Medon

“ Infect us. See that they embark, Agenor,
Ere night.
Cry. My lord --
Ion. No more -- my word hath pass'd.
Medon, -- there is no office I can add
To those thou hast grown old in; thou wilt guard
The shrine of Phoebus, and within thy home
Thy too delightful home befriend the stranger
As thou didst me; there sometimes waste a thought
On thy spoil'd inmate!
Medon. Think of thee, my lord?
Long shall we triumph in thy glorious reign --
Ion. Prithee no more. Argives! I have a boon
To crave of you ”

“ At every word the dread of losing her, the agony of apprehension, the dull cold sense of despair, waxed heavier, and more stunning. The longer he spoke, the more certain he felt that by his own words he was destroying his own hope; yet he manned his heart stoutly, resisted the foul tempter, and, firm in the integrity of his present purpose, laid bare the secrets of his soul.
Beginning from his discovery of Medon's corpse upon the Esquiline, he now narrated to her fully all that had passed, including much that in his previous tale he had omitted. ”

“ But never did he do aught at all presumptuously to any man. Nay, it is plain what spirit ye are of, and your unseemly deeds are manifest to all, nor is there any gratitude left for kindness done.”
Then Medon, wise of heart, answered her: “Would, oh queen, that this were the crowning evil! But the wooers devise another far greater and more grievous, which I pray the son of Cronos may never fulfil! They are set on slaying Telemachus with the edge of the sword on his homeward way; for he is gone to fair Pylos and goodly Lacedaemon, to seek tidings of his father.” ”

“ MEDON.
Be that instant blest
Which made thee truly ours. My son! my son!
'Tis we should feel uplifted, for the seal
Of greatness is upon thee; yet I know
That when the gods, won by thy virtues, draw
The veil which now conceals their lofty birthplace,
Thou wilt not spurn the maid who prized them lowly.
ION.
Spurn her! My father!
[Enter Ctesiphon.]
MEDON.
Ctesiphon!—and breathless—
Art come to chide me to the council?
CTESIPHON.
No;
To bring unwonted joy; thy son approaches.
MEDON.
Thank Heaven! ”

“ Aloft towards heaven, or to the startled depths
Of forests that afar might share its doom!
So shall the royalty of Argos pass
In festal blaze to darkness! Have ye spoken?
AGENOR.
I speak no more to thee!—Great Jove, look down!
[Shouting without.]
ADRASTUS.
What factious brawl is this?—disperse it, soldiers.
[Shouting renewed—As some of the soldiers are about to march, Phocion rushes in, followed by Ctesiphon, Ion and Medon.]
Whence is this insolent intrusion?
PHOCION.
King! I bear Apollo's answer to thy prayer.
ADRASTUS.
Has not thy travel taught thy knee its duty? ”

“ How power will change him.
[They stand aside.]
The Procession, Enter U. E. R. MEDON, AGENOR, PHO- CION, TIMOCLES, CLEON, Sages and People ION last in royal robes. He advances amidst shouts.
Ion. I thank you for your greeting Shout no more,
But in deep silence raise your hearts to Heaven,
That it may strengthen one so young and frail
As I am, for the business of this hour.
Must I sit here?
Medon. Permit thy earliest friend,
Who has so often propp'd thy tottering step
To lead thee to thy throne, and thus fulfill
His fondest vision.
Ion. Thou art still most kind
Medon. ”

“ They charged, striking with spear and sword, into the crowd, who lost heart, and flew here and there, crying for mercy and falling at every blow. Ulysses slew the prophet, Leiodes, but Phemius, the minstrel, he spared, for he had done no wrong, and Medon, a slave, crept out from beneath an ox hide, where he had been lying, and asked Telemachus to pity him, and Ulysses sent him and the minstrel into the courtyard, where they sat trembling. All the rest of the wooers lay dead in heaps, like heaps of fish on the sea shore, when they have been netted, and drawn to land. ”

“ However, Horn, who had performed the Harlequin very prettily, took it into his head to enlarge my poem to Hendel by several verses, and then to make it refer to "Medon." He read it to us: but we could not take any pleasure in it, for we did not find the additions even ingenious: while the first poem, being written for quite a different purpose, seemed to us disfigured. Our friend, displeased with our indifference, or rather censure, may have shown it to others, who found it new and amusing. Copies were now made of it, to which the reputation of Clodius's "Medon" gave at once a rapid publicity. ”

