THE CYCLOPS
(THE TALE OF ULYSSES)
Then Ulysses answered the King, saying: "What shall I tell thee
first, and what last, for many sorrows have the gods laid upon me?
First, I will tell my name, that ye may know it, and that there
may be friendship between us, even when I shall be far away. I am
ULYSSES, SON OF LAERTES. In Ithaca I dwell. Many islands lie about
it, but Ithaca is furthest to the west, and the others face the
sun-rising. Very rugged is this island of Ithaca, but it is the
mother of brave men; verily, there is nothing dearer to a man than
his own country. Calypso, the fair goddess, would have had me
abide with her, to be her husband; but she did not prevail,
because there is nothing that a man loves more than his country
and his parents. But now I will tell thee of all the troubles that
the gods laid upon me as I journeyed from Troy.
"The wind that bare me from Troy brought me to Ismarus [Footnote:
Is'-ma-rus.], which is a city of the Cicones.[Footnote: Ci'-co-
nes.] This I sacked, slaying the people that dwelt therein. But
the people of the city fetched their kinsmen that dwelt in the
mountains, and they overcame us, and drave us to our ships. Six
from each ship perished, but the remainder of us escaped from
death.
"Then we sailed, stricken with grief for our dear comrades, yet
rejoicing that we had escaped from destruction. When we had sailed
a little space, Zeus sent the north wind against us with a mighty
storm, covering with clouds both land and sea, and the ships were
driven before it. So we lowered the sails, and rowed the ships to
the land with all our might. For two days we endured much distress
and sorrow, but on the third, when the morning light appeared, we
hoisted the sails and rested. Then I should have come to my own
country, but the north wind and the sea drave me from my course.
For nine days did the wind carry us before it.
"And on the tenth day we came to the land where the lotus grows--a
wondrous fruit, for whoever eats of it cares not to see country or
wife or children again. Now the Lotus-eaters, for so the people of
the land are called, were a kindly folk, and gave of the fruit to
some of the sailors, not meaning them any harm, but thinking it to
be the best that they had to give. These, when they had eaten,
said that they would not sail any more over the sea; and, when I
heard this, I bade their comrades bind them and carry them, sadly
complaining, to the ships.
"Then, the wind having abated, we took to our oars, and rowed for
many days till we came to the country where the Cyclopes
[Footnote: Cy-clo'-pes.] dwell. Now a mile or so from the shore
there was an island, very fair and fertile, but no man dwells
there or tills the soil, and in the island a harbour where a ship
may be safe from all winds, and at the head of the harbour a
stream falling from a rock, and whispering alders all about it.
Into this the ships passed safely, and were hauled up on the
beach, and the crews slept by them, waiting for the morning.
"When the dawn appeared, we wandered through the island; and the
Nymphs of the land started the wild goats, that my company might
have food to eat. Thereupon we took our bows and our spears from
the ships, and shot at the goats; and the gods gave us plenty of
prey. Twelve ships I had in my company, and each ship had nine
goats for its share, and my own portion was ten.
"Then all the day we sat and feasted, drinking sweet wine which we
had taken from the city of the Cicones, and eating the flesh of
the goats; and as we sat we looked across to the land of the
Cyclops, seeing the smoke and hearing the voices of the men and of
the sheep and of the goats. And when the sun set and darkness came
over the land, we lay down upon the seashore and slept.
"The next day I gathered my men together, and said, 'Abide ye
here, dear friends; I with my own ship and my own company will go
and find whether the folk that dwell in yonder island are just or
unjust.'
"So I climbed into my ship, and bade my company follow me: so we
came to the land of the Cyclops. Close to the shore was a cave,
with laurels round about the mouth. This was the dwelling of the
Cyclops. Alone he dwelt, a creature without law. Nor was he like
to mortal men, but rather to some wooded peak of the hills that
stands out apart from all the rest.
"Then I bade the rest of my comrades abide by the ship, and keep
it, but I took twelve men, the bravest that there were in the
crew, and went forth. I had with me a goat-skin full of the wine,
dark red, and sweet, which the priest of Apollo [Footnote: A-pol'-
lo.] at Ismarus had given me. So precious was it that none in his
house knew of it saving himself and his wife. When they drank of
it they mixed twenty measures of water with one of wine, and the
smell that went up from it was wondrous sweet. No man could easily
refrain from drinking it. With this wine I filled a great skin and
bore it with me; also I bare corn in a pouch, for my heart within
me told me that I should need it.
"So we entered the cave, and judged that it was the dwelling of
some rich and skilful shepherd. For within there were pens for the
young of the sheep and of the goats, divided all according to
their age, and there were baskets full of cheeses, and full
milkpails ranged along the wall. But the Cyclops himself was away
in the pastures. Then my companions besought me that I would
depart, taking with me, if I would, a store of cheeses and some of
the lambs and of the kids. But I would not, for I wished to see
what manner of host this strange shepherd might be, and, if it
might be, to take a gift from his hand, such as is the due of
strangers. Verily, his coming was not to be a joy to my company.
