It is
represented
in one of the
Arundel marbles.
Arundel marbles.
Scriptori Erotici Graeci
The applause
of the multitude was expressed not so much by articulate words, as by
a shout, giving open-mouthed token of their wonderment, and with its
sounds extolling him to the very skies. By order of Hydaspes, Theagenes
was brought before him, and the bull, by a rope tied over his horns,
was led back weak and dispirited towards the altar, where they again
fastened him, together with the horse which had escaped. The king
was preparing to speak to Theagenes, when the multitude, interested
in him from the first, and now delighted with this instance of his
strength and courage, but still more moved with jealousy towards the
foreign wrestler, called out with one voice--"Let him be matched with
Marœbus's champion. Let him who has received the elephant contend,
if he dare, with him who has subdued the bull. " They pressed and
insisted on this so long, till at length they extorted the consent of
Hydaspes. The fellow was called out: he advanced, casting around fierce
and contemptuous looks, stepping haughtily, dilating his chest, and
swinging his arms with insolent defiance. [24] When he came near the
royal tent, Hydaspes looking at Theagenes, said to him in Greek--"The
people are desirous that you should engage with this man, you must
therefore do so. "
"Be it as they please," replied Theagenes. "But what is to be the
nature of the contest? "--"Wrestling," said the king. --"Why not with
swords, and in armour? " returned the other, "that either by my fall
or by my victory I may satisfy Chariclea, who persists in concealing
everything which relates to our connection, or perhaps at last has cast
me off. "
"Why you thus bring in the name of Chariclea," replied Hydaspes, "you
best know; but you must wrestle, and not fight with swords, for no
blood must be shed on this day, but at the altar. " Theagenes perceived
the king's apprehension lest he should fall before the sacrifice, and
said, "You do well, Ο king, to reserve me for the gods; they too, you
may be assured, will watch over my preservation. " So saying, taking up
a handful of dust, he sprinkled it over his limbs, already dripping
with sweat, from his exertions in pursuit of the bull. He shook off all
which did not adhere; and stretching out his arms, planting his feet
firmly, bending his knees a little, rounding his back and shoulders,
throwing back his neck, and contracting all his muscles, he stood
anxiously waiting the gripe of his antagonist. The Ethiopian seeing
him, grimly smiled, and by his contemptuous gestures seemed to slight
his adversary.
Making a rush he let fall his arm, like some mighty bar, upon the
neck of Theagenes--at the echo which it made the braggart laughed
exultingly. Theagenes, trained in the wrestling-school tricks from
his youth, and familiar with all the tricks of the Mercurial art,[25]
determined to give ground at first, and having made trial of his
adversary, not to stand up against such tremendous weight and savage
ferocity, but to elude his undisciplined strength by skill and
subtlety. Staggering back, then, a little from his place he affected to
suffer more than he really did, and exposed the other side of his neck
to his opponent's blow; and when the African planted another hit in
that quarter, purposely giving way, he pretended almost to be falling
upon his face. But when waxing stronger in contempt and confidence,
his antagonist was now a third time, unguardedly rushing on, and
about to let fall his upraised arm, Theagenes got within his guard,
eluding his blow by a sudden twist, and with his right elbow struck up
the other's left arm, and dashed him to the earth, already impelled
downwards by the sway of his own missed blow; then slipping his hand
under his armpits, he got upon his back, and with difficulty spanning
his brawny waist, incessantly kicked his feet and ancles, and compelled
him to rise upon his knees, strode over him, pressed him in the groin
with his legs, struck from under him the support of his hands, and
twining his arms about his temples, dragged his head back upon his
shoulders, and so stretched him with his belly on the ground. [26]
An universal shout of applause, greater than before, now burst from the
multitude; nor could the king contain himself, but springing from his
throne--"Ο hateful necessity," he cried, "what a hero of a man are we
compelled to sacrifice! " and calling him to him he said, "Young man,
it now remains for you to be crowned for the altar, according to our
custom. You have deserved a crown too for your glorious but useless
victory, and transitory triumph; and though it be out of my power,
however willing I may be, to preserve your life, whatever I can do for
you I will. If therefore there is any thing you wish to have done,
either before or after your death, ask it freely. " So saying he took a
crown of gold, set with precious stones, and put it on his head; and,
while he placed it there, was seen to shed tears.
"I have but one thing to ask," said Theagenes, "and this I earnestly
beseech you that I may obtain. If it be impossible for me to avoid
being sacrificed, grant that I may suffer by the hands of this your
newly recovered daughter. "
Hydaspes was annoyed at this reply, and called to mind the conformity
of this request to that made just before by Chariclea; but, as the time
pressed, he did not think it necessary to inquire particularly into
the reasons of it, and only said, "Whatever is possible, Stranger! I
encouraged you to ask, and promised that you should obtain; but she,
who performs the sacrifice the law distinctly declares, must be one who
has a husband, not a maiden. "
"Chariclea has a husband," said Theagenes. --"These are the words,"
replied Hydaspes, "of one who trifles and is about to die. The altar
has declared her unmarried and a virgin--unless indeed you call this
Merœbus her husband (having somehow heard the rumour); he however is
not yet her husband--he is yet in accordance with my will, only her
intended. "
"Nor will he ever be her husband," said Theagenes, "if I know aught of
Chariclea's sentiments; and, if being a victim, credit is due to me
as inspired by prophecy. "--"But, fair Sir," said Merœbus, "it is not
living but slaughtered victims which afford knowledge to the Seers. You
are right, Sire, in saying that the stranger talks folly, and like one
just about to die. Command, therefore, that he be led to the altar; and
when you shall have finished all your business, begin the rites, I pray
you. "
Theagenes was being led away; and Chariclea, who had breathed again
when he was victorious, was once more plunged into grief, when she saw
it had profited him nothing. Persina observed her tears, and feeling
for her affliction, said--"It is possible I may yet have power to save
this Grecian, if you will explain more clearly all the particulars
relating to yourself. "
Chariclea, who saw that there was not a moment to be lost, was a second
time preparing to own everything; when Hydaspes inquiring from the lord
in waiting whether any ambassadors remained who had not had audience,
was told only those from Syene, who were that instant arrived, with
letters from Oroondates, and presents. "Let them too approach, and
execute their commission," said the monarch. They were introduced, and
delivered letters to this effect:--
"Oroondates, Viceroy of the Great King, to Hydaspes, the king of
Ethiopia.
"Since conqueror in fight, you are yet more conqueror in magnanimity,
in restoring to me a viceroyalty unasked, I have little doubt that I
shall obtain a slight request. A young maiden who was being conducted
from Memphis to my camp, became involved in the perils of war, and as
I am informed, was sent by you into Ethiopia. This I have learnt from
those who were with her and who escaped: I beg she may be sent to me,
both on account of the maiden herself, as well as for her father's
sake, who, after having wandered over half the globe, in search of his
daughter, came at last to Elephantine, and was taken prisoner by the
garrison. When reviewing those of my soldiers who survived, I saw him
and he earnestly desired to be sent to your clemency. He is among the
ambassadors, his manners and bearing show him to be of noble birth,
and his very countenance and looks speak strongly in his favour.
Dismiss him then, Ο king, I beseech you, happy and contented from your
presence. Send back to me one who is a father not merely in name but
in reality. "
Hydaspes, having read the letter, inquired who it was, who was come in
quest of his daughter. When he was pointed out to him, he said, "I am
ready, stranger, to do every thing which Oroondates requests of me. Out
of the ten captive maidens whom we have brought hither, one assuredly
is not your daughter; examine the rest, and if she be found among them
take her. "
The old man, falling down, kissed his feet. The maidens were
brought, and passed in review before him; but when he saw not her
whom he sought, he said sorrowfully--"None of these, Ο king, is my
daughter. "--"You have my good will in your behalf," replied Hydaspes.
"You must blame Fortune if you have not discovered your child. It is in
your power to search, if you will, through the camp; and to ascertain
that none else has been brought hither besides these. "
The old man smote his forehead, and wept; and, then after raising
his eyes, and looking round him, he suddenly sprang forward, like
one distracted; and upon coming to the altar, he twisted the end of
his long robe into the form of a halter, threw it over the neck of
Theagenes, and pulled him towards him, crying out--"I have found you,
my enemy! I have found you, man of blood, detested wretch! "--The guards
interposed, and endeavoured to resist and pull him away, but keeping
a firm hold and clinging closely to him, he succeeded in bringing him
before Hydaspes and the council.
"This, Ο king," said he, "is the man who stole away my daughter. This
is he who has rendered my house childless and desolate; who, after
ravishing away my daughter from the midst of Apollo's altar, now sits
as though he were holy beside the altars of the gods. "
The assembly was thrown into commotion at what was taking place. They
did not understand what he said, but wondered at what they saw him do;
and Hydaspes commanded him to explain himself more plainly, and say
what he would have; when the old man (it was Charicles), concealing the
true circumstances of the birth and exposure of Chariclea, lest, if
she should have perished in her flight or journey, he might come into
some collision with her real parents, explained briefly such matters as
could produce ηo ill results.
"I had a daughter, Ο king! and had you seen her various and uncommon
perfections, both of mind and person, you would say I have good cause
for speaking as I do. She lived the life of a virgin, a priestess of
Diana, in the temple at Delphi. This noble Thessalian, forsooth, who
was sent by his country to preside over a solemn embassy and sacrifice
to be celebrated in our holy city, stole her away from the very shrine,
I say, of Apollo.
"Justly may he be considered to have insulted you by profaning your
national deity Apollo and his temple, Apollo being identical with the
Sun. His assistant in this impious outrage was a pretended priest of
Memphis. In my pursuit, I came to Thessaly; and the Thessalians offered
to give him up should he be found as one accursed and deserving death.
Thinking it probable that Calasiris might have chosen Memphis as a
place of refuge, I hastened thither. Calasiris, I found, was dead; but
I learnt all particulars concerning my daughter from his son Thyamis,
who told me that she had been sent to Oroondates at Syene. After being
disappointed at not finding the latter at Syene, and having been
myself detained prisoner at Elephantis, I now appear before you as a
suppliant, to seek my child. You will, then, deeply oblige me, a man of
many griefs, and will also gratify your own self, by not disregarding
the Viceroy's intercession. " He ceased, and burst into tears.