“ Resign thy state? Sue to the gods for life,
The common life which every slave endures,
And meanly clings to? No; within yon walls
I shall resume the banquet, never more
Broken by man's intrusion. Councillors,
Farewell!—go mutter treason till ye perish!
[Exeunt Adrastus, Crythes, and Soldiers.]
ION [who stands apart leaning on a pedestal.]
'Tis seal'd!
MEDON.
Let us withdraw, and strive
By sacrifice to pacify the gods!
[Medon, Agenor, and Councillors retire: they leave Ctesiphon, Phocion, and Ion. Ion still stands apart, as wrapt in meditation.]
CTESIPHON.
'Tis well ”

“ Now matters not, since thou art here in joy.
Hast brought the answer of the god?
PHOCION.
I have: Now let Adrastus tremble!
MEDON.
May we hear it?
PHOCION.
I am sworn first to utter it to him.
CTESIPHON.
But it is fatal to him!—Say but that!
PHOCION.
Ha, Ctesiphon!—I mark'd thee not before;
How fares thy father?
ION. [to Phocion.]
Do not speak of him.
CTESIPHON. [overhearing Ion.]
Not speak of him! Dost think there is a moment
When common things eclipse the burning thought
Of him and vengeance?
PHOCION.
Has the tyrant's sword—
CTESIPHON.
No, Phocion ”

“ Nor to the worst did ever taste of pow’r.
But their unrul’d acts show their minds’ estate.
Good turns receiv’d once, thanks grow out of date.”
Medon, the learn’d in wisdom, answer’d her:
“I wish, O queen, that their ingratitudes were
Their worst ill towards you; but worse by far,
And much more deadly, their endeavours are,
Which Jove will fail them in. Telemachus
Their purpose is, as he returns to us,
To give their sharp steels in a cruel death;
Who now is gone to learn, if fame can breathe
News of his sire, and will the Pylian shore,
And sacred Sparta, in his search explore.” ”

“ That bade the long-seal'd fount of love gush out,
While with a prince's constancy he came
To lay his noble life down; and the sure,
The dreadful proof, that he whose guileless brow
Is instinct with her spirit, stood above me,
Arm'd for the traitor's deed?—It is my child!
[Ion, reviving, sinks on one knee before Adrastus.]
ION.
Father! [Noise without.]
MEDON.
The clang of arms!
ION. [starting up]
They come! they come!
They who are leagued with me against thy life.
Here let us fall!
ADRASTUS.
I will confront them yet. ”

“ I grant you that an honest man should have no dealings with a tyrant who should set himself up at Thebes, or Corinth, or Argos. But it is different here. I am sure that the man governs us better than we should be governed by the people, or, for the matter of that, by the nobles either.”
At last the Athenian consented. “Very good,” cried Medon, “you will go. Then we will lose no time about it. Depend upon it, Dionysius knows all about you; and if you do not pay your respects to him without loss of time he will be suspicious. Suspicion is the bane of his situation. Servant, friend, wife ”

“ From his death, eternal glory accrued to Codrus, and victory to the Athenians. Who can help admiring a man that sought for death with the same stratagems with which, by those of meaner spirit, life is wont to be sought? His son Medon was the first archon at Athens; from whom his descendants were called by the Athenians Medontidæ; and these, as well as the following archons, down to the time of Charops, held their office during life. The Peloponnesians, on retiring from the Athenian territory, founded Megara, a city equally distant from Corinth and Athens. ”

“ At last Ulysses told Telemachus how he had come home in a ship of the Phaeacians, and how his treasure was hidden in the cave of the Naiads, and asked him how many the wooers were, and how they might drive them from the house. Telemachus replied that the wooers were one hundred and eight, and that Medon, a servant of his own, took part with them; there was also the minstrel of the house, whom they compelled to sing at their feasts. They were all strong young men, each with his sword at his side, but they had with them no shields, helmets, and breastplates. ”

“ B and B ́ were the Megaron or Megara, that is to say inner court, of which B ́ was a covered cloister with a roof supported by bearing-posts with cross-beams and rafters. The open part of the court had no flooring but the natural soil. Animals seem to have been flayed and dressed here, for Medon, who was certainly in the inner court while the suitors were being killed, concealed himself under a freshly-flayed ox (or heifer's) hide (xxii. 363) . ”

