Uni versity y of ‘Virginia Library DF221.T8 B4 tea its | Huu gend, history and i OO |0 ‘ 4 # ‘i : ey i ‘ 5 <# ¥ ¥ i ) :Evocus OF Awctent History PROT L7s LEGEND, History AND LITERATURE S. G. W. BENJAMIN.EPOCHS OF ANCIENT HISTORY Edited by Rev. G. W. Cox and CHARLES SANKEY, M.A. Eleven volumes, 16mo, with 4r Maps and Plans TROY—ITS LEGEND, HISTORY, AND LITERA- TURE. By S. G. W. Benjann. THE GREEKS AND THE PERSIANS. By G. W. < THE ATHENIAN EMPIRE. By G. W. Cox. THE SPARTAN AND THEBAN SUPREMACIES. By Charies Sankey. : THE MACEDONIAN EMPIRE. By A. M. Curteis. EARLY ROME. By W. Ihne. ROME AND CARTHAGE. By R. Bosworth Smith. THE GRACCHI, MARIUS, AND SULLA. By A. H. Beesley. : THE ROMAN TRIUMVIRATES. By Charles Meri- vale. THE EARLY EMPIRE. By W. Wolfe Capes. THE AGE OF THE ANTONINES. By W. Wolfe Capes. EPOCHS OF MODERN HISTORY Edited by Enwarp E. Morris Kighteen volumes, 16mo, wath 477 Maps, Plans, and Tables THE BEGINNING OF THE MIDPLE AGES. By R. W. Church. THE NORMANS IN EUROPE. By A. H. Johnson. THE CRUSADES. By G. W. Cox. THE EARLY PLANTAGENETS. By Wm. Stubbs. EDWARD UI. By W. Warburton. THE HOUSES OF LANCASTER AND YORK. By James Gairdner. THE ERA OF THE PROTESTANT REVOLUTION. By Frederic Seebahm. THE EARLY TUDORS. By C. E. Moberly. THE AGE OF ELIZABETH. By M. Creighton. THE THIRTY YEARS WAR, 1618-1648. By S. R. Gardiner. THE PURITAN REVOLUTION. By S. R. Gardiner. THE FALL OF THE STUARTS. Bv Edward Hale. THE ENGLISH RESTORATION AND LOUIS XIV. By Osmond Airy. THE AGE OF ANNE. By Edward E. Morris. THE EARLY HANOVERIANS. By Edward E. Mortis. FREDERICK THE GREAT. By F. W. Longman. THE FRENCH REVOLUTION AND FIRST EM- PIRE. By W. O'Connor Morris. Appendix by Andrew PD. White. THE EPOCH OF REFORM, 1830-1850. By Justin Macarthy. CHARLES SCRIBNER’S SONS Tan BER GeS aQyparissis SU7ALS Strophades ? © Prote Zphacterias Methone GREECE, THE SHORES OF THE_AGEAN AND THE TROAD. Acrito British tiles. ozo. zo 30 0«6©40 $0 “Urg Snonio9e'| oSCOWLSSA Hs cngee Teg ages Sertphos 2 u ™ Plateva?; Carpathi 26 .9 CibohsN Uy The e8& tis ty | Hertelea™ ¥ eye ne G ; } DRE. i / om Aeteer to) A CLOGSA\ Ey RS, Pas TULL (> se 17, \ SH + : ce Sex te Se 0 - Saal le ia. = = Ph mea C ibolis Wy —_ peuaes or/ a eucadia ) . Prarie eS Sy \ 0 ow WEL lly eee mo > erage ane at o Cephs enia or\S Wy i Cofiighe slat a Pe eos fh {\ des FQ \_ 3 LAcgeane. > oy | ae. \ 2) Bch 4 egenmee i Pal \ 8 LA Lor ~ Leather =) ates Hye 1S | <<. S\c a al —eee iv — | i Pionctherieag eB Be, a aos Hf | | H Ww OK . wae || a CEES ophyy “I i 5 (a aie pat ef) } | het Diywmpiazeppnbern | | peer) | | a ys kK 2G Tet . ee Say | eels] | 1 Qypart. SSULLS Ser SEALS f= Tray : hice | | Serephaies » 2 Cyparissigh GEES] ‘te Mess$ wee S Cm AL STs I al y/o 37 | See Prote \Q On S ieee pe mR rai iH Zphacteria\ & ey a" iy | Hethone® > S\\] f _ GREE CE Corns a 4 Acrito* | 2 ara : | | THE SHORES OF CTHE_A'GEAN ee a aL tS | AND THE TROAD. | 2 fut | fa | me = British Miles. | |EPOCHS OF ANCIENT HISTORY. TINO Y ITS LEGEND. HISTORY AND LITERATURE WITH A SKETCH OF THE TOPOGRAPHY OF THE TROAD IN THE LIGHT OF RECENT INVESTIGATION, weg I BY S. G. WY BENJAMIN, M.A, Author of ‘‘The Turk and the Greek,” &e, WITH MAP. Was this the face that launched a thousand ships And burnt the topless towers of Ilium |! Sweet Helen. MaRLowg. NEW YORK: “ CHARLES SCRIENER’S SONS,, 1921Coryricnr, 1880. By CHARLES SCRIBNER’S SONSPREFACE. In the year 1870, the author of this volume published a little work entitled, ‘‘The Choice of Paris,a Romance of the Troad.” Aside from his personal interest in its preparation which should be the leading razson d'etre of literary labor, he had a double purpose in writing that book,—to weave the more romantic features of the siege of Troy into a connected narrative, and thus to attract the general reader toa renewed interest in the great legend of the ages. The time seems to have come, however, for a fuller version of the Trojan legend, without cither addition or important omission, as it was familiarly known to the’ ancients, who had access to many epics and traditions of which we have no knowledge except by extracts or allusions in the scholiasts, historians, and later Poets of Alexandria and Rome. In no one place can an entire account of the legend now be found. It is scattered in fragments throughout the epic, dramatic, philosophic, and critical writings of antiquity still extant, and is given with more or less fullness by modern historians; but is nowhere, so far as the writer is aware, presented in its complete