IO. Celestial or mortal? If it may be spoken, tell me.
PR. But why ask its nature? for it is not a matter that I can
communicate to you.
IO. Is it by a consort that he is to be ejected from his throne?
PR. Yes, surely, one that shall give birth to a son mightier than the
father.[59]
IO. And has he no refuge from this misfortune?
PR. Not he, indeed, before at any rate I after being liberated from my
shackles--
IO. Who, then, is he that shall liberate thee in despite of Jupiter?
PR. It is ordained that it shall be one of thine own descendants.
IO. How sayest thou? Shall child of mine release thee from thy ills?
PR. Yes, the third of thy lineage in addition to ten other
generations.[60]
IO. This prophecy of thine is no longer easy for me to form a guess
upon.
PR. Nor seek thou to know over well thine own pangs.
IO. Do not, after proffering me a benefit, withhold it from me.
PR. I will freely grant thee one of two disclosures.
IO. Explain to me first of what sort they are, and allow me my choice.
PR. I allow it thee; for choose whether I shall clearly tell to thee the
residue of thy troubles, or who it is that is to be my deliverer.
CH. Of these twain do thou vouchsafe to bestow the one boon on this
damsel, and the other on me, and disdain thou not my request. To her
tell the rest of her wanderings, and to me him that is to deliver thee;
for this I long [to hear].
PR. Seeing that ye are eagerly bent upon it, I will not oppose your
wishes, so as not to utter every thing as much as ye desire. To thee in
the first place, Io, will I describe thy mazy wanderings, which do thou
engrave on the recording tablets of thy mind.
When thou shalt have crossed the stream that is the boundary of the
Continents, to the ruddy realms of morn where walks the sun[61] ...
having passed over the roaring swell of the sea, until thou shalt reach
the Gorgonian plains of Cisthene, where dwell the Phorcides, three
swan-like aged damsels, that possess one eye in common, that have but a
single tooth, on whom ne'er doth the sun glance with his rays, nor the
nightly moon. And hard by are three winged sisters of these, the
snake-tressed Gorgons, abhorred of mortals, whom none of human race can
look upon and retain the breath of life.[62] Such is this caution[63]
which I mention to thee. Now lend an ear to another hideous spectacle;
for be on thy guard against the keen-fanged hounds of Jupiter that never
bark, the gryphons, and the cavalry host of one-eyed Arimaspians, who
dwell on the banks of the gold-gushing fount, the stream of Pluto: go
not thou nigh to these. And thou wilt reach a far-distant land, a dark
tribe, who dwell close upon the fountains of the sun, where is the river
AEthiops. Along the banks of this wend thy way, until thou shalt have
reached the cataract where from the Bybline mountains the Nile pours
forth his hallowed, grateful stream. This will guide thee to the
triangular land of the Nile; where at length, Io, it is ordained for
thee and thy children after thee to found the distant colony. And if
aught of this is obscurely uttered, and hard to be understood, question
me anew, and learn it thoroughly and clearly: as for leisure, I have
more than I desire.
CH. If indeed thou hast aught to tell of her baleful wanderings, that
still remains or hath been omitted, say on; but if thou hast told the
whole, give to us in our turn the favor which we ask, and you,
perchance, remember.
PR. She hath heard the full term of her journeying. And that she may
know that she hath not been listening to me in vain, I will relate what
hardships she endured before she came hither, giving her this as a sure
proof of my statements. The very great multitude indeed of words I
shall omit, and I will proceed to the termination itself of thine
aberrations. For after that thou hadst come to the Molossian plains, and
about the lofty ridge of Dodona, where is the oracular seat of
Thesprotian Jove, and a portent passing belief, the speaking oaks, by
which thou wast clearly and without any ambiguity saluted illustrious
spouse of Jove that art to be; if aught of this hath any charms for
thee.[64] Thence madly rushing along the seaside track, thou didst dart
away to the vast bay of Rhea, from which thou art tempest-driven in
retrograde courses: and in time to come, know well that the gulf of the
deep shall be called IO-nian, a memorial of thy passage to all mortals.