The king asked Theagenes what reply he had to make to all this. "The
whole charge," said he, "is true. To this man I have been a ravisher,
unjust, and violent; but to you I have been a benefactor. "--"Restore,
then, another's daughter," said Hydaspes. "You have been dedicated to
the gods; let your death be a holy and glorious sacrifice--not the just
punishment of crime. "
"Not he who committed the violence," said Theagenes; "but he who reaps
the fruits of it, is bound to make restitution. Do you then restore
Chariclea, for she is in your possession. The old man, you shall see,
will own your daughter to be her whom he seeks. "
None could repress their emotion: all were in confusion. But
Sisimithres, who had hitherto kept silence, though long since
understanding all that was being said and done, yet waiting till the
circumstances should become yet clearer, now ran up and embraced
Charicles. "Your adopted child," said he, "she whom I formerly
delivered into your hands, is safe: she is, and has been acknowledged
to be, the daughter of those whom you know. "
Upon this Chariclea rushed out of the tent, and overlooking all
restraints of sex or maidenly reserve, flung herself at the feet of
Charicles, and cried out, "O my father! Ο not less revered than the
authors of my birth, punish me, your cruel and ungrateful daughter, as
you think fit, regardless of my only excuse, that what has been done
was ordained by the irresistible will and appointment of the gods. "
Persina, on the other side, threw her arms round Hydaspes, and said,
"My dear husband, be assured that all this is truth, and that this
stranger Greek is her betrothed. " The people, on the other hand, leaped
and danced for joy; every age and condition were, without exception,
delighted--not understanding, indeed, the greater part of what was
said, but conjecturing the facts from what had taken place with
Chariclea. Perhaps, too, they were brought to a comprehension of the
truth by some secret influence of the deity, who had ordered all these
events so dramatically, producing out of the greatest discords the most
perfect harmony: joy out of grief; smiles from tears; out of a stern
spectacle a gladsome feast; laughter from weeping; rejoicing out of
mourning; the finding[27] of those who were not sought; the losing[28]
of those who were in imagination found; in one word, a holy sacrifice
out of an anticipated[29] slaughter.
At length Hydaspes said to Sisimithres, "Ο sage! what are we to do? To
defraud the gods of their victims is not pious; to sacrifice those who
appear to be preserved and restored by their providence is impious. It
needs that some expedient be found out. "
Sisimithres, speaking, not in the Grecian, but in the Ethiopian tongue,
so as to be heard by the greatest part of the assembly, replied: "Ο
king! the wisest among men, as it appears, often have the understanding
clouded through excess of joy, else, before this time, you would have
discovered that the gods regard not with favour the sacrifice which you
have been preparing for them. First they, from the very altar, declared
the all-blessed Chariclea to be your daughter; next they brought her
foster-father most wonderfully from the midst of Greece to this spot;
they struck panic and terror into the horses and oxen which were being
prepared for sacrifice, indicating, perhaps, by that event, that those
whom custom considered as the more perfect and fitting victims were to
be rejected. Now, as the consummation of all good, as the perfection of
the piece,[30] they show this Grecian youth to be the betrothed husband
of the maiden. Let us give credence to these proofs of the divine and
wonder-working will; let us be fellow workers with this will; let us
have recourse to holier offerings; let us abolish, for ever, these
detested human sacrifices. "
When Sisimithres had uttered this, in a loud voice, Hydaspes, speaking
also in the Ethiopian tongue, and taking Theagenes and Chariclea by the
hand, thus proceeded:--
"Ye who are this day assembled! since these things have been thus
brought to pass by the will of the deities, to oppose them would be
impious. Wherefore, calling to witness those who have woven these
events into the web of destiny, and you whose minds appear to be in
concert with them, I sanction the joining together of this pair in
wedlock and procreative union. If you approve, let a sacrifice confirm
this resolution, and then proceed we with the sacred rites. "
The assembly signified their approval by a shout, and clapped their
hands, in token of the nuptials being ratified. Hydaspes approached
the altar, and, in act to begin the ceremony, said, "Ο lordly Sun and
queenly Moon! since by your wills Theagenes and Chariclea have been
declared man and wife, they may now lawfully be your ministers. " So
saying, he took off his own and Persina's mitre, the symbol of the
priesthood, and placed his own upon the head of the youth, that of his
consort upon the maiden's head.
Upon this Charicles called to mind the oracle which had been given to
them in the temple before their flight from Delphi, and acknowledged
its fulfilment.
In regions torrid shall arrive at last,
There shall the gods reward their pious vows,
And snowy chaplets bind their dusky brows. [31]
The youthful pair then, crowned by Hydaspes with white mitres, and
invested with the dignity of priesthood, sacrificed under propitious
omens; and, accompanied by lighted torches and the sounds of pipes and
flutes, Theagenes and Hydaspes, Charicles and Sisimithres, in chariots
drawn by horses, Persina and Chariclea, in one drawn by milk white
oxen, were escorted, into Meröe (amidst shouts, clapping of hands, and
dances), there to celebrate with greater magnificence the more mystic
portions of the nuptial rites.
Thus ends the Romance of the "Ethiopics," or Adventures of Theagenes
and Chariclea, written by a Phœnician of Emesa, in Phœnicia, of the
race of the Sun--Heliodorus, the son of Theodosius.
[Footnote 1: In. Bk. viii. , 98, Herodotus gives an account of the
Persian system of estafette--comparing it to the torch race:--"Kατάπερ
Ἔλλησι ἡ λαμπαδηφορίη, τὴν τῷ Ἡφαίστῳ επιτέλεουσι. " See also, Xen.
Cyrop. viii. 6, 17. ]
[Footnote 2: Solinus describes these fabulous creatures as "alites
ferocissimæ et ultra omnem rabiem sævientes;" others speak of them as
resembling an eagle in the upper part, a horse in the lower. --See Æsch.
P. V. , 395 and 803. ]
[Footnote 3: See Blakesley's edit. of Herod. iii. 98: where mention
is made of boats made of bamboo, used by the Indians, of which Pliny
says, that the length of the boats, made of the internodal wood, often
exceeded five cubits, and that they would hold three persons. ]
[Footnote 4: Herod. i. 216, states the same concerning the Massagetæ,
and assigns the same cause:--"Τῶν θεῶν τῴ ταχίστῳ πάντων τῶν θνητῶν τὸ
τάχιστον δατέονται. "]
[Footnote 5: Τὴν ἐσχάρα. ]
[Footnote 6: Taλaντεύει καθ' ἡμας ἡ μοῖρα. ]
[Footnote 7:
"Gratior et pulchro veniens in corpora virtus. "
Virg. Æn. v. 344.
]
[Footnote 8:
"Immunis aram si tetigit manus,
Non sumptuosa blandior hostia
Mollivit aversos penates
Farre pio et saliente micâ. "
Hor. III. Od. xxiii. 17.
]
[Footnote 9: See Book IV. ]
[Footnote 10: In the version printed in 1717 is a curious blunder in
the word ἐλέφαντα--"a spot black as ebony, resembling an elephant. "]
[Footnote 11: Tὸ ὄμμα δὲ οἱονεί κέρας ἥ σίδηρον εἰς τὰ ὁρώμενα τείνας.
. . . "ille--immota tenebat
Lumina, et obnixus curam sub corde premebat. "--Æn. iv. 331.
]
[Footnote 12: See the speech of Agamemnon, in the Iphigenia in Aulis,
1242. ]
[Footnote 13:
"Ostendent terris hunc tantùm fata, neque ultrà
Esse sinent. "--Virg. Æn. vi. 870.
]
[Footnote 14: "Et serves animæ dimidium meæ. "--Hor. I. Od. iii. 8. ]
[Footnote 15: εἱσαγγιλεὺς. See Herod. III. 84. ]
[Footnote 16: It would be unfair to deprive the reader of the very
quaint rendering of this passage in the version of 1717: "Merœbus,
young and bashful, and wonderfully tickled at the thoughts of a bride,
blushed through his black skin, his face looking _like a ball of soot
that had taken fire_. "]
[Footnote 17: Οὔτως ὠγύγιος. See the description and bearing of
Dares. --Virg. Æn. v. 368, 385. ]
[Footnote 18: Τῶν παρ' αὐτοῖς ἀραχνιών--literally, of spiders, see
Tatius, B. iii. ]
[Footnote 19: In the original it is "ant-gold" χρυσόν μυρμηκιαν, turned
up by the "myrmex," an animal between a dog and fox in size, supposed
to be the ant-eater. See note vol. i. p. 378, of Blakesley's Herodotus.
William Lisle, the poet, thus improves upon the "ant-gold:"--
"A yoke of gryphons chain'd with that fine gold
Which emmots, nigh as big as Norfolke sheepe,
At sand-hill side are said to gath'r and keepe. "
The reader will of course remember Milton's allusion to the _gryphons_.
Paradise Lost, B. ii. 945. ]
[Footnote 20: αυτοσχεδίως κατηγορηθέν. ]
[Footnote 21: This animal was among the number of those, in the
destruction of which the Emperor Commodus exhibited his skill in the
arena. --See Gibbon, i. 153, (_note_). ]
[Footnote 22: Suetonius mentions an exploit similar to this of
Theagenes, and performed by a Thessalian, as he was (Claud. cap. 21).
"Præterea _Thessalos_ equites qui feros tauros per spatia circi agunt,
insiliuntque defessos, et ad terram cornibus detrahunt. " The above
exploit was called ταυροκαθαίρια.
It is represented in one of the
Arundel marbles. ]
[Footnote 23: Τοῖς συνετοῖς ἀσύνετα φθέγγομαι. ]
[Footnote 24:
. . . "caput altum in prælia tollit,
Ostenditque humeros latos, alternaque jactat,
Brachia protendens, et verberat ictibus auras. "
Virg. Æn. v. 375.
]
[Footnote 25:
"Mercuri, facunde nepos Atlantis,
Qui feros cultus hominum recentum
Voce formasti catus, et _decoræ_. "
_More palestræ. _--Hor. I. Od. X. 1-4.
]
[Footnote 26: A wood-cut, in some degree illustrative of this
description, will be found at p. 708 of Greek and Roman Antiquities,
under the article "Pancratium. "]
[Footnote 27: By Hydaspes. ]
[Footnote 28: By Charicles. ]
[Footnote 29:
"Time and tide had thus their sway,
Yielding, like an April day,
Smiling noon for sullen morrow,
Years of joy for hours of sorrow. "--Scott.
]
[Footnote 30: Literally, the torch of the drama, Λαμπάδων δράματος.
"φαίνετε τοίνυν υμεῖς τούτῳ
λαμπάδας ἱερὰς χάμα προπέμπετε
τοῖσιν τούτου τοῦτον μέλεσιν
καὶ μολπᾶσιν κελαδοῦντες. "--Aristoph. Bat. 1493.
See similar allusions in the Eumenides of Æschylus, 959, 979. (Müller's
Edit. )]
[Footnote 31: See Book II. ]
THE END.
THE LOVES OF DAPHNIS AND CHLOE, A PASTORAL NOVEL, BY LONGUS.
MOTTO.
Ah! what a life were this! how sweet, how lovely!
Gives not the hawthorn bush a sweeter shade
To shepherds looking on their silly sheep,
Than doth a rich embroidered canopy
To kings, that fear their subjects' treachery?
Oh yes it doth; a thousand-fold it doth.
