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javelin (unde datum, v. 20) and other known facts; but he suppresses from shame (pudore silet, v. 22) that Procris had received this javelin from Minos, king of Crete, as the price of her beauty. On being further questioned, he tells him the fatal destiny of the javelin, with which he unwittingly had himself slain his wife.-While this tale was going on, Æăcus had, through his two sons, Telămon and Peleus, caused troops to be raised out of the newly-sprung up people of the Myrmidons (comp. XXXI.; whence noro milite, XXXII. 106,) and presented them to Cephalus as auxiliaries for the Athenians.

666

Ad regem Cephalus simul et Pallante creati
Conveniunt; sed adhuc regem sopor altus habebat :
Excipit acides illos in limine Phocus.

Phocus in interius spatium pulchrosque recessus
5 Cecropidas ducit. Cum quîs simul ipse resedit;
Adspicit Æoliden ignota ex arbore factum
Ferre manu jaculum, cujus fuit aurea cuspis:
Pauca prius mediis sermonibus ille locutus,

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672

Sum nemorum studiosus," ait, "cædisque ferinæ ;

10 Qua tamen e silva teneas hastile recisum,
Jamdudum dubito: certe, si fraxinus esset,
Fulva colore foret; si cornus, nodus inesset.
Unde sit ignoro; sed non formosius isto
Viderunt oculi telum jaculabile nostri."

15

676

680

Excipit Actæis e fratribus alter et, "Usum Majorem specie mirabere," dixit, "in isto. Consequitur quodcumque petit; fortunaque missum Non regit; et revolat, nullo referente, cruentum." Tum vero juvenis Nereïus omnia quærit : 20 Cur sit et unde datum, quis tanti muneris auctor. Quæ petit, ille refert, et cetera nota; pudore, Qua tulerit mercede, silet, tactusque dolore Conjugis amissæ lacrimis ita fatur obortis :

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685

Hoc me, nate dea,-quis possit credere?-telum 25 Flere facit facietque diu, si vivere nobis

691

695

Fata diu dederint! Hoc me cum conjuge cara Perdidit; hoc utinam caruissem munere semper! Procris erat,-si forte magis pervenit ad aures Orithyia tuas,-raptæ soror Orithyiæ; 30 Si faciem moresque velis conferre duarum, Dignior ipsa rapi. Pater hanc mihi junxit Erechtheus, Hanc mihi junxit Amor. Felix dicebar eramque;

Non ita dîs visum est:-et nunc quoque forsitan

essem ;

Mecum uxor dulces concorditer exigit annos; 35 Dat mihi præterea, tanquam se parva dedisset Dona, simul jaculum, manibus quod cernis habere. Hactenus; et tacuit. "Jaculo quod crimen in ipso?"

Phocus ait.

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795

800

805

Jaculi sic crimina reddidit ille : Gaudia principium nostri sunt, Phoce, doloris : 40 Illa prius referam. Juvat o meminisse beati Temporis, acida, quo primos rite per annos Conjuge eram felix, felix erat illa marito. Mutua cura duos et amor socialis habebat : Nec Jovis illa meo thalamos præferret amori, 45 Nec me quæ caperet, non si Venus ipsa veniret, Ulla erat: æquales urebant pectora flammæ. Sole fere radiis feriente cacumina primis Venatum in silvas juveniliter ire solebam, Nec mecum famulos nec equos nec naribus acres 50 Ire canes, nec lina sequi nodosa sinebam : Tutus eram jaculo. Sed cum satiata ferinæ Dextera cædis erat; repetebam frigus et umbras Et, quæ de gelidis exhalat vallibus, auram. Aura petebatur medio mihi lenis in æstu, 55 Auram exspectabam, requies erat ille labori. 'Aura,'-recordor enim-' venias,' cantare solebam, 'Meque juves, intresque sinus, gratissima, nostros, Utque facis, relevare velis, quibus urimur, æstus!' 815 Forsitan addiderim-sic me mea fata trahebant60 Blanditias plures, et, Tu mihi magna voluptas,' Dicere sim solitus, tu me reficisque fovesque, Tu facis, ut silvas, ut amem loca sola, meoque Spiritus iste tuus semper captatur ab ore.'

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810

820

"Vocibus ambiguis deceptam præbuit aurem 65 Nescio quis, nomenque auræ tam sæpe vocatum Esse putat Nymphæ: Nympham mihi credit amari. Criminis extemplo ficti temerarius index Procrin adit, linguaque refert audita susurra. Credula res amor est: subito collapsa dolore, 70 Ut sibi narratur, cecidit, longoque refecta Tempore, se miseram, se fati dixit iniqui,

825

Deque fide questa est, et crimine concita vano,
Quod nihil est, metuit; metuit sine corpore nomen,
Et dolet infelix veluti de pellice vera.

75 Sæpe tamen dubitat, speratque miserrima falli,
Indicioque fidem negat, et, nisi viderit ipsa,
Damnatura sui non est delicta mariti.

831

"Postera depulerant Auroræ lumina noctem : 835 Egredior silvasque peto, victorque per herbas 80 'Aura veni,' dixi, 'nostroque medere labori!' Et subito gemitus inter mea verba videbar

Nescio quos

dixi.

audisse. "Veni," tamen, "optima!"

