Seven were the leaders of the nightly bands;
And each bold chief a hundred fpears commands.
The fires they light, to short repasts they fall;
Some line the trench, and others man the wall.
The king of men on public counfels bent,
Conven'd the princes in his ample tent;
Each feiz'd a portion of the kingly feaft,
But ftaid his hand when thirst and hunger ceas'd.
Then Neftor spoke, for wisdom long approv'd,
And, flowly rifing, thus the council mov'd:

Monarch of nations! whofe fuperior sway
Affembled ftates and lords of earth obey,
The laws and fceptres to thy hand are given,
And millions own the care of thee and Heaven.
O king! the counfels of my age attend;
With thee my cares begin, in thee must end;
Thee, prince! it fits alike to speak and hear,
Fronounce with judgment, with regard give ear,
To fee no wholefome motion be withstood,
And ratify the best for public good.
Nor, though a meaner give advice, repine,
But follow it, and make the wisdom thine.
Hear then a thought, not now conceiv'd in haste,
At once my prefent judgment, and my paft:
When from Pelides' tent you forc'd the maid,
1 first oppos'd, and faithful durft diffuade;
But bold of foul, when headlong fury fir'd,
You wrong'd the man, by men and Gods admir'd:
Now feek fome means his fatal wrath to end,
With prayers to move him, or with gifts to bend.
To whom the king: With juftice haft thou shown
A prince's faults, and I with reafon own.
That happy man, whom Jove ftill honours most,
Is more than armies, and himself an hoit.
Bleft in his love, this wond'rous hero ftands;
Heaven fights his war, and humbles all our bands,
Fain would my heart, which err'd through frantic
rage,

The wrathful chief and angry Gods affuage.
If gifts immenfe his mighty foul can bow,
Hear, all ye Greeks, and witness what I vow:
Ten weighty talents of the pureft gold,
And twice ten vafes of refulgent mold;
Seven facred tripods, whofe unfully'd frame
Yet knows no office, nor has felt the flame:
Twelve fteeds unmatch'd in fleetnefs and in force,
And ftill victorious in the dufty course;
(Rich were the man whofe ample stores exceed
The prizes purchas'd by their winged speed).
Seven lovely captives of the Lesbian line,
Skill'd in each art, unmatch'd, in form divine;
The fame I chofe for more than vulgar charms,
When Lefbos funk beneath the hero's arms:
All thefe, to buy his friendship, fhall be paid,
And, join'd with thefe, the long-contefted maid;
With all her charms, Brifeis I refign,

And folemn fwear thofe charms were never mine:
Untouch'd fhe stay'd, uninjur'd the removes,
Pure from my arms, and guiltlefs of my loves.
Thefe, inftant, fhall be his; and if the Powers
Give to our arms proud Ilion's hoftile towers,
Then fhall he ftore (when Greece the fpoil divides)
With gold and brafs his loaded navy's fides.
Befides, full twenty nymphs of Trojan race
With copious love fhall crown his warm embrace;
Such as himfelf will choose; who yield to none,
Or yield to Helen's heavenly charms alone.

Yet hear me fartlier: when our wars are o'er,
If fafe we land on Argos' fruitful fhore,
There shall he live my fon, our honours share,
And with Oreftes' felf divide my care.

Yet more-three daughters in my court are bred,
And each well worthy of a royal bed;
Laodicé and Iphigenia fair,

And bright Chryfothemis with golden hair ;
Her let him choose, whom moft his eyes approve ;
I ask no prefents, no reward for love:
Myfelf will give the dower; fo vast a store
As never father gave a child before.
Seven ample cities fhall confefs his sway,
Him Enopé, and Phære him obey,
Cardamylé with ample turrets crown'd,
And facred Pedafus for vines renown'd;
Epea fair, the paftures Hira yields,
And rich Antheia with her flowery fields:
The whole extent to Pylos' fandy plain,
Along the verdant margin of the main.
There heifers graze, and labouring oxen toil;
Bold are the men, and generous is the foil;
There fhall he reign with power and justice
And rule the tributary realms around. [crown'd,
All this I give, his vengeance to controul,
And fure all this may move his mighty foul.
Pluto, the grisly God, who never spares,
Who feels no mercy, and who hears no prayers.
Lives dark and dreadful in deep hell's abodes,
And mortals hate him as the worft of Gods.
Great though he be, it fits him to obey;
Since more than his my years, and more my fway.