Shakspeare
PREFACE.
While hunting in Lesbos I saw in a grove, sacred to the Nymphs, the
most beautiful sight which had ever come before my eyes--an historical
painting,[1] which represented the incidents of a love-story. The grove
itself was beautiful, abounding with trees and flowers, which received
their nourishment from a single fountain. More delightful, however,
than these was the painting, displaying, as it did, great skill, and
representing the fortunes of Love. Because of the fame of this picture,
many strangers resorted thither to pay their adorations to the Nymphs,
and to view the painting. The subjects of it were women in the throes
of child-birth; nurses wrapping the new-born babes in swathing clothes;
infants exposed; animals of the flock giving them suck; shepherds
carrying them away; young people pledging their mutual troth; an attack
by pirates; an inroad by a hostile force.
As I viewed and admired these and many other things, all containing
love allusions, I conceived the desire of writing an illustration
of the piece, and having sought out a person to explain the various
allusions, I at length completed four books,--an offering to the God
of Love, to the Nymphs, and to Pan; a work, moreover, which will be
acceptable to every one, for it will remedy disease, it will solace
grief, it will refresh the memory of him who has once loved, it will
instruct him who is as yet ignorant of love. No one, assuredly, has
ever escaped, or will escape, the influence of this passion, so long as
beauty remains to be seen, and eyes exist to behold it.
May the Deity grant me, undisturbed myself, to describe the emotions of
others! [2]
[Footnote 1: Compare the description of the picture representing the
story of Europa, in Achilleus Tatius. --B. i. , and those of Andromeda
and Prometheus in B. ii. ]
[Footnote 2:
"Suave etiam belli certamina magna tueri
Per campos instructa, _tuâ_ sine parte pericli. "
Lucret. 11, 5.
]
THE LOVES OF DAPHNIS AND CHLOE.
In the island of Lesbos there is an extensive city called Mitylene,
the appearance of which is beautiful; the sea intersects it by various
canals, and it is adorned with bridges of polished white stone. You
might imagine you beheld an island rather than a city.
About twenty-four miles from Mitylene, were the possessions of a rich
man, which formed a very fine estate. The mountains abounded with game,
the fields produced corn, the hills were thick with vines, the pastures
with herds, and the sea-washed shore consisted of an extent of smooth
sand.
As Lamon, a goatherd, was tending his herds upon the estate, he found
a child suckled by a she-goat. The place where it was lying was an oak
coppice and tangled thicket, with ivy winding about it, and soft grass
beneath; thither the goat continually ran and disappeared from sight,
leaving her own kid in order to remain near the child. Lamon watched
her movements, being grieved to see the kid neglected, and one day
when the sun was burning in his meridian heat he follows her steps and
sees her standing over the infant with the utmost caution, lest her
hoofs might injure it, while the child sucked copious draughts of her
milk as if from its mother's breast. Struck with natural astonishment,
he advances close to the spot and discovers a lusty and handsome
male-child, with far richer swathing clothes than suited its fortune
in being thus exposed; for its little mantle was of fine purple, and
fastened by a golden clasp, and it had a little sword with a hilt of
ivory.
At first Lamon resolved to leave the infant to its fate, and to carry
off only the tokens; but feeling afterwards ashamed at the reflection,
that in doing so, he should be inferior in humanity, even to a goat,
he waited for the approach of night, and then carried home the infant
with the tokens, and the she-goat herself to Myrtale his wife.
Myrtale was astonished, and thought it strange if goats could produce
children, upon which her husband recounts every particular; how he
found the infant exposed; how it was suckled; and how ashamed he felt
at the idea of leaving it to perish. She shared his feelings, so
they agreed to conceal the tokens, and adopt the child as their own,
committing the rearing of it to the goat; and that the name also might
be a pastoral one they determined to call it Daphnis.
Two years had now elapsed, when Dryas, a neighbouring shepherd, tending
his flock, found an infant under similar circumstances.
There was a grotto[1] sacred to the Nymphs; it was a spacious rock,
concave within, convex without. The statues of the Nymphs themselves
were carved in stone. Their feet were bare, their arms naked to the
shoulder, their hair falling dishevelled upon their shoulders, their
vests girt about the waist, a smile[2] sat upon their brow; their whole
semblance was that of a troop of dancers. The dome[3] of the grotto
rose over the middle of the rock. Water, springing from a fountain,
formed a running stream, and a trim meadow stretched its soft and
abundant herbage before the entrance, fed by the perpetual moisture.
Within, milk-pails, transverse-flutes, flageolets and pastoral
pipes[4] were suspended--the offerings of many an aged shepherd.
An ewe of Dryas's flock which had lately lambed had frequently resorted
to this grotto, and raised apprehensions of her being lost. The
shepherd wishing to cure her of this habit, and to bring her back to
her former way of grazing, twisted some green osiers into the form of
a slip knot, and approached the rock with the view of seizing her.
Upon arriving there, however, he beheld a sight far contrary to his
expectation. He found his ewe affectionately offering from her udder
copious draughts of milk to an infant, which without any wailing,
eagerly turned from one teat to the other its clean and glossy face,
the animal licking it, as soon as it had had its fill.
This child was a female: and had beside its swathing garments, by way
of tokens, a head-dress wrought with gold, gilt sandals, and golden[5]
anklets.
Dryas imagining that this foundling was a gift from the Deity, and
instructed by his sheep to pity and love the infant, raised her in his
arms, placed the tokens in his scrip, and prayed the Nymphs that their
favour might attend upon him in bringing up their suppliant; and when
the time was come for driving his cattle from their pasture, he returns
to his cottage, relates what he had seen to his wife, exhibits what he
had found, urges her to observe a secrecy, and to regard and rear the
child as her own daughter.
Nape (for so his wife was called) immediately became a mother to the
infant, and felt affection towards it, fearing perhaps to be outdone in
tenderness by the ewe, and to make appearances more probable, gave the
child the pastoral name of Chloe.
The two children grew rapidly, and their personal appearance exceeded
that of ordinary rustics. Daphnis was now fifteen and Chloe was his
junior by two years, when on the same night Lamon and Dryas had the
following dream. They thought that they beheld the Nymphs of the
Grotto, in which the fountain was and where Dryas found the infant,
presenting Daphnis and Chloe to a very saucy looking and handsome
boy, who had wings upon his shoulders, and a little bow and arrows in
his hand. He lightly touched them both with one of his shafts, and
commanded them henceforth to follow a pastoral life. The boy was to
tend goats, the girl was to have the charge of sheep.
The Shepherd and Goat-herd having had this dream, were grieved to think
that these, their adopted children, were like themselves to have the
care of flocks. Their dress had given promise of a better fortune,
in consequence of which their fare had been more delicate, and their
education and accomplishments superior to those of a country life.
It appeared to them, however, that in the case of children whom the
gods had preserved, the will of the gods must be obeyed; so each having
communicated to the other his dream, they offered a sacrifice to the
"WINGED BOY, THE COMPANION OF THE NYMPHS," (for they were unacquainted
with his name) and sent forth the young people to their pastoral
employments, having first instructed them in their duties; how to
pasture their herds before the noon-day heat, and when it was abated;
at what time to lead them to the stream, and afterwards to drive them
home to the fold; which of their sheep and goats required the crook,
and to which only the voice was necessary.
They, on their part, received the charge as if it had been some
powerful sovereignty, and felt an affection for their sheep and goats
beyond what is usual with shepherds: Chloe referring her preservation
to a ewe, and Daphnis remembering that a she-goat had suckled him when
he was exposed.
It was the beginning of spring, the flowers were in bloom throughout
the woods, the meadows, and the mountains; there were the buzzings of
the bee, the warblings of the songsters, the frolics of the lambs.
The young of the flock were skipping on the mountains, the bees flew
humming through the meadows, and the songs of the birds resounded
through the bushes. Seeing all things pervaded with such universal
joy, they, young and susceptible as they were, imitated whatever
they saw or heard. Hearing the carol of the birds, they sang; seeing
the sportive skipping of the lambs, they danced; and in imitation of
the bees they gathered flowers. Some they placed in their bosoms, and
others they wove into chaplets and carried them as offerings to the
Nymphs.
They tended their flocks in company, and all their occupations were in
common. Daphnis frequently collected the sheep, which had strayed, and
Chloe drove back from a precipice the goats which were too venturesome.
Sometimes one would take the entire management both of goats and sheep,
while the other was intent upon some amusement.
Their sports were of a pastoral and childish kind. Chloe sometimes
neglected her flock and went in search of stalks of asphodel, with
which she wove traps[6] for locusts; while Daphnis devoted himself to
playing till nightfall upon his pipe, which he had formed by cutting
slender reeds, perforating the intervals between the joints, and
compacting them together with soft wax. Sometimes they shared their
milk and wine, and made a common meal upon the provision which they
had brought from home; and sooner might you see one part of the flock
divided from the other than Daphnis separate from Chloe.
While thus engaged in their amusements Love contrived an interruption
of a serious nature. [7] A she-wolf from the neighbourhood had often
carried off lambs from other shepherds' flocks, as she required a
plentiful supply of food for her whelps. Upon this the villagers
assembled by night and dug pits in the earth, six feet wide and
twenty-four feet deep. The greater part of the loose earth, dug out of
these pits, they carried to a distance and scattered about, spreading
the remainder over some long dry sticks laid over the mouth of the
pits, so as to resemble the natural surface of the ground. The sticks
were weaker than straws, so that if even a hare ran over them they
would break and prove that instead of substance there was but a show
of solid earth. The villagers dug many of these pits in the mountains
and in the plains, but they could not succeed in capturing the wolf,
which discovered the contrivance of the snare. They however caused the
destruction of many of their own goats and sheep, and very nearly, as
we shall see, that of Daphnis.
Two angry he-goats engaged in fight. The contest waxed more and more
violent, until one of them having his horn broken ran away bellowing
with pain. The victor followed in hot and close pursuit. Daphnis,
vexed to see that his goat's horn was broken, and that the conqueror
persevered in his vengeance, seized his club and crook, and pursued
the pursuer. [8] In consequence of the former hurrying on in wrath,
and the latter flying in trepidation, neither of them observed what
lay in their path, and both fell into a pit, the goat first, Daphnis
afterwards. This was the means of preserving his life, the goat serving
as a support in his descent. Poor Daphnis remained at the bottom
lamenting his sad mishap with tears, and anxiously hoping that some one
might pass by, and pull him out. Chloe, who had observed the accident,
hastened to the spot, and finding that he was still alive, summoned a
cowherd from an adjacent field to come to his assistance. He obeyed the
call, but upon seeking for a rope long enough to draw Daphnis out, no
rope was to be found: upon which Chloe undoing her head-band,[9] gave
it to the cowherd to let down; they then placed themselves at the brink
of the pit, and held one end, while Daphnis grasped the other with both
hands, and so got out.