Fronde levem rursus strepitum faciente caduca, 840 Sum ratus esse feram, telumque volatile misi. 85 Procris erat, medioque tenens in pectore vulnus 'Hei mihi!' conclamat. Vox est ubi cognita fidæ Conjugis; ad vocem præceps amensque cucurri. Semanimem et sparsas fœdantem sanguine vestes 845 Et sua-me miserum!-de vulnere dona trahentem 90 Invenio, corpusque meo mihi carius ulnis

850

Mollibus attollo, scissaque a pectore veste Vulnera sæva ligo, conorque inhibere cruorem, Neu me morte sua sceleratum deserat, oro. Viribus illa carens et jam moribunda coegit 95 Hæc se pauca loqui: Per nostri fœdera lecti, Perque deos supplex oro superosque meosque, Per si quid merui de te bene, perque manentem Nunc quoque, cum pereo, causam mihi mortis,

100

amorem,

Ne thalamis Auram patiare innubere nostris.'

855

"Dixit, et errorem tum denique nominis esse
Et sensi et docui. Sed quid docuisse juvabat?
Labitur, et parvæ fugiunt cum sanguine vires;
Dumque aliquid spectare potest, me spectat, et

in me

Infelicem animam nostroque exhalat in ore; 105 Sed vultu meliore mori secura videtur."

860

Flentibus hæc lacrimans heros memorabat, et,

ecce,

864

Eacus ingreditur duplici cum prole, novoque
Milite, quem Cephalus cum fortibus accipit armis.

XXXIII. DEDALUS.

(VIII. 155-261.)

Minos, king of Crete, having been victorious against the Athenians (for the cause of the war, comp. Introd. XXXI.) compelled them to the ignominious tribute of sending him from Athens every year, for nine years, seven youths and seven maidens. In his own country, however, a disaster had befallen him which disgraced his family. His consort, Pasiphaê, had given birth to the Minotaur, a monster, half man, half bull (whence biforme, v. 2; figura gemini tauri juvenisque, v. 15). To withdraw this from the eyes of the world, he caused the famous artist, Dædălus, to construct for him the labyrinth, a building which, partly from the great number of its apartments, partly from the complicated windings of the passages, made it almost impossible for a person who had once entered it, to discover his way out. In this structure Minos shut up the Minotaur; and the youths and maidens, sent as tribute from Athens, were destined for the food of the monster, and brought into the labyrinth. The monster had already twice glutted himself with the blood of the Attic children (Actoo bis pastum sanguine monstrum, v. 16), when, in the third party, sent off by lot (tertia sors, v. 17) there came as one of the youths Theseus the son of King Ægeus. This prince, by his valour, succeeded in slaying the Minotaur, and thus freed his country from its ignominious tribute. His return from the labyrinth was, however, gained only by the aid of Minos's daughter (ope virginea, v. 18), who gave him a thread, which he fastened to the threshold without, and took with him through the windings of the passages and apartments, so that (filo relecto, v. 19) he could not miss the way out. As Ariadnê had done this for love of Theseus, he took her with him to screen her from her father's vengeance; but treacherously left her at the island of Naxos, where the god Bacchus took pity on the forsaken damsel.

After these events, Dædălus also, the skilful architect, whom Minos detained against his will, sought to escape from Crete. Dædǎlus had been compelled to quit his birthplace, Athens, on account of a murder. Perdix, the son of one of his sisters, who had been committed to him for instruction, had evinced great talents for art. But, because he had invented the saw and the compass, Dædălus, who wished to keep to himself alone the highest reputation as an artist, pushed him down from the citadel of Athens (arce Minerva, v. 96).. For this sentence was pronounced against him; Perdix, however, on account of his

talent for art, had, in falling, been saved by Minerva, and changed into a bird (a partridge, i.e. perdix, unica tunc volucris, v. 85). Dædǎlus, thus condemned, escaped to Crete. When, after long detention in the island he could in no other way escape from the watchful power of Minos, he made himself wings, in order to fly away through the air. He himself succeeded in his flight, and got away to Sicily; but his son, Icărus, did not duly attend to his father's directions, and so fell into the sea, which from him obtained the name mare Icarium. The island also, lying in the neighbourhood, in which Dædălus interred him, was, after him, named Icaria.

The name of Dædălus has obtained a perfectly mythic character, inasmuch as all later inventions in art were attributed to him. (Comp. the Index under Dædălus.)

5

Creverat opprobrium generis Minois, et omnes 155 Monstrum mirantes tunc spectavere biforme. Destinat hunc Minos thalamis removere pudorem, Multiplicique domo cæcisque includere tectis.

160

Dædalus ingenio fabræ celeberrimus artis
Ponit opus, turbatque notas, et limina flexum
Ducit in errorem variarum ambage viarum.
Non secus ac liquidus Phrygiis Mæandros in arvis
Ludit, et ambiguo lapsu refluitque fluitque,

10 Occurrensque sibi venturas adspicit undas,

15

Et, nunc ad fontes nunc in mare versus apertum, 165
Incertas exercet aquas: ita Dædalus implet
Innumeras errore vias, vixque ipse reverti

Ad limen potuit: tanta est fallacia tecti.

Quo postquam tauri geminam juvenisque figuram Clausit, et Actæo bis pastum sanguine monstrum 170 Tertia sors annis domuit repetita novenis, Utque ope virginea, nullis iterata priorum, Janua difficilis filo est inventa relecto; 20 Protinus Ægides, rapta Minoide, Dian

Vela dedit, comitemque suam crudelis in illo Litore destituit. Desertæ et multa querenti Amplexus et opem Liber tulit; utque perenni Sidere clara foret, sumtam de fronte coronam 25 Immisit cœlo. Tenues volat illa per auras,

175

Dumque volat, gemmæ subitos vertuntur in ignes, 180
Consistuntque loco, specie remanente Coronæ,

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