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CHARACTERS IN THE PLAY AETHRA, mother of THESEUS CHORUS OF ARGIVE MOTHERS THESEUS, King of Athens ADRASTUS, King of Argos HERALD, of Creon, King of Thebes MESSENGER EVADNE, wife of Capaneus IPHIS, father of EVADNE CHILDREN of the slain chieftains ATHENA Guards, attendants, soldiers
AETHRA
O DEMETER, guardian of this Eleusinian land, and ye servants of
the goddess who attend her fane, grant happiness to me and my son
Theseus, to the city of Athens and the country of Pittheus, wherein my
father reared me, Aethra, in a happy home, and gave me in marriage
to Aegeus, Pandion's son, according to the oracle of Loxias. This
prayer I make, when I behold these aged dames, who, leaving their
homes in Argos, now throw themselves with suppliant branches at my
knees in their awful trouble; for around the gates of Cadmus have they
lost their seven noble sons, whom on a day Adrastus, king of Argos,
led thither, eager to secure for exiled Polyneices, his son-in-law,
a share in the heritage of Oedipus; so now their mothers would bury in
the grave the dead, whom the spear hath slain, but the victors prevent
them and will not allow them to take up the corpses, spurning Heaven's
laws. Here lies Adrastus on the ground with streaming eye, sharing
with them the burden of their prayer to me, and bemoaning the havoc of
the sword and the sorry fate of the warriors whom he led from their
homes. And he doth urge me use entreaty, to persuade my son to take up
the dead and help to bury them, either by winning words or force of
arms, laying on my son and on Athens this task alone. Now it
chanced, that I had left my house and come to offer sacrifice on
behalf of the earth's crop at this shrine, where first the fruitful
corn showed its bristling shocks above the soil. And here at the
holy altars of the twain goddesses, Demeter and her daughter, I
wait, holding these sprays of foliage, a bond that bindeth not, in
compassion for these childless mothers, hoary with age, and from
reverence for the sacred fillets. To call Theseus hither is my
herald to the city gone, that he may rid the land of that which
grieveth them, or loose these my suppliant bonds, with pious
observance of the gods' will; for such as are discreet amongst women
should in all cases invoke the aid of men.
CHORUS (chanting)
strophe 1
At thy knees I fall, aged dame, and my old lips beseech thee;
arise, rescue from the slain my children's bodies, whose limbs, by
death relaxed, are left a prey to savage mountain beasts,
antistrophe 1
Beholding the bitter tears which spring to my eyes and my old
wrinkled skin torn by my hands; for what can I do else? who never laid
out my children dead within my halls, nor now behold their tombs
heaped up with earth.
strophe 2
Thou too, honoured lady, once a son didst bear, crowning thy
lord's marriage with fond joy; then share, O share with me thy
mother's feelings, in such measure as my sad heart grieves for my
own dead sons; and persuade thy son, whose aid we implore, to go
unto the river Ismenus, there to place within my hapless arms the
bodies of my children, slain in their prime and left without a tomb.
antistrophe 2
Though not as piety enjoins, yet from sheer necessity I have
come to the fire-crowned altars of the gods, falling on my knees
with instant supplication, for my cause is just, and 'tis in thy
power, blest as thou art in thy children, to remove from me my woe; so
in my sore distress I do beseech thee of my misery place in my hands
my son's dead body, that I may throw my arms about his hapless limbs.
(The attendants of the goddess take up the lament.)
strophe 3
Behold a rivalry in sorrow! woe takes up the tale of woe; hark!
thy servants beat their breasts. Come ye who join the mourners'
wail, come, O sympathetic band, to join the dance, which Hades
honours; let the pearly nail be stained red, as it rends your
cheeks, let your skin be streaked with gore; for honours rendered to
the dead are credit to the living.
antistrophe 3
Sorrow's charm doth drive me wild, insatiate, painful, endless,
even as the trickling stream that gushes from some steep rock's
face; for 'tis woman's way to fall a-weeping o'er the cruel calamity
of children dead. Ah me! would I could die and forget my anguish
(THESEUS and his retinue enter.)
THESEUS
What is this lamentation that I hear, this beating of the
breast, these dirges for the dead, with cries that echo from this
shrine? How fluttering fear disquiets me, lest haply my mother have
gotted some mischance, in quest of whom I come, for she hath been long
absent from home. Ha! what now? A strange sight challenges my
speech; I see my aged mother sitting at the altar and stranger dames
are with her, who in various note proclaim their woe; from aged eyes
the piteous tear is starting to the ground, their hair is shorn, their
robes are not the robes of joy. What means it, mother? 'Tis thine to
make it plain to me, mine to listen; yea, for I expect some tidings
strange.
AETHRA
My son, these are the mothers of those chieftains seven, who
fell around the gates of Cadmus' town. With suppliant boughs they keep
me prisoner, as thou seest, in their midst.
THESEUS
And who is yonder man, that moaneth piteously in the gateway?
AETHRA
Adrastus, they inform me, king of Argos.
THESEUS
Are those his children, those boys who stand round him?
AETHRA
Not his, but the sons of the fallen slain.
THESEUS
Why are they come to us, with suppliant hand outstretched?
AETHRA
I know; but 'tis for them to tell their story, my son.
THESEUS
To thee, in thy mantle muffled, I address my inquiries; thy
head, let lamentation be, and speak; for naught can be achieved save
through the utterance of thy tongue.
ADRASTUS (rising)
Victorious prince of the Athenian realm, Theseus, to thee and to
thy city I, a suppliant, come.
THESEUS
What seekest thou? What need is thine?
ADRASTUS
Dost know how I did lead an expedition to its ruin?
THESEUS
Assuredly; thou didst not pass through Hellas, all in silence.
ADRASTUS
There I lost the pick of Argos' sons.
THESEUS
These are the results of that unhappy war.
ADRASTUS
I went and craved their bodies from Thebes.
THESEUS
Didst thou rely on heralds, Hermes' servants, in order to bury
them?
ADRASTUS
I did; and even then their slayers said me nay.
THESEUS
Why, what say they to thy just request?
ADRASTUS
Say! Success makes them forget how to bear their fortune.
THESEUS
Art come to me then for counsel? or wherefore?
ADRASTUS
With the wish that thou, O Theseus, shouldst recover the sons of
the Argives.
THESEUS
Where is your Argos now? were its vauntings all in vain?
ADRASTUS
Defeat and ruin are our lot. To thee for aid we come.
THESEUS
Is this thy own private resolve, or the wish of all the city?
ADRASTUS
The sons of Danaus, one and all, implore thee to bury the dead.
THESEUS
Why didst lead thy seven armies against Thebes?
ADRASTUS
To confer that favour on the husbands of my daughters twain.
THESEUS
To which of the Argives didst thou give thy daughters in marriage?
ADRASTUS
I made no match for them with kinsmen of my family.
THESEUS
What! didst give Argive maids to foreign lords?
ADRASTUS
Yea, to Tydeus, and to Polyneices, who was Theban-born
THESEUS
What induced thee to select this alliance?
ADRASTUS
Dark riddles of Phoebus stole away my judgment.
THESEUS
What said Apollo to determine the maidens' marriage?
ADRASTUS
That I should give my daughters twain to a wild boar and a lion.
THESEUS
How dost thou explain the message of the god?
ADRASTUS
One night came to my door two exiles.
THESEUS
The name of each declare: thou art speaking of both together.
