of sight into the
clouds, or to practise the holds of the sleek wrestling-
bout, and to scatter blows with the boxing-gloves
were sport and rest to me : nor laboured I more
therein than when I struck with my quill the sounding
strings, or told the wondrous fame of heroes of old.
Also did he teach me of juices and the grasses that

uccour disease, what remedy will staunch too fast a

flow of blood, what will lull to sleep, what ^dll close

gaping wounds ; what plague should be checked by

the knife, what will yield to herbs ; and he implanted

VOL. II 2 Q .593

STATIUS

edocuit monitusque sacrae sub pectore fixit
450 iustiti'ae, qua Peliacis dare iura verenda

gentibus atque suos solitus pacare biformes. 165

hactenus annorum, comites, elementa meorum

et memini et meminisse iuvat : scit cetera mater." ^

^ After line 167 is added in E and some other uss. in a
fifteenth-century hand aura silet, puppis currens ad litora
venit.

594

ACHILLEID, II. 163-167

deep within my heart the precepts of divine justice,
whereby he was wont to give revered laws to the
tribes that dwelt on Pelion, and tame his own twy-
formed folk. So much do I remember, friends, of
the training of my earliest years, and sweet is their
remembrance ; the rest my mother knows."

2 Q 2 5i)5

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