These hast thou as tokens of my intelligence, how that it perceives
somewhat beyond what appears.
The rest I shall tell both to you and to her in common, after reaching
the very identical track of my former narrative. There is on the land's
utmost verge a city Canopus, hard by the Nile's very mouth and alluvial
dike; on this spot Jupiter at length makes thee sane by merely soothing
and touching thee with his unalarming hand. And named after the
progeniture of Jupiter[65] thou shalt give birth to swarthy Epaphus, who
shall reap the harvest of all the land which the wide-streaming Nile
waters. But fifth in descent from him a generation of fifty virgins
shall again come to Argos, not of their own accord, fleeing from
incestuous wedlock with their cousins; and these with fluttering hearts,
like falcons left not far behind by doves, shall come pursuing marriage
such as should not be pursued, but heaven shall be jealous over their
persons;[66] and Pelasgia shall receive them after being crushed by a
deed of night-fenced daring, wrought by woman's hand; for each bride
shall bereave her respective husband of life, having dyed in their
throats[67] a sword of twin sharp edge. Would that in guise like this
Venus might visit my foes! But tenderness shall soften one[68] of the
maidens, so that she shall not slay the partner of her couch, but shall
be blunt in her resolve; and of the two alternatives she shall choose
the former, to be called a coward rather than a murderess. She in Argos
shall give birth to a race of kings. There needs a long discourse to
detail these things distinctly; but from this seed be sure shall spring
a dauntless warrior renowned in archery, who shall set me free from
these toils. Such predictions did my aged mother the Titaness Themis
rehearse to me; but how and when--to tell this requires a long detail,
and thou in knowing it all wouldst be in nought a gainer.
IO. Eleleu! Eleleu! Once more the spasm[69] and maddening frenzies
inflame me--and the sting of the hornet, wrought by no fire,[70]
envenoms me; and with panic my heart throbs violently against my breast.
My eyes, too, are rolling in a mazy whirl, and I am carried out of my
course by the raging blast of madness, having no control of tongue, but
my troubled words dash idly against the surges of loathsome calamity.
[_Exit_ IO.
CH. Wise was the man, ay, wise indeed, who first weighed well this
maxim, and with his tongue published it abroad, that to match in one's
own degree is best by far;[71] and that one who lives by labor should
woo the hand neither of any that have waxed wanton in opulence, nor of
such as pride themselves on nobility of birth. Never, O Destines,[72]
never ... may ye behold me approaching as a partner the couch of
Jupiter: nor may I be[73] brought to the arms of any bridegroom from
among the sons of heaven: for I am in dread when I behold the maiden Io,
contented with no mortal lover, greatly marred by wearisome wanderings
at the hand of Juno. For myself, indeed--inasmuch as wedlock on one's
own level is free from apprehension--I feel no alarm.[74] And oh! never
may the love of the mightier gods cast on me a glance that none can
elude. This at least is a war without a conflict, accomplishing things
impossible:[75] nor know I what might become of me, for I see not how I
could evade the counsel of Jove.
PR. Yet truly shall Jove, albeit he is self-willed in his temper, be
lowly, in such[76] wedlock is he prepared to wed, as shall hurl him out
of his sovereignty and off his throne a forgotten thing; and the curse
of his father Saturn shall then at length find entire consummation,
which he imprecated when he was deposed from his ancient throne. From
disasters such as these there is no one of the gods besides myself that
can clearly disclose to him a way of escape. I know this, and by what
means. Wherefore let him rest on in his presumption, putting confidence
in his thunders aloft, brandishing in his hand a fire-breathing bolt.
For not one jot shall these suffice to save him from falling dishonored
in a downfall beyond endurance; such an antagonist is he now with his
own hands preparing against himself, a portent that shall baffle all
resistance; who shall invent a flame more potent than the lightning, and
a mighty din that shall surpass the thunder; and shall shiver the ocean
trident, that earth-convulsing pest, the spear of Neptune. And when he
hath stumbled upon this mischief, he shall be taught how great is the
difference between sovereignty and slavery.