The monarch thus. The reverend Neftor then:
Great Agamemnon! glorious king of men!
Such are thy offers as a prince may take,
And fuch as fits a generous king to make.
Let chofen delegates this hour be fent,
(Myfelf will name them) to Pelides' tent;
Let Phoenix lead, rever'd for hoary age,
Great Ajax next, and Ithacus the fage.
Yet more to fanctify the word you fend,
Let Hodius and Eurybates attend.
Now pray to Jove to grant what Greece demands;
Pray, in deep filence, and with pureft hands.

[roar

He faid, and all approv'd. The heralds bring The cleanfing water from the living fpring. The youth with wine the facred goblets crown'd, And large libations drench'd the fands around. The rite perform'd, the chiefs their thirst allay, Then from the royal tent they take their way; Wife Neftor turns on each his careful eye, Forbids t' offend, inftructs them to apply: Much he advis'd them all, Ulyffes moft, To deprecate the chief, and fave the host. Through the ftill night they march, and hear the Of murrauring billows on the founding shore. To Neptune, ruler of the feas profound, Whofe liquid arms the mighty globe furround, They pour forth vows, their embaffy to blefs, And calm the rage of ftern acides. And now, arriv'd where on the fandy bay The Myrmidonian tents and veffels lay, Amus'd at eafe the godlike man they found, Pleas'd with the folemn harp's harmonious found: (The well-wrought harp from conquer'd Theba

came,

Of polifi'd filver was its costly frame):

With this he foothes his angry foul, and fings
Ta' immortal deeds of heroes and of kings.
Patroclus only of the royal train,
Plac'd in his tent, attends the lofty strain:
Full oppofite he fate, and liften'd long,
In filence waiting till he ceas'd the fong.
Unfeen the Grecian embally proceeds
To his high tent; the great Ulysses leads.
Achilles, starting, as the chiefs he spy'd,
Leap'd from his feat, and laid the harp afide.
With like furprize arole Mencetius' fon:
Pelides grafp'd their hands, and thus begun :
Princes, all hail! whatever brought you here,
Or ftrong neceffity, or urgent fear;
Welcome, though Greeks! for not as foes ye came;
To me more dear than all that bear the name.
With that, the chiefs beneath his roof he led,
And plac'd in seats with purple carpets spread.
Then thus-Patroclus, crown a larger bowl,
Mix purer wine, and open every foul.
Of all the warriors yonder hoft can send,

Thy friend moft honours these, and these thy friend.
He faid; Patroclus o'er the blazing fire,
Heaps in a brazen vafe three chines entire :
The brazen vafe Automedon sustains,
Which flesh of porket, fheep, and goat, contains:
Achilles at the genial feaft prefides,
The parts transfixes, and with skill divides.
Mean while Patroclus fweats the fire to raise ;
The tent is brighten'd with the rifing blaze:
Then, when the languid flames at length fubfide,
He ftrows a bed of glowing embers wide,
Above the coals the fmoking fragments turns,
And fprinkles facred falt from lifted urns;
With bread the glittering cannifters they load,
Which round the board Menatius' fon bestow'd;
Himself, oppos'd t' Ulyffes full in fight,
Each portion parts, and orders every rite.
The first fat offerings, to th' Immortals due,
Amidit the greedy flames Patroclus threw;
Then each, indulging in the focial feaft,
His thirst and hunger føberly repreft.
That done, to Phoenix Ajax gave the fign;
Not unperceiv'd; Ulyffes crown'd with wine
The foaming bowl, and inftant thus began,
His fpeech addreffing to the godlike man:

Health to Achilles! happy are thy guests!
Not thofe more honour'd whom Atrides feasts:
Though generous plenty crown thy loaded boards,
That Agamemnon's regal tent affords,
Bat greater cares fit heavy on our fouls,
Not eas'd by banquets or by flowing bowls.
What fcenes of flaughter in yon fields appear!
The dead we mourn, and for the living fear;
Greece on the brink of fate all doubtful stands,
And owns no help but from thy faving hands:
Troy, and her aids, for ready vengeance call;
Their threatening tents already fhade our wall:
Hear how with fhouts their conqueft they pro-
claim,

And point at every ship their vengeful flame!
For them the Father of the Gods declares,
Theirs are his omens, and his thunder theirs.
See, full of Jove, avenging Hector rife!
See, heaven and earth the raging chief defies;
What fury in his breaft, what lightning in hist
eyes!