“ I cannot see this; to me it seems rather that no man could have brought himself to disregard probability with so little compunction; moreover a woman can kill a man on paper as well as a man can, and with the exception of the delightful episode in which Ulysses spares the lives of Phemius and Medon, the scene, I confess, appears to me to be the most mechanical and least satisfactory in the whole poem. ”

“ Ulysses begins the slaughter of the suitors by the death of Antinous. He declares himself, and lets fly his arrows at the rest. Telemachus assists and brings arms for his father, himself, Eumaeus, and Philaetius. Melanthius does the same for the wooers. Minerva encourages Ulysses in the shape of Mentor. The suitors are all slain, only Medon and Phemius are spared. Melanthius and the unfaithful servants are executed. The rest acknowledge their master with all demonstrations of joy.
Then fierce the hero o'er the threshold strode ”

“ I know I must guard the hair in the picture, for if anything were to happen to it, there are entities in this house which would take a sure and terrible revenge. I don't even dare to die; for life and death are all one to those in the clutch of what came out of R'lyeh. Something would be on hand to punish my neglect. Medusa's coil has got me, and it will always be the same. Never mix up with secret and ultimate horror, young man, if you value your immortal soul. ”

“ Then Medea drew the phial out of her bosom and poured into the water some of the brew she had made in Creon's garden in Corinth. The water in the vat took on a strange bubbling, and the ram sank down.
Then Medea, standing beside the vat, sang an incantation.
"O Earth," she sang, "O Earth who dost provide wise men with potent herbs, O Earth help me now. I am she who can drive the clouds; I am she who can dispel the winds; I am she who can break the jaws of serpents with my incantations; I am she who can uproot living trees and rocks; who can make the mountains shake ”

“ Behold, the sons of Pallas rule in Athens, fiercely and disorderly. Thy father is of no force, and in the house with him is a fair witch woman from a far country. Her name is Medea, the daughter of Æêtes, the brother of Circe the Sorceress. She wedded the famous Jason, and won for him the Fleece of Gold, and slew her own brother Absyrtus. Other evils she wrought, and now she dwells with Ægeus, who fears and loves her greatly. Take thou this herb of grace, and if Medea offers you a cup of wine, drop this herb in the cup, and so you shall escape death. ”

“ Medea did not know about this vein when she stood forward upon the ship to use her spells against him. Upon a cliff of Crete, all gleaming, stood that huge man of bronze. Then, as she was ready to fling her spells against him, Medea thought upon the words that Arete, the wise queen, had given her that she was not to use spells and not to practice against the life of any one.
But she knew that there was no impiety in using spells and practicing against Talos, for Zeus had already doomed all his race. She stood upon the ship, and with her Magic Song she enchanted him. ”

“ Then Medusa bowed herself down at the feet of Athene, and besought her to have pity on her changeless sorrow, and she said, "Child of Zeus, thou dwellest with thy happy kinsfolk, where Helios gladdens all with his light and the Horai lead the glad dance when Phœbus touches the strings of his golden harp. Here there is neither night nor day, nor cloud or breeze or storm. Let me go forth from this horrible land and look on the face of mortal men, for I, too, must die, and my heart yearns for the love which my sisters scorn." ”

“ The nearer he came, the more terrible did the snaky visage and metallic body of the monster grow. At last, when he found himself hovering over her within arm's length, Perseus uplifted his sword, while, at the same instant, each separate snake upon the Gorgon's head stretched threateningly upward, and Medusa unclosed her eyes. But she awoke too late. The sword was sharp; the stroke fell like a lightning flash; and the head of the wicked Medusa tumbled from her body!
"Admirably done!" cried Quicksilver. "Make haste, and clap the head into your magic wallet." ”

“ The two largest of the Gorgons lay with their heads tucked under their wings as birds hide their heads when they go to sleep. But the third, who lay between them, slept with her face turned up towards the sky; and Perseus knew that she was Medusa.
Very stealthily he went nearer and nearer, always with his back towards the monsters and always looking into his bright shield to see where to go. Then he drew his sharp sword and, dashing quickly downward, struck a back blow, so sure, so swift, that the head of Medusa was cut from her shoulders and the black blood gushed like a river from her neck. ”