CH. Thou forsooth art boding against Jupiter the things thou wishest.
PR. Things that shall come to pass, and that I desire to boot.
CH. And are we to expect that any one will get the mastery of Jove?
PR. Ay, and pangs too yet harder to bear than these [of mine] shall he
sustain.
CH. And how is it that thou art not dismayed blurting out words such as
these?
PR. Why at what should I be terrified to whom it is not destined to die?
CH. Yet perchance he will provide for thee affliction more grievous than
even this.
PR. Let him do it then, all is foreseen by me.
CH. They that do homage to Adrasteia are wise.
PR. Do homage, make thy prayer, cringe to each ruler of the day. I care
for Jove less than nothing; let him do, let him lord it for this brief
span, e'en as he list, for not long shall he rule over the gods. But no
more, for I descry Jove's courier close at hand, the menial of the new
monarch: beyond all [doubt] he has come to announce to us some news.
_Enter_ MERCURY.
Thee, the contriver, thee full of gall and bitterness, who sinned
against the gods by bestowing their honors on creatures of a day, the
thief of fire, I address. The Sire commands thee to divulge of what
nuptials it is that thou art vaunting, by means of which he is to be put
down from his power. And these things, moreover, without any kind of
mystery, but each exactly as it is, do thou tell out; and entail not
upon me, Prometheus, a double journey; and thou perceivest that by such
conduct Jove is not softened.
PR. High sounding, i'faith, and full of haughtiness is thy speech, as
beseems a lackey of the gods. Young in years, ye are young in power;[77]
and ye fancy forsooth that ye dwell in a citadel impregnable against
sorrow. Have I not known two monarchs[78] dethroned from it? And the
third that now is ruler I shall also see expelled most foully and most
quickly. Seem I to thee in aught to be dismayed at, and to crouch
beneath the new gods? Widely, ay altogether, do I come short [of such
feelings]. But do thou hie thee back the way by which thou camest: for
not one tittle shalt thou learn of the matter on which thou questionest
me.
MER. Yet truly 'twas by such self-will even before now that thou didst
bring thyself to such a calamitous mooring.
PR. Be well assured that I would not barter my wretched plight for thy
drudgery; for better do I deem it to be a lackey to this rock, than to
be born the confidential courier of father Jove. Thus is it meet to
repay insult in kind.
MER. Thou seemest to revel in thy present state.
PR. Revel! Would that I might see my foes thus reveling, and among these
I reckon thee.
MER. What dost thou impute to me also any blame for thy mischances?
PR. In plain truth, I detest all the gods, as many of them as, after
having received benefits at my hands, are iniquitously visiting me with
evils.
MER. I hear thee raving with no slight disorder.
PR. Disordered I would be, if disorder it be to loathe one's foes.
MER. Thou wouldst be beyond endurance, wert thou in prosperity.
PR. Woe's me!
MER. This word of thine Jove knows not.
PR. Ay, but Time as he grows old teaches all things.
MER. And yet verily thou knowest not yet how to be discreet.
PR. No i'faith, or I should not have held parley with thee, menial as
thou art.
MER. Thou seemest disposed to tell nought of the things which the Sire
desires.
PR. In sooth, being under obligation as I am to him, I am bound to
return his favor.
MER. Thou floutest me, forsooth, as if I were a boy.
PR. Why, art thou not a boy, and yet sillier than one, if thou lookest
to obtain any information from me? There is no outrage nor artifice by
which Jupiter shall bring me to utter this, before my torturing shackles
shall have been loosened. Wherefore let his glowing lightning be hurled,
and with the white feathered shower of snow, and thunderings beneath the
earth let him confound and embroil the universe; for nought of these
things shall bend me so much as even to say by whom it is doomed that he
shall be put down from his sovereignty.
MER. Consider now whether this determination seems availing.
PR. Long since has this been considered and resolved.
MER. Resolve, O vain one, resolve at length in consideration of thy
present sufferings to come to thy right senses.