He waits but for the morn, to fink in flame'
The ships, the Greeks, and all the Grecian name.
Heavens! how my country's woesdiftract my mind,
Left fate accomplish all his rage defign'd.
And must we, Gods! our heads inglotious lay
In Trojan duft, and this the fatal day?
Return, Achilles! oh return, though late,
To fave thy Greeks, and stop the course of fate
If in that heart or grief or courage lies,
Rife to redeem; ah yet, to conquer, rife!
The day may come, when, all our warriors flain,
That heart fhall melt, that courage rife in vain.
Regard in time, O prince divinely brave!
Thofe wholefome counfels which thy father gave.
When Peleus in his aged arms embrac'd
His parting fon, thefe accents were his last :
My child! with ftrength, with glory and fuccefs,
Thy arms may Juno and Minerva blefs!
Truft that to Heaven: but thou, thy cares engage
To calm thy paffions, and fubdue thy rage:
From gentler manners let thy glory grow,
And thun contention, the fure fource of woe;
That young and old may in thy praise combine,
The virtues of humanity be thine---
This, now defpis'd, advice thy father gave;
Ah, check thy anger, and be truly brave.
If thou wilt yield to great Atrides' prayers,
Gifts worthy thee his royal hand prepares;
If not--but hear me, while I number o'er
The proffer'd prefents, an exhaustless store:
Ten weighty talents of the pureft gold,
And twice ten vales of refulgent mould;
Seven facred tripods, whofe unfully'd frame
Yet knows no office, nor has felt the flame :
Twelve steeds unmatch'd in fleetnefs and in force,
And ftill victorious in the dufty course;
(Rich were the man whofe ample ftores exceed
The prizes purchas'd by their winged speed).
Seven lovely captives of the Lesbian line,
Skill'd in each art, unmatch'd, in form divine;
The fame he chofe for more than vulgar charms,
When Lesbos funk beneath thy conquering arms.
All thefe, to buy thy friendship, fhall be paid,
And, join'd with thefe, the long-contested maid;
With all her charms, Brifeïs he'll refign,
And folemn fwear thofe charms were only thine;
Untouch'd the ftay'd, uninjur'd fhe removes,
Pure from his arms, and guiltlefs of his loves.
Thefe, inftant, fhall be thine; and if the Powers
Give to our arms proud Ilion's hoftile towers,
Then shalt thou ftore (when Greece the fpoil di-
vides)

With gold and brass thy loaded navy's fides.
Befides, full twenty nymphs of Trojan race
With copious love fhall crown thy warm embrace;
Such as thyfelf fhall choofe; who yield to none,
Or yield to Helen's heavenly charms alone.
Yet hear me farther: when our wars are o'er,
If fafe we land on Argos' fruitful shore,
There shalt thou live his fon, his honours fhare,
And with Oreftes' felf divide his care.
Yet more---three daughters in his court are bred,
And each well worthy of a royal bed;
Laodicé and Iphigenia fair,

And bright Cryfothemis with golden hair;
Her fhalt thou wed whom most thy eyes approve;
He asks no prefents, no reward for love:

Himself will give the dower; fo vast a store
As never father gave a child before.
Seven ample cities fhall confefs thy sway,
Thee Enopé, and Phere thee obey,
Cardamylé with ample turrets crown'd,
And facred Pedafus, for vines renown'd;
Apea fair, the pastures Hira yields,

And rich Antheïa with her flowery fields:
The whole extent to Pylos' fandy plain
Along the verdant margin of the main.
There heifers graze, and labouring oxen toil;
Bold are the men, and generous is the foil.
There shalt thou reign with power and juftice
crown'd,

And rule the tributary realms around.
Such are the proffers which this day we bring,
Such the repentance of a fuppliant king,
But if all this, relentless, thou difdain,
If honour, and if intereft, plead in vain ;
Yet fome redrefs to fuppliant Greece afford,
And be, amongst her guardian Gods, ador'd.
If no regard thy fuffering country claim,
Hear thy own glory, and the voice of fame :
For know that chief, whofe unrefifted ire
Made nations tremble, and whole hosts retire,
Proud Hector, now, th' unequal fight demands,
And only triumphs to deserve thy hands.