form. iniv Preface. This volume is intended to meet this hiatus and to gather in a connected narrative the various scattered members ofa great story. Where several variations occur in the account of a particular event, a number are cited from which the reader can make his selection. The events described in the Iliad are given in a degree pro- portioned to the rest of the legend. As those events only cover the space of a few days they form but a briet although important portion of the legend, while to repeat them at length here would be to reproduce the whole of the Iliad, which is already accessible to all through nu- merous excellent translations. The second part of this volume includes a synopsis of the stupendous controversy which has been waged for ages regarding Troy and the origin of the Homeric Poems. To this is added a sketch of the investigations of Dr. Schliemann and other archzologists on the plains of Troy. The Greek names of the gods have been given instead of the more familiar Latin terms, because the legend is al- most wholly Greek and the character of some of the gods, Aphrodité for example, differs somewhat in the Greek and Latin mythology; Odysseus has also been substi- : | tuted for Ulysses for similar reasons. The long accepted Latin-English spelling of other Greek proper names has been preserved,PART I. THE LEGEND. CHAE THUR «1. THE YOUTH OF PARIS, Topography of Troy . E : - : How the legend begins ; . : ° The Dardanian dynasty. . ° . ° Dardanus settles in the Troad . ; ; Founding of Troy. ‘ ‘ . ° Building of the walls of Troy : : ° Legend of Hesione, her rescue by Hercules. Hercules slays Laomedon . . Priam rebuilds Troy. ° . ° Birth of Paris . : . . ° . (Enone the Idzannymph . ° ° . Zeus plans te decrease the world’s population Marriage of Peleus and Thetis . ° . The Apple of Discord : ° . ° The goddesses on Mount Ida : : 3 Return of Paris to Troy . ~ ° Paris leaves GEnone ; . : ° ° Paris recognized by his family . ‘ : Development of the designs of Zeus. ° CHAPTER II. HELEN. Helen of Sparta ; ° : : Capture cf Helen by Teens : . CONTENTS. ve The princes of Greece suing for the ee of Helen PAGE, OO M©ONN AM Ut & WW BH BD H Ff mM HOH me O O I2 => 13 13Contents. Flight of Helen . : : . ° ° ° ° CHAPTER Il. THE GREEKS AT AULIS. CHAPTER IV. THE WRATH OF ACHILLES. Hapless fate of Protesilaus . ; . Preparations of the Trojans to defend thelr city ‘ e The Greeks decide to take Troy by siege. . Operations during the first nine years ° . @ ‘ Renewal of active hostilities against Troy . : Capture of Chryseis and Briseis : . . . Chryses asks for the restoration of his child : Apollo sends a pestilerice on the Greeks. . . i Calchas gives his opinion regarding the situation . . | Wrath of Achilles ., . CHAPIBER V. COMBAT OF MENELAUS AND PARIS. Active operations between the armies resumed ‘ Agamemnon obeys an evil dream, and calls out his forces ‘ Thersites conspicuously boisterous ee = e Odysseus suggests a plan of settlement . ° . . Helen makes a choice : : . : ° Aphrodité remembers her promise to Pate . . ‘ Paris plans to visit Sparta . ‘ : . ° . . Helen’s pretended detention in Egypt e ° ° e Measures adopted for the restoration of Helen . ° Unwillingness of Odysseus to go to Troy . : . . Palamades and his fate .« ; ° ‘ ‘ ° ‘ Concealment of Achilles at Scyros . ‘ ° . ‘ Odysseus reveals the disguise of Achilles . ‘ ¢ The fleet at Aulis : : : : . s ° First voyage of the expedition neetast A EOY : . Telephus is mortally wounded . ; ‘ e . ‘ The Greek fleet returns to Aulis . < . ‘ * Doom of Iphigenia . : : ‘ . ‘ ° ¢ PAGE. 4 14 15 6 ¥7 tS 19 20 2tI 22 22 22 23 23 24 24 26 27 28 28 29 29 30 31 3f 3 33 34Contents. Advance of the Trojan army . Paris challenges the Greeks to single combat ° e ° Combat between Paris and Menelaus . ; : Preliminary ceremonies to the combat : ° Sacrifice before the duel : . : e ‘ Helen resorts to the walls to see the sana e s The fate of Helen hangs on the cast of aspear . ° Result of the combat. ‘ ' : ° . . CHAPTER V1. STORMING OF THE GREEK CAMP. The gods hold a council to decide the destiny of Troy Pandarus shoots once too often . : ; ° . Hostilities resumed and the Trojans retire . Hector’s final arrangements before renewing the fight . Interview of Parisand Hector . Last interview of Hector and Aanenteche : : ° Single combat between Hector and Ajax Telamon Combat of Hector and Ajax Telamon , ° : : Midnight councils of the two armies . ° ° ‘ The restoration of Helen discussed ° ‘ ° Armistice