ADRASTUS
They fought together, Tydeus with Polyneices.
THESEUS
Didst thou give thy daughters to them as to wild beasts?
ADRASTUS
Yea, for, as they fought, I likened them to those monsters twain.
THESEUS
Why had they left the borders of their native land and come to
thee?
ADRASTUS
Tydeus was exiled for the murder of a kinsman.
THESEUS
Wherefore had the son of Oedipus left Thebes?
ADRASTUS
By reason of his father's curse, not to spill his brother's blood.
THESEUS
Wise no doubt that voluntary exile.
ADRASTUS
But those who stayed at home were for injuring the absent.
THESEUS
What! did brother rob brother of his inheritance?
ADRASTUS
To avenge this I set out; hence my ruin.
THESEUS
Didst consult seers, and gaze into the flame of burnt-offerings?
ADRASTUS
Ah me! thou pressest on the very point wherein I most did fail.
THESEUS
It seems thy going was not favoured by heaven.
ADRASTUS
Worse; I went in spite even of Amphiaraus.
THESEUS
And so heaven lightly turned its face from thee.
ADRASTUS
I was carried away by the clamour of younger men.
THESEUS
Thou didst favour courage instead of discretion.
ADRASTUS
True; and many a general owes defeat to that. O king of Athens,
bravest of the sons of Hellas, I blush to throw myself upon the ground
and clasp thy knees, I a grey-haired king, blest in days gone by;
yet needs must yield to my misfortunes. I pray thee save the dead;
have pity on my sorrows and on these, the mothers of the slain, whom
hoary eld finds reft of their sons; yet they endured to journey hither
and tread a foreign soil with aged tottering steps, bearing no embassy
to Demeter's mysteries; only seeking burial for their dead, which
lot should have been theirs, e'en burial by the hands of sons still in
their prime. And 'tis wise in the rich to see the poor man's
poverty, and in the poor man to turn ambitious eyes toward the rich,
that so he may himself indulge a longing for possessions; and they,
whom fortune frowns not on, should gaze on misery's presentment;
likewise, who maketh songs should take a pleasure in their making; for
if it be not so with him, he will in no wise avail to gladden
others, if himself have sorrow in his home; nay, 'tis not even right
to expect it. Mayhap thou'lt say, "Why pass the land of Pelops o'er,
and lay this toil on Athens?" This am I bound to declare. Sparta is
cruel, her customs variable; the other states are small and weak.
Thy city alone would be able to undertake this labour; for it turns an
eye on suffering, and hath in thee a young and gallant king, for
want whereof to lead their hosts states ere now have often perished.
LEADER OF THE CHORUS
I too, Theseus, urge the same plea to thee; have pity on my hard
fate.
THESEUS
Full oft have I argued out this subject with others. For there are
who say, there is more bad than good in human nature, to the which I
hold contrary view, that good o'er bad predominates in man, for if
it were not so, we should not exist. He hath my praise, whoe'er of
gods brought us to live by rule from chaos and from brutishness, first
by implanting reason, and next by giving us a tongue to declare our
thoughts, so as to know the meaning of what is said, bestowing
fruitful crops, and drops of rain from heaven to make them grow,
wherewith to nourish earth's fruits and to water her lap; and more
than this, protection from the wintry storm, and means to ward from us
the sun-god's scorching heat; the art of sailing o'er the sea, so that
we might exchange with one another whatso our countries lack. And
where sight fails us and our knowledge is not sure, the seer foretells
by gazing on the flame, by reading signs in folds of entrails, or by
divination from the flight of birds. Are we not then to proud, when
heaven hath made such preparation for our life, not to be content
therewith? But our presumption seeks to lord it over heaven, and in
the pride of our hearts we think we are wiser than the gods.
Methinks thou art even of this number, a son of folly, seeing that
thou, though obedient to Apollo's oracle in giving thy daughters to
strangers, as if gods really existed, yet hast hurt thy house by
mingling the stream of its pure line with muddy waters; no! never
should the wise man have joined the stock of just and unjust in one,
but should have gotten prosperous friends for his family. For the
deity, confusing their destinies, doth oft destroy by the sinner's
fate him who never sinned nor committed injustice. Thou didst lead all
Argos forth to battle, though seers proclaimed the will of heaven, and
then in scorn of them and in violent disregard of the gods hast ruined
thy city, led away by younger men, such as court distinction, and
add war to war unrighteously, destroying their fellow-citizens; one
aspires to lead an army; another fain would seize the reins of power
and work his wanton will; a third is bent on gain, careless of any ill
the people thereby suffer. For there are three ranks of citizens;
the rich, a useless set, that ever crave for more; the poor and
destitute, fearful folk, that cherish envy more than is right, and
shoot out grievous stings against the men who have aught, beguiled
as they are by the eloquence of vicious leaders; while the class
that is midmost of the three preserveth cities, observing such order
as the state ordains. Shall I then become thy ally? What fair
pretext should I urge before my countrymen? Depart in peace! For why
shouldst thou, having been ill-advised thyself, seek to drag our
fortune down?
LEADER
He erred; but with the young men rests this error, while he may
well be pardoned.
ADRASTUS
I did not choose thee, king, to judge my affliction, but came to
thee to cure it; no! nor if in aught my fortunes prove me wrong,
came I to the to punish or correct them, but to seek thy help. But
if thou wilt not, must be content with thy decision; for how can I
help it? Come, aged dames, away! Yet leave behind you here the woven
leaves of pale green foliage, calling to witness heaven and earth,
Demeter, that fire-bearing goddess, and the sun-god's light, that
our prayers to heaven availed us naught.
CHORUS (singing)
...who was Pelops' son, and we are of the land of Pelops and share
with thee the blood of ancestors. What art thou doing? wilt thou
betray these suppliant symbols, and banish from thy land these aged
women without the boon they should obtain? Do not so; e'en the wild
beast finds a refuge in the rock, the slave in the altars of the gods,
and a state when tempest-tossed cowers to its neighbour's shelter; for
naught in this life of man is blest unto its end.
Rise, hapless one, from the sacred floor of Persephone; rise,
clasp him by the knees and implore him, "O recover the bodies of our
dead sons, the children that I lost-ah, woe is me!-beneath the walls
of Cadmus' town." Ah me! ah me! Take me by the hand, poor aged
sufferer that I am, support and guide and raise me up. By thy beard,
kind friend, glory of Hellas, I do beseech thee, as I clasp thy
knees and hands in my misery; O pity me as I entreat for my sons
with my tale of wretched woe, like some beggar; nor let my sons lie
there unburied in the land of Cadmus, glad prey for beasts, whilst
thou art in thy prime, I implore thee. See the teardrop tremble in
my eye, as thus I throw me at thy knees to win my children burial.
THESEUS
Mother mine, why weepest thou, drawing o'er thine eyes thy veil?
Is it because thou didst hear their piteous lamentations? To my own
heart it goes. Raise thy silvered head, weep not where thou sittest at
the holy altar of Demeter.
AETHRA
Ah woe!
THESEUS
'Tis not for thee their sorrows to lament.
AETHRA
Ye hapless dames!
THESEUS
Thou art not of their company.
AETHRA
May I a scheme declare, my son, that shall add to thy glory and
the state's?
THESEUS
Yea, for oft even from women's lips issue wise counsels.
AETHRA
Yet the word, that lurks within my heart, makes me hesitate.