Then thus the Goddefs-born: Ulyffes, hear
A faithful speech, that knows not art, nor fear;
What in my fecret foul is understood,

My tongue fhall utter, and my deeds make good.
Let Greece then know, my purpose I retain:
Nor with new treaties vex my peace in vain.
Who dares think one thing, and another tell,
My heart detefts him as the gates of hell.

Then thus, in fhort, my fixt refolves attend,
Which nor Atrides, nor his Greeks, can bend ;
Long toils, long perils, in their cause I bore,
But now th' unfruitful glories charm no more.
Fight or fight not, a like reward we claim,
The wretch and hero find their prize the fame;
Alike regretted in the duft he lies,
Who yields ignobly, or who bravely dies.
Of all my dangers, all my glorious pains,
A life of labours, lo! what fruit remains?
As the bold bird her helpless young attends,
From danger guards them, and from want defends:
In fearch of prey the wings the spacious air,
And with th' untafted food fupplies her care:
For thanklefs Greece fuch hardships have I brav'd,
Her wives, her infants, by my labours fav'd;
Long fleepless nights in heavy arms I ftood,
And fweat laborious days in duft and blood.
I fack'd twelve ample cities on the main,
And twelve lay fmoking on the Trojan plain :
Then at Atrides' haughty feet were laid
The wealth I gather'd, and the spoils I made.
Your mighty monarch thefe in peace poffeft;
Some few my foldiers had,himself the reft.
Some prefent too to every prince was paid;
And every prince enjoys the gift he made;
I only must refund, of all his train;
See what preeminence our merits gain!
My fpoil alone his greedy foul delights;
My fpoufe alone muft blefs his luftful nights:
The woman, let him (as he may) enjoy;
But what's the quarrel then of Greece to Troy?

What to these fhores th' affembled nations draw,
What calls for vengeance but a woman's cause ?
Are fair endowments, and a beauteous face,
Belov'd by none but those of Atreus' race?
The wife whom choice and paffion both approves
Sure every wife and worthy man will love.
Nor did my fair-one less distinction claim;
Slave as he was, my foul ador'd the dame.
Wrong'd in my love, all proffers I difdain;
Deceiv'd for once, I trust not kings again.
Ye have my anfwer---what remains to do,
Your king, Ulyffes, may confult with you.
What needs he the defence this arm can make?
Has he not walls no human force can fhake?
Has he not fenc'd his guarded navy round,
With piles, with ramparts, and a trench profound?
And will not thefe (the wonders he has done)
Repel the rage of Priam's fingle fon?

There was a time ('twas when for Greece I fought)
When Hector's prowess no fuch wonders wrought:
He kept the verge of Troy, nor dar'd to wait
Achilles fury at the Scæan gate;

He try'd it once, and scarce was sav'd by fate.
But now those ancient enmities are o'er;
To-morrow we the favouring Gods implore;
Then shall you fee our parting veffels crown'd,
And hear with oars the Hellefpont refound.
The third day hence, fhall Pthia greet our fails,
If mighty Neptune fend propitious gales;
Phthia to her Achilles fhall restore