"It was evening when the Cyclops came home, a mighty giant, very
tall of stature, and when we saw him we fled into the cave in
great fear. On his shoulder he bore a vast bundle of pine logs for
his fire, and threw them down outside the cave great crash, and
drove the flocks within, and closed the entrance with a huge rock,
which twenty wagons and more could not bear. Then he milked the
ewes and all the she-goats, and half of the milk he curdled for
cheese, and half he set ready for himself, when he should sup.
Next he kindled a fire with the pine logs, and the flame lighted
up all the cave, showing to him both me and my comrades.
"'Who are ye?' cried Polyphemus [Footnote: Pol-y-phe'-mus.], for
that was the giant's name. 'Are ye traders or pirates?'
"I shuddered at the dreadful voice and shape, but bare me bravely,
and answered: 'We are no pirates, mighty sir, but Greeks sailing
back from Troy, and subjects of the great King Agamemnon, whose
fame is spread from one end of heaven to the other. And we are
come to beg hospitality of thee in the name of Zeus, who rewards
or punishes hosts and guests according as they be faithful the one
to the other, or no.'
"'Nay,' said the giant; 'it is but idle talk to tell me of Zeus
and the other gods. We Cyclopes take no account of gods, holding
ourselves to be much better and stronger than they. But come, tell
me where have you left your ship?'
"But I saw his thought when he asked about the ship, for he was
minded to break it, and take from us all hope of flight. Therefore
I answered him craftily:--
"Ship have we none, for that which was ours King Poseidon brake,
driving it on a jutting rock on this coast, and we whom thou seest
are all that are escaped from the waves."
"Polyphemus answered nothing, but without more ado caught up two
of the men, as a man might catch up the pups of a dog, and dashed
them on the ground, and tare them limb from limb, and devoured
them, with huge draughts of milk between, leaving not a morsel,
not even the very bones. But we that were left, when we saw the
dreadful deed, could only weep and pray to Zeus for help. And when
the giant had filled his maw with human flesh and with the milk of
the flocks, he lay down among his sheep and slept.
"Then I questioned much in my heart whether I should slay the
monster as he slept, for I doubted not that my good sword would
pierce to the giant's heart, mighty as he was. But my second
thought kept me back, for I remembered that if I should slay him,
I and my comrades would yet perish miserably. For who could move
away the great rock that lay against the door of the cave? So we
waited till the morning, with grief in our hearts. And the monster
woke, and milked his flocks, and afterwards, seizing two men,
devoured them for his meal. Then he went to the pastures, but put
the great rock on the mouth of the cave, just as a man puts down
the lid upon his quiver.
"All that day I was thinking what I might best do to save myself
and my companions, and the end of my thinking was this. There was
a mighty pole in the cave, green wood of an olive tree, big as a
ship's mast, which Polyphemus purposed to use, when the smoke
should have dried it, as a walking-staff. Of this I cut off a
fathom's length, and my comrades sharpened it and hardened it in
the fire, and then hid it away. At evening the giant came back,
and drove his sheep into the cave, nor left the rams outside, as
he had been wont to do before, but shut them in. And having duly
done his shepherd's work, he took, as before, two of my comrades,
and devoured them. And when he had finished his supper, I came
forward, holding the wine-skin in my hand, and said:--
"'Drink, Cyclops, now that thou hast feasted. Drink, and see what
precious things we had in our ship. But no one hereafter will come
to thee with such, if thou dealest with strangers as cruelly as
thou hast dealt with us.'
"Then the Cyclops drank, and was mightily pleased, and said: 'Give
me again to drink, and tell me thy name, stranger, and I will give
thee a gift such as a host should give. In good truth this is a
rare liquor. We, too, have vines, but they bear not wine like
this, which, indeed, must be such as the gods drink in heaven.'
"Then I gave him the cup again, and he drank. Thrice I gave it to
him, and thrice he drank, not knowing what it was, and how it
would work within his brain.
"Then I spake to him: 'Thou didst ask my name, Cyclops. My name is
No Man. And now that thou knowest my name, thou shouldest give me
thy gift.'
"And he said: 'My gift shall be that I will eat thee last of all
thy company.'
"And as he spake, he fell back in a drunken sleep. Then I bade my
comrades be of good courage, for the time was come when they
should be delivered. And they thrust the stake of olive wood into
the fire till it was ready, green as it was, to burst into flame,
and they thrust it into the monster's eye; for he had but one eye
and that was in the midst of his forehead, with the eyebrow below
it. And I, standing above, leaned with all my force upon the
stake, and turned it about, as a man bores the timber of a ship
with a drill. And the burning wood hissed in the eye, just as the
red-hot iron hisses in the water when a man seeks to temper steel
for a sword.
"Then the giant leapt up, and tore away the stake, and cried
aloud, so that all the Cyclopes who dwelt on the mountain-side
heard him and came about his cave, asking him: `What aileth thee,
Polyphemus, that thou makest this uproar in the peaceful night,
driving away sleep? Is any one robbing thee of thy sheep, or
seeking to slay thee by craft or force?' And the giant answered,
`No Man slays me by craft.'