PR. Thou troublest me with thine admonitions as vainly as
[thou mightest] a billow.[79] Never let it enter your thoughts that I,
affrighted by the purpose of Jupiter, shall become womanish, and shall
importune the object whom I greatly loathe, with effeminate upliftings
of my hands, to release me from these shackles: I want much of that.
MER. With all that I have said I seem to be speaking to no purpose; for
not one whit art thou melted or softened in thy heart by entreaties, but
art champing the bit like a colt fresh yoked, and struggling against the
reins. But on the strength of an impotent scheme art thou thus violent;
for obstinacy in one not soundly wise, itself by itself availeth less
than nothing. And mark, if thou art not persuaded by my words, what a
tempest and three-fold surge of ills, from which there is no escape,
will come upon thee. For in the first place the Sire will shiver this
craggy cleft with thunder and the blaze of his bolt, and will overwhelm
thy body, and a clasping arm of rock shall bear thee up. And after thou
shalt have passed through to its close, a long space of time, thou shalt
come back into the light; and a winged hound of Jupiter, a
blood-thirsting eagle, shall ravenously mangle thy huge lacerated frame,
stealing upon thee an unbidden guest, and [tarrying] all the live-long
day, and shall banquet his fill on the black viands[80] of thy liver. To
such labors look thou for no termination, until some god shall appear
as a substitute in thy pangs, and shall be willing to go both to gloomy
Hades, and to the murky depths around Tartarus. Wherefore advise thee,
since this is no fictitious vaunt, but uttered in great earnestness; for
the divine mouth knows not how to utter falsehood, but will bring every
word to pass. But do thou look around and reflect, and never for a
moment deem pertinacity better than discretion.
CH. To us, indeed, Mercury seems to propose no unseasonable counsel; for
he bids thee to abandon thy recklessness, and seek out wise
consideration. Be persuaded; for to a wise man 'tis disgraceful to err.
PR. To me already well aware of it hath this fellow urged his message;
but for a foe to suffer horribly at the hands of foes is no indignity.
Wherefore let the doubly-pointed wreath of his fire be hurled at me, and
ether be torn piecemeal by thunder, and spasm of savage blasts; and let
the wind rock earth from her base, roots and all, and with stormy surge
mingle in rough tide the billow of the deep and the paths of the stars;
and fling my body into black Tartarus, with a whirl, in the stern eddies
of necessity. Yet by no possible means shall he visit me with death.
MER. Resolutions and expressions, in truth, such as these of thine, one
may hear from maniacs. For in what point doth his fate fall short of
insanity?[81] What doth it abate from ravings? But do ye then at any
rate, that sympathize with him in his sufferings, withdraw hence
speedily some-whither from this spot, lest the harsh bellowing of the
thunder smite you with idiotcy.
CH. Utter and advise me to something else, in which too thou mayest
prevail upon me; for in this, be sure, thou hast intruded a proposal
not to be borne. How is it that thou urgest me to practice baseness?
Along with him here I am willing to endure what is destined, for I have
learned to abhor traitors; and there is no evil which I hold in greater
abomination.
MER. Well, then, bear in mind the things of which I forewarn you: and do
not, when ye have been caught in the snares of Ate, throw the blame on
fortune, nor ever at any time say that Jove cast you into unforeseen
calamity: no indeed, but ye your ownselves: for well aware, and not on a
sudden, nor in ignorance, will ye be entangled by your senselessness in
an impervious net of Ate.
[_Exit_ MERCURY.
PR. And verily in deed and no longer in word doth the earth heave, and
the roaring echo of thunder rolls bellowing by us; and deep blazing
wreaths of lightning are glaring, and hurricanes whirl the dust; and
blasts of all the winds are leaping forth, showing one against the other
a strife of conflict gusts; and the firmament is embroiled with the
deep.[82] Such is this onslaught that is clearly coming upon me from
Jove, a cause for terror. O dread majesty of my mother Earth, O ether
that diffusest thy common light, thou beholdest the wrongs I suffer.