Read Ebook: Helen of Troy by Lang Andrew

Font size: 10 px 15 px 20 px 25 px 30 px 35 px

Background color: BlackWhiteGrayLight GrayDark GrayDim Gray

Text color: BlackWhiteGrayLight GrayDark GrayDim Gray

Apply/Save settings

Ebook has 337 lines and 31002 words, and 7 pages

"'For, lo! to-night within the forest dim Do Aphrodite and Athene meet, And Hera, who to thee shall bare each limb, Each grace from golden head to ivory feet, And thee, fair shepherd Paris, they entreat As thou 'mongst men art beauteous, to declare Which Queen of Queens immortal is most sweet, And doth deserve the meed of the most fair.

"'For late between them rose a bitter strife In Peleus' halls upon his wedding day, When Peleus took him an immortal wife, And there was bidden all the God's array, Save Discord only; yet she brought dismay, And cast an apple on the bridal board, With "Let the fairest bear the prize away" Deep on its golden rind and gleaming scored.

"'Now in the sudden night, whenas the sun In Tethys' silver arms hath slept an hour, Shalt thou be had into the forest dun, And brought unto a dark enchanted bower, And there of Goddesses behold the flower With very beauty burning in the night, And these will offer Wisdom, Love, and Power; Then, Paris, be thou wise, and choose aright!'

"These voices did I follow through the trees, Threading the coppice 'neath a starless sky, When, lo! the very Queen of Goddesses, In golden beauty gleaming wondrously, Even she that hath the Heaven for canopy, And in the arms of mighty Zeus doth sleep,-- And then for dread methought that I must die, But Hera called me with soft voice and deep:

"'Paris, give me the prize, and thou shalt reign O'er many lordly peoples, far and wide, From them that till the black and crumbling plain, Where the sweet waters of Aegyptus glide, To those that on the Northern marches ride, And the Ceteians, and the blameless men That round the rising-place of Morn abide, And all the dwellers in the Asian fen.

"'And I will love fair Ilios as I love Argos and rich Mycenae, that doth hoard Deep wealth; and I will make thee king above A hundred peoples; men shall call thee lord In tongues thou know'st not; thou shalt be adored With sacrifice, as are the Gods divine, If only thou wilt speak a little word, And say the prize of loveliness is mine.'

"Then, as I doubted, like a sudden flame Of silver came Athene, and methought Beholding her, how stately, as she came, That dim wood to a fragrant fane was wrought; So pure the warlike maiden seem'd, that nought But her own voice commanding made me raise Mine eyes to see her beauty, who besought In briefest words the guerdon of all praise.

"She spake: 'Nor wealth nor crowns are in my gift; But wisdom, but the eyes that glance afar, But courage, and the spirit that is swift To cleave her path through all the waves of war; Endurance that the Fates can never mar; These, and my loving friendship,--these are thine, And these shall guide thee, steadfast as a star, If thou hast eyes to know the prize is mine.'

"Last, in a lovely mist of rosy fire, Came Aphrodite through the forest glade, The queen of all delight and all desire, More fair than when her naked foot she laid On the blind mere's wild wave that sank dismay'd, What time the sea grew smoother than a lake; I was too happy to be sore afraid. And like a song her voice was when she spake:

"'Oh Paris, what is power? Tantalus And Sisyphus were kings long time ago, But now they lie in the Lake Dolorous, The hills of hell are noisy with their woe; Ay, swift the tides of Empire ebb and flow, And that is quickly lost was hardly won, As Ilios herself o'erwell did know When high walls help'd not King Laomedon.

"'And what are strength and courage? for the child Of mighty Zeus, the strong man Herakles, Knew many days and evil, ere men piled The pyre in Oeta, where he got his ease In death, where all the ills of brave men cease. Nay, Love I proffer thee; beyond the brine Of all the currents of the Western seas, The fairest woman in the world is thine!'

