Acestes

“ And king Acestes, brave and good,
In heart a Trojan, as in blood.
Give leave to draw our ships ashore,
There smooth the plank and shape the oar:
So, should our friends, our king survive,
For Italy we yet may strive:
But, if our hopes are quenched, and thee,
⁠Best father of the sons of Troy,
Death hides beneath the Libyan sea,
⁠Nor spares to us thy princely boy,
Yet may we seek Sicania's land,
Her mansions ready to our hand,
And dwell where we were guests so late,
The subjects of Acestes' state.'
So spoke Ilioneus: and the rest
With shouts their loud assent expressed. ”

“ Entellus hurled his strength into the air, and all his heavy mass, overreaching, fell heavily to the earth; as sometime on Erymanthus or mighty Ida a hollow pine falls torn out by the roots. Teucrians and men of Sicily rise eagerly; a cry goes up, and Acestes himself runs forward, and pityingly lifts his friend and birthmate from the ground. But the hero, not dulled nor dismayed by his mishap, returns the keener to battle, and grows violent in wrath, while shame and resolved valour kindle his strength. ”

“ As to those who were weary of the enterprise—the aged, the feeble, and such of the women as were not willing to undergo further fatigues at sea-he advised that they should be left under the protection of Acestes, who, being himself of Trojan blood, would doubtless grant them a settlement in his kingdom. ”

“ Acestes, son of a Trojan woman who was sent by her father to Sicily, that she might not be devoured by the monsters which infested the territory of Troy
Acetes, Bacchanal captured by Pentheus
Achates, faithful friend and companion of Aeneas
Achelous, river-god of the largest river in Greece—his Horn of Plenty
Achilles, the hero of the Iliad, son of Peleus and of the Nereid Thetis, slain by Paris
Acis, youth loved by Galatea and slain by Polyphemus
Acontius, a beautiful youth, who fell in love with Cydippe, the daughter of a noble Athenian. ”

“ We are not obliged to take this self-depreciation too literally: whatever may be the shortcomings of Dryden’s translation, the hand of the old poet had no more lost its vigour than that of Entellus.
The archers are next to try their skill. In this contest Acestes himself takes part. The other competitors are Mnestheus, whose crew were just now second in the race; Eurytion, a brother of Pandarus, the great archer of the Iliad, whose treacherous arrow, launched against Menelaus during the truce, had wellnigh turned the fate of Troy; and Hippocoon, of whom we know nothing more. ”

“ Justin, bk. 12, ch. 9.—Pliny, bk. 4, ch. 12.
Acesius, a surname of Apollo, in Elis and Attica, as god of medicine. Pausanias, bk. 6, ch. 24.
Acesta, a town of Sicily, called after king Acestes, and known also by the name of Segesta. It was built by Æneas, who left there part of his crew, as he was going to Italy. Virgil, Æneid, bk. 5, li. 746, &c.
Acestes, son of Crinisus and Egesta, was king of the country near Drepanum in Sicily. He assisted Priam in the Trojan war, and kindly entertained Æneas during his voyage, and helped him to bury his father on mount Eryx. ”

“ Ascanius hurries to the scene. Jupiter sends rain and saves all the ships but four (811-855) . Nautes advises Æneas to leave behind the weak and aged with Acestes. The wraith of Anchises enforces the advice, and bids Æneas visit him in the nether-world (856-909) . Preparations for departure. Acestes accepts his new subjects, and the Trojans depart. Venus prevails on Neptune to grant them safe convoy in return for the life of the helmsman Palinurus, who is drowned (910-1062) . ”

“ And thither shall the Sibyl guide thee, and thou shalt learn all that shall befall thee and thy people after this. And now farewell, for the morning cometh, and I must depart.”
And the spirit of Anchises vanished out of his sight, even as smoke into the air, nor heeded him when he would have stayed it; and Æneas arose and did sacrifice to the household gods and to Vesta. Then he took counsel with his companions and with Acestes. And Acestes hearkened to his words. And they separated such as would tarry in the place, both men and [Pg 120] women ”