for paying funeral rites to the slain . . The Greeks raise a rampart around their fleet : ° Agamemnon calls a council at night . . . ‘ Spies sent to reconnoitre ‘ ‘ Dolon divulges the secrets of the Teej movement . The horses of Rhesus . ‘ . ° ° ‘ : Heré beguiles Zeus . : f 2 ‘ : ; Patroclus takes the field ‘ ° . . ° . Patroclus strikes the Trojans with a panic. ° é Patroclus falls by the hand of Hector . ° ° ° CHAPTER VH. DEATH OF HECTOR. Thetis consoles Achilles and brings him a suit of armor Reconciliation of Agamemnon and Achilles . i . Hector resolves to risk the fate of Troy on the plains Prophecy of Xanthus, the horse of Achilles , ° PAGE. 35 aT 38 oo 39 40 41 41 42 42 43 43 44 45 45 46 46 47 47 48 49 49 50 51 SI 52 52 54 5D c 5o 56Contents. Combat of Hector and Achilles Meeting of the champions of Greece and ray Hector flies before Achilles Hector forsaken by the Gods . ° Colloquy of the combatants Death of Hector Funeral of Patroclus . Priam seeks to obtain the body of Petor Priam arrives at the Greek camp Funeral obsequies of Hector. Events immediately succeeding the death of Hector . The death of Achilles according to Dares Phrygius Version of Arctinus regarding the fate of Achilles CHAPTER VIII. FALL OF ACHILLES. Arrival of Memnon and Penthesilea Death of Memnon 7 he last of Thersites all of Achilles at the Skaian Raut “ ust honors to Achilles . Position of affairs after the fall of cence Legend about Philoctetes . Death of Paris Fate of CEnone Helen given to Detshobiis | in marriage Schemes for discovering the Palladium . Odysseus schemes to seize the Palladium Odysseus enters Troy in disguise . Helen shelters Odysseus in Troy Diomedes and Odysseus steal the penueien Diomedes and Odysseus contest possession of the taiornen Subsequent fate of the Palladium . CHAPTER IX. SAGK OF TROY. Pallas suggests a scheme for capturing Troy Sake hd Sees oa e e PAGE, 56 57 58 58 58 60 62 62 64PAGE. The chieftains enter the wooden horse . s ° - «80 The Greeks take the fleet to Tenedos 4 : s : 30 The wooden horse discovered : . . ‘ ; a Ox Capture of Sinon : : z : 81 Laocoon denounces the story of Sinon . * : . so Bm The horse is taken into the city . : : s - ; 82 Fate of Laocoon and his sons ‘ 82 Helen sings to the men in the horse : 83 The warriors descend from the horse . j ‘ : sas The Greek'army enters Troy . : : : : ; 84 Fate of Priam, Hecuba, Astyanax, &c. : : ‘ ray Last end of Troy : : ‘ 85 Beacon fires flash the tidings across the can ‘ ° = 3G Return of the Greeks : 86 Quarrel of Agamemnon and Meneine ‘ : : si Oe Ancient beliefs regarding destiny ; : : : : 87 Return of Idomeneus 88 Idomeneus sacrifices his son 88 Fate of Ajax Oileus 89 Clytemneestra and A®gisthus : : 90 Human sacrifices among the Greeks. : : : EE Gion Revenge of Orestes gI Iphigenia in Tauris : ; 92 Fortunes of Helenus and iendeomache } : : : 93 Destiny of Antenor and A‘neas . ; : ; “ <2 OR Wanderings of Diomedes . 93 Shipwrecked in Libya 94 Voyages of Odysseus. 94 Odysseus returns to Ithaca : Device of Penelope to thwart the suitors . , : ; 95 Return of Helen . Helen once more at Sparta Life of Helen after her return : ‘ : : : 43007 Second flight and death of Helen Contents, 95 97Contents, PART Tt. LITERATURE AND TOPOGRAPHY OF TROY. CHAPTER. 1: ORIGIN: OF THE LEGEND. PAG, Literary sources of the Trojan Legend. ‘ ; : -/ EOL Evidence of the existence of poets before Homer . ‘ Ior Legend of Meleager . : ; ~ 102 Importance of the Homeric poems , ‘ . : 102 Relative importance of Eastern literature . . . 3. Og Vast importance of the Trojan Legend . : ‘ : 103 Vagueness of the evidence . : : ‘ ; : 4. 108 Points to be settled in the Homeric question . : . 104 Other sources of information ; : : ; : wi LOA Arrangement of the Cyclic epics ‘ ‘ ; . ‘ 105 Fate of the Cyclic poems ‘ : . : : 12 Os, Stasinusand the Cypria_ . ; : : : : IOS Arctinus ‘ ; : ; ; : « 105 The 4£thiopis and bad oe Troy ° ; ; : é 106 Lesches and the Little Iliad ; ‘ =, 6oG Modern criticism of the Cyclic poets. ‘ : . 