They then extricated the unhappy goat, who had both his horns broken by
the fall, and thus suffered a just punishment for his revenge towards
his defeated fellow-combatant. They gave him to the herdsman as a
reward for his assistance, and if the family at home inquired after
him, were prepared to say that he had been destroyed by a wolf. After
this they returned to see whether their flocks were safe, and finding
both goats and sheep feeding quietly and orderly, they sat down on the
trunk of a tree and began to examine whether Daphnis had received any
wound. No hurt or blood was to be seen, but his hair and all the rest
of his person were covered with mud and dirt. Daphnis thought it would
be best to wash himself, before Lamon and Myrtale should find out what
had happened to him; proceeding with Chloe to the Grotto of the Nymphs,
he gave her his tunic and scrip in charge. [10]
He then approached the fountain and washed his hair and his whole
person. His hair was long and black, and his body sun-burnt; one might
have imagined that its hue was derived from the overshadowing of his
locks. Chloe thought him beautiful, and because she had never done so
before, attributed his beauty to the effects of the bath. As she was
washing his back and shoulders his tender flesh yielded to her hand,
so that, unobserved, she frequently touched her own skin, in order
to ascertain which of the two was softer. The sun was now setting,
so they drove home their flocks, the only wish in Chloe's mind being
to see Daphnis bathe again. The following day, upon returning to the
accustomed pasture, Daphnis sat as usual under an oak, playing upon his
pipe and surveying his goats lying down and apparently listening to his
strains. Chloe, on her part, sitting near him, looked at her sheep,
but more frequently turned her eyes upon Daphnis; again he appeared to
her beautiful as he was playing upon his pipe, and she attributed his
beauty to the melody, so that taking the pipe she played upon it, in
order, if possible, to appear beautiful herself. She persuaded him to
bathe again, she looked at him when in the bath, and while looking at
him, touched his skin: after which, as she returned home, she mentally
admired him, and this admiration was the beginning of love. She knew
not the meaning of her feelings, young as she was, and brought up in
the country, and never having heard from any one, so much as the name
of love. She felt an oppression at her heart, she could not restrain
her eyes from gazing upon him, nor her mouth from often pronouncing
his name. She took no food, she lay awake at night, she neglected
her flock, she laughed and wept by turns; now she would doze, then
suddenly start up; at one moment her face became pale, in another
moment it burnt with blushes. Such irritation is not felt even by
the breeze-stung heifer. [11] Upon one occasion, when alone, she thus
reasoned with herself. --"I am no doubt ill, but what my malady is I
know not; I am in pain, and yet I have no wound; I feel grief, and yet
I have lost none of my flock; I burn, and yet am sitting in the shade:
how often have brambles torn my skin, without my shedding a single
tear! how often have the bees stung me, yet I could still enjoy my
meals! Whatever it is which now wounds my heart, must be sharper than
either of these. Daphnis is beautiful, so are the flowers; his pipe
breathes sweetly, so does the nightingale; yet I take no account either
of birds or flowers. Would that I could become a pipe, that he might
play upon me! or a goat, that I might pasture under his care! Ο cruel
fountain, thou madest Daphnis alone beautiful; my bathing has been all
in vain! Dear Nymphs, ye see me perishing, yet neither do ye endeavour
to save the maiden brought up among you! Who will crown you with
flowers when I am gone? Who will take care of my poor lambs? Who will
attend to my chirping locust, which I caught with so much trouble, that
its song might lull me to rest in the grotto; but now I am sleepless,
because of Daphnis, and my locust chirps in vain! "
Such were the feelings, and such the words of Chloe, while as yet
ignorant of the name of love. But Dorco the cowherd (the same who had
drawn Daphnis and the goat out of the pit), a young fellow who already
boasted of some beard upon his chin, and who knew not merely the name
but the realities of love, had become enamoured of Chloe, from the
first time of meeting her. Feeling his passion increase day by day, and
despising Daphnis, whom he looked upon as a mere boy, he determined to
effect his purpose either by gifts or by dint of force. At first he
made presents to them both; he gave Daphnis a shepherd's pipe, having
its nine reeds[12] connected with metal in lieu of wax. He presented
Chloe with a fawn skin, spotted all over, such as is worn by the
Bacchantes. Having thus insinuated himself into their friendship, he by
degrees neglected Daphnis, but every day brought something to Chloe,
either a delicate cheese, or a chaplet of flowers, or a ripe apple. On
one occasion he brought her a mountain calf, a gilt drinking cup, and
the nestlings[13] of a wild bird. She, ignorant as she was of love's
artifices, received his gifts with pleasure;[14] chiefly pleased,
however, at having something to give Daphnis. One day it happened that
Dorco and he (for he likewise was destined to experience the pains and
penalties of love) had an argument on the subject of their respective
share of beauty. Chloe was to be umpire, and the victor's reward was to
be a kiss from her. Dorco, thus began--
"Maiden," said he, "I am taller than Daphnis, I am also a cowherd,
he, a goatherd, I therefore excel him as far as oxen are superior to
goats; I am fair as milk, and my hair brown as the ripe harvest field;
moreover, I had a mother to bring me up, not a goat. He, on the other
hand is short, beardless as a woman, and has a skin as tawny as a wolf;
while, from tending he-goats, he has contracted a goatish smell; he is
also so poor, that he cannot afford to keep even a dog; and if it be
true that a nanny gave him suck, he is no better[15] than a nanny's
son. "
Such was Dorco's speech; it was next the turn of Daphnis--
"It is true," said he, "that a she-goat suckled me, and so did a
she-goat suckle Jove; I tend he-goats and will bring them into better
condition than his oxen, but I smell of them no more than Pan does,
who has in him more of a goat than any thing else. I am content with
cheese, coarse bread,[16] and white wine, the food suitable for
country folk. I am beardless, so is Bacchus; I am dark complexioned,
so is the hyacinth; yet Bacchus is preferred before the satyr and the
hyacinth[17] before the lily. Now look at him, he is as sandy haired
as a fox, bearded as a goat, and smock-faced as any city wench. If you
have to bestow a kiss, it will be given to my mouth, whereas it will
be thrown away upon his bristles. Remember also, maiden, that you owe
_your_ nurture to a sheep, and yet this has not marred your beauty. "
Chloe could restrain herself no longer, but partly from pleasure at
his praising her, partly from a desire of kissing him, she sprang
forward and bestowed upon him the prize; an artless and unsophisticated
kiss,[18] but one well calculated to set his heart on fire. Upon this,
Dorco, in great disgust, took himself off, determined to seek some
other way of wooing. Daphnis, as though he had been stung instead of
kissed, became suddenly grave, felt a shivering all over, and could not
control the beating of his heart. He wished to gaze upon Chloe, but at
the first glance his face was suffused with blushes. For the first time
he admired her hair, because it was auburn; and her eyes, because they
were large[19] and brilliant; her countenance, because it was fairer
than even the milk of his own she-goats. One might have supposed that
he had just received the faculty of sight, having had till then, "no
speculation" in his eyes. [20]
From this moment, he took no food beyond the merest morsel, no drink
beyond what would just moisten his lips. Formerly more chattering than
the locusts, he became mute; he was now dull and listless, whereas
he had been more nimble than the goats. His flock was neglected, his
pipe was thrown aside; his face became paler than the summer-parched
herbage. Chloe alone could rouse his powers of speech; whenever he was
absent from her, he would thus fondly soliloquize:--
"What will be the result of this kiss of Chloe? her lips are softer
than rose-buds, and her mouth is sweeter than the honeycomb, but
this kiss has left a sting sharper than the sting of a bee! --I have
frequently kissed the kids, and the young puppies, and the calf which
Dorco gave me, but this kiss of Chloe is something quite new and
wonderful! My breath is gone, my heart pants, my spirit sinks within me
and dies away; and yet I wish to kiss again! [21] My victory has been
the source of sorrow and of a new disease, which I know not how to
name. Could Chloe have tasted poison before she permitted me to kiss
her? If so, how is it that she survives? How sweetly the nightingales
sing, while my pipe is mute! How gaily the kids skip and play, while
I sit listlessly by! The flowers are in full beauty, yet I weave no
garlands! The violets and the hyacinths are blooming, while Daphnis
droops and fades away. Alas! shall Dorco ever appear more beautiful in
Chloe's eyes, than I do! "
Such were the sensations of the worthy Daphnis, and thus he vented
his feelings. He now first felt the power, and now first uttered the
language of--LOVE.
In the mean time Dorco, the cowherd, who entertained a passion for
Chloe, watched an opportunity of addressing Dryas on the subject;
and finding him one day employed in planting a tree near one of his
vines, he approached carrying with him some fine cheeses. [22] First
of all he begged Dryas to accept of the cheeses as a present from an
old acquaintance and fellow herdsman; and then informed him of the
affection which he cherished towards his daughter Chloe. He promised
that, if he should be so happy as to obtain her for his wife, he was
prepared to offer him gifts, many and handsome, as a cowherd could
bestow,--a yoke of oxen fit for the plough, four hives of bees, fifty
young apple trees for planting, the hide of an ox, suitable for shoe
leather, and a weaned calf annually.
Dryas was almost tempted by these promises to give his assent to
the marriage; but on the other hand, reflecting that the maiden was
deserving of a better match, and fearing lest if ever discovered, he
might get himself into great trouble, he refused his assent, at the
same time intreating Dorco not to be affronted, and declining to accept
the gifts which he had enumerated.
Dorco being thus a second time disappointed of his hope, and having
given his cheese away to no purpose, conceived a plan of attacking
Chloe by force, whenever he should find her alone; and having observed
that she and Daphnis, on alternate days, conducted the herds to drink,
he contrived a scheme, worthy of a neatherd's brain. A large wolf had
been killed by his bull, who fought in defence of the herd; Dorco[23]
threw this wolf's skin over him, so that it completely covered his
back, reaching to the ground, and he adjusted it in such a manner, that
the skins of the fore feet were fitted over his hands, while those of
the hind feet spread down his legs to the very heels. The head, with
its gaping jaws, encased him as completely as a soldier's helmet.
Having thus "be-wolfed" himself as much as possible, he withdrew to
the spring, where the sheep and goats usually drank as they returned
from pasture. The spring was in a hollow, and around it the furze,
brambles, junipers, and thistles were so thick, that a real wolf
might easily choose it as a lair. Here Dorco concealed himself, and
anxiously waited for the time when the flocks should come to drink,
and when Chloe, as he hoped, would be so startled and terrified by his
appearance that he might easily seize her.