THESEUS
Shame! to hide from friends good counsel.
AETHRA
Nay then, I will not hold my peace to blame myself hereafter for
having now kept silence to my shame, nor will I forego my honourable
proposal, from the common fear that it is useless for women to give
good advice. First, my son, I exhort thee give good heed to heaven's
will, lest from slighting it thou suffer shipwreck; for in this one
single point thou failest, though well-advised in all else. Further, I
would have patiently endured, had it not been my duty to venture
somewhat for injured folk; and this, my son, it is that brings thee
now thy honour, and causes me no fear to urge that thou shouldst use
thy power to make men of violence, who prevent the dead from receiving
their meed of burial and funeral rites, perform this bounden duty, and
check those who would confound the customs of all Hellas; for this
it is that holds men's states together,-strict observance of the laws.
And some, no doubt, will say, 'twas cowardice made thee stand aloof in
terror, when thou mightest have won for thy city a crown of glory,
and, though thou didst encounter a savage swine, labouring for a sorry
task, yet when the time came for thee to face the helmet and pointed
spear, and do thy best, thou wert found to be coward. Nay! do not so
if thou be son of mine. Dost see how fiercely thy country looks on its
revilers when they mock her for want of counsel? Yea, for in her toils
she groweth greater. But states, whose policy is dark and cautious,
have their sight darkened by their carefulness. My son, wilt thou
not go succour the dead and these poor women in their need? have no
fears for thee, starting as thou dost with right upon thy side; and
although I see the prosperity of Cadmus' folk, still am I confident
they will throw a different die; for the deity reverses all things
again.
LEADER OF THE CHORUS
Ah! best of friends, right well hast thou pleaded for me and for
Adrastus, and hence my joy is doubled.
THESEUS
Mother, the words that I have spoken are his fair deserts, and I
have declared my opinion of the counsels that ruined him; yet do I
perceive the truth of thy warning to me, that it ill suits my
character to shun dangers. For by a long and glorious career have I
displayed this my habit among Hellenes, of ever punishing the
wicked. Wherefore I cannot refuse toil. For what will spiteful tongues
say of me, when thou, my mother, who more than all others fearest
for my safety, bidst me undertake this enterprise? Yea, I will go
about this business and rescue the dead by words persuasive; or,
failing that, the spear forthwith shall decide this issue, nor will
heaven grudge me this. But I require the whole city's sanction also,
which my mere wish will ensure; still by communicating the proposal to
them I shall find the people better disposed. For them I made supreme,
when I set this city free, by giving all an equal vote. So I will take
Adrastus as a text for what I have to say and go to their assembly,
and when have won them to these views, I will return hither, after
collecting a picked band of young Athenians; and then remaining
under arms I will send a message to Creon, begging the bodies of the
dead. But do ye, aged ladies, remove from my mother your holy wreaths,
that I may take her by the hand and conduct her to the house of
Aegeus; for a wretched son is he who rewards not his parents by
service; for, when he hath conferred on them the best he hath, he in
his turn from his own sons receives all such service as he gave to
them.
(AETHRA leaves the altar and departs.)
CHORUS (singing)
strophe
O Argos, home of steeds, my native land! ye have heard with your
ears these words, the king's pious will toward the gods in the sight
of great Pelasgia and throughout Argos.
antistrophe 1
May he reach the goal! yea, and triumph o'er my sorrows,
rescuing the gory corpse, the mother's idol and making the land of
Inachus his friend by helping her.
strophe 2
For pious toil is a fair ornament to cities, and carries with it
grace that never wastes away. What will the city decide, I wonder?
Will it conclude a friendly truce with me, and shall we obtain
burial for our sons?
antistrophe 2
Help, O help, city of Pallas, the mother's cause, that so they may
not pollute the laws of all mankind. Thou, I know, dost reverence
right, and to injustice dealest out defeat, a protection at all
times to the afflicted.
(THESEUS addresses one of his own heralds.
As he speaks, the HERALD from King Creon of Thebes enters.)
THESEUS
Forasmuch as with this thy art thou hast ever served the state and
me by carrying my proclamations far and wide, so now cross Asopus
and the waters of Ismenus, and declare this message to the haughty
king of the Cadmeans: "Theseus, thy neighbour, one who well may win
the boon he craves, begs as a favour thy permission to bury the
dead, winning to thyself thereby the love of all the Erechtheidae."
And if they will acquiesce, come back again, but if they hearken
not, thy second message runneth thus, they may expect my warrior host;
for at the sacred fount of Callichorus my army camps in readiness
and is being reviewed. Moreover, the city gladly of its own accord
undertook this enterprise, when it perceived my wish. Ha! who comes
hither to interrupt my speech? A Theban herald, so it seems, though
I am not sure thereof. Stay; haply he may save the thy trouble. For by
his coming he meets my purpose half-way.
THEBAN HERALD
Who is the despot of this land? To whom must I announce the
message of Creon, who rules o'er the land of Cadmus, since Eteocles
was slain by the hand of his brother Polyneices, at the sevenfold
gates of Thebes?
THESEUS
Sir stranger, thou hast made a false beginning to thy speech, in
seeking here a despot. For this city is not ruled by one man, but is
free. The people rule in succession year by year, allowing no
preference to wealth, but the poor man shares equally with the rich.
THEBAN HERALD
Thou givest me here an advantage, as it might be in a game of
draughts; for the city, whence I come, is ruled by one man only, not
by the mob; none there puffs up the citizens with specious words,
and for his own advantage twists them this way or that,-one moment
dear to them and lavish of his favours, the next a bane to all; and
yet by fresh calumnies of others he hides his former failures and
escapes punishment. Besides, how shall the people, if it cannot form
true judgments, be able rightly to direct the state? Nay, 'tis time,
not haste, that affords a better understanding. A poor hind, granted
be he not all unschooled, would still be unable from his toil to
give his mind to politics. Verily the better sort count it no
healthy sign when the worthless man obtains a reputation by
beguiling with words the populace, though aforetime he was naught.
THESEUS
This herald is a clever fellow, a dabbler in the art of talk.
But since thou hast thus entered the lists with me, listen awhile, for
'twas thou didst challenge a discussion. Naught is more hostile to a
city than a despot; where he is, there are first no laws common to
all, but one man is tyrant, in whose keeping and in his alone the
law resides, and in that case equality is at an end. But when the laws
are written down, rich and poor alike have equal justice, and it is
open to the weaker to use the same language to the prosperous when
he is reviled by him, and the weaker prevails over the stronger if
he have justice on his side. Freedom's mark is also seen in this: "Who
hath wholesome counsel to declare unto the state?" And he who
chooses to do so gains renown, while he, who hath no wish, remains
silent. What greater equality can there be in a city? Again, where the
people are absolute rulers of the land, they rejoice in having reserve
of youthful citizens, while a king counts this a hostile element,
and strives to slay the leading men, all such as he deems discreet,
for he feareth for his power. How then can a city remain stable, where
one cuts short all enterprise and mows down the young like
meadow-flowers in spring-time? What boots it to acquire wealth and
livelihood for children, merely to add to the tyrant's substance by
one's toil? Why train up virgin daughters virtuously in our homes to
gratify a tyrant's whim, whenso he will, and cause tears to those
who rear them? May my life end if ever my children are to be wedded by
violence! This bolt I launch in answer to thy words. Now say, why
art thou come? what needest thou of this land? Had not thy city sent
thee, to thy cost hadst thou come with thy outrageous utterances;
for it is the herald's duty to tell the message he is bidden and hie
him back in haste. Henceforth let Creon send to my city some other
messenger less talkative than thee.