The wealth he left for this detefted fhore:
Thither the fpoils of this long war fhall pass,
The ruddy gold, the fteel, and shining brafs;
My beauteous captives thither I'll convey,
And all that refts of my unravish'd prey.
One only valued gift your tyrant gave,
And that refum'd, the fair Lyrnefsian slave.
Then tell him, loud, that all the Greeks may hear,
And learn to fcorn the wretch they bafely fear;
(For, arm'd in impudence, mankind he braves,
And meditates new cheats on all his flaves;
Though fhameless as he is, to face these eyes
Is what he dares not; if he dares he dies)
Tell him, all terms, all commerce, I'decline,
Nor fhare his council, nor his battle join;
For once deceiv'd, was his; but twice, were mine.
No-let the ftupid prince, whom Jove deprives
Of fenfe and juftice, run where frenzy drives;
His gifts are hateful: kings of fuch a kind
Stand but as flaves before a noble mind.
Not though he proffer'd all himself poffeft,
And all his rapine could from others wreft;
Not all the golden tides of wealth that crow
The many-peopled Orchomenian town;
Not all proud Thebes' unrivall'd walls contain,
The world's great emprefs on th' Ægyptian plain,
(That spreads her conquests o'er a thousand states,
And pours her heroes through a hundred gates,
Two hundred horsemen, and two hundred cars
From each wide portal iffuing to the wars)
Though bribes were heap'd on bribes, in number

more

Than duft in fields, or fand along the fhore; Should all these offers for my friendship call; 'Tis he that offers, and I fcorn them all. Atrides' daughter never shall be led (An ill-match' confort) to Achilles' bed;

Like golden Venus though the charm'd the heart,
And vy'd with Pallas in the works of art.
Some greater Greek let thofe high nuptials grace,
I hate alliance with a tyrant's race.

If heaven restore me to my realms with life,
The reverend Peleus fhall elect my wife.
Theffalian nymphs there are, of form divine,
And kings that fue to mix their blood with mine.
Bleft in kind love my years fhall glide away,
Content with juft hereditary fway;
There, deaf for ever to the martial ftrife,
Enjoy the dear prerogative of life.

Life is not to be bought with heaps of gold;
Not all Apollo's Pythian treasures hold,

Or Troy once held, in peace and pride of sway,
Can bribe the poor poffeffion of a day!
Loft herds and treafures, we by arms regain,
And steeds unrivall'd on the dufty plain:
But from our lips the vital spirit fled,
Returns no more to wake the filent dead.
My fates long fince by Thetis were disclos'd,
And each alternate, life or fame, propos'd;
Here, if I stay, before the Trojan town,
Short is my date, but deathlefs my renown;
If I return, I quit immortal praise

For years on years, and long-extended days.
Convinc'd, though late, I find my fond mistaké,
And warn the Greeks the wiser choice to make:
To quit these fhores, their native feats enjoy,
Nor hope the fall of heaven-defended Troy.
Jove's arm difplay'd afferts her from the skies;
Her hearts are ftrengthen'd, and her glories rife.
Go then, to Greece report our fix'd defign;
Bid all your counfels, all your armies join,
Let all your forces, all your arts confpire,
To fave the fhips, the troops, the chiefs from fire.
One ftratagem has fail'd, and others will:
Ye find, Achilles is unconquer'd ftill.
Go thea---digeft my meffage as ye may-
But here this night let reverend Phoenix stay :
His tedious toils and hoary hairs demand
A peaceful death in Pthia's friendly land.
But whether he remain, or fail with me,
His age be facred, and his will be free.

The fon of Peleus ceas'd: the chiefs around
In filence wrapt, in confternation drown'd,
Attend the ftern reply. Then Phoenix rofe;
(Down his white beard a ftream of forrow flows)
And while the fate of suffering Greece he mourn'd,
With accent weak these tender words return'd:

Divine Achilles! wilt thou then retire,
And leave our hofts in blood, our fleets on fire?
If wrath fo dreadful fill thy ruthless mind,
How fhall thy friend, thy Phoenix, stay behind?
The royal Peleus, when from Pthia's coast
He lent thee early to th' Achaian hoft;
Thy youth, as then in fage debates unskill'd,
And new to perils of the direful field:

Ho bade me teach thee all the ways of war;
To thine in councils and in camps to dare.
Never, ah never let me leave thy fide!
No time fhall part us, and no fate divide.
Not though the God, that breath'd my life, re-

ftore

The bloom I boafted, and the port I bore, When Greece of old beheld my youthful flames, (Delightful Greece, the land of lovely dames!)

