show, made his way down to the harbour to hasten the sailing of the
fleet. Day by day his men toiled with a will, for they were sick of
inaction and eager to get away, although winter was already upon them.
And watching from her tower, Dido saw each day’s work completed with
deeper misery, and a growing sense of despair. Very soon now all would
be ready; the day was rapidly approaching when Æneas would trust himself
to that stormy winter sea, with small chance, as she knew, of ever
reaching Latium. At the thought of that final parting and of her lover’s
danger, Dido’s anger melted, and every vestige of her pride was swept
away. She could not and would not let him go like this. At the risk of
worse humiliation still, she would make another effort to keep him in
Carthage, at least until the stormy season should be passed. In feverish
haste she called Anna and sent a poignant message.
“_In pity of my love,
Let him concede this boon—the last I crave,—
And wait propitious winds to speed his flight._“[34]
But Æneas is inexorable, and when Anna returns to the queen with his
refusal, it adds the last intolerable touch to her pain and shame.
Nightlong she roams the palace, like one distraught; and finding her way
to the tomb of Sichæus, she prays to die. Strange omens answer her; and
to her maddened brain it seems that the voice of her husband is calling
her to come to him. The water of her libation turns black as she pours
it upon the altar, and the wine congeals to blood. The high gods have
answered her: they approve her purpose.
As soon as day comes, she begins with deliberate care to make all ready
for her death. Under her directions, a great pyre is built within the
courtyard, on which the queen announces that she intends to offer a
solemn sacrifice. Every relic of Æneas is gathered and laid upon it; his
armour, his cloak and his sword; while all about it Dido herself hangs
garlands and funeral chaplets. Her sister and her women wonder, but have
no hint of her intention. When night falls and all the palace is sunk in
sleep, Dido stands again before the altar and consecrates herself for
the sacrifice. But she cannot yet take the fatal step. She longs for one
more look from her watch-tower, down upon the ships that are so soon to
carry her lover away. So she strains her eyes through the darkness, only
to find, with the first gleam of light, that the harbour is bare. The
fleet has sailed: Æneas, warned by a vision from Jove, has fled in the
night. A bitter cry escapes her:
“_Oh rare
Fidelity and honour! And they say,
He takes his household gods about with him,
And on his shoulders bore his aged sire!_“[34]
She calls upon the great powers of Earth and Sky and the dreadful
Underworld to avenge her wrongs; and looking forward to the years that
are to come, she invokes upon Æneas and his descendants the curse that
followed the Roman race through many generations:
“_So then do you,
My Tyrians, harry with envenomed hate
His race and kin through ages yet to come:
Be this your tribute to my timeless death!...
Let coast conflict with coast, and sea with sea.
Embattled host with host, and endless war
Be waged, ‘twixt their and your posterity!_“[34]
Then, rushing to the courtyard, she climbs the great pyre, and grasps
Æneas’ sword. For one moment, ere she falls upon it, the frenzy lifts
from her brain and shows her all the course of her troubled life.
“_Lo! I have lived my life, have run the course
Assigned to me by fate; now ‘neath the earth
I go, the queenly shade of what I was.
I have built a goodly city; I have seen
Its walls complete; I have avenged my spouse,
And struck my cruel brother blow for blow!..._
“_This heartless Trojan, let him from the waves
Drink in with startled eyes the funeral fires,
And bear with him the presage of my death!_”[34]
So the founder of Carthage died; and the father of great Rome, looking
back with remorseful eyes from his fleeing ship, saw the flames of her
pyre reddening the dawn.
-----
Footnote 34:
From Sir Theodore Martin’s translation of the _Æneid_ (Wm. Blackwood &
Sons).