He had not remained long, when Chloe conducted the flock to the spring,
leaving Daphnis employed in cutting green leaves as fodder for the
kids in the evening. The dogs (the guardians of the sheep and goats)
accompanied Chloe, and scenting[24] about with their usual sagacity,
discovered Dorco, who was in the act of moving.
of the multitude was expressed not so much by articulate words, as by
a shout, giving open-mouthed token of their wonderment, and with its
sounds extolling him to the very skies. By order of Hydaspes, Theagenes
was brought before him, and the bull, by a rope tied over his horns,
was led back weak and dispirited towards the altar, where they again
fastened him, together with the horse which had escaped. The king
was preparing to speak to Theagenes, when the multitude, interested
in him from the first, and now delighted with this instance of his
strength and courage, but still more moved with jealousy towards the
foreign wrestler, called out with one voice--"Let him be matched with
Marœbus's champion. Let him who has received the elephant contend,
if he dare, with him who has subdued the bull. " They pressed and
insisted on this so long, till at length they extorted the consent of
Hydaspes. The fellow was called out: he advanced, casting around fierce
and contemptuous looks, stepping haughtily, dilating his chest, and
swinging his arms with insolent defiance. [24] When he came near the
royal tent, Hydaspes looking at Theagenes, said to him in Greek--"The
people are desirous that you should engage with this man, you must
therefore do so. "
"Be it as they please," replied Theagenes. "But what is to be the
nature of the contest? "--"Wrestling," said the king. --"Why not with
swords, and in armour? " returned the other, "that either by my fall
or by my victory I may satisfy Chariclea, who persists in concealing
everything which relates to our connection, or perhaps at last has cast
me off. "
"Why you thus bring in the name of Chariclea," replied Hydaspes, "you
best know; but you must wrestle, and not fight with swords, for no
blood must be shed on this day, but at the altar. " Theagenes perceived
the king's apprehension lest he should fall before the sacrifice, and
said, "You do well, Ο king, to reserve me for the gods; they too, you
may be assured, will watch over my preservation. " So saying, taking up
a handful of dust, he sprinkled it over his limbs, already dripping
with sweat, from his exertions in pursuit of the bull. He shook off all
which did not adhere; and stretching out his arms, planting his feet
firmly, bending his knees a little, rounding his back and shoulders,
throwing back his neck, and contracting all his muscles, he stood
anxiously waiting the gripe of his antagonist. The Ethiopian seeing
him, grimly smiled, and by his contemptuous gestures seemed to slight
his adversary.
Making a rush he let fall his arm, like some mighty bar, upon the
neck of Theagenes--at the echo which it made the braggart laughed
exultingly. Theagenes, trained in the wrestling-school tricks from
his youth, and familiar with all the tricks of the Mercurial art,[25]
determined to give ground at first, and having made trial of his
adversary, not to stand up against such tremendous weight and savage
ferocity, but to elude his undisciplined strength by skill and
subtlety. Staggering back, then, a little from his place he affected to
suffer more than he really did, and exposed the other side of his neck
to his opponent's blow; and when the African planted another hit in
that quarter, purposely giving way, he pretended almost to be falling
upon his face. But when waxing stronger in contempt and confidence,
his antagonist was now a third time, unguardedly rushing on, and
about to let fall his upraised arm, Theagenes got within his guard,
eluding his blow by a sudden twist, and with his right elbow struck up
the other's left arm, and dashed him to the earth, already impelled
downwards by the sway of his own missed blow; then slipping his hand
under his armpits, he got upon his back, and with difficulty spanning
his brawny waist, incessantly kicked his feet and ancles, and compelled
him to rise upon his knees, strode over him, pressed him in the groin
with his legs, struck from under him the support of his hands, and
twining his arms about his temples, dragged his head back upon his
shoulders, and so stretched him with his belly on the ground. [26]
An universal shout of applause, greater than before, now burst from the
multitude; nor could the king contain himself, but springing from his
throne--"Ο hateful necessity," he cried, "what a hero of a man are we
compelled to sacrifice! " and calling him to him he said, "Young man,
it now remains for you to be crowned for the altar, according to our
custom. You have deserved a crown too for your glorious but useless
victory, and transitory triumph; and though it be out of my power,
however willing I may be, to preserve your life, whatever I can do for
you I will. If therefore there is any thing you wish to have done,
either before or after your death, ask it freely. " So saying he took a
crown of gold, set with precious stones, and put it on his head; and,
while he placed it there, was seen to shed tears.
"I have but one thing to ask," said Theagenes, "and this I earnestly
beseech you that I may obtain. If it be impossible for me to avoid
being sacrificed, grant that I may suffer by the hands of this your
newly recovered daughter. "
Hydaspes was annoyed at this reply, and called to mind the conformity
of this request to that made just before by Chariclea; but, as the time
pressed, he did not think it necessary to inquire particularly into
the reasons of it, and only said, "Whatever is possible, Stranger! I
encouraged you to ask, and promised that you should obtain; but she,
who performs the sacrifice the law distinctly declares, must be one who
has a husband, not a maiden. "
"Chariclea has a husband," said Theagenes. --"These are the words,"
replied Hydaspes, "of one who trifles and is about to die. The altar
has declared her unmarried and a virgin--unless indeed you call this
Merœbus her husband (having somehow heard the rumour); he however is
not yet her husband--he is yet in accordance with my will, only her
intended. "
"Nor will he ever be her husband," said Theagenes, "if I know aught of
Chariclea's sentiments; and, if being a victim, credit is due to me
as inspired by prophecy. "--"But, fair Sir," said Merœbus, "it is not
living but slaughtered victims which afford knowledge to the Seers. You
are right, Sire, in saying that the stranger talks folly, and like one
just about to die. Command, therefore, that he be led to the altar; and
when you shall have finished all your business, begin the rites, I pray
you. "
Theagenes was being led away; and Chariclea, who had breathed again
when he was victorious, was once more plunged into grief, when she saw
it had profited him nothing. Persina observed her tears, and feeling
for her affliction, said--"It is possible I may yet have power to save
this Grecian, if you will explain more clearly all the particulars
relating to yourself. "
Chariclea, who saw that there was not a moment to be lost, was a second
time preparing to own everything; when Hydaspes inquiring from the lord
in waiting whether any ambassadors remained who had not had audience,
was told only those from Syene, who were that instant arrived, with
letters from Oroondates, and presents. "Let them too approach, and
execute their commission," said the monarch. They were introduced, and
delivered letters to this effect:--
"Oroondates, Viceroy of the Great King, to Hydaspes, the king of
Ethiopia.
"Since conqueror in fight, you are yet more conqueror in magnanimity,
in restoring to me a viceroyalty unasked, I have little doubt that I
shall obtain a slight request. A young maiden who was being conducted
from Memphis to my camp, became involved in the perils of war, and as
I am informed, was sent by you into Ethiopia. This I have learnt from
those who were with her and who escaped: I beg she may be sent to me,
both on account of the maiden herself, as well as for her father's
sake, who, after having wandered over half the globe, in search of his
daughter, came at last to Elephantine, and was taken prisoner by the
garrison. When reviewing those of my soldiers who survived, I saw him
and he earnestly desired to be sent to your clemency. He is among the
ambassadors, his manners and bearing show him to be of noble birth,
and his very countenance and looks speak strongly in his favour.
Dismiss him then, Ο king, I beseech you, happy and contented from your
presence. Send back to me one who is a father not merely in name but
in reality. "
Hydaspes, having read the letter, inquired who it was, who was come in
quest of his daughter. When he was pointed out to him, he said, "I am
ready, stranger, to do every thing which Oroondates requests of me. Out
of the ten captive maidens whom we have brought hither, one assuredly
is not your daughter; examine the rest, and if she be found among them
take her. "
The old man, falling down, kissed his feet. The maidens were
brought, and passed in review before him; but when he saw not her
whom he sought, he said sorrowfully--"None of these, Ο king, is my
daughter. "--"You have my good will in your behalf," replied Hydaspes.
"You must blame Fortune if you have not discovered your child. It is in
your power to search, if you will, through the camp; and to ascertain
that none else has been brought hither besides these. "
The old man smote his forehead, and wept; and, then after raising
his eyes, and looking round him, he suddenly sprang forward, like
one distracted; and upon coming to the altar, he twisted the end of
his long robe into the form of a halter, threw it over the neck of
Theagenes, and pulled him towards him, crying out--"I have found you,
my enemy! I have found you, man of blood, detested wretch! "--The guards
interposed, and endeavoured to resist and pull him away, but keeping
a firm hold and clinging closely to him, he succeeded in bringing him
before Hydaspes and the council.
"This, Ο king," said he, "is the man who stole away my daughter. This
is he who has rendered my house childless and desolate; who, after
ravishing away my daughter from the midst of Apollo's altar, now sits
as though he were holy beside the altars of the gods. "
The assembly was thrown into commotion at what was taking place. They
did not understand what he said, but wondered at what they saw him do;
and Hydaspes commanded him to explain himself more plainly, and say
what he would have; when the old man (it was Charicles), concealing the
true circumstances of the birth and exposure of Chariclea, lest, if
she should have perished in her flight or journey, he might come into
some collision with her real parents, explained briefly such matters as
could produce ηo ill results.
"I had a daughter, Ο king! and had you seen her various and uncommon
perfections, both of mind and person, you would say I have good cause
for speaking as I do. She lived the life of a virgin, a priestess of
Diana, in the temple at Delphi. This noble Thessalian, forsooth, who
was sent by his country to preside over a solemn embassy and sacrifice
to be celebrated in our holy city, stole her away from the very shrine,
I say, of Apollo.
"Justly may he be considered to have insulted you by profaning your
national deity Apollo and his temple, Apollo being identical with the
Sun. His assistant in this impious outrage was a pretended priest of
Memphis. In my pursuit, I came to Thessaly; and the Thessalians offered
to give him up should he be found as one accursed and deserving death.
Thinking it probable that Calasiris might have chosen Memphis as a
place of refuge, I hastened thither. Calasiris, I found, was dead; but
I learnt all particulars concerning my daughter from his son Thyamis,
who told me that she had been sent to Oroondates at Syene. After being
disappointed at not finding the latter at Syene, and having been
myself detained prisoner at Elephantis, I now appear before you as a
suppliant, to seek my child. You will, then, deeply oblige me, a man of
many griefs, and will also gratify your own self, by not disregarding
the Viceroy's intercession. " He ceased, and burst into tears.