LEADER OF THE CHORUS
Look you! how insolent the villains are, when Fortune is kind to
them, just as if it would be well with them for ever.
THEBAN HERALD
Now will I speak. On these disputed points hold thou this view,
but the contrary. So I and all the people of Cadmus forbid thee to
admit Adrastus to this land, but if he is here, drive him forth in
disregard of the holy suppliant bough he bears, ere sinks yon
blazing sun, and attempt not violently to take up the dead, seeing
thou hast naught to do with the city of Argos. And if thou wilt
hearken to me, thou shalt bring thy barque of state into port unharmed
by the billows; but if not, fierce shall the surge of battle be,
that we and our allies shall raise. Take good thought, nor, angered at
my words, because forsooth thou rulest thy city with freedom, return a
vaunting answer from thy feebler means. Hope is man's curse; many a
state hath it involved in strife, by leading them into excessive rage.
For whenso the city has to vote on the question of war, no man ever
takes his own death into account, but shifts this misfortune on to his
neighbour; but if death had been before their eyes when they were
giving their votes, Hellas would ne'er have rushed to her doom in
mad desire for battle. And yet each man amongst us knows which of
the two to prefer, the good or ill, and how much better peace is for
mankind than war,-peace, the Muses' chiefest friend, the foe of
sorrow, whose joy is in glad throngs of children, and its delight in
prosperity. These are the blessings we cast away and wickedly embark
on war, man enslaving his weaker brother, and cities following suit.
Now thou art helping our foes even after death, trying to rescue and
bury those whom their own acts of insolence have ruined. Verily then
it would seem Capaneus was unjustly blasted by the thunderbolt and
charred upon the ladder he had raised against our gates, swearing he
would sack our town, whether the god would or no; nor should the
yawning earth have snatched away the seer, opening wide her mouth to
take his chariot and its horses in, nor should the other chieftains be
stretched at our gates, their skeletons to atoms crushed 'neath
boulders. Either boast thy wit transcendeth that of Zeus, or else
allow that gods are right to slay the ungodly. The wise should love
their children first, next their parents and country, whose fortunes
it behoves them to increase rather than break down. Rashness in a
leader, as in a pilot, causeth shipwreck; who knoweth when to be quiet
is a wise man. Yea and this too is bravery, even forethought.
LEADER
The punishment Zeus hath inflicted was surely enough; there was no
need to heap this wanton insult on us.
ADRASTUS
Abandoned wretch!
THESEUS
Peace, Adrastus! say no more; set not thy words before mine, for
'tis not to thee this fellow is come with his message, but to me,
and I must answer him. Thy first assertion will I answer first: I am
not aware that Creon is my lord and master, or that his power
outweigheth mine, that so he should compel Athens to act on this wise;
nay! for then would the tide of time have to flow backward, if we
are to be ordered, as he thinks. 'Tis not I who choose this war,
seeing that I did not even join these warriors to go unto the land
of Cadmus; but still I claim to bury the fallen dead, not injuring any
state nor yet introducing murderous strife, but preserving the law
of all Hellas. What is not well in this? If ye suffered aught from the
Argives-lo! they are dead; ye took a splendid vengeance on your foes
and covered them with shame, and now your right is at an end. Let
the dead now be buried in the earth, and each element return to the
place from whence it came to the body, the breath to the air, the body
to the ground; for in no wise did we get it for our own, but to live
our life in, and after that its mother earth must take it back
again. Dost think 'tis Argos thou art injuring in refusing burial to
the dead? Nay! all Hellas shares herein, if a man rob the dead of
their due and keep them from the tomb; for, if this law be enacted, it
will strike dismay into the stoutest hearts. And art thou come to cast
dire threats at me while thy own folk are afraid of giving burial to
the dead? What is your fear? Think you they will undermine your land
in their graves, or that they will beget children in the womb of
earth, from whom shall rise an avenger? A silly waste of words, in
truth it was, to show your fear of paltry groundless terrors. Go,
triflers, learn the lesson of human misery; our life is made up of
struggles; some men there be that find their fortune soon, others have
to wait, while some at once are blest. Fortune lives a dainty life; to
her the wretched pays his court and homage to win her smile; her
likewise doth the prosperous man extol, for fear the favouring gale
may leave him. These lessons should we take to heart, to bear with
moderation, free from wrath, our wrongs, and do naught to hurt a whole
city. What then? Let us, who will the pious deed perform, bury the
corpses of the slain. Else is the issue clear; I will go and bury them
by force. For never shall it be proclaimed through Hellas that
heaven's ancient law was set at naught, when it devolved on me and the
city of Pandion.
LEADER
Be of good cheer; for if thou preserve the light of justice,
thou shalt escape many a charge that men might urge.
THEBAN HERALD
Wilt thou that I sum up in brief all thou wouldst say?
THESEUS
Say what thou wilt; for thou art not silent as it is.
THEBAN HERALD
Thou shalt never take the sons of Argos from our land.
THESEUS
Hear, then, my answer too to that, if so thou wilt.
THEBAN HERALD
I will hear thee; not that I wish it, but I must give thee thy
turn.
THESEUS
I will bury the dead, when from Asopus' land I have removed them.
THEBAN HERALD
First must thou adventure somewhat in the front of war.
THESEUS
Many an enterprise and of a different kind have I ere this
endured.
THEBAN HERALD
Wert thou then begotten of thy sire to cope with every foe?
THESEUS
Ay, with all wanton villains; virtue I punish not.
THEBAN HERALD
To meddle is aye thy wont and thy city's too.
THESEUS
Hence her enterprise on many a field hath won her many blessings.
THEBAN HERALD
Come then, that the warriors of the dragon-crop may catch thee
in our city.
THESEUS
What furious warrior-host could spring from dragon's seed?
THEBAN HERALD
Thou shalt learn that to thy cost. As yet thou art young and rash.
THESEUS
Thy boastful speech stirs not my heart at all to rage. Yet get
thee gone from my land, taking with thee the idle words thou
broughtest; for we are making no advance. (The THEBAN HERALD
withdraws.) 'Tis time for all to start, each stout footman, and
whoso mounts the car; 'tis time the bit, dripping with foam, should
urge the charger on toward the land of Cadmus. For I will march in
person to the seven gates thereof with the sharp sword in my hand, and
be myself my herald. But thee, Adrastus, I bid stay, nor blend with
mine thy fortunes, for I will take my own good star to lead my host, a
chieftain famed in famous deeds of arms. One thing alone I need, the
favour of all gods that reverence right, for the presence of these
things insures victory. For their valour availeth men naught, unless
they have the god's goodwill.
(THESEUS and his retinue depart. The following
lines between the SEMI-CHORUSES are chanted responsively.)
FIRST SEMI-CHORUS
Unhappy mothers of those hapless chiefs! How wildly in my heart
pale fear stirs up alarm!
SECOND SEMI-CHORUS
What is this new cry thou utterest?
FIRST SEMI-CHORUS
I fear the issue of the strife, whereto the hosts of Pallas march.
SECOND SEMI-CHORUS
Dost speak of issues of the sword, or interchange of words?