_Index_
Absyrtus, 229, 230
Achilles, 24, 30, 33, 34, 40, 41, 139, 140, 257, 266, 274
Admetus, 212, 213, 214, 215, 216, 217, 218, 219, 220, 221, 222, 223,
224, 225, 226
Adrastus, 190
Aeêtes, 229
Ægeus, 238
Æneas, 37, 273, 274, 275, 276, 277, 278, 279, 280, 281, 282, 283, 284,
285, 286, 287
Æschylus, 101, 102, 103, 104, 118, 132, 133, 136, 137, 139, 148, 150,
151, 163, 164, 165, 168, 187, 190, 209, 257
Aeolus, King, 62
Agamemnon, 35, 39, 58, 59, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 109, 110, 111,
112, 113, 114, 117, 118, 120, 127, 129, 136, 140, 142, 143, 146,
152, 256, 257, 258, 259, 262, 266, 267, 268
Aigeus, 190
Ajax, 23
Alcestis, 209, 210, 211, 212, 213, 214, 215, 216, 217, 218, 220, 221,
222, 223, 224, 225, 226, 227
Alcinous, 60, 62, 85, 90, 93, 94, 97, 230
Alcmena, 42
Andromache, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 140
Andromeda, 22
Anna, 281, 286
Antigone, 22, 150, 166, 171, 186, 187, 188, 189, 191, 192, 193, 194,
195, 196, 199, 200, 201, 202, 203, 204, 205, 206, 207
Antinous, 42, 46, 47
Aphrodite, 18, 19, 20, 23, 25, 26, 244, 245, 246, 250, 255
Apollo, 97, 105, 109, 112, 113, 118, 123, 126, 129, 131, 133, 135, 137,
140, 144, 146, 168, 169, 172, 173, 181, 189, 212, 213, 214, 226,
238, 258, 271
Ares, 21, 40
Arete, Queen, 85, 97, 230
Argus, 157, 158
Artemis, 92, 93, 213, 244, 246, 247, 255, 257, 258, 261, 262, 271, 272
Astyanax, 35, 36, 37
Atè, 115, 132
Athena, 18, 19, 24, 30, 31, 42, 44, 45, 46, 50, 55, 76, 85, 87, 88, 89,
92, 93, 95, 97, 137, 256, 272
Athene (_see_ Athena)
Atlas, 76, 151
Augustus, 273
Bacchus, 280
Cadmus, 149, 163, 206
Calypso, 43, 60, 73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 78, 79, 81, 82, 83, 84, 87
Camilla, 12
Cassandra, 35, 109, 112, 135, 136, 137, 138, 139, 140, 141, 142, 143,
144, 145, 164
Castor, 23
Charon, 218
Charybdis, 72
Chiron, 228
Chrysothomis, 165
Cilix, 149
Circe, 60, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 230
Clytemnestra, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 109, 110, 112, 113,
114, 115, 116, 117, 118, 119, 120, 121, 123, 127, 129, 130, 131,
137, 143, 144, 164, 165, 256, 257, 258, 266
Creon, 12, 171, 172, 173, 174, 176, 177, 178, 185, 186, 187, 188, 190,
193, 194, 196, 197, 198, 199, 200, 201, 202, 203, 204, 206, 207,
231, 232, 234, 235, 241
Creusa, 276
Cronos, 151, 157
Cyclôpes, 269
Cypris, 244, 250, 251
Diana, 277
Dido, 10, 12, 273, 274, 275, 276, 277, 279, 280, 281, 282, 283, 284,
285, 286, 287
Diomedes, 30
Dionysus, 101
Eëtion, 30
Egisthus, 106, 107, 115, 117, 121, 124, 127, 130
Electra, 12, 116, 118, 119, 120, 121, 123, 124, 125, 126, 127, 128,
129, 130, 132, 133, 134, 164, 166
Elpenor, 71
Enone, 18, 21
Epaphus, 149, 161
Epicasta, 167
Erinys, 115
Eteocles, 171, 188, 190, 191, 193, 197
Euripides, 10, 35, 102, 132, 133, 136, 137, 150, 209, 210, 211, 212,
214, 231, 243, 247, 256
Europa, 149
Euryclea, 50, 53, 57
Eurydice, 208
Eurylochus, 67
Eurystheus, 216, 220
Force, 152
Glaucé, 231, 237, 239, 240, 241
Hæmon, 202, 203, 204, 207
Hector, 21, 24, 25, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 139, 273
Hecuba, 29, 32, 35, 36, 140, 141
Hekabe (_see_ Hecuba)
Helen, 12, 15, 16, 17, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30,
35, 37, 41, 42, 43, 103, 135, 138, 141, 259, 265
Helenus, 37
Hephæstus, 152, 153
Hera, 18, 19, 24, 33, 98, 148, 150, 156, 169
Heracles, 161, 220, 221, 223, 224, 225, 226, 270
Hermes, 65, 66, 77, 78, 79, 119
Hesiod, 152
Hippolytus, 243, 244, 245, 246, 249, 251, 252, 253, 254
Homer, 9, 11, 12, 16, 25, 29, 58, 65, 73, 85, 87, 99, 163, 167, 274