My father, faithless to my mother's arms,
Old as he was, ador'd a ftranger's charms.
I try'd what youth could do (at her defire)
To win the damfel, and prevent my fire.
My fire with curfes loads my hated head,
And cries, " Ye furies! barren be his bed."
Infernal Jove, the vengeful fiends below,
And ruthlefs Proferpine, confirm'd his vow.
Defpair and grief distract my labouring mind!
Gods! what a crime my impious heart defign'd!
I thought (but fome kind God that thought fup
preit)

To plunge the poinard in my father's breaft:
Then meditate my flight; my friends in vain
With prayers entreat me, and with force detain.
On fat of rams, black bulls, and brawny fwine,
They daily feaft, with draughts of fragrant wine :
Strong guards they plac'd, and watch'd nine nights
entire;

The roofs and porches flam'd with conftant fire.
The tenth, I forc'd the gates unfeen of all;
And, favour'd by the night, o'erieap'd the wall. 1
My travels thence thro' fpacious Greece extend;
In Pthia's court at laft my labours end.
Your fire receiv'd me, as his fon carefs'd,
With gifts enrich'd, and with poffefions blefs'd.
The ftrong Dolopians thenceforth own'd my reign,
And all the coast that runs along the main.
By love to thee his bounties I repaid,
And early wisdom to thy foul convey'd:
Great as thou art, my leffons made thee brave,
A child I took thee, but a hero gave.
Thy infant breaft, a like affection show'd;
Still in my arms (an ever-pleafing load)
Or at my knee, by Phoenix would'st thou stand;
No food was grateful but from Phoenix' hand.
I pafs my watchings o'er thy helpless years,
The tender labours, the compliant cares;
The Gods (I thought) revers'd their hard decree,
And Phoenix felt a father s joys in thee:
Thy growing virtues juftify'd my cares,
And promis'd comfort to my filver hairs.
Now be thy rage, thy fatal rage, refign'd;
A cruel heart ill fuits a manly mind:
The Gods (the only great, and only wife)
Are mov'd by offerings, vows, and facrifice;
Offending man their high compaffion wins,
And daily prayers atone for daily fins.
Prayers are Jove's daughters, of celestial race,
Lame are their feet, and wrinkled is their face;
With humble mien and with dejected eyes,
Conftant they follow, where injustice flies:
Injustice, fwift, erect, and unconfin'd,
Sweeps the wide earth, and tramples o'er man-
kind,
[behind.

While prayers, to heal her wrongs, move flow-
Who hears thefe daughters of almighty Jove,
For him they mediate to the throne above:
When man rejects the humble fuit they make,
The fire revenges for the daughter's fake;
From Jove commiffion'd, fierce injuftice then
Defcends, to punish unrelenting men.
Oh, let not headlong paffion bear the way;
These reconciling Goddeffes obey:
Due honours to the feed of Jove belong:
Due honours calm the fierce, and bend the

Arong.

Were thefe not paid thee by the terms we bring,
Were rage still harbour'd in the haughty king;
Nor Greece, nor all her fortunes, fhould engage
Thy friend to plead against so just a rage.
But fince what honour afks, the general fends,
And fends by thofe whom moit thy heart com-
mends,

The beft and nobleft of the Grecian train;
Permit not thefe to fue, and fue in vain!
Let me (my fon) an ancient fact unfold,
A great example drawn from times of old;
Hear what our fathers were, and what their praife,
Who conquer'd their revenge in former days.

Where Calydon on rocky mountains stands,
Once fought th' Ætolian and Curetian bands;
To guard it thofe, to conquer these advance;
And mutual deaths were dealt with mutual chance.
The filver Cynthia bade Contention rife,
In vengeance of neglected facrifice;
On Oeneus' field the fent a monftrous boar,
'That levell'd harvests, and whole forests tore :
This beaft (when many a chief his tusks had flain)
Great Meleager ftretch'd along the plain.
Then, for his fpoils, a new debate arofe,
'The neighbour nations thence commencing foes.
Strong as they were, the bold Curetes fail'd,
While Meleager's thundering arm prevail'd:
Till

rage at length inflam'd his lofty breast (For rage invades the wifeft and the best). Curs'd by Althea, to his wrath he yields, And in his wife's embrace forgets the fields.