FIRST SEMI-CHORUS
That last were gain indeed; but if the carnage of battle,
fighting, and the noise of beaten breasts again be heard in the
land, what, alas! will be said of me, who am the cause thereof?
SECOND SEMI-CHORUS
Yet may fate again bring low the brilliant victor; 'tis this brave
thought that twines about my heart.
FIRST SEMI-CHORUS
Thou speak'st of the gods as if they were just.
SECOND SEMI-CHORUS
For who but they allot whate'er betides?
FIRST SEMI-CHORUS
I see much at variance in their dealings with men.
SECOND SEMI-CHORUS
The former fear hath warped thy judgment. Vengeance calls
vengeance forth; slaughter calls for slaughter, but the gods give
respite from affliction, holding in their own hands each thing's
allotted end.
FIRST SEMI-CHORUS
Would I could reach yon plains with turrets crowned, leaving
Callichorus, fountain of the goddess!
SECOND SEMI-CHORUS
O that some god would give me wings to fly to the city of rivers
twain!
FIRST SEMI-CHORUS
So might'st thou see and know the fortunes of thy friends.
SECOND SEMI-CHORUS
What fate, what issue there awaits the valiant monarch of this
land?
FIRST SEMI-CHORUS
Once more do we invoke the gods we called upon before; yea, in our
fear this is our first and chiefest trust.
SECOND SEMI-CHORUS
O Zeus, father to the child the heifer-mother bore in days long
past, that daughter of Inachus!
FIRST SEMI-CHORUS
O be gracious, I pray, and champion this city!
SECOND SEMI-CHORUS
'Tis thy own darling, thy own settler in the city of Argos that
I am striving from outrage to rescue for the funeral pyre.
(A MESSENGER enters.)
MESSENGER
Ladies, I bring you tidings of great joy, myself escaped-for I was
taken prisoner in the battle which cost those chieftains seven their
lives near Dirce's fount-to bear the news of Theseus' victory. But I
will save thee tedious questioning; I was the servant of Capaneus,
whom Zeus with scorching bolt to ashes burnt.
LEADER OF THE CHORUS
Friend of friends, fair thy news of thy own return, nor less the
news about Theseus; and if the host of Athens, too, is safe, welcome
will all thy message be.
MESSENGER
'Tis safe, and all hath happened as I would it had befallen
Adrastus and his Argives, whom from Inachus he led, to march against
the city of the Cadmeans.
LEADER
How did the son of Aegeus and his fellow-warriors raise their
trophy to Zeus? Tell us, for thou wert there and canst gladden us
who were not.
MESSENGER
Bright shone the sun, one levelled line of light, upon the
world, as by Electra's gate I stood to watch, from a turret with a far
outlook. And lo! I saw the host in three divisions, deploying its
mail-clad warriors on the high ground by the banks of Ismenus; this
last I heard; and with them was the king himself, famous son of
Aegeus; his own men, natives of old Cecropia, were ranged upon the
right; while on the left, hard by the fountain of Ares, were the
dwellers by the sea, harnessed spearmen they; on either wing were
posted cavalry, in equal numbers, and chariots were stationed in the
shelter of Amphion's holy tomb. Meantime, the folk of Cadmus set
themselves before the walls, placing in the rear the bodies for
which they fought. Horse to horse, and car to car stood ranged. Then
did the herald of Theseus cry aloud to all: "Be still, ye folk!
hush, ye ranks of Cadmus, hearken! we are come to fetch the bodies
of the slain, wishing to bury them in observance of the universal
law of Hellas; no wish have we to lengthen out the slaughter." Not a
word would Creon let his herald answer back, but there he stood in
silence under arms. Then did the drivers of the four-horse cars
begin the fray; on, past each other they drave their chariots,
bringing the warriors at their sides up into line. Some fought with
swords, some wheeled the horses back to the fray again for those
they drove. Now when Phorbas, who captained the cavalry of the
Erechtheidae, saw the thronging chariots, he and they who had the
charge of the Theban horse met hand to hand, and by turns were victors
and vanquished. The many horrors happening there I saw, not merely
heard about, for I was at the spot where the chariots and their riders
met and fought, but which to tell of first I know not,-the clouds of
dust that mounted to the sky, the warriors tangled in the reins and
dragged this way and that, the streams of crimson gore, when men
fell dead, or when, from shattered chariot-seats, they tumbled
headlong to the ground, and, amid the splinters of their cars, gave up
the ghost. But Creon, when he marked our cavalry's success on one
wing, caught up a shield and rushed into the fray, ere that
despondency should seize his men; but not for that did Theseus
recoil in fear; no! snatching up at once his glittering harnes he hied
him on. And the twain, clashing their shields together as they met
in the midst of the assembled host, were dealing death and courting
it, shouting loudly each to his fellow the battle-cry: "Slay, and with
thy spear strike home against the sons of Erechtheus." Fierce foes
to cope with were the warriors whom the dragon's teeth to manhood
reared; so fierce, they broke our left wing, albeit theirs was
routed by our right and put to flight, so that the struggle was evenly
balanced. Here again our chief deserved all praise, for this success
was not the only one he gained; no! next he sought that part of his
army which was wavering; and loud he called to them, that the earth
rang again, "My sons, if ye cannot restrain the earth-born warriors'
stubborn spear, the cause of Pallas is lost." His word inspired new
courage in all the Danaid host. Therewith himself did seize a fearsome
mace, weapon of Epidaurian warfare, and swung it to and fro, and
with that club, as with a sickle, he shore off necks and heads and
helmets thereupon. Scarce even then they turned themselves to fly. I
cried aloud for joy, and danced and clapped my hands; while to the
gates they ran. Throughout the town echoed the shrieks of young and
old, as they crowded the temples in terror. But Theseus, when he might
have come inside the walls, held back his men, for he had not come,
said he, to sack the town, but to ask for the bodies of the dead. Such
the general men should choose, one who shows his bravery in danger,
yet hates the pride of those that in their hour of fortune lose the
bliss they might have enjoyed, through seeking to scale the ladder's
topmost step.
LEADER
Now do I believe in the gods after seeing this unexpected day, and
feel my woes are lighter now that these have paid their penalty.
ADRASTUS
O Zeus, why do men assert the wisdom of the wretched human race?
On thee we all depend, and all we do is only what thou listest. We
thought our Argos irresistible, ourselves a young and lusty host,
and so when Eteocles was for making terms, in spite of his fair
offer we would not accept them, and so we perished. Then in their turn
those foolish folk of Cadmus, to fortune raised, like some beggar with
his newly-gotten wealth, waxed wanton, and, waxing so, were ruined
in their turn. Ye foolish sons of men! who strain your bow like men
who shoot beyond their mark, and only by suffering many evils as ye
deserve, though deaf to friends, yet yield to circumstances; ye cities
likewise, though ye might by parley end your ills, yet ye choose the
sword instead of reason to settle all disputes. But wherefore these
reflections? This I fain would learn, the way thou didst escape; and
after that I will ask thee of the rest.
MESSENGER
During the uproar which prevailed in the city owing to the battle,
I passed the gates, just as the host had entered them.
ADRASTUS
Are ye bringing the bodies, for the which the strife arose?
MESSENGER
Ay, each of the seven chiefs who led their famous hosts.
ADRASTUS
What sayest thou? the rest who fell-say, where are they?
MESSENGER
They have found burial in the dells of Cithaeron.
ADRASTUS
On this or that side of the mount? And who did bury them?