107 Eugammon and the Telegonia : . : : . a LOT Hagias of Treezen : ‘ : . : : 107 Stesichorus’ account of hace : y toz E Version of Helen’s flight by iictodere. : 108 : The Tragic poets : : : : ; : ; LOS = Other sources of the legend . . : : : : 109 Eb ) Dictys Cretensis . : : . : : . ; «. IGG ae Dares Phrygius . ‘ ‘ . : : : : IIo | Romance of Guido del Gelonne ; : ; : ° ee a The Trojan legend in the Middle Ages. : ‘ : II Goethe's Helena a Translations of Homer : ; . ‘ ‘ English versions ; Speech of Poseidon to the Grable : ; oy EET e . rE? e e e s e e TPA No on eaBiography of Homer Biographical details about Homer Parentage of Homer Travels of Homer Death of Homer Theories about the name of Homes ° Existence of Homer indicated by analogy Prolegomena of Koray Blindness of Homer The Homeride . Time of Homer ° Contents. CHAPTER II. HOMER, Poetic contest of Homer and ‘Hesiod Solon and Peisistratus give permanent form to the epics ; Commission Sapied by Peisistratus to revise the Influence of Homer upon the Greek mind Estimation in which Homer was held . The philosophers on the Homeric morals Plato’s reasons for opposing Homer ° Ethics of the Homeric poems . , Shaftesbury’s description of the Homeric style The grammarians of Alexandria on Homer Aristarchus and his work = ° ‘ GERMAN CRITICISM ON HOMER. CHAPTER ITI. Homeric Iliad State of the Homerie question until the 18th century A Addison's opinion of Homer - ; Origin of modern criticism of Homer Bentley's opinion . Wolf comes out with his Grhons Prolegomena . e . s Theory of Wolf on the Homeric Iliad . Arguments of Wolf PAGE. II4 II4 ii5 I16 I22 123 124 126 126 130Contents. Adherents of the Wolfian theory . ° . : Opinions of Schiller and Goethe ° . . . Reception given to the atomistic theory . . Opinion of Hermann . ° . ° . : : Lachman’s speculations : ; . ° ; Opinion of Berk ‘ \ : ; ‘ ; 4 Berk’s hypothetical description of Homer Berk places limitations on the genius of Homer What literary criticism should be . . Attack on the unity of the Odyssey . : ° The joint authorship of the Iliad and the Oates y Arguments against unity of authorship ; Typical nature of Achilles and Odysseus. The Greek character . : . . Ethics of the Odyssey . : . ; . : Analysis of the Odyssey . : . Opinion of Aristarchus on the joint authorship The Atomists attack the Odyssey CHARTER TV, ENGLISH CRITICISM OF HOMER, The English critics on the Homeric poems . Conservatism of the English critics Gladstone as a Homeric critic ° Opinions of Col. Mure ; : ihe Achilléis —. . Mr. Grote’s hypothesis Reasons for the Grotian hypothesis Reasons in favor of this theory |) Geddes’ hypothesis. : . ° : : an Mahaffy’s contribution to the discussion t : Sayce on the linguistics of Greek epic poetry : Importance of comparative philology in the discussion Contributions of archzeology to the controversy Wolt’s argument on the absence of w riting Writing in the age of Homer ° e ° ° ® PAGE, 134 132 132 140 140 141 142 143 143 144 144 145 T45 146 146 147 147 148Contents. CHAPTER V. HISTORIC EVIDENCES OF THE TROJAN WAR. Grounds of credibility in the Trojan Legend ; : . Historical evidences of the Trojan War Allegorical theory concerning the structure of the iad ; Theory of Metrodorus ‘ ‘ . ° : : . Comparative philology ‘ ‘ . : . ° Solar myths in connection with the Trois levend ~°. ‘ Max Miller on the solar hypothesis . Early migration of the Greeks to Asia : . : Return of the Heraclidze and £olic colonies The theory of A£olic invasions sustained by the ieneue : Possible explanation of the events of the siege in accordance with history . ‘ . ‘ ‘ ; ° . : Theory of the capture of Helen . é : : Evidences of the Hellenic settlement of olis . : . Testimony of Herodotus to A¢olic settlement ° * ; Proof that Homer was an Asiatic Greek. ‘ . : Character of the Trojan chiefs ° ‘ : ; ° Traits of Oriental character in the Trojans ‘ : . Character of Hector . : . ° . . : Analysis of the character of Beiric . ° : 4 ° Domestic relations of Priam . : : ° . : . Treachery of Atneas and Antenor . : : ° Importance of archzeological discovery to this question : The question largely dependent on the site of Troy. ° CHAPTER VI. SITE OF TROY. Historic Ilium , . ; . . . ° . ° Re-occupation of Ilium . ° ‘ : . : . Relics preserved in ancient Ilium . ° . ° ° : Xerxes visits Holy Hium . ‘ : : ° : ° Alexander the Great at Ilium : : : . . : Roman acknowledgment of Ilium’s claim . : . Results of Roman honors . * . . . : PACE. 149 149 150 150 150 I50 152 152 uo 153 153 154 154 154 154 a wn On He we He Cr a Os Cr ar = i. OF COS) Or Un O71 me On \O 160 160 160 ror 16I 152 162Contents. PAGE, Theories of Demetrius of Scepsis and Hestisea about the site of Troy : ; ; ‘ . ; . ; @. «262 Course of modern opinion on this question : . ° 163 The two leading claimants to the site of Troy ° . oe Oe Points in the topographical argument ; ‘ ‘ ‘= 164 Importance of the wooden horse in the discussion ; ; anGR Bournabashi and Le Chevalier . : ‘ . . ; 165 Claims of Bournabashi . ; ; : : ; : . «PGs Other alleged sites of Ilium : : ; . ° ° 166 Test of genuineness applied by Dr. Schliemann . . - 4166 Qualifications of Hissarlik . . , ° ° . . £66 Dimensions of Hissarlik : : : ; . ° 6 RO? Location of Hissarlik considered . ° ; ° . 