"She spake, and touched the prize, and all grew dim I heard no voice of anger'd Deity, But round me did the night air swoon and swim, And, when I waken'd, lo! the sun was high, And in that place accursed did I lie, Where Agelaus found the naked child; Then with swift foot I did arise and fly Forth from the deeps of that enchanted wild.

"And down I sped to Ilios, down the dell Where, years agone, the white bull guided me, And through green boughs beheld where foam'd and fell The merry waters of the Western sea; Of Love the sweet birds sang from sky and tree, And swift I reach'd the haven and the shore, And call'd my mariners, and follow'd free Where Love might lead across the waters hoar.

"Three days with fair winds ran we, then we drave Before the North that made the long waves swell Round Malea; but hardly from the wave We 'scaped at Pylos, Nestor's citadel; And there the son of Neleus loved us well, And brought us to the high prince, Diocles, Who led us hither, and it thus befell That here, below thy roof, we sit at ease."

Then all men gave the stranger thanks and praise, And Menelaus for red wine bade call; And the sun fell, and dark were all the ways; Then maidens set forth braziers in the hall, And heap'd them high with lighted brands withal; But Helen pass'd, as doth the fading day Pass from the world, and softly left them all Loud o'er their wine amid the twilight grey.

So night drew on with rain, nor yet they ceased Within the hall to drink the gleaming wine, And late they pour'd the last cup of the feast, To Argus-bane, the Messenger divine; And last, 'neath torches tall that smoke and shine, The maidens strew'd the beds with purple o'er, That Diocles and Paris might recline All night, beneath the echoing corridor.

BOOK II--THE SPELL OF APHRODITE

The coming of Aphrodite, and how she told Helen that she must depart in company with Paris, but promised withal that Helen, having fallen into a deep sleep, should awake forgetful of her old life, and ignorant of her shame, and blameless of those evil deeds that the Goddess thrust upon her.

Now in the upper chamber o'er the gate Lay Menelaus on his carven bed, And swift and sudden as the stroke of Fate A deep sleep fell upon his weary head. But the soft-winged God with wand of lead Came not near Helen; wistful did she lie, Till dark should change to grey, and grey to red, And golden throned Morn sweep o'er the sky.

Slow pass'd the heavy night: like one who fears The step of murder, she lies quivering, If any cry of the night bird she hears; And strains her eyes to mark some dreadful thing, If but the curtains of the window swing, Stirr'd by the breath of night, and still she wept As she were not the daughter of a king, And no strong king, her lord, beside her slept.

Now in that hour, the folk who watch the night, Shepherds and fishermen, and they that ply Strange arts and seek their spells in the star-light, Beheld a marvel in the sea and sky, For all the waves of all the seas that sigh Between the straits of Helle and the Nile, Flush'd with a flame of silver suddenly, From soft Cythera to the Cyprian isle.

And Hesperus, the kindest star of heaven, That bringeth all things good, wax'd pale, and straight There fell a flash of white malignant levin Among the gleaming waters desolate; The lights of sea and sky did mix and mate And change to rosy flame, and thence did fly The lovely Queen of Love that turns to hate, Like summer lightnings 'twixt the sea and sky.

And now the bower of Helen fill'd with light, And now she knew the thing that she did fear Was close upon her ; Then shone like flame each helm and shield and spear That hung within the chamber of the King, But he,--though all the bower as day was clear,-- Slept as they sleep that know no wakening.

But Helen leap'd from her fair carven bed As some tormented thing that fear makes bold, And on the ground she beat her golden head And pray'd with bitter moanings manifold. Yet knew that she could never move the cold Heart of the lovely Goddess, standing there, Her feet upon a little cloud, a fold Of silver cloud about her bosom bare.

So stood Queen Aphrodite, as she stands Unmoved in her bright mansion, when in vain Some naked maiden stretches helpless hands And shifts the magic wheel, and burns the grain, And cannot win her lover back again, Nor her old heart of quiet any more, Where moonlight floods the dim Sicilian main, And the cool wavelets break along the shore.