“ Now Æneas was sore troubled at these things, and doubted much whether he should still abide in the land of Sicily nor heed the Fates, or should yet follow after Italy. Then the old man, Nautes, the priest of Pallas, in whom more than in all men besides dwelt the wisdom of the goddess, spake to him, saying, “Son of the goddess, it must needs be that we go whither the Gods call us. Yet mayest thou devise something for this present necessity, taking counsel with King Acestes, seeing that he also is a son of Troy. ”

“ Not yet is their course clear for Italy. A storm comes on, and they make for refuge towards the friendly coast of Sicily, and run their vessels into a sheltered bay under Mount Eryx. Their return is gladly welcomed by their late host, Acestes, who receives the wanderers, as before, with princely hospitality, still mindful of his own Trojan blood. It chances that the morrow is the anniversary of the burial of Anchises; and Æneas, summoning an open-air council of his crews, announces to them his intention of commemorating his father by a solemn public{86} sacrifice. ”

“ Then lo! a marvel befell, whereof in after days men knew the fulfilment; for the arrow burned as it sped through the air, leaving a line of fire, till it was altogether consumed, even as a star that shoots across the sky by night. And men marvelled to see it, and prayed to the Gods that it might be well. Then great Æneas refused not the omen, but embraced Acestes and gave him many gifts, saying, “Take these gifts, my father, for Jupiter willeth that thou shouldst have especial honour in this thing. I give thee, therefore, this bowl, embossed with figures of men. ”

“ Acas'to (Lord) , father of Seri'no, Casta'lio, and Polydore; and guardian of Monimia "the orphan." He lived to see the death of his sons and his ward. Polydore ran on his brother's sword, Castalio stabbed himself, and Monimia took poison.—Otway, The Orphan (1680) .
Aces'tes (3 syl.) . In a trial of skill, Acestes, the Sicilian, discharged his arrow with such force that it took fire from the friction of the air.—The Æneid, Bk. V.
Like Acestes' shaft of old,
The swift thought kindles as it flies. ”

“ One husband caused thy flight by dying,
Thy death the other caused by flying.”
PALINURUS After touching at the island of Sicily, where Acestes, a prince of Trojan lineage, bore sway, who gave them a hospitable reception, the Trojans reëmbarked, and held on their course for Italy. Venus now interceded with Neptune to allow her son at last to attain the wished-for goal and find an end of his perils on the deep. Neptune consented, stipulating only for one life as a ransom for the rest. ”

“ He proposed, therefore, that they should make for the Sicilian shore, which was not far distant. AEneas gladly consented, for he wished to stand again upon the spot where his father's bones were laid. Moreover the good king A-ces'tes, who ruled in that part of the island, was a Trojan by descent, and he had hospitably received the wanderers on their former visit. They, therefore, turned the prows of their galleys towards Sicily, and soon reached Drepanum, where they were met and welcomed by Acestes, who from a hill top had seen their vessels approaching the shore. ”

“ Trojans and Sicilians gather mingling from all sides, Nisus and Euryalus foremost . . . Euryalus in the flower of youth and famed for beauty, Nisus for pure love of the boy. Next follows renowned Diores, of Priam's royal line; after him Salius and Patron together, the one Acarnanian, the other Tegean by family and of Arcadian blood; next two men of Sicily, Helymus and Panopes, foresters and attendants on old Acestes; many besides whose fame is hid in [Pg 102] [303-338] obscurity. Then among them all Aeneas spoke thus: 'Hearken to this, and attend in good cheer. ”

“ And can there be nation so savage that it receiveth not shipwrecked men on its shore, but beareth arms against them, and forbiddeth them to land? Nay, but if ye care not for men, yet regard the Gods, who forget neither them that do righteously nor them that transgress. We had a king, Æneas, than whom there lived not a man more dutiful to Gods and men, and greater in war. If indeed he be yet alive, then we fear not at all. For of a truth it will not repent thee to have helped us. And if not, other friends have we, as Acestes of Sicily. Grant us, therefore, to shelter our ships from the wind ”