"`Nay, but,' they said, `if no man does thee wrong, we cannot help
thee. The sickness which great Zeus may send, who can avoid? Pray
to our father, Poseidon, for help.'
"So they spake, and I laughed in my heart when I saw how I had
deceived them by the name that I had given.
"But the Cyclops rolled away the great stone from the door of the
cave, and sat in the midst, stretching out his hands, to feel
whether perchance the men within the cave would seek to go out
among the sheep.
"Long did I think how I and my comrades should best escape. At
last I lighted upon a plan that seemed better than all the rest,
and much I thanked Zeus because this once the giant had driven the
rams with the other sheep into the cave. For, these being great
and strong, I fastened my comrades under the bellies of the
beasts, tying them with willow twigs, of which the giant made his
bed. One ram I took, and fastened a man beneath it, and two others
I set, one on either side. So I did with the six, for but six were
left out of the twelve who had ventured with me from the ship. And
there was one mighty ram, far larger than alt the others, and to
this I clung, grasping the fleece tight with both my hands. So we
all waited for the morning. And when the morning came, the rams
rushed forth to the pasture; but the giant sat in the door and
felt the back of each as it went by, nor thought to try what might
be underneath. Last of all went the great ram. And the Cyclops
knew him as he passed, and said:--
"'How is this, thou who art the leader of the flock? Thou art not
wont thus to lag behind. Thou hast always been the first to run to
the pastures and streams in the morning, and the first to come
back to the fold when evening fell; and now thou art last of all.
Perhaps thou art troubled about thy master's eye, which some
wretch--No Man, they call him--has destroyed. He has not escaped,
and I would that thou couldest speak, and tell me where he is
lurking. Of a truth, I would dash out his brains upon the ground,
and avenge me on this No Man.'
"So speaking, he let the ram pass out of the cave. But when we
were now out of reach of the giant, I loosed my hold of the ram,
and then unbound my comrades. And we hastened to our ship, not
forgetting to drive the sheep before us, and often looking back
till we came to the seashore. Right glad were those that had abode
by the ship to see us. Nor did they lament for those that had
died, though we were fain to do so, for I forbade, fearing lest
the noise of their weeping should betray where we were to the
giant. Then we all climbed into the ship, and sitting well in
order on the benches smote the sea with our oars, laying to right
lustily, that we might the sooner get away from the accursed land.
And when we had rowed a hundred yards or so, so that a man's voice
could yet be heard by one who stood upon the shore, I stood up in
the ship and shouted:--
"'He was no coward, O Cyclops, whose comrades thou didst so foully
slay in thy den. Justly art thou punished, monster, that devourest
thy guests in thy dwelling. May the gods make thee suffer yet
worse things than these!'
"Then the Cyclops in his wrath brake off the top of a great hill,
a mighty rock, and hurled it where he had heard the voice. Right
in front of the ship's bow it fell, and a great wave rose as it
sank, and washed the ship back to the shore. But I seized a long
pole with both hands, and pushed the ship from the land, and bade
my comrades ply their oars, nodding with my head, for I would not
speak, lest the Cyclops should know where we were. Then they rowed
with all their might and main.
"And when we had gotten twice as far as before, I made as if I
would speak again; but my comrades sought to hinder me, saying:
'Nay, my lord, anger not the giant any more. Surely we thought
before that we were lost, when he threw the great rock, and washed
our ship back to the shore. And if he hear thee now, he may still
crush our ship and us.'
"But I would not be persuaded, but stood up and said: 'Hear,
Cyclops! If any man ask who blinded thee, say that it was the
warrior Ulysses, son of Laertes, dwelling in Ithaca.'
"And the Cyclops answered with a groan: 'Of a truth, the old
prophecies are fulfilled; for long ago there came to this land a
prophet who foretold to me that Ulysses would rob me of my sight.
But I looked for a great and strong man, who should subdue me by
force, and now a weakling has done the deed, having cheated me
with wine.'
"Then the Cyclops lifted up his hands to Poseidon and prayed:
'Hear me, Poseidon, if I am indeed thy son and thou my father. May
this Ulysses never reach his home! or, if the Fates have ordered
that he should reach it, may he come alone, all his comrades lost,
and come to find sore trouble in his house!'
"And as he ended, he hurled another mighty rock, which almost
lighted on the rudder's end, yet missed it as by a hair's breadth.
And the wave that it raised was so great that it bare us to the
other shore.
"So we came to the island of the wild goats, where we found our
comrades, who, indeed, had waited long for us in sore fear lest we
had perished. Then I divided amongst my company all the sheep
which we had taken from the Cyclops. And all, with one consent,
gave me for my share the great ram which had carried me out of the
cave, and I sacrificed it to Zeus. And all that day we feasted
right merrily on the flesh of sheep and on sweet wine, and when
the night was come, we lay down upon the shore and slept.