The Odyssey, Page 40

  sitting high up there in the clouds: between them they rule

  the rest of mankind, not to mention the immortal gods!"

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  Then much-enduring noble Odysseus responded to him, saying:

  "Not long, for sure, will those two remain mere spectators

  of the fierce battle, when between the suitors and ourselves

  where Ares' strength lies is decided, here in my halls!

  But for now, at daybreak tomorrow you must be off

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  back home, and mingle there with the arrogant suitors.

  As for me, the swineherd will escort me later into town,

  in the likeness of a wretched and elderly beggar: and if

  in the house they mistreat me, still let the heart in your breast

  endure the sight of the pain I suffer; I may be dragged

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  by the heels through the house, and then thrown out, or pelted

  with missiles--nevertheless you must look on and bear it!

  You can tell them to give over their mindless folly, using

  gentle words to dissuade them; but they won't take

  any notice of you; for indeed, their fatal day is at hand!

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  And another thing I'll tell you, and you take it to heart:

  When Athene, resourceful counselor, puts it into my mind,

  I'll nod my head to you, and you, when you see that,

  must gather up all the weapons that are lying in the halls

  and stack them away at the back of the lofty storeroom,

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  all of them; disarm the suitors with soothing words when they

  note their absence, and start to ask you about them; say:

  'I stored them away from the smoke, since they no longer look

  as they did when Odysseus left them on going off to Troy,

  but are blackened with all the fire's breath that's got to them.

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  And there's a greater concern Kronos' son has put in my mind,

  that when you're flushed with wine you may pick some quarrel

  among you and wound one another, and so disgrace

  your feast and your wooing: for iron of itself attracts a man.'

  "But for us two alone leave behind two swords and two spears,

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  and a couple of oxhide shields that we can heft in our hands,

  running up and seizing them; as for those fellows, Pallas

  Athene and Zeus the Counselor will befuddle their wits!2

  And another thing I'll tell you, and you take it to heart:

  If indeed you are my son and of our blood, then don't

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  let anyone know that Odysseus has come back home--

  Don't break the news to Laertes, or to the swineherd, or

  to any household servant--or to Penelope herself!

  You and I by ourselves will test the loyalty of the women,

  and also make trial of the menservants, find out which ones

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  honor the two of us, have respect for us in their hearts,

  and which are indifferent, and scorn you, man though you are."

  Then his illustrious son responded to him, saying:

  "My father, I think you'll find out the quality of my spirit

  soon enough: I'm not enslaved by any slack-mindedness!

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  However, I really think this plan of yours would profit

  neither one of us, therefore I urge you to reconsider.

  You'd spend long hours, to no purpose, going round the estate

  making trial of each individual, while in your halls

  those arrogant men, at ease, go on squandering your goods!

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  Regarding the women, however, I do urge you to find out

  which of them disregard you, and which ones are innocent;

  but as for the hands at the farmsteads, I'd prefer that we don't

  make trial of them now, but take care of that business later,

  if it's true that you have some portent from aegis-bearing Zeus."

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  Such was the conversation they had with one another.

  But meanwhile the well-built ship put in to Ithake

  that had brought Telemachos and all his comrades from Pylos;

  and they, on coming into the deep-water harbor,

  drove the black ship ashore, high up on dry land,

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  where proud attendants unloaded their gear and promptly

  carried off the resplendent gifts to the house of Klytios.

  They sent a herald ahead to the house of Odysseus,

  to deliver a message to prudent Penelope--saying

  that Telemachos had landed, but had ordered the ship

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  to sail on to the city--so that the noble queen

  might not become worried, and shed tears of tenderness.

  The two of them, herald and swineherd, encountered each other

  on the same errand, both bringing the news to Odysseus' wife.

  So when they arrived at the godlike queen's abode,

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  the herald spoke up in the midst of the handmaids, saying:

  "By now, O queen, your dear son is back in this country."