167 Discoveries of Dr. Schliemann é ° ; . . +s, OZ Discoveries at Hissarlik . . : ° : ; ‘ 168 Objections to Schliemann’s limit to ancient Troy . : » 69 Results of Schliemann’s investigations . : ‘ 169 Concluding reflections « ‘ & ¢ ° s ° o 17PART L THE LEGEND.ny EY CHAPTER I. THE YOUTH OF PARIS. TROAS is a district situated in the north-western corner of Asia Minor. It forms a part of the region formerly called Mysia, and has somewhat the form of an irregular triangle. The northern and western sides are washed by the Egean, and meet at the oie Sigeian Point. On the land side they are joined by the noble mountain range of Mount Ida, whose south-western spur is called Gargarus. The alluvial plain between the sea and the mountains is tra- versed by a number of streams, of which the Scamander or Xanthus and the Simois are the most important. It is recorded in legendary history that this plain was the scene of events which have arrested the world’s at- tention for three thousand years. At the time when the legend begins, which was but a few generations after Zeus had swept the world with a deluge, this plain was inhabited by an obscure tribe of eee Thracian origin. The first leader of this people of whom there is any mention was Teukros. He was aman of such forceful character that he gave bis name to the tribe that has since that time been called i2 Troy. after him. The god of the Scamander met the goddess Cybele on Mount Ida, and the hero was the result of this divine intercourse. Cybele was also called Idza be- cause she often haunted the shaggy woods of that range. It was in those days that Dardanus, pro- The Darda- ably a Pelasgian chieftain, came to the nian dynasty. oy ; : land of the Teukrii, from the neighboring isle of Samothrace.* He was the son of Zeus and Elec- tra, a man of distinguished qualities who left Samothrace because of the affliction he endured after Zeus had stricken his brother Iasion by lightning. Dardanus in- gratiated himself into the favor of Teukros, and received from him his daughter Batieia in marriage, Dardanus set- ‘ : tles in the | together with a tract upon which he founded Troad. : : ; a city called Dardania, high up on the crags of Mount Ida. To him were born two sons, Ilus and Erichthonius. The latter accumulated great wealth and succeeded to the throne. In his pastures were three thousand mares; their colts, sired by Boreas, were super- naturally swift. By Astyoche, daughter of the Simois, came to Erich- thonius a son named Tros, who inherited the sceptre. In him were combined the rival families of the Scaman- der and the Simois. Tros in turn had three sons by Callirhoé. The noble house of A‘neas sprang from Assaracus, while the great king Priam was descended from Ilus, the eldest son. Ganymede, the youngest, was made cup-bearer to Zeus. Tros gave his name to the territory over which he reigned, and Ilus founded the famous and holy city of Ilion, more properly and gener- ally known by the name of Troy. The Mysian or Dardanian line seems up to this fime to have been in some degree dependent for its authority * Strabo, Apollodorus, etc.founding of Troy. 3 on the neighboring kingdom of Phrygia. For it is re- corded that Ilus received a dappled heifer from the king of Phrygia, as a prize won Hounding of at public games; * it was accompanied ne by permission to found a city wherever the heifer should lie down for rest. The animal, after some wandering, lay down on a hill called Até. This, therefore, was accepted as the site of Troy, and the eminence, thence- forth called the Pergamus, became the citadel. Laomedon succeeded Ilos, and married Strymo, the daughter of the Scamander, by whom he had several sons and daughters. Many of them achieved celebrity on account of some striking quality or adventure. The growing importance of Troy, which naturally rendered it more liable to wars with its neighbors, also made it ex- pedient to surround the city with walls. At this juncture it happened most fortunately Building of the walls of Troy. for Laomedon that the deities, Apollo and Poseidon, were condemned by Zeus to submit to the commands of Laomedon during the space of one year. A bargain was struck between the high contracting parties which promised to