MESSENGER
Theseus buried them 'neath the shadow of Eleutherae's cliff.
ADRASTUS
Where didst thou leave the dead he hath not buried?
MESSENGER
Not far away; earnest haste makes every goal look close.
ADRASTUS
No doubt in sorrow slaves would gather them from the carnage.
MESSENGER
Slaves! not one of them was set to do this toil.
[A speech belonging to ADRASTUS has been lost.]
MESSENGER
Thou wouldst say so, hadst thou been there to see his loving
tendance of the dead.
ADRASTUS
Did he himself wash the bloody wounds of the hapless youths?
MESSENGER
Ay, and strewed their biers and wrapped them in their shrouds.
ADRASTUS
An awful burden this, involving some disgrace.
MESSENGER
Why, what disgrace to men are their fellows' sorrows?
ADRASTUS
Ah me! how much rather had I died with them!
MESSENGER
'Tis vain to weep and move to tears these women.
ADRASTUS
Methinks 'tis they who give the lesson. Enough of that! My hands
lift at meeting of the dead, and pour forth a tearful dirge to
Hades, calling on my friends, whose loss I mourn in wretched solitude;
for this one thing, when once 'tis spent, man cannot recover, the
breath of life, though he knoweth ways to get his wealth again.
CHORUS (singing)
strophe
Joy is here and sorrow too,-for the state fair fame, and for our
captains double meed of honour. Bitter for me it is to see the limbs
of my dead sons, and yet a welcome sight withal, because I shall
behold the unexpected day after sorrow's cup was full.
antistrophe
Would that Father Time had kept me unwed from my youth up e'en
till now when I am old! What need had I of children? Methinks I should
not have suffered overmuch, had I never borne the marriage-yoke; but
now I have my sorrow full in view, the loss of children dear.
Lo! I see the bodies of the fallen youths. Woe is me! would I
could join these children in their death and descend to Hades with
them!
(THESEUS and his soldiers enter, carrying the corpses
of the slain chieftains. ADRASTUS and the CHORUS
chant the lament responsively.)
ADRASTUS
Mothers, raise the wail for the dead departed; cry in answer
when ye hear my note of woe.
CHORUS
My sons, my sons! O bitter words for loving mothers to address
to you! To thee, my lifeless child, I call.
ADRASTUS
Woe! woe!
CHORUS
Ah me, my sufferings!
ADRASTUS
Alas! We have endured, alas!-
CHORUS
Sorrows most grievous.
ADRASTUS
O citizens of Argos! do ye not behold my fate?
CHORUS
They see thee, and me the hapless mother, reft of her children.
ADRASTUS
Bring near the blood-boltered corpses of those hapless chiefs,
foully slain by foes unworthy, with whom lay the decision of the
contest.
CHORUS
Let me embrace and hold my children to my bosom in my enfolding
arms.
ADRASTUS
There, there! thou hast-
CHORUS
Sorrows heavy enough to bear.
ADRASTUS
Ah me!
CHORUS
Thy groans mingle with those of their parents.
ADRASTUS
Hear me.
CHORUS
O'er both of us thou dost lament.
ADRASTUS
Would God the Theban ranks had laid me dead in the dust!
CHORUS
Oh that I had ne'er been wedded to a husband!
ADRASTUS
Ah! hapless mothers, behold this sea of troubles!
CHORUS
Our nails have ploughed our cheeks in furrows, and o'er our
heads have we strewn ashes.
ADRASTUS
Ah me! ah me! Oh that earth's floor would swallow me, or the
whirlwind snatch me away, or Zeus's flaming bolt descend upon my head!
CHORUS
Bitter the marriages thou didst witness, bitter the oracle of
Phoebus! The curse of Oedipus, fraught with sorrow, after desolating
his house, is come on thee.
THESEUS
I meant to question thee when thou wert venting thy lamentations
to the host, but I will let it pass; yet, though I dropped the
matter then and left it alone, I now do ask Adrastus, "Of what lineage
sprang those youths, to shine so bright in chivalry?" Tell it to our
younger citizens of thy fuller wisdom, for thou art skilled to know.
Myself beheld their daring deeds, too high for words to tell,
whereby they thought to capture Thebes. One question will I spare
thee, lest I provoke thy laughter; the foe that each of them
encountered in the fray, the spear from which each received his
death-wound. These be idle tales alike for those who hear or him who
speaks, that any man amid the fray, when clouds of darts are
hurtling before his eyes, should declare for certain who each champion
is. I could not ask such questions, nor yet believe those who dare
assert the like; for when a man is face to face with the foe, he
scarce can see even that which 'tis his bounden duty to observe.
ADRASTUS
Hearken then. For in giving this task to me thou findest a willing
eulogist of friends, whose praise I would declare in all truth and
sincerity. Dost see yon corpse by Zeus's bolt transfixed? That is
Capaneus; though he had ample wealth, yet was he the last to boast
of his prosperity; nor would he ever vaunt himself above a poorer
neighbour, but shunned the man whose sumptuous board had puffed him up
too high and made him scorn mere competence, for he held that virtue
lies not in greedy gluttony, but that moderate means suffice. True
friend was he, alike to present or to absent friends the same; of such
the number is not great. His was guileless character, a courteous
address, that left no promise unperformed either towards his own
household or his fellow-citizens. The next I name is Eteoclus; a
master he of other kinds of excellence; young, nor richly dowered with
store, yet high in honour in the Argive land. And though his friends
oft offered gifts of gold, he would not have it in his house, to
make his character its slave by taking wealth's yoke upon him. Not his
city, but those that sinned against her did he hate, for a city is
no wise to be blamed if it get an evil name by reason of an evil
governor. Such another was Hippomedon, third of all this band; from
his very boyhood he refrained from turning towards the allurements
of the Muses, to lead life of ease; his home was in the fields, and
gladly would he school his nature to hardships with a view to
manliness, aye hasting to the chase, rejoicing in his steeds or
straining of his bow, because he would make himself of use unto his
state. Next behold the huntress Atalanta's son, Parthenopaeus, a youth
of peerless beauty; from Arcady he came even to the streams of
Inachus, and in Argos spent his boyhood. There, when he grew to
man's estate, first, as is the duty of strangers settled in another
land, he showed no pique or jealousy against the state, became no
quibbler, chiefest source of annoyance citizen or stranger can give,
but took his stand amid the host, and fought for Argos as he were
her own son, glad at heart whenso the city prospered, deeply grieved
if e'er reverses came; many a lover though he had midst men and maids,
yet was he careful to avoid offence. Of Tydeus next the lofty praise I
will express in brief; no brilliant spokesman he, but a clever
craftsman in the art of war, with many a shrewd device; inferior in
judgment to his brother Meleager, yet through his warrior skill
lending his name to equal praise, for he had found in arms a perfect
science; his was an ambitious nature, a spirit rich in store of deeds,
with words less fully dowered. From this account then wonder not,
Theseus, that they dared to die before the towers; for noble nurture
carries honour with it, and every man, when once he hath practised
virtue, scorns the name of villain. Courage may be learnt, for even
a babe doth learn to speak and hear things it cannot comprehend; and
whatso'er a child hath learnt, this it is his wont to treasure up till
he is old. So train up your children in a virtuous way.
CHORUS (chanting)
Alas! my son, to sorrow I bare thee and carried thee within my
womb, enduring the pangs of travail; but now Hades takes the fruit
of all my hapless toil, and I that had a son am left, ah me! with none
to nurse my age.