(She from Marpeffa fprung, divinely fair, "And matchlefs Idas, more than man in war; "The God of day ador'd the mother's charms:

Against the God the father bent his arms: "Th' afflicted pair, their forrows to proclaim, "From Cleopatra chang'd this daughter's name, "And call'd Alcyone; a name to show "The father's grief, the mourning mother's woe.") To her the chief retir'd from stern debate, But found no peace from fierce Althea's hate : Althea's hate th' unhappy warrior drew, Whofe lucklefs hand his royal uncle flew ; She beat the ground, and call'd the powers beneath On her own fon to wreak her brother's death: Hell heard her curfes from the realms profound, And the red fiends that walk the nightly round, In vain Ætolia her deliverer waits, War fhakes her walls, and thunders at her gates. She fent ambaffadors, a chofen band, Priefts of the Gods, and elders of the land; Befought the chief to fave the finking state: Their prayers were urgent, and their proffers great: (Full fifty acres of the richest ground, [crown'd. Half paiture green, and half with vineyards His fuppliant father, aged Oeneus, came; His fifters follow'd; ev'n the vengeful dame Althaa fues; his friends before him fall: He stands relentless and rejects them all. Mean while the victor's fhouts afcend the fkies; The walls are fcal'd; the rolling flames arife; At length his wife (a form divine) appears, With piercing cries, and fupplicating tears; She paints the horrors of a conquer'd town, The heroes flain, the palaces o'erthrown, The matrons ravish'd, the whole race enflav'd: The warrior heard, he vanquifl'd, and he fav'd.

Th' Etolians, long difdain'd, now took their

turn,

And left the chief their broken faith to mourn.
Learn hence, betimes to curb pernicious ire,
Nor stay, till yonder fleets afcend in fire:
Accept the prefents; draw thy conquering fword;
And be amongst our guardian Gods ador'd.

Thus he. The stern Achilles thus reply'd:
My fecond father, and my reverend guide:
Thy friend, believe me, no fuch gifts demands,
And afks no honours from a mortal's hands:
Jove honours me, and favours my defigns;
His pleafure guides me, and his will confines:
And here I ftay (if such his high behest)
While life's warm spirit beats within my breast.
Yet hear one word, and lodge it in thy heart;
No more moleft me on Atrides' part;
Is it for him these tears are taught to flow,
For him these forrows? for my mortal foe?
A generous friendship no cold medium knows,
Burns with one love, with one resentment glows;
One should our interefts and our paffions be;
My friend muft hate the man that injures me.
Do this, my Phoenix, 'tis a generous part;
And share my realms, my honours, and my heart.
Let these return: our voyage, or our stay,
Reft undetermin'd till the dawning day.

He ceas'd: then order'd for the fage's bed A warmer couch with numerous carpets spread. With that, stern Ajax his long filence broke, And thus, impatient, to Ulyffes spoke :

Hence let us go-why waste we time in vain? See what effect our low fubmiffions gain! Lik'd or not lik'd, his words we must relate, The Greeks expect them, and our heroes wait. Proud as he is, that iron-heart retains Its stubborn purpose, and his friends difdains. Stern and unpitying! if a brother bleed, On juft atonement, we remit the deed; A fire the flaughter of his fen forgives; The price of blood discharg'd, the murderer lives': The haughtiest hearts at length their rage refign, And gifts can conquer every foul but thine. The Gods that unrelenting breast have steel'd, And curs'd thee with a mind that cannot yield. One woman-flave was ravish'd from thy arms: Lo, seven are offer'd, and of equal charms. Then hear, Achilles! be of better mind; Revere thy roof, and to thy guests be kind; And know the men, of all the Grecian hoft, Who honour worth, and prize thy valour most.

Oh foul of battles, and thy people's guide! (To Ajax thus the firft of Greeks reply'd) Well haft thou spoke; but at the tyrant's name My rage rekindles, and my foul's on flame: 'Tis just refentment, and becomes the brave; Difgrac'd, difhonour'd, like the vilest slave ! Return then, heroes! and our answer bear, The glorious combat is no more my care; Not till, amidit yon sinking navy slain, The blood of Greeks fhall dye the fable main; Not till the flames, by Hector's fury thrown, Confume your veffels, and approach my own; Juft there, th' impetuous homicide fhall stand, There ceafe his battle, and there feel our hand.

This faid, each prince a double gublet crown'2, And caft a large libation on the ground;