The king asked Theagenes what reply he had to make to all this. "The
whole charge," said he, "is true. To this man I have been a ravisher,
unjust, and violent; but to you I have been a benefactor. "--"Restore,
then, another's daughter," said Hydaspes. "You have been dedicated to
the gods; let your death be a holy and glorious sacrifice--not the just
punishment of crime. "
"Not he who committed the violence," said Theagenes; "but he who reaps
the fruits of it, is bound to make restitution. Do you then restore
Chariclea, for she is in your possession. The old man, you shall see,
will own your daughter to be her whom he seeks. "
None could repress their emotion: all were in confusion. But
Sisimithres, who had hitherto kept silence, though long since
understanding all that was being said and done, yet waiting till the
circumstances should become yet clearer, now ran up and embraced
Charicles. "Your adopted child," said he, "she whom I formerly
delivered into your hands, is safe: she is, and has been acknowledged
to be, the daughter of those whom you know. "
Upon this Chariclea rushed out of the tent, and overlooking all
restraints of sex or maidenly reserve, flung herself at the feet of
Charicles, and cried out, "O my father! Ο not less revered than the
authors of my birth, punish me, your cruel and ungrateful daughter, as
you think fit, regardless of my only excuse, that what has been done
was ordained by the irresistible will and appointment of the gods. "
Persina, on the other side, threw her arms round Hydaspes, and said,
"My dear husband, be assured that all this is truth, and that this
stranger Greek is her betrothed. " The people, on the other hand, leaped
and danced for joy; every age and condition were, without exception,
delighted--not understanding, indeed, the greater part of what was
said, but conjecturing the facts from what had taken place with
Chariclea. Perhaps, too, they were brought to a comprehension of the
truth by some secret influence of the deity, who had ordered all these
events so dramatically, producing out of the greatest discords the most
perfect harmony: joy out of grief; smiles from tears; out of a stern
spectacle a gladsome feast; laughter from weeping; rejoicing out of
mourning; the finding[27] of those who were not sought; the losing[28]
of those who were in imagination found; in one word, a holy sacrifice
out of an anticipated[29] slaughter.
At length Hydaspes said to Sisimithres, "Ο sage! what are we to do? To
defraud the gods of their victims is not pious; to sacrifice those who
appear to be preserved and restored by their providence is impious. It
needs that some expedient be found out. "
Sisimithres, speaking, not in the Grecian, but in the Ethiopian tongue,
so as to be heard by the greatest part of the assembly, replied: "Ο
king! the wisest among men, as it appears, often have the understanding
clouded through excess of joy, else, before this time, you would have
discovered that the gods regard not with favour the sacrifice which you
have been preparing for them. First they, from the very altar, declared
the all-blessed Chariclea to be your daughter; next they brought her
foster-father most wonderfully from the midst of Greece to this spot;
they struck panic and terror into the horses and oxen which were being
prepared for sacrifice, indicating, perhaps, by that event, that those
whom custom considered as the more perfect and fitting victims were to
be rejected. Now, as the consummation of all good, as the perfection of
the piece,[30] they show this Grecian youth to be the betrothed husband
of the maiden. Let us give credence to these proofs of the divine and
wonder-working will; let us be fellow workers with this will; let us
have recourse to holier offerings; let us abolish, for ever, these
detested human sacrifices. "
When Sisimithres had uttered this, in a loud voice, Hydaspes, speaking
also in the Ethiopian tongue, and taking Theagenes and Chariclea by the
hand, thus proceeded:--
"Ye who are this day assembled! since these things have been thus
brought to pass by the will of the deities, to oppose them would be
impious. Wherefore, calling to witness those who have woven these
events into the web of destiny, and you whose minds appear to be in
concert with them, I sanction the joining together of this pair in
wedlock and procreative union. If you approve, let a sacrifice confirm
this resolution, and then proceed we with the sacred rites. "
The assembly signified their approval by a shout, and clapped their
hands, in token of the nuptials being ratified. Hydaspes approached
the altar, and, in act to begin the ceremony, said, "Ο lordly Sun and
queenly Moon! since by your wills Theagenes and Chariclea have been
declared man and wife, they may now lawfully be your ministers. " So
saying, he took off his own and Persina's mitre, the symbol of the
priesthood, and placed his own upon the head of the youth, that of his
consort upon the maiden's head.
Upon this Charicles called to mind the oracle which had been given to
them in the temple before their flight from Delphi, and acknowledged
its fulfilment.
In regions torrid shall arrive at last,
There shall the gods reward their pious vows,
And snowy chaplets bind their dusky brows. [31]
The youthful pair then, crowned by Hydaspes with white mitres, and
invested with the dignity of priesthood, sacrificed under propitious
omens; and, accompanied by lighted torches and the sounds of pipes and
flutes, Theagenes and Hydaspes, Charicles and Sisimithres, in chariots
drawn by horses, Persina and Chariclea, in one drawn by milk white
oxen, were escorted, into Meröe (amidst shouts, clapping of hands, and
dances), there to celebrate with greater magnificence the more mystic
portions of the nuptial rites.
Thus ends the Romance of the "Ethiopics," or Adventures of Theagenes
and Chariclea, written by a Phœnician of Emesa, in Phœnicia, of the
race of the Sun--Heliodorus, the son of Theodosius.
[Footnote 1: In. Bk. viii. , 98, Herodotus gives an account of the
Persian system of estafette--comparing it to the torch race:--"Kατάπερ
Ἔλλησι ἡ λαμπαδηφορίη, τὴν τῷ Ἡφαίστῳ επιτέλεουσι. " See also, Xen.
Cyrop. viii. 6, 17. ]
[Footnote 2: Solinus describes these fabulous creatures as "alites
ferocissimæ et ultra omnem rabiem sævientes;" others speak of them as
resembling an eagle in the upper part, a horse in the lower. --See Æsch.
P. V. , 395 and 803. ]
[Footnote 3: See Blakesley's edit. of Herod. iii. 98: where mention
is made of boats made of bamboo, used by the Indians, of which Pliny
says, that the length of the boats, made of the internodal wood, often
exceeded five cubits, and that they would hold three persons. ]
[Footnote 4: Herod. i. 216, states the same concerning the Massagetæ,
and assigns the same cause:--"Τῶν θεῶν τῴ ταχίστῳ πάντων τῶν θνητῶν τὸ
τάχιστον δατέονται. "]
[Footnote 5: Τὴν ἐσχάρα. ]
[Footnote 6: Taλaντεύει καθ' ἡμας ἡ μοῖρα. ]
[Footnote 7:
"Gratior et pulchro veniens in corpora virtus. "
Virg. Æn. v. 344.
]
[Footnote 8:
"Immunis aram si tetigit manus,
Non sumptuosa blandior hostia
Mollivit aversos penates
Farre pio et saliente micâ. "
Hor. III. Od. xxiii. 17.
]
[Footnote 9: See Book IV. ]
[Footnote 10: In the version printed in 1717 is a curious blunder in
the word ἐλέφαντα--"a spot black as ebony, resembling an elephant. "]
[Footnote 11: Tὸ ὄμμα δὲ οἱονεί κέρας ἥ σίδηρον εἰς τὰ ὁρώμενα τείνας.
. . . "ille--immota tenebat
Lumina, et obnixus curam sub corde premebat. "--Æn. iv. 331.
]
[Footnote 12: See the speech of Agamemnon, in the Iphigenia in Aulis,
1242. ]
[Footnote 13:
"Ostendent terris hunc tantùm fata, neque ultrà
Esse sinent. "--Virg. Æn. vi. 870.
]
[Footnote 14: "Et serves animæ dimidium meæ. "--Hor. I. Od. iii. 8. ]
[Footnote 15: εἱσαγγιλεὺς. See Herod. III. 84. ]
[Footnote 16: It would be unfair to deprive the reader of the very
quaint rendering of this passage in the version of 1717: "Merœbus,
young and bashful, and wonderfully tickled at the thoughts of a bride,
blushed through his black skin, his face looking _like a ball of soot
that had taken fire_. "]
[Footnote 17: Οὔτως ὠγύγιος. See the description and bearing of
Dares. --Virg. Æn. v. 368, 385. ]
[Footnote 18: Τῶν παρ' αὐτοῖς ἀραχνιών--literally, of spiders, see
Tatius, B. iii. ]
[Footnote 19: In the original it is "ant-gold" χρυσόν μυρμηκιαν, turned
up by the "myrmex," an animal between a dog and fox in size, supposed
to be the ant-eater. See note vol. i. p. 378, of Blakesley's Herodotus.
William Lisle, the poet, thus improves upon the "ant-gold:"--
"A yoke of gryphons chain'd with that fine gold
Which emmots, nigh as big as Norfolke sheepe,
At sand-hill side are said to gath'r and keepe. "
The reader will of course remember Milton's allusion to the _gryphons_.
Paradise Lost, B. ii. 945. ]
[Footnote 20: αυτοσχεδίως κατηγορηθέν. ]
[Footnote 21: This animal was among the number of those, in the
destruction of which the Emperor Commodus exhibited his skill in the
arena. --See Gibbon, i. 153, (_note_). ]
[Footnote 22: Suetonius mentions an exploit similar to this of
Theagenes, and performed by a Thessalian, as he was (Claud. cap. 21).
"Præterea _Thessalos_ equites qui feros tauros per spatia circi agunt,
insiliuntque defessos, et ad terram cornibus detrahunt. " The above
exploit was called ταυροκαθαίρια.
It is represented in one of the
Arundel marbles. ]
[Footnote 23: Τοῖς συνετοῖς ἀσύνετα φθέγγομαι. ]
[Footnote 24:
. . . "caput altum in prælia tollit,
Ostenditque humeros latos, alternaque jactat,
Brachia protendens, et verberat ictibus auras. "
Virg. Æn. v. 375.
]
[Footnote 25:
"Mercuri, facunde nepos Atlantis,
Qui feros cultus hominum recentum
Voce formasti catus, et _decoræ_. "
_More palestræ. _--Hor. I. Od. X. 1-4.
]
[Footnote 26: A wood-cut, in some degree illustrative of this
description, will be found at p. 708 of Greek and Roman Antiquities,
under the article "Pancratium. "]
[Footnote 27: By Hydaspes. ]
[Footnote 28: By Charicles. ]
[Footnote 29:
"Time and tide had thus their sway,
Yielding, like an April day,
Smiling noon for sullen morrow,
Years of joy for hours of sorrow. "--Scott.
]
[Footnote 30: Literally, the torch of the drama, Λαμπάδων δράματος.
"φαίνετε τοίνυν υμεῖς τούτῳ
λαμπάδας ἱερὰς χάμα προπέμπετε
τοῖσιν τούτου τοῦτον μέλεσιν
καὶ μολπᾶσιν κελαδοῦντες. "--Aristoph. Bat. 1493.
See similar allusions in the Eumenides of Æschylus, 959, 979. (Müller's
Edit. )]
[Footnote 31: See Book II. ]
THE END.
THE LOVES OF DAPHNIS AND CHLOE, A PASTORAL NOVEL, BY LONGUS.
MOTTO.
Ah! what a life were this! how sweet, how lovely!
Gives not the hawthorn bush a sweeter shade
To shepherds looking on their silly sheep,
Than doth a rich embroidered canopy
To kings, that fear their subjects' treachery?
Oh yes it doth; a thousand-fold it doth.
Shakspeare
PREFACE.