Then Helen ceased from unavailing prayer, And rose and faced the Goddess steadily, Till even the laughter-loving lady fair Half shrank before the anger of her eye, And Helen cried with an exceeding cry, "Why does Zeus live, if we indeed must be No more than sullen spoils of destiny, And slaves of an adulteress like thee?

"What wilt thou with me, mistress of all woe? Say, wilt thou bear me to another land Where thou hast other lovers? Rise and go Where dark the pine trees upon Ida stand, For there did one unloose thy girdle band; Or seek the forest where Adonis bled, Or wander, wander on the yellow sand, Where thy first lover strew'd thy bridal bed.

"Ah, thy first lover! who is first or last Of men and gods, unnumber'd and unnamed? Lover by lover in the race is pass'd, Lover by lover, outcast and ashamed. Oh, thou of many names, and evil famed! What wilt thou with me? What must I endure Whose soul, for all thy craft, is never tamed? Whose heart, for all thy wiles, is ever pure?

"Behold, my heart is purer than the plume Upon the stainless pinions of the swan, And thou wilt smirch and stain it with the fume Of all thy hateful lusts Idalian. My name shall be a hissing that a man Shall smile to speak, and women curse and hate, And on my little child shall come a ban, And all my lofty home be desolate.

"Is it thy will that like a golden cup From lip to lip of heroes I must go, And be but as a banner lifted up, To beckon where the winds of war may blow? Have I not seen fair Athens in her woe, And all her homes aflame from sea to sea, When my fierce brothers wrought her overthrow Because Athenian Theseus carried me--

"Me, in my bloomless youth, a maiden child, From Artemis' pure altars and her fane, And bare me, with Pirithous the wild To rich Aphidna? Many a man was slain, And wet with blood the fair Athenian plain, And fired was many a goodly temple then, But fire nor blood can purify the stain Nor make my name reproachless among men."

"Behold, thine eyes are wet, thy cheeks are wan, Yet art thou born of an immortal sire, The child of Nemesis and of the Swan; Thy veins should run with ichor and with fire. Yet this is thy delight and thy desire, To love a mortal lord, a mortal child, To live, unpraised of lute, unhymn'd of lyre, As any woman pure and undefiled.

"Thou art the toy of Gods, an instrument Wherewith all mortals shall be plagued or blest, Even at my pleasure; yea, thou shalt be bent This way and that, howe'er it like me best: And following thee, as tides the moon, the West Shall flood the Eastern coasts with waves of war, And thy vex'd soul shall scarcely be at rest, Even in the havens where the deathless are.

"The instruments of men are blind and dumb, And this one gift I give thee, to be blind And heedless of the thing that is to come, And ignorant of that which is behind; Bearing an innocent forgetful mind In each new fortune till I visit thee And stir thy heart, as lightning and the wind Bear fire and tumult through a sleeping sea.

"Thou shalt forget Hermione; forget Thy lord, thy lofty palace, and thy kin; Thy hand within a stranger's shalt thou set, And follow him, nor deem it any sin; And many a strange land wand'ring shalt thou win, And thou shalt come to an unhappy town, And twenty long years shalt thou dwell therein, Before the Argives mar its towery crown.

"And of thine end I speak not, but thy name,-- Thy name which thou lamentest,--that shall be A song in all men's speech, a tongue of flame Between the burning lips of Poesy; And the nine daughters of Mnemosyne, With Prince Apollo, leader of the nine, Shall make thee deathless in their minstrelsy! Yea, for thou shalt outlive the race divine,

"The race of Gods, for like the sons of men We Gods have but our season, and go by; And Cronos pass'd, and Uranus, and then Shall Zeus and all his children utterly Pass, and new Gods be born, and reign, and die,-- But thee shall lovers worship evermore What Gods soe'er usurp the changeful sky, Or flit to the irremeable shore.

"Now sleep and dream not, sleep the long day through, And the brief watches of the summer night, And then go forth amid the flowers and dew, Where the red rose of Dawn outburns the white. Then shalt thou learn my mercy and my might Between the drowsy lily and the rose; There shalt thou spell the meaning of delight, And know such gladness as a Goddess knows!"