Hymen, 141
Icarius, 46, 59, 60
Idomeneus, 23, 139
Ilione, 280
Inachus, 150, 157, 158
Io, 148, 149, 150, 151, 157, 158, 160, 161, 162, 164, 167
Iphigenia, 103, 104, 105, 121, 211, 256, 257, 259, 260, 261, 262, 263,
264, 265, 267, 268, 269, 270, 271
Ismene, 166, 171, 192, 194, 195, 196, 201, 202
Iulus, 276
Jason, 228, 229, 230, 231, 232, 233, 234, 235, 236, 237, 238, 239, 240,
242
Jocasta, 150, 163, 166, 167, 168, 170, 171, 177, 178, 179, 180, 181,
182, 183, 184, 185
Jove, 108, 287
Juno, 276, 280
Jupiter, 280, 283
Laertes, 59
Laius, 168, 169, 170, 171, 173, 175, 178, 179, 181
Leto, 261
Loxias, 141, 180
Medea, 211, 228, 229, 230, 231, 232, 234, 235, 236, 238, 239, 240, 241,
242, 243, 247
Medon, 48, 49
Menelaus, 17, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 25, 26, 27, 35
Mercury, 283
Merope, 169, 180, 182
Minos, 53
Mycene, 42
Nausicaa, 60, 85, 86, 87, 88, 89, 90, 91, 93, 94, 95, 96, 97, 98
Neoptolemus, 140
Oceanus, 153, 154
Odysseus, 23, 27, 39, 40, 41, 43, 44, 46, 48, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55,
56, 57, 58, 59, 60, 61, 62, 63, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69, 71, 72, 73, 74,
75, 76, 77, 78, 79, 80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85, 87, 88, 89, 90, 92, 93,
94, 96, 97, 98, 140, 274
Œdipus, 12, 166, 167, 168, 169, 170, 171, 172, 173, 174, 175, 176, 177,
178, 179, 180, 181, 182, 183, 184, 185, 187, 188, 189, 190, 191,
192, 195, 201
Orestes, 118, 119, 121, 122, 123, 124, 125, 126, 127, 128, 129, 130,
131, 133, 164, 165, 256, 257, 258, 259, 260, 261, 262, 263, 264,
265, 266, 267, 268, 269, 270, 272
Othryoneus, 138
Paris, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 23, 29, 30, 137, 138, 276
Patroclus, 33, 34
Pelias, 212, 228, 230, 231
Pelops, 262
Penelope, 39, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54,
55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60, 61, 62, 75, 79, 82, 86, 87, 163, 164
Persephone, 69, 70
Phædra, 211, 243, 244, 245, 246, 247, 248, 249, 250, 251, 252, 254
Phemius, 45
Pheres, 222, 223
Phoebus, 173
Pollux, 23
Polybus, 168, 169, 180, 181, 182, 183
Polynices, 171, 188, 190, 191, 192, 193, 194, 196, 197, 198, 207
Polyxena, 140
Poseidon, 27, 39, 40, 87, 88, 94, 189, 191, 254
Priam, 17, 18, 22, 24, 25, 29, 30, 32, 34, 35, 36, 109, 135, 137, 138,
280
Prometheus, 149, 151, 152, 153, 154, 155, 156, 157, 158, 159, 160, 161,
162, 189
Pygmalion, 276, 277
Pylades, 118, 119, 130, 131, 258, 261, 263, 264, 267, 268
Rhodius, Apollonius, 228
Scylla, 72
Sichæus, 276, 277, 281, 282, 286
Sophocles, 102, 132, 133, 150, 163, 165, 166, 172, 186, 194, 206, 209,
210
Talthybius, 140, 142
Tantalus, 103, 123
Telemachus, 27, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 50, 51, 55, 56
Themis, 162
Theseus, 189, 190, 191, 243, 248, 253, 254
Thetis, 33, 41
Thoas, 259, 261, 267, 270, 271, 272
Tiresias, 69, 70, 170, 171, 174, 175, 178, 206
Tyndareus, 19, 20, 41
Typhon, 151
Tyro, 42
Venus, 276, 277, 278
Virgil, 9, 12, 273, 274
Zeus, 18, 24, 27, 32, 33, 41, 47, 49, 50, 54, 65, 73, 76, 77, 78, 79,
93, 94, 97, 98, 112, 126, 127, 128, 148, 149, 151, 152, 153, 154,
155, 156, 157, 158, 160, 161, 167, 200, 226
------------------------------------------------------------------------
TRANSCRIBER’S NOTES
1. Changed ‘hales’ to ‘hails’ on p. 220.
2. Silently corrected typographical errors.
3. Retained anachronistic and non-standard spellings as printed.
4. Enclosed italics font in _underscores_.
End of Project Gutenberg's Women of the Classics, by Mary C. Sturgeon