“ Like a roseate jewel in a circle of sapphire, with opal and mauve and purple lights struck from it by the sun’s rays, lies Tenos upon the deep and variable bosom of the Ægean waters. The Greek islands seen from the sea are untiringly, unspeakably beautiful. Shadow and shine, delicate hues and strong ones melt into an inextricable haze, as do the sensations of the spectator, incapable of analysis as he watches them. Energy oozes out through the finger-tips, the pulses quiet in lazy delight, and the eye is filled for once with seeing. ”

“ Here is what Ariadne answered, when the brave Prince of Athens besought her to accompany him:
"No, Theseus," the maiden said, pressing his hand and then drawing back a step or two, "I cannot go with you. My father is old, and has nobody but myself to love him. Hard as you think his heart is, it would break to lose me. At first King Minos will be angry; but he will soon forgive his only child; and, by and by, he will rejoice, I know, that no more youths and maidens must come from Athens to be devoured by the Minotaur. I have saved you, Theseus, as much for my father's sake as for your own. ”

“ The chief men came to Athens from the little towns in the country, and begged Theseus to be their lord, and they would be his men, and he would lead their people if any enemy came up against them. They would even pay tribute to be used for buying better arms, and making strong walls, and providing ships, for then the people of Athens had no navy. Theseus received them courteously, and promised all that they asked, for he did not know that soon he himself would be sent away as part of the tribute which the Athenians paid every nine years to King Minos of Crete. ”

“ Later, in the twilight, Theseus and Ariadne would walk together in the fragrant gardens where the nightingales sang, and Minos knew it, and was glad. He thought that nowhere in the world could he find such a husband for his daughter, and he deemed it wise to have the alliance of so great a king as Theseus promised to be. But, loving his daughter, he kept Theseus with him long, till the prince was ashamed of his delay, knowing that his father, King Ægeus, and all the people of his country, were looking for him anxiously. ”

“ No hero was credited with more wonderful performances than Theseus both by land and sea, and even in the underground world, though his efforts there were not so successful. His most memorable exploit in the eyes of the Athenians was the destruction of the Minotaur, a monster with the body of a man and the head of a bull, which was kept at Knossus, the capital of the Cretan empire of Minos, and to which Athens had to devote a sacrifice of seven youths and seven maidens every nine years. ”

“ Perhaps the greatest charm of Athens and of the islands and mountains round about it lies in their power to lure back your belief in a great many fine people of whose remarkable deeds you had grown sceptical—of whose existence even you had begun to doubt. It is something very serious when one loses faith in so delightful a young man as Theseus, and it is worth while sailing under the lee shores of Crete, where he killed the Minotaur, if for no other purpose than to have your admiration for him restored. ”

“ Thy love and beauty are a gift too great for Theseus; but thou shalt be the bride of Dionysos. Thy days shall be passed amid feasts and banquets, and when thy life is ended here, thou shalt go with me to the homes of the undying gods, and men shall see the crown of Ariadne in the heavens when the stars look forth at night from the dark sky. Nay, weep not, Ariadne, thy love for Theseus hath been but the love of a day, and I have loved thee long before the black-sailed ship brought him from poor and rugged Athens. ”

“ What Hellene, what foreigner, is so dense, or so uninstructed, or so fierce in his hatred of our city, that if one were to put to him this question, and say, 'Tell me now; of all Hellas, as it now is—all this inhabited country—is there any part which would have been called by this name, or inhabited by the Hellenes who now possess it, unless those who fought at Marathon and Salamis, our forefathers, had displayed that high prowess on their behalf?' Why, I am certain that not one would answer 'Yes': they would say that all these regions must have been conquered by the barbarians. ”

“ Aphidnæ being won by Castor and Pollux, and the city of Athens being in consternation, Menestheus persuaded the people to opeu their gates, and receive them with all manner of friendship, for they were, he told them, at enmity with none but Theseus, who had first injured them, and were benefactors and saviors to all mankind beside. And their behavior gave credit to those promises; for, having made themselves absolute masters of the place, they demanded no more than to be initiated, since they were as nearly related to the city as Hercules was, who had received the same honor. ”