be mutally beneficial, but for the fact that Laomedon was of a crafty and overreaching disposition. After the wall had been constructed by the two gods, Laomedon not only declined to pay the stipulated sum, but also had the incredible effrontery to threaten to cut off their ears. He found that it will never do to trifle with the gods. Apollo sated his vengeance by sending a pestilence on the Troad which destroyed many people. Poseidon in turn wreaked his wrath by deputing a sea- monster to devour the dwellers along the coast. These calamities brought the faithless king to terms, * Apollodorus.4 Troy. and he despatched messengers to consult the oracle. The oracle replied that no relief could be expected until Lameodon exposed his daughter Hesione to the sea monster. Accordingly she was bound to a rock with the agreeable prospect of being devoured with all her youth and beauty by the rising of the next tide. At this critical juncture Hercules, returning from the Euxine Pee: with the cestus of the queen of the Amazons, Shue by Her- discovered the royal maiden chained to the rock. His sympathy was at once aroused, but true Greek as he was, and assured of his ability to rescue her from the jaws of the approaching mon- ster, he first endeavored to turn the affair to his advan- tage. He offered to deliver Hesione, if Laomedon would give him the supernatural mares which Zeus had sent from Olympus to Troas in exchange for Ganymede, his son, who had been translated to heaven to be cup-bearer to the gods. Nothing is more easy than to promise, and thus Laomedon readily gave his royal word, and the hero soon released Hesione from a position which was both embarrassing and perilous. Having once before been easily helped out of the penalty of his duplicity, Laome- don ventured to break this second engagement, and Hercules was forced to leave Troy without the mares. As nothing further was heard from the hero for some years, Laomedon probably concluded that he was going to reap only profit for his crimes. But after completing his famous labors, Hercules col- lected a fleet of eighteen, (or, according to Homer, six) fifty oared galleys, together with an army, and returned to the plains of Troy. He captured the city by the aid of his friend Telamon, the Salaminian hero, and slew Laome- don and his sons with arrows. Podarces alone was per- Teed ae ae Ce Set hr hare es eeRebuilding of Troy. 5 mitted to live, for he had counselled his father to carry out the terms of the contract. Hercules then gave Hesione to his ally Hercules slays aomedon. Telamon, but granted her the life of one of the captives. Naturally she selected her sole surviving brother Podarces. But when she desired them to release him, she was told, according to the code of the time, that he must first be sold as a slave, and might then be ran- somed. She redeemed Podarces by stripping the gold- embroidered veil from her head and giving it as purchase money. From this circumstance he was called Priamos, or the bought one. Priam had counselled his father Laome- don, to fulfil his stipulations with Hercules. ie i For this reason Hercules now restored Priam to the Trojan throne, and permitted him to re- build and beautify the city. During the reign of Laome- don, Priam had been forced to marry Arisba. He now divorced her, and either for love or policy exchanged her for Hecuba, daughter of Dymas the Phrygian. Their union was a happy one all things considered, and abundantly fruitful. Hecuba bore her husband nineteen children. As they grew up and married, separate palaces were built for them adjoining that of the king, on the Pergamus or citadel. The reign of Priam seems to have been for many years one of prosperity. Evi- dently a man of genial qualities, foresight and prudence, he had the wisdom to profit by the errors or crimes of the founders of his line. Increasing and consolidating his territories, he also gained powerful allies, partly by marriage, and won far-reaching glory and respect for Troy. Hecuba must have been a woman of great natural talents, for many of her children achieved celebrity, not6 Troy. solely on account of their social position but also for strongly marked individual traits. We are led to infer that Cassandra, Hector, Troilus, Paris, Helenus and Deiphobus would have gained celebrity even if the Fates had not offered them such a melancholy oppor- tunity of achieving immortality. Several children had been born to the royal pair, and nothing occurred to mar their