While hunting in Lesbos I saw in a grove, sacred to the Nymphs, the
most beautiful sight which had ever come before my eyes--an historical
painting,[1] which represented the incidents of a love-story. The grove
itself was beautiful, abounding with trees and flowers, which received
their nourishment from a single fountain. More delightful, however,
than these was the painting, displaying, as it did, great skill, and
representing the fortunes of Love. Because of the fame of this picture,
many strangers resorted thither to pay their adorations to the Nymphs,
and to view the painting. The subjects of it were women in the throes
of child-birth; nurses wrapping the new-born babes in swathing clothes;
infants exposed; animals of the flock giving them suck; shepherds
carrying them away; young people pledging their mutual troth; an attack
by pirates; an inroad by a hostile force.
As I viewed and admired these and many other things, all containing
love allusions, I conceived the desire of writing an illustration
of the piece, and having sought out a person to explain the various
allusions, I at length completed four books,--an offering to the God
of Love, to the Nymphs, and to Pan; a work, moreover, which will be
acceptable to every one, for it will remedy disease, it will solace
grief, it will refresh the memory of him who has once loved, it will
instruct him who is as yet ignorant of love. No one, assuredly, has
ever escaped, or will escape, the influence of this passion, so long as
beauty remains to be seen, and eyes exist to behold it.
May the Deity grant me, undisturbed myself, to describe the emotions of
others! [2]
[Footnote 1: Compare the description of the picture representing the
story of Europa, in Achilleus Tatius. --B. i. , and those of Andromeda
and Prometheus in B. ii. ]
[Footnote 2:
"Suave etiam belli certamina magna tueri
Per campos instructa, _tuâ_ sine parte pericli. "
Lucret. 11, 5.
]
THE LOVES OF DAPHNIS AND CHLOE.
In the island of Lesbos there is an extensive city called Mitylene,
the appearance of which is beautiful; the sea intersects it by various
canals, and it is adorned with bridges of polished white stone. You
might imagine you beheld an island rather than a city.
About twenty-four miles from Mitylene, were the possessions of a rich
man, which formed a very fine estate. The mountains abounded with game,
the fields produced corn, the hills were thick with vines, the pastures
with herds, and the sea-washed shore consisted of an extent of smooth
sand.
As Lamon, a goatherd, was tending his herds upon the estate, he found
a child suckled by a she-goat. The place where it was lying was an oak
coppice and tangled thicket, with ivy winding about it, and soft grass
beneath; thither the goat continually ran and disappeared from sight,
leaving her own kid in order to remain near the child. Lamon watched
her movements, being grieved to see the kid neglected, and one day
when the sun was burning in his meridian heat he follows her steps and
sees her standing over the infant with the utmost caution, lest her
hoofs might injure it, while the child sucked copious draughts of her
milk as if from its mother's breast. Struck with natural astonishment,
he advances close to the spot and discovers a lusty and handsome
male-child, with far richer swathing clothes than suited its fortune
in being thus exposed; for its little mantle was of fine purple, and
fastened by a golden clasp, and it had a little sword with a hilt of
ivory.
At first Lamon resolved to leave the infant to its fate, and to carry
off only the tokens; but feeling afterwards ashamed at the reflection,
that in doing so, he should be inferior in humanity, even to a goat,
he waited for the approach of night, and then carried home the infant
with the tokens, and the she-goat herself to Myrtale his wife.
Myrtale was astonished, and thought it strange if goats could produce
children, upon which her husband recounts every particular; how he
found the infant exposed; how it was suckled; and how ashamed he felt
at the idea of leaving it to perish. She shared his feelings, so
they agreed to conceal the tokens, and adopt the child as their own,
committing the rearing of it to the goat; and that the name also might
be a pastoral one they determined to call it Daphnis.
Two years had now elapsed, when Dryas, a neighbouring shepherd, tending
his flock, found an infant under similar circumstances.
There was a grotto[1] sacred to the Nymphs; it was a spacious rock,
concave within, convex without. The statues of the Nymphs themselves
were carved in stone. Their feet were bare, their arms naked to the
shoulder, their hair falling dishevelled upon their shoulders, their
vests girt about the waist, a smile[2] sat upon their brow; their whole
semblance was that of a troop of dancers. The dome[3] of the grotto
rose over the middle of the rock. Water, springing from a fountain,
formed a running stream, and a trim meadow stretched its soft and
abundant herbage before the entrance, fed by the perpetual moisture.
Within, milk-pails, transverse-flutes, flageolets and pastoral
pipes[4] were suspended--the offerings of many an aged shepherd.
An ewe of Dryas's flock which had lately lambed had frequently resorted
to this grotto, and raised apprehensions of her being lost. The
shepherd wishing to cure her of this habit, and to bring her back to
her former way of grazing, twisted some green osiers into the form of
a slip knot, and approached the rock with the view of seizing her.
Upon arriving there, however, he beheld a sight far contrary to his
expectation. He found his ewe affectionately offering from her udder
copious draughts of milk to an infant, which without any wailing,
eagerly turned from one teat to the other its clean and glossy face,
the animal licking it, as soon as it had had its fill.
This child was a female: and had beside its swathing garments, by way
of tokens, a head-dress wrought with gold, gilt sandals, and golden[5]
anklets.
Dryas imagining that this foundling was a gift from the Deity, and
instructed by his sheep to pity and love the infant, raised her in his
arms, placed the tokens in his scrip, and prayed the Nymphs that their
favour might attend upon him in bringing up their suppliant; and when
the time was come for driving his cattle from their pasture, he returns
to his cottage, relates what he had seen to his wife, exhibits what he
had found, urges her to observe a secrecy, and to regard and rear the
child as her own daughter.
Nape (for so his wife was called) immediately became a mother to the
infant, and felt affection towards it, fearing perhaps to be outdone in
tenderness by the ewe, and to make appearances more probable, gave the
child the pastoral name of Chloe.
The two children grew rapidly, and their personal appearance exceeded
that of ordinary rustics. Daphnis was now fifteen and Chloe was his
junior by two years, when on the same night Lamon and Dryas had the
following dream. They thought that they beheld the Nymphs of the
Grotto, in which the fountain was and where Dryas found the infant,
presenting Daphnis and Chloe to a very saucy looking and handsome
boy, who had wings upon his shoulders, and a little bow and arrows in
his hand. He lightly touched them both with one of his shafts, and
commanded them henceforth to follow a pastoral life. The boy was to
tend goats, the girl was to have the charge of sheep.
The Shepherd and Goat-herd having had this dream, were grieved to think
that these, their adopted children, were like themselves to have the
care of flocks. Their dress had given promise of a better fortune,
in consequence of which their fare had been more delicate, and their
education and accomplishments superior to those of a country life.
It appeared to them, however, that in the case of children whom the
gods had preserved, the will of the gods must be obeyed; so each having
communicated to the other his dream, they offered a sacrifice to the
"WINGED BOY, THE COMPANION OF THE NYMPHS," (for they were unacquainted
with his name) and sent forth the young people to their pastoral
employments, having first instructed them in their duties; how to
pasture their herds before the noon-day heat, and when it was abated;
at what time to lead them to the stream, and afterwards to drive them
home to the fold; which of their sheep and goats required the crook,
and to which only the voice was necessary.
They, on their part, received the charge as if it had been some
powerful sovereignty, and felt an affection for their sheep and goats
beyond what is usual with shepherds: Chloe referring her preservation
to a ewe, and Daphnis remembering that a she-goat had suckled him when
he was exposed.
It was the beginning of spring, the flowers were in bloom throughout
the woods, the meadows, and the mountains; there were the buzzings of
the bee, the warblings of the songsters, the frolics of the lambs.
The young of the flock were skipping on the mountains, the bees flew
humming through the meadows, and the songs of the birds resounded
through the bushes. Seeing all things pervaded with such universal
joy, they, young and susceptible as they were, imitated whatever
they saw or heard. Hearing the carol of the birds, they sang; seeing
the sportive skipping of the lambs, they danced; and in imitation of
the bees they gathered flowers. Some they placed in their bosoms, and
others they wove into chaplets and carried them as offerings to the
Nymphs.
They tended their flocks in company, and all their occupations were in
common. Daphnis frequently collected the sheep, which had strayed, and
Chloe drove back from a precipice the goats which were too venturesome.
Sometimes one would take the entire management both of goats and sheep,
while the other was intent upon some amusement.
Their sports were of a pastoral and childish kind. Chloe sometimes
neglected her flock and went in search of stalks of asphodel, with
which she wove traps[6] for locusts; while Daphnis devoted himself to
playing till nightfall upon his pipe, which he had formed by cutting
slender reeds, perforating the intervals between the joints, and
compacting them together with soft wax. Sometimes they shared their
milk and wine, and made a common meal upon the provision which they
had brought from home; and sooner might you see one part of the flock
divided from the other than Daphnis separate from Chloe.
While thus engaged in their amusements Love contrived an interruption
of a serious nature. [7] A she-wolf from the neighbourhood had often
carried off lambs from other shepherds' flocks, as she required a
plentiful supply of food for her whelps. Upon this the villagers
assembled by night and dug pits in the earth, six feet wide and
twenty-four feet deep. The greater part of the loose earth, dug out of
these pits, they carried to a distance and scattered about, spreading
the remainder over some long dry sticks laid over the mouth of the
pits, so as to resemble the natural surface of the ground. The sticks
were weaker than straws, so that if even a hare ran over them they
would break and prove that instead of substance there was but a show
of solid earth. The villagers dug many of these pits in the mountains
and in the plains, but they could not succeed in capturing the wolf,
which discovered the contrivance of the snare. They however caused the
destruction of many of their own goats and sheep, and very nearly, as
we shall see, that of Daphnis.
Two angry he-goats engaged in fight. The contest waxed more and more
violent, until one of them having his horn broken ran away bellowing
with pain. The victor followed in hot and close pursuit. Daphnis,
vexed to see that his goat's horn was broken, and that the conqueror
persevered in his vengeance, seized his club and crook, and pursued
the pursuer. [8] In consequence of the former hurrying on in wrath,
and the latter flying in trepidation, neither of them observed what
lay in their path, and both fell into a pit, the goat first, Daphnis
afterwards. This was the means of preserving his life, the goat serving
as a support in his descent. Poor Daphnis remained at the bottom
lamenting his sad mishap with tears, and anxiously hoping that some one
might pass by, and pull him out. Chloe, who had observed the accident,
hastened to the spot, and finding that he was still alive, summoned a
cowherd from an adjacent field to come to his assistance. He obeyed the
call, but upon seeking for a rope long enough to draw Daphnis out, no
rope was to be found: upon which Chloe undoing her head-band,[9] gave
it to the cowherd to let down; they then placed themselves at the brink
of the pit, and held one end, while Daphnis grasped the other with both
hands, and so got out.