Then Sleep came floating from the Lemnian isle, And over Helen crush'd his poppy crown, Her soft lids waver'd for a little while, Then on her carven bed she laid her down, And Sleep, the comforter of king and clown, Kind Sleep the sweetest, near akin to Death, Held her as close as Death doth men that drown, So close that none might hear her inward breath--

So close no man might tell she was not dead! And then the Goddess took her zone,--where lies All her enchantment, love and lustihead, And the glad converse that beguiles the wise, And grace the very Gods may not despise, And sweet Desire that doth the whole world move,-- And therewith touch'd she Helen's sleeping eyes And made her lovely as the Queen of Love.

Then laughter-loving Aphrodite went To far Idalia, over land and sea, And scarce the fragrant cedar-branches bent Beneath her footsteps, faring daintily; And in Idalia the Graces three Anointed her with oil ambrosial,-- So to her house in Sidon wended she To mock the prayers of lovers when they call.

And all day long the incense and the smoke Lifted, and fell, and soft and slowly roll'd, And many a hymn and musical awoke Between the pillars of her house of gold, And rose-crown'd girls, and fair boys linen-stoled, Did sacrifice her fragrant courts within, And in dark chapels wrought rites manifold The loving favour of the Queen to win.

But Menelaus, waking suddenly, Beheld the dawn was white, the day was near, And rose, and kiss'd fair Helen; no good-bye He spake, and never mark'd a fallen tear,-- Men know not when they part for many a year,-- He grasp'd a bronze-shod lance in either hand, And merrily went forth to drive the deer, With Paris, through the dewy morning land.

So up the steep sides of Taygetus They fared, and to the windy hollows came, While from the streams of deep Oceanus The sun arose, and on the fields did flame; And through wet glades the huntsmen drave the game, And with them Paris sway'd an ashen spear, Heavy, and long, and shod with bronze to tame The mountain-dwelling goats and forest deer.

Now in a copse a mighty boar there lay, For through the boughs the wet winds never blew, Nor lit the bright sun on it with his ray, Nor rain might pierce the woven branches through, But leaves had fallen deep the lair to strew: Then questing of the hounds and men's foot-fall Aroused the boar, and forth he sprang to view, With eyes that burn'd, at bay, before them all.

Then Paris was the first to rush on him, With spear aloft in his strong hand to smite, And through the monster pierced the point; and dim The flame fell in his eyes, and all his might With his last cry went forth; forgetting fight, Forgetting strength, he fell, and gladly then They gather'd round, and dealt with him aright; Then left his body with the serving men.

Now birds were long awake, that with their cry Were wont to waken Helen; and the dew Where fell the sun upon the lawn was dry, And all the summer land was glad anew; And maidens' footsteps rang the palace through, And with their footsteps chimed their happy song, And one to other cried, "A marvel new That soft-wing'd Sleep hath held the Queen so long!"

Then Phylo brought the child Hermione, And close unto her mother's side she crept, And o'er her god-like beauty tumbled she, Chiding her sweetly that so late she slept, And babbling still a merry coil she kept; But like a woman stiff beneath her shroud Lay Helen; till the young child fear'd and wept, And ran, and to her nurses cried aloud.

Then came the women quickly, and in dread Gather'd round Helen, but might naught avail To wake her; moveless as a maiden dead That Artemis hath slain, yet nowise pale, She lay; but Aethra did begin the wail, And all the women with sad voice replied, Who deem'd her pass'd unto the poplar vale Wherein doth dread Persephone abide.

Ah! slowly pass'd the miserable day In the rich house that late was full of pride; Then the sun fell, and all the paths were grey, And Menelaus from the mountain-side Came, and through palace doors all open wide Rang the wild dirge that told him of the thing That Helen, that the Queen had strangely died. Then on his threshold fell he grovelling,

Share on: WhatsApp @Hash Facebook Tweet