domestic peace until He- cuba became pregnant of Paris. At that time she dreamed that she brought forth a burning torch, that proved the destruction of Troy. So remarkable a por- tent naturally alarmed the parents. Priam had by his former wife a son named Atsacus who had assumed the priestly office. He was also a soothsayer, having been instructed in the art of prophecy by his grandmother Merope. This gift Asacus also imparted to his half brother and sister Helenus and Cassandra. Grief for the loss of his wife Asterope prematurely shortened the life of this worthy soothsayer. To him Priam applied for an interpretation of Hecu- ba's dream. A®sacus foretold that it meant the destruc- tion of Troy by means of the offspring yet unborn, and advised the exposure of the poor infant. When the. unlucky babe arrived, he was therefore given at once to Archelaus, a shepherd of Mt. Ida, who was commanded to expose him on a crag where he would be speedily devoured by the eagles or the wolves. After five days the shepherd returned to the spot where he had left the infant. Finding him not only alive and unharmed, but also nursed by a she bear, Archelaus was so moved that he took the infant to his hut and named him Paris. The child, ignorant of his royal birth, grew up to manhood showing traics of his lofty origin. Among the herdsmen of Mt. Ida he established a reputation by his Birth of Paris. a aLhe Apple of Discord. 7 courage in the chase and his success in athletic sports, The spirit he displayed in repelling the robbers who at- tacked the folds was such that he was named Alexan- dros, or protector of men. But the pastoral life of the royal youth Tn eee was most distinguished on account of his connection with the lovely wood nymph (Enone.* There is an ideal feminine virtue and loveliness in the character and career of this exquisite being of the Idean woods. Paris, after the simple manner of the time and place, accepted CEnone as his wife, and they dwelt together with the utmost happiness, tending the flocks which Archelaus, his foster father had bequeathed to him. In all the idyllic poetry of antiquity, there is no more beautiful and instructive legend than that of Paris and (Enone. But the gods are impatient of a happiness or pros- perity that threatens to rival theirs. Noris zou. plane te man permitted to pass through life without ona eee being subjected to temptations and seduc- lation. tions that draw him from virtue to ruin, and thus a new element now entered into the life of Paris, in a manner the most unexpected. The gods employ mortals to exe- cute their designs or to be the instruments for the fulfil- ment of destiny. Paris was now the being selected to be the instrument for carrying out the purposes of Zeus. The curious circumstance is that the beings ap- pointed thus to serve the gods are made responsible for being unwittingly the agents in the carrying out of ends entirely foreign to their thoughts. Zeus, seeing that the world was overstocked with people consulted Themis on the subject. She advised him that the best * Apollodorus.8 Troy. way to thin out the population was to bring about a war between Greece and Troy.* And this is how it came to pass. Peleus, King of Thessaly, after a singular variety of adventures and misfortunes, was subjected to the unholy solicitations of Hippolyté, wife of Acastus. After he had successfully resisted her blandishments, the gods decided to reward such virtue by granting him a goddess in marriage. Thetis was chosen Marriage of : : Peleus and _to fill this office, and in her honor the Olym- a pian deities assembled to the nuptials on Mount Pelion. This was the occasion selected by Zeus for initiating his purposes regarding the human race. The goddess Discord, the daughter of Night and sister of Nemesis, was commanded to throw among the assembled gods a golden apple bearing the inscription “‘ To The Apple of the most beautiful.” + The result is easily foreseen. The most furious jealousy at once arose among the goddesses. It was conceded that three, Heré, Athené, and Aphrodité, were justly entitled by their rank and charms to be considered rivals possessing especial right to claim the apple of gold. Therefore they repaired to the throne of Zeus, but the crafty god declined to decide a question fraught with such consequences not only to the universe but also to his own peace. If he awarded the prize to Heré, his spouse, he would, of course, be accused of partiality and precipitate a conflict in Olympus