begot me, and king Idomeneus; but he went in the crooked ships to Ilium, together with the sons of Atreus: and my renowned name is Æthon, the youngest in birth; but he was first and best. There I saw Ulysses, and gave him hospitable gifts. For the strength of the wind drove him to Crete, as he was making for Troy, making him to wander from the Maleans; and placed him in Amnisus, (where too is the cave of Ilytheia,) in a dangerous haven; and he scarcely escaped the storms. But immediately coming up to the city, he inquired for Idomeneus; for he said that he was a dear and venerable guest of his. And he had now set out about ten or eleven days with his crooked ships for Troy. I however leading him to my abode, treated him well, entertaining him heartily, having many things in my house: and I gave to him, and to his other companions, who followed with him, meal from the public stores, and dark wine, having collected it, and beeves to sacrifice; that they might satiate their mind. There the divine Grecians remained for twelve days; for a great North wind drifted them, nor suffered them to stand even on land; for some evil deity raised it; but on the thirteenth day the wind fell; and they weighed anchor."
He stopt,[1] telling many falsehoods like unto truths: and the tears flowed down from her, hearing it, and her body wasted away. And as the snow has melted on the lofty mountains, which the East wind has melted,[2] when Zephyr poured it upon them, and the rivers as they flow are filled by it melting; so were her fair cheeks melted, as she shed tears, bewailing her husband, who was sitting near her; and Ulysses indeed pitied in his mind his grieving wife, but his eyes stood [firm] as horn or steel, without trembling in his eyelids: and by artifice he concealed his tears. When then she was satiated
- ↑ See Buttmann, Lexil. p. 275—279, and on Od. xxii. 31, who would almost prefer ἴσπεν to ἴσκεν, the true meaning of which is very difficult to settle. For my own part I feel inclined to change the punctuation, joining λέγων ἐτυμοισιν ὁμοῖα, and rendering, "He [thus] counterfeited many false things, speaking words like unto truth." This does least violence to the proper meaning of ἴσχε.
- ↑ Observe the continued repetition, τήκετο—κατατήκετο—κατέτηξεν. Cf. Il. i. 251, sqq. v. 266, sqq. Hesiod, Opp. 27, sq. 97, sq. Pseud-Orpheus Org. 717, sq. Theocrit. xxvii. 66, sqq. Such instances are chiefly found in heroic verse.