  But the swineherd went up to Penelope, stood beside her,

  and passed on all that her dear son had told him to say;

  and when he'd delivered his whole message, he departed

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  the courtyard and hall, and went back among the pigs.

  The suitors, however, were troubled, and downcast at heart,

  and went out from the hall past the great courtyard wall,

  and there, in front of the main gates, they sat down.

  Eurymachos, Polybos' son, was the first to address them, saying:

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  "My friends, a great feat has been arrogantly accomplished

  by Telemachos--this voyage, which we thought he'd never make!

  So now let us launch a black ship, the best one we have,

  and assemble a crew of sailors as oarsmen, who'll bring

  word without delay to those others to sail back home at once."

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  He'd not finished speaking when Amphinomos, looking round,

  saw a vessel there in the deep-water harbor, its crew

  busy furling the sail, and with oars in their hands.

  He, with a cheerful laugh, now addressed his comrades, saying:

  "No need to send messages: here they are back home!

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  Either some god told them this, or they themselves observed

  Telemachos' ship sailing past, but couldn't intercept it."

  So he spoke. They now got up and went to the seashore,

  and the crew drove the black ship ashore, high up on dry land,

  where proud attendants unloaded their gear, while they

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  themselves all went to assembly, but would not permit

  any others to sit with them, either young or old; and next

  Eupeithes' son Antinoos addressed them, saying: "Look here,

  see how the gods have saved this fellow from harm!

  Day after day our lookouts perched up on the windy heights,

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  one succeeding another; and when the sun went down

  we never spent nights ashore, but out on the deep sea

  cruised in a swift ship until the bright dawn came up,

  lying in wait for Telemachos, to capture and do away with

  the man himself: but some deity brought him safely home.

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  Now we here need to think up some other sorry end

  for Telemachos, not let him escape us; I don't think

  that while he still lives this business of ours will flourish.

  He himself is no slouch at planning and ideas,

  and the people her
e are no longer completely on our side.

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  We must act first, before this fellow brings all the Achaians

  to assembly--for I don't think he'll let up on us one whit,

  but will give full play to his wrath, stand up among them all

  and report how we planned his murder, but failed to catch him;

  and they won't approve of us on hearing of such low deeds,

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  and may take low action themselves, expel us all

  from our homeland, so that we end up on foreign soil! We must

  arrest him while he's on his estate, well away from the city,

  or else on the road. We can then seize his property

  ourselves, share it fairly between us--but leave the house

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  for his mother to occupy, and whichever man marries her.

  Still, if you dislike this proposal, would rather choose

  that he stay alive, and keep all his ancestral wealth, then we

  should stop consuming his nice rich store of goods

  gathering here: let each one of us rather court her

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  from his own halls with gifts, seek to win her; she'll then marry

  whoever offers the most, who comes as her destined man."

  So he spoke, and each one of them became hushed in silence.

  Amphinomos was the next man to speak and address them,

  the illustrious son of lord Nisos, Aretias' son. He led

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  the suitors who came from Doulichion, rich in wheat

  and pasture; he was the one whose conversation

  most pleased Penelope: he had an intelligent mind.

  He, with friendly intent, now spoke before the assembly:

  "My friends, I'd myself prefer that we should not do away with

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  Telemachos: it's a most serious business, this spilling

  of royal blood. No, we must first learn the will of the gods.

  If the ordinances of great Zeus confer their approval,

  then I will kill him myself and urge the rest to do so;

  but should the gods dissuade us, then I say we must desist."

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  So spoke Amphinomos. They agreed with what he said,

  so they now got up, and left for the house of Odysseus,

  and on arrival sat down on the polished chairs there.

  Now prudent Penelope made a fresh decision: to show

  herself to her suitors, so outrageous and arrogant;

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  for she'd learnt in her halls of the plan to murder her son

  from Medon the herald, who'd overheard their discussion.

