Page:Ten Tragedies of Seneca (1902).djvu/472

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SENECA'S TRAGEDIES.
[Lines 743—778

Suppliciis animae remiffis currite ad thalamos novos. Rota refiftat membra torquens; tangat Ixion humum Tantalus fecurus undas hautiat Pirenidas. 745 Gravior poena fedeat conjugis focero mei: Lubricus per faxa retro Sifyphum volvat lapis. Vos quoque, umis quas foratis irritus ludit labor, Danaides, coite; veftras hie dies quserit manus. Nunc meis vocata facris nodlium fidus veni, 750 Peffimos induta vultus, fronte non una minax. Tibi more gentis vinculo folvens comam, Secreta nudo nemora luftravi pede. Et evocavi nubibus ficcis aquas; Egique ad imum maria, & Oceanus graves 755 Interius undas a;ftibus vi<Sis dedit. Pariterque mnndus lege confufa setberis Et folem & aftra vidit; & vetitum mare Tetigiftis Urfoe. temporum flexi vices. ^ftiva tellus floruit cantu meo, 760 Meflem coa<Sa vidit hibernam Ceres. Violenta Fhafls vertit in fontem vada; Et Ifter, in tot ora divifus, truces Compreffit undas, omnibus ripis piger. .Sonuere fluiflus, tumuit infanum mare 765 Tacente vento. nemoris antiqui domus Amifit umbram vocis imperio mese. Die reliilo Phoebus in medio ftetit. Hyadefque noftris cantibus motae labant. Adefle facris tempus eft, Phoebe, tuis. 770 Tibi haec cruenta ferta texuntur manu, Noveca qux Terpens ligat: Tibi hoec, Typhceus membra quje difcors tulit, Qui regna concuffit Jovis. Vedioris iftic perfidi fanguis ineft, 775 Quem Keffus exfpirans dedit. CEtEeus Ifto cinere defecit rogus. Qui virus Herculeum bibit.


by the banks of the Tartarus, and let the guilty souls released from their punishment, for the nonce, hasten to the forthcoming novel marriage! (Medea calls it novel, because she considers herself the wife.) Let the wheel, which is turning round the body of Ixion, stop its rotations, and suffer him to reach the ground once more! Let Tantalus, unbalked in his efforts, freely quench his thirst in the waters of the Pirenean fountain. Let a much heavier punishment than his fall to the lot of the father-in-law of my husband (Creon). Let the slippery rock cease to roll back from the mountain upon Sisyphus!

Oh! ye Danaides, assemble ye likewise, cease to expend your vain labor of filling the perforated urn—this is the