THESEUS
As for the noble son of Oecleus, him, while yet he lived, the gods
snatched hence to the bowels of the earth, and his chariot too,
manifestly blessing him; while I myself may truthfully tell the
praises of the son of Oedipus, that is, Polyneices, for he was my
guest-friend ere he left the town of Cadmus and crossed to Argos in
voluntary exile. But dost thou know what I would have thee do in this?
ADRASTUS
I know naught save this,-to yield obedience to thy hests.
THESEUS
As for yon Capaneus, stricken by the bolt of Zeus-
ADRASTUS
Wilt bury him apart as a consecrated corpse?
THESEUS
Even so; but all the rest on one funeral pyre.
ADRASTUS
Where wilt thou set the tomb apart for him?
THESEUS
Here near this temple have I builded him a sepulchre.
ADRASTUS
Thy thralls forthwith must undertake this toil.
THESEUS
Myself will look to those others; let the biers advance.
ADRASTUS
Approach your sons, unhappy mothers.
THESEUS
This thy proposal, Adrastus, is anything but good.
ADRASTUS
Must not the mothers touch their sons?
THESEUS
It would kill them to see how they are altered.
ADRASTUS
'Tis bitter, truly, to see the dead even at the moment of death.
THESEUS
Why then wilt thou add fresh grief to them?
ADRASTUS
Thou art right. Ye needs must patiently abide, for the words of
Theseus are good. But when we have committed them unto the flames,
ye shall collect their bones. O wretched sons of men! Why do ye get
you weapons and bring slaughter on one another? Cease therefrom,
give o'er your toiling, and in mutual peace keep safe your cities.
Short is the span of life, so 'twere best to run its course as lightly
as we may, from trouble free.
(The corpses, followed by the CHILDREN of the slain
chieftains, are carried off to the pyre which is
kindled within the sight of the persons on the stage.)
CHORUS (singing)
strophe
No more a happy mother I, with children blest; no more I share,
among Argive women, who have sons, their happy lot; nor any more
will Artemis in the hour of travail kindly greet these childless
mothers. Most dreary is my life, and like some wandering cloud drift
before the howling blast.
antistrophe
The seven noblest sons in Argos once we had, we seven hapless
mothers; but now my sons are dead, I have no child, and on me steals
old age in piteous wise, nor 'mongst the dead nor 'mongst the living
do I count myself, having as it were a lot apart from these.
Tears alone are left me; in my house sad memories of my son are
stored; mournful tresses shorn from his head, chaplets that he wore,
libations for the dead departed, and songs, but not such as
golden-haired Apollo welcometh; and when I wake to weep, my tears
will ever drench the folds of my robe upon my bosom. Ah! there I see
the sepulchre ready e'en now for Capaneus, his consecrated tomb, and
the votive offerings Theseus gives unto the dead outside the shrine,
and nigh yon lightning-smitten chief I see his noble bride, Evadne,
daughter of King Iphis. Wherefore stands she on the towering rock,
which o'ertops this temple, advancing along yon path?
(EVADNE is seen on a rock which overhangs the
burning pyre. She is dressed as though for a festival.)
EVADNE (chanting)
What light, what radiancy did the sun-god's car dart forth, and
the moon athwart the firmament, while round her in the gloom swift
stars careered, in the day that the city of Argos raised the stately
chant of joy at my wedding, in honour of my marriage with mail-clad
Capaneus? Now from my home in frantic haste with frenzied mind rush to
join thee, seeking to share with thee the fire's bright flame and
the self-same tomb, to rid me of my weary life in Hades' halls, and of
the pains of life; yea, for 'tis the sweetest end to share the death
of those we love, if only fate will sanction it.
LEADER OF THE CHORUS
Behold yon pyre, which thou art overlooking, nigh thereto, set
apart for Zeus! There is thy husband's body, vanquished by the blazing
bolt.
EVADNE (chanting)
Life's goal I now behold from my station here; may fortune aid
me in my headlong leap from this rock in honour's cause, down into the
fire below. to mix my ashes in the ruddy blaze with my husband's, to
lay me side by side with him, there in the couch of Persephone; for
ne'er will to save my life, prove untrue to thee where thou liest in
thy grave. Away with life and marriage too! Oh! may my children live
to see the dawn of a fairer, happier wedding-day in Argos! May loyalty
inspire the husband's heart, his nature fusing with his wife's!
LEADER
Lo! the aged Iphis, thy father, draweth nigh to hear thy startling
speech, which yet he knows not and will grieve to learn.
(IPHIS enters.)
IPHIS
Unhappy child! lo! I am come, a poor old man, with twofold
sorrow in my house to mourn, that I may carry to his native land the
corpse of my son Eteoclus, slain by the Theban spear, and further in
quest of my daughter who rushed headlong from the house, for she was
the wife of Capaneus and longed with him to die. Ere this she was well
guarded in my house, but, when I took the watch away in the present
troubles, she escaped. But I feel sure that she is here; tell me if ye
have seen her.
EVADNE
Why question them? Lo, here upon the rock, father, o'er the pyre
of Capaneus, like some bird I hover lightly, in my wretchedness.
IPHIS
What wind hath blown thee hither, child? Whither thy journey?
Why didst thou pass the threshold of my house and seek this land?
EVADNE
It would but anger thee to hear what I intend, and so I fain would
keep thee ignorant, my father.
IPHIS
What hath not thy own father a right to know?
EVADNE
Thou wouldst not wisely judge my purpose.
IPHIS
Why dost thou deck thyself in that apparel?
EVADNE
A purport strange this robe conveys, father.
IPHIS
Thou hast no look of mourning for thy lord.
EVADNE
No, the reason why I thus am decked is strange, maybe.
IPHIS
Dost thou in such garb appear before a funeral-pyre?
EVADNE
Yea, for hither it is I come to take the meed of victory.
IPHIS
"Victory!" What victory? This would I learn of thee.
EVADNE
A victory o'er all women on whom the sun looks down.
IPHIS
In Athena's handiwork or in prudent counsel?
EVADNE
In bravery; for I will lay me down and die with my lord.
IPHIS
What dost thou say? What is this silly riddle thou propoundest?
EVADNE
To yonder pyre where lies dead Capaneus, I will leap down.
IPHIS
My daughter, speak not thus before the multitude!
EVADNE
The very thing I wish, that every Argive should learn it.
IPHIS
Nay, I will ne'er consent to let thee do this deed.
EVADNE
'Tis all one; thou shalt never catch me in thy grasp. Lo! I cast
me down, no joy to thee, but to myself and to my husband blazing on
the pyre with me.
(She leaps into the pyre.)
CHORUS (chanting)
O lady, thou hast done a fearful deed!
IPHIS
Ah me! I am undone, ye dames of Argos!
CHORUS (chanting)
Alack, alack! a cruel blow is this to thee, but thou must yet
witness, poor wretch, the full horror of this deed.
IPHIS
A more unhappy wretch than me ye could not find.
CHORUS (chanting)
Woe for thee, unhappy man! Thou, old sir, hast been made
partaker in the fortune of Oedipus, thou and my poor city too.