  Now she went down to the hall along with her handmaids;

  and when, bright among women, she reached the suitors,

  she stood by the pillar supporting the close-packed roof,

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  and, holding the shining veil in front of her face, upbraided

  Antinoos, addressing him by his name, and saying:

  "Antinoos, wantonly violent, deviser of evil! Yet they say

  that you beat all those of your age in the land of Ithake

  as speaker and counselor! But such a man you are not!

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  You madman, why are you plotting death and destruction

  for Telemachos? Why ignore those suppliants who have

  Zeus as their witness? To plot evil against each other

  is impious! Don't you know how your father came here in terror,

  on the run from his countrymen, who were furious with him

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  because he'd joined up with a group of Taphian pirates

  to raid the Thesprotians, when these were allies of ours?

  So they were hot to waste him, to rip out his life spirit,

  and wholly devour his great and abundant livelihood.

  But Odysseus held and restrained them, despite their urgency.

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  It's his substance you eat without payment, his wife you're courting,

  his son whom you plan to kill. This distresses me greatly.

  So stop it, I tell you, and make the others stop too."

  Then Eurymachos, Polybos' son, responded to her, saying:

  "Ikarios' daughter, prudent Penelope, please don't worry!

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  You've no need to let these matters disturb your mind.

  That man does not live, nor shall do so, nor shall ever be born

  who'll lay violent hands on your son Telemachos

  so long as I'm still alive and have sight upon this earth!

  For this I'll declare to you, and indeed it shall come to pass:

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  straightway would his black blood gush out around my spear,

  since indeed me too Odysseus, that sacker of cities,

  used often to set on his knees, would put morsels of roast

  meat into my hands, and hold the red wine to my lips.

  So Telemachos is by far the dearest of men to me,

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  and he has no need, let me tell him, to fear death--not, at least,

  at the suitors' hands. From the gods, there's no dodging it."

  Thus he spoke,

  to cheer her, while planning Telemachos' death himself.

  She now went back to her shining upper chamber

  and there wept for Odysseus, her dear husband, until

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  grey-eyed Athene shed sweet sleep upon her eyelids.

  At evening, the noble swineherd returned to Odysseus

  and his son, and they set about preparing their supper,

  having slaughtered a yearling pig. Then Athene approached,

  and standing beside Odysseus, son of Laertes, tapped him

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  with her wand, and once more made him an elderly man,

  and put threadbare clothing on him, for fear the swineherd

  might recognize him at sight, and then go off and tell

  prudent Penelope, not keep the news to himself.

  Telemachos was the first to address the swineherd, saying:

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  "You're back, noble Eumaios! What news is there from town?

  Are the proud suitors returned by now from their ambush,

  or still watching out for me on my homeward journey?"

  To him swineherd Eumaios, you then responded, saying:

  "I wasn't concerned to go wandering all through town

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  enquiring about this matter: my mind was made up

  to hurry back here once I'd delivered my message. A swift

  messenger from your comrades then met up with me,

  a herald, who was the first to break the news to your mother.

  And there's one other thing I know, which I saw for myself:

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  I was well up above the city--where the hill of Hermes3 is--

  on my way, when I noticed a fast ship putting in

  to our harbor: there was a crowd of men aboard her,

  and she was loaded down with shields and two-edged spears,

  and I thought that it must be them, but I can't be certain."

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  So he spoke; and Telemachos, princely in power, smiled,

  with a quick glance at his father, but avoiding the swineherd's eye.

  When they'd finished their work and got their supper ready,

  they sat down to eat: no one lacked his fair share of the meal.

  And when they had satisfied their desire for food and drink,

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  their minds turned to rest, and they welcomed the gift of sleep.

  Book 17

  When Dawn appeared, early risen and rosy-fingered,

  Telemachos, dear son of godlike Odysseus, then

  fastened under his feet his fine sandals, picked out

  a sturdy spear, that was comfortably fitted to his grasp,

  and, eager to leave for town,
addressed the swineherd, saying:

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  "Old fellow, I'm off to the city now, so that my mother

  may actually see me: I have a feeling she won't

  give over her ghastly wailing and tearful lamentation