They then extricated the unhappy goat, who had both his horns broken by
the fall, and thus suffered a just punishment for his revenge towards
his defeated fellow-combatant. They gave him to the herdsman as a
reward for his assistance, and if the family at home inquired after
him, were prepared to say that he had been destroyed by a wolf. After
this they returned to see whether their flocks were safe, and finding
both goats and sheep feeding quietly and orderly, they sat down on the
trunk of a tree and began to examine whether Daphnis had received any
wound. No hurt or blood was to be seen, but his hair and all the rest
of his person were covered with mud and dirt. Daphnis thought it would
be best to wash himself, before Lamon and Myrtale should find out what
had happened to him; proceeding with Chloe to the Grotto of the Nymphs,
he gave her his tunic and scrip in charge. [10]
He then approached the fountain and washed his hair and his whole
person. His hair was long and black, and his body sun-burnt; one might
have imagined that its hue was derived from the overshadowing of his
locks. Chloe thought him beautiful, and because she had never done so
before, attributed his beauty to the effects of the bath. As she was
washing his back and shoulders his tender flesh yielded to her hand,
so that, unobserved, she frequently touched her own skin, in order
to ascertain which of the two was softer. The sun was now setting,
so they drove home their flocks, the only wish in Chloe's mind being
to see Daphnis bathe again. The following day, upon returning to the
accustomed pasture, Daphnis sat as usual under an oak, playing upon his
pipe and surveying his goats lying down and apparently listening to his
strains. Chloe, on her part, sitting near him, looked at her sheep,
but more frequently turned her eyes upon Daphnis; again he appeared to
her beautiful as he was playing upon his pipe, and she attributed his
beauty to the melody, so that taking the pipe she played upon it, in
order, if possible, to appear beautiful herself. She persuaded him to
bathe again, she looked at him when in the bath, and while looking at
him, touched his skin: after which, as she returned home, she mentally
admired him, and this admiration was the beginning of love. She knew
not the meaning of her feelings, young as she was, and brought up in
the country, and never having heard from any one, so much as the name
of love. She felt an oppression at her heart, she could not restrain
her eyes from gazing upon him, nor her mouth from often pronouncing
his name. She took no food, she lay awake at night, she neglected
her flock, she laughed and wept by turns; now she would doze, then
suddenly start up; at one moment her face became pale, in another
moment it burnt with blushes. Such irritation is not felt even by
the breeze-stung heifer. [11] Upon one occasion, when alone, she thus
reasoned with herself. --"I am no doubt ill, but what my malady is I
know not; I am in pain, and yet I have no wound; I feel grief, and yet
I have lost none of my flock; I burn, and yet am sitting in the shade:
how often have brambles torn my skin, without my shedding a single
tear! how often have the bees stung me, yet I could still enjoy my
meals! Whatever it is which now wounds my heart, must be sharper than
either of these. Daphnis is beautiful, so are the flowers; his pipe
breathes sweetly, so does the nightingale; yet I take no account either
of birds or flowers. Would that I could become a pipe, that he might
play upon me! or a goat, that I might pasture under his care! Ο cruel
fountain, thou madest Daphnis alone beautiful; my bathing has been all
in vain! Dear Nymphs, ye see me perishing, yet neither do ye endeavour
to save the maiden brought up among you! Who will crown you with
flowers when I am gone? Who will take care of my poor lambs? Who will
attend to my chirping locust, which I caught with so much trouble, that
its song might lull me to rest in the grotto; but now I am sleepless,
because of Daphnis, and my locust chirps in vain! "
Such were the feelings, and such the words of Chloe, while as yet
ignorant of the name of love. But Dorco the cowherd (the same who had
drawn Daphnis and the goat out of the pit), a young fellow who already
boasted of some beard upon his chin, and who knew not merely the name
but the realities of love, had become enamoured of Chloe, from the
first time of meeting her. Feeling his passion increase day by day, and
despising Daphnis, whom he looked upon as a mere boy, he determined to
effect his purpose either by gifts or by dint of force. At first he
made presents to them both; he gave Daphnis a shepherd's pipe, having
its nine reeds[12] connected with metal in lieu of wax. He presented
Chloe with a fawn skin, spotted all over, such as is worn by the
Bacchantes. Having thus insinuated himself into their friendship, he by
degrees neglected Daphnis, but every day brought something to Chloe,
either a delicate cheese, or a chaplet of flowers, or a ripe apple. On
one occasion he brought her a mountain calf, a gilt drinking cup, and
the nestlings[13] of a wild bird. She, ignorant as she was of love's
artifices, received his gifts with pleasure;[14] chiefly pleased,
however, at having something to give Daphnis. One day it happened that
Dorco and he (for he likewise was destined to experience the pains and
penalties of love) had an argument on the subject of their respective
share of beauty. Chloe was to be umpire, and the victor's reward was to
be a kiss from her. Dorco, thus began--
"Maiden," said he, "I am taller than Daphnis, I am also a cowherd,
he, a goatherd, I therefore excel him as far as oxen are superior to
goats; I am fair as milk, and my hair brown as the ripe harvest field;
moreover, I had a mother to bring me up, not a goat. He, on the other
hand is short, beardless as a woman, and has a skin as tawny as a wolf;
while, from tending he-goats, he has contracted a goatish smell; he is
also so poor, that he cannot afford to keep even a dog; and if it be
true that a nanny gave him suck, he is no better[15] than a nanny's
son. "
Such was Dorco's speech; it was next the turn of Daphnis--
"It is true," said he, "that a she-goat suckled me, and so did a
she-goat suckle Jove; I tend he-goats and will bring them into better
condition than his oxen, but I smell of them no more than Pan does,
who has in him more of a goat than any thing else. I am content with
cheese, coarse bread,[16] and white wine, the food suitable for
country folk. I am beardless, so is Bacchus; I am dark complexioned,
so is the hyacinth; yet Bacchus is preferred before the satyr and the
hyacinth[17] before the lily. Now look at him, he is as sandy haired
as a fox, bearded as a goat, and smock-faced as any city wench. If you
have to bestow a kiss, it will be given to my mouth, whereas it will
be thrown away upon his bristles. Remember also, maiden, that you owe
_your_ nurture to a sheep, and yet this has not marred your beauty. "
Chloe could restrain herself no longer, but partly from pleasure at
his praising her, partly from a desire of kissing him, she sprang
forward and bestowed upon him the prize; an artless and unsophisticated
kiss,[18] but one well calculated to set his heart on fire. Upon this,
Dorco, in great disgust, took himself off, determined to seek some
other way of wooing. Daphnis, as though he had been stung instead of
kissed, became suddenly grave, felt a shivering all over, and could not
control the beating of his heart. He wished to gaze upon Chloe, but at
the first glance his face was suffused with blushes. For the first time
he admired her hair, because it was auburn; and her eyes, because they
were large[19] and brilliant; her countenance, because it was fairer
than even the milk of his own she-goats. One might have supposed that
he had just received the faculty of sight, having had till then, "no
speculation" in his eyes. [20]
From this moment, he took no food beyond the merest morsel, no drink
beyond what would just moisten his lips. Formerly more chattering than
the locusts, he became mute; he was now dull and listless, whereas
he had been more nimble than the goats. His flock was neglected, his
pipe was thrown aside; his face became paler than the summer-parched
herbage. Chloe alone could rouse his powers of speech; whenever he was
absent from her, he would thus fondly soliloquize:--
"What will be the result of this kiss of Chloe? her lips are softer
than rose-buds, and her mouth is sweeter than the honeycomb, but
this kiss has left a sting sharper than the sting of a bee! --I have
frequently kissed the kids, and the young puppies, and the calf which
Dorco gave me, but this kiss of Chloe is something quite new and
wonderful! My breath is gone, my heart pants, my spirit sinks within me
and dies away; and yet I wish to kiss again! [21] My victory has been
the source of sorrow and of a new disease, which I know not how to
name. Could Chloe have tasted poison before she permitted me to kiss
her? If so, how is it that she survives? How sweetly the nightingales
sing, while my pipe is mute! How gaily the kids skip and play, while
I sit listlessly by! The flowers are in full beauty, yet I weave no
garlands! The violets and the hyacinths are blooming, while Daphnis
droops and fades away. Alas! shall Dorco ever appear more beautiful in
Chloe's eyes, than I do! "
Such were the sensations of the worthy Daphnis, and thus he vented
his feelings. He now first felt the power, and now first uttered the
language of--LOVE.
In the mean time Dorco, the cowherd, who entertained a passion for
Chloe, watched an opportunity of addressing Dryas on the subject;
and finding him one day employed in planting a tree near one of his
vines, he approached carrying with him some fine cheeses. [22] First
of all he begged Dryas to accept of the cheeses as a present from an
old acquaintance and fellow herdsman; and then informed him of the
affection which he cherished towards his daughter Chloe. He promised
that, if he should be so happy as to obtain her for his wife, he was
prepared to offer him gifts, many and handsome, as a cowherd could
bestow,--a yoke of oxen fit for the plough, four hives of bees, fifty
young apple trees for planting, the hide of an ox, suitable for shoe
leather, and a weaned calf annually.
Dryas was almost tempted by these promises to give his assent to
the marriage; but on the other hand, reflecting that the maiden was
deserving of a better match, and fearing lest if ever discovered, he
might get himself into great trouble, he refused his assent, at the
same time intreating Dorco not to be affronted, and declining to accept
the gifts which he had enumerated.
Dorco being thus a second time disappointed of his hope, and having
given his cheese away to no purpose, conceived a plan of attacking
Chloe by force, whenever he should find her alone; and having observed
that she and Daphnis, on alternate days, conducted the herds to drink,
he contrived a scheme, worthy of a neatherd's brain. A large wolf had
been killed by his bull, who fought in defence of the herd; Dorco[23]
threw this wolf's skin over him, so that it completely covered his
back, reaching to the ground, and he adjusted it in such a manner, that
the skins of the fore feet were fitted over his hands, while those of
the hind feet spread down his legs to the very heels. The head, with
its gaping jaws, encased him as completely as a soldier's helmet.
Having thus "be-wolfed" himself as much as possible, he withdrew to
the spring, where the sheep and goats usually drank as they returned
from pasture. The spring was in a hollow, and around it the furze,
brambles, junipers, and thistles were so thick, that a real wolf
might easily choose it as a lair. Here Dorco concealed himself, and
anxiously waited for the time when the flocks should come to drink,
and when Chloe, as he hoped, would be so startled and terrified by his
appearance that he might easily seize her.
He had not remained long, when Chloe conducted the flock to the spring,
leaving Daphnis employed in cutting green leaves as fodder for the
kids in the evening. The dogs (the guardians of the sheep and goats)
accompanied Chloe, and scenting[24] about with their usual sagacity,
discovered Dorco, who was in the act of moving.
