253. ~Circe ... Sirens three~. In the _Odyssey_ the Sirens are two in
number and have no connection with Circe. They lived on a rocky island
off the coast of Sicily and near the rock of Scylla (l. 257), and lured
sailors to destruction by the charm of their song. Circe was also a
sweet singer and had the power of enchanting men; hence the combined
allusion: see also Horace's _Epist._ i. 2, 23, _Sirenum voces, et Circes
pocula nôsti_. Besides, the Sirens were daughters of the river-god
Achelous, and Circe had Naiads or fountain-nymphs among her maids.
254. ~flowery-kirtled Naiades~: fresh-water nymphs dressed in flowers, or
having their skirts decorated with flowers. A _kirtle_ is a gown; Skeat
suggests that it is a diminutive of _skirt_.