IPHIS
Ah, why are mortal men denied this boon, to live their youth twice
o'er, and twice in turn to reach old age? If aught goes wrong within
our homes, we set it right by judgment more maturely formed, but our
life we may not so correct. Now if we had a second spell of youth
and age, this double term of life would let us then correct each
previous slip. For I, seeing others blest with children, longed to
have them too, and found my ruin in that wish. Whereas if I had had
present experience, and by a father's light had learnt how cruel a
thing it is to be bereft of children, never should have fallen on such
evil days as these,-I who did beget a brave young son, proud parent
that I was, and after all am now bereft of him. Enough of this. What
remains for such a hapless wretch as me? Shall I to my home, there
to see its utter desolation and the blank within my life? or shall
to the halls of that dead Capaneus?-halls I smiled to see in days gone
by, when yet my daughter was alive. But she is lost and gone, she that
would ever draw down my cheek to her lips, and take my head between
her hands; for naught is there more sweet unto an aged sire than a
daughter's love; our sons are made of sterner stuff, but less
winning are their caresses. Oh! take me to my house at once, in
darkness hide me there, to waste and fret this aged frame with
fasting! What shall it avail me to touch my daughter's bones? Old age,
resistless foe, how do I loathe thy presence! Them too I hate, whoso
desire to lengthen out the span of life, seeking to turn the tide of
death aside by philtres, drugs, and magic spells,-folk that death
should take away to leave the young their place, when they no more can
benefit the world.
(IPHIS departs. A procession enters from the direction
of the pyre, led by the CHILDREN of the slain chieftains,
who carry the ashes of their fathers in funeral urns.
The following lines between the CHORUS and the
CHILDREN are chanted responsively.)
CHORUS
Woe, woe! Behold your dead sons' bones are brought hither; take
them, servants of your weak old mistress, for in me is no strength
left by reason of my mourning for my sons; time's comrade long have
I been, and many a tear for many a sorrow have I shed. For what
sharper pang wilt thou ever find for mortals than the sight of
children dead?
CHILDREN
Poor mother mine, behold I bring my father's bones gathered from
the fire, a burden grief has rendered heavy, though this tiny urn
contains my all.
CHORUS
Ah me! ah me! Why bear thy tearful load to the fond mother of
the dead, a handful of ashes in the stead of those who erst were men
of mark in Mycenae?
CHILDREN
Woe worth the hour! woe worth the day! Reft of my hapless sire,
a wretched orphan shall I inherit a desolate house, torn from my
father's arms.
CHORUS
Woe is thee! Where is now the toil I spent upon my sons? what
thank have I for nightly watch? Where the mother's nursing care? the
sleepless vigils mine eyes have kept? the loving kiss upon my
children's brow?
CHILDREN
Thy sons are dead and gone. Poor mother! dead and gone; the
boundless air now wraps them round.
CHORUS
Turned to ashes by the flame, they have winged their flight to,
Hades.
CHILDREN
Father, thou hearest thy children's lamentation; say, shall I
e'er, as warrior dight, avenge thy slaughter?
CHORUS
God grant it, O my child
CHILDREN
Some day, if god so will, shall the avenging of my father be my
task; not yet this sorrow sleeps.
CHORUS
Alas! Fortune's sorrows are enough for me, I have enough of
troubles now.
CHILDREN
Shall Asopus' laughing tide ever reflect my brazen arms as I
lead on my Argive troops?
CHORUS
To avenge thy fallen sire.
CHILDREN
Methinks I see thee still before my eye, my father-
CHORUS
Printing a loving kiss upon thy cheek.
CHILDREN
But thy words of exhortation are borne on the winds away.
CHORUS
Two mourners hath he left behind, thy mother and thee, bequeathing
to thee an endless legacy of grief for thy father.
CHILDREN
The weight of grief I have to bear hath crushed me utterly.
CHORUS
Come, let me clasp the ashes of my son to my bosom.
CHILDREN
I weep to hear that piteous word; 'it stabs me to the heart,
CHORUS
My child, thou art undone; no more shall I behold thee, thy own
fond mother's treasure.
THESEUS
Adrastus, and ye dames from Argos sprung, ye see these children
bearing in their hands the bodies of their valiant sires whom I
redeemed; to thee I give these gifts, I and Athens. And ye must bear
in mind the memory of this favour, marking well the treatment ye
have had of me. And to these children I repeat the self-same words,
that they may honour this city, to children's children ever handing on
the kindness ye received from us. Be Zeus the witness, with the gods
in heaven, of the treatment we vouchsafed you ere you left us.
ADRASTUS
Theseus, well we know all the kindness thou hast conferred upon
the land of Argos in her need, and ours shall be a gratitude that
never waxeth old, for your generous treatment makes us debtors for a
like return.
THESEUS
What yet remains, wherein I can serve you?
ADRASTUS
Fare thee well, for such is thy desert and such thy city's too.
THESEUS
Even so. Mayst thou too have the self-same fortune!
(ATHENA appears from above.)
ATHENA
Hearken, Theseus, to the words that I Athena utter, telling thee
thy duty, which, if thou perform it, will serve thy city. Give not
these bones to the children to carry to the land of Argos, letting
them go so lightly; nay, take first an oath of them that they will
requite thee and thy city for your efforts. This oath must Adrastus
swear, for as their king it is his right to take the oath for the
whole realm of Argos. And this shall be the form thereof: "We
Argives swear we never will against this land lead on our mail-clad
troops to war, and, if others come, we will repel them." But if they
violate their oath and come against the city, pray that the land of
Argos may be miserably destroyed. Now hearken while I tell thee
where thou must slay the victims. Thou hast within thy halls a
tripod with brazen feet, which Heracles, in days gone by, after he had
o'erthrown the foundations of Ilium and was starting on another
enterprise, enjoined the to set up at the Pythian shrine. O'er it
cut the throats of three sheep; then grave within the tripod's
hollow belly the oath; this done, deliver it to the god who watches
over Delphi to keep, a witness and memorial unto Hellas of the oath.
And bury the sharp-edged knife, wherewith thou shalt have laid the
victims open and shed their blood, deep in the bowels of the earth,
hard by the pyres where the seven chieftains burn; for its
appearance shall strike them with dismay, if e'er against thy town
they come, and shall cause them to return with sorrow. When thou
hast done all this, dismiss the dead from thy land. And to the god
resign as sacred land the spot where their bodies were purified by
fire, there by the meeting of the triple roads that lead unto the
Isthmus. Thus much to thee, Theseus, address; next to the sons of
Argos I speak; when ye are grown to men's estate, the town beside
Ismenus shall ye sack, avenging the slaughter of your dead sires; thou
too, Aegialeus, shalt take thy father's place and in thy youth command
the host, and with thee Tydeus' son marching from Aetolia,-him whom
his father named Diomedes. Soon as the beards your cheeks o'ershadow
must ye lead an armed Danaid host against the battlements of Thebes
with sevenfold gates. For to their sorrow shall ye come like lion's
whelps in full-grown might to sack their city. No otherwise is it to
be; and ye shall be a theme for minstrels' songs in days to come,
known through Hellas as "the After-born"; so famous shall your
expedition be, thanks to Heaven.
THESEUS
Queen Athena, I will hearken to thy bidding; for thou it is dost
set me up, so that I go not astray. And I will bind this monarch by an
oath; do thou but guide my steps aright. For if thou art friendly to
our state, we shall henceforth live secure.
(ATHENA vanishes.)
CHORUS (chanting)
Let us go, Adrastus, and take the oath to this monarch and his
state; for the service they have already done us claims our reverence.
-THE END-