itself, while if he decided it against her he would disturb his own domestic harmony. But Zeus recommended the fair rivals to refer the decision of the question to Paris, the young shepherd of Mount Ida. * /Eneid. + Cyprian verses,Return of Parts to Troy. 9 Whatever his judgment, Zeus promised that it should be accepted as final. Thither the three goddesses proceeded, guided by Mercury, the herald of Olympus. It was scarcely just to lay such a burden of responsibility on the shoulders of a young, inexperienced shepherd. The more espe- cially does it seem thus because the rival deities were not satisfied to leave the decision to his unbiassed judg- ment, but each endeavored to win the prize by seduc- tive promises of reward characteristic of the prerogatives of the respective claimants. But Paris was, perhaps, not more harshly dealt with than all mortals who are forced to choose and are held responsible for their choice. Heré offered him the promise of regal ,,. deg power; Minerva sought the preference by desses on holding out to him wisdom and martial ee success. But Aphrodité promised him the world’s fairest woman. The young man’s fancy kindled at the sug- gestion. For the moment he forgot Génone, He gave the apple of Discord to the goddess of Love. In an in- stant his own destiny and that of the world was decided. Whatever the subsequent conduct of Paris, it cannot be questioned that it was exceedingly unjust for the higher powers to take advantage of his weakness, and subject him to a trial for which he was so unequal. For a time after this event matters went on with Paris as before. He tended his flocks and herds and dwelt with Cénone. But the steps of Fate were stealthily and inevitably approaching. Priam, enjoying unbroken prosperity, proclaimed a public contest, in which his sons and other youth of noble birth were to meet in athletic games. The prize for the winner was to be the finest bull of Mount Ida. The persons who were sent in quest of such a bull found Return of Paris to Troy.TO Troy. one at last in the herds of Paris. With great reluctance he permitted them to carry off the bull and only under condition that he should be allowed to strive for the prize. When Paris decided to descend to the plain and enter the athletic contest, he doubtless fully intended to return to GEnone after the result of the games. But Gtnone, gifted by Apollo with the power of foresight into the future, urged him not to go, and warned him of the dire conse- quences that were to follow if he once left his pastoral home. But when she found her entreaties and warnings of no avail against his sanguine and ambitious nature, then the wood nymph foretold the wounds that were to befall him after a long and cruel war, and also informed him that when that hour should come, she only could cure him; and then she besought him Faris leaves ~~ whom she loved so tenderly to return to her arms when that event should happen and be restored to life and health. And thus they parted.* What weary years, what varied events followed before they met again ! In the games before Troy the young shepherd proved successful over every competitor, including even Hector himself, the most distinguished of Priam’s sons. That an unknown rustic should carry off the prize from all of the blood-royal was not to be endured by so high-spirited a hero as Hector. Laying no bounds to his resentment, Hector would have slain Paris if the latter, fleeing for his life from his brother, had not sped for refuge to the shrine of Zeus and seized the altar horns. Pune facoe Cassandra was officiating at the shrine, nized by his and observing the strong family resemblance family. : : which the suppliant bore to the sons of * Apollodorus, Hygin.The Designs of Zeus. 1I Priam, inquired concerning his origin. His replies re- vealed that Paris was none other than the infant who had been exposed on Mount Ida so many years before. In the first blush of joy to find once more a child long lamented, Priam forgot the alarming prediction of A®sacus, and gladly welcomed his son. The resentment of Hector, it is hardly necessary to add, was at once appeased. It is not difficult to imagine the pride and happiness that filled the souls of all to see the royal household increased by the addition of one possessed of such rare personal accomplishments. And now we begin to see in what MANS » spepatomndat ner Zeus proposed to carry out his purposes of the designs by means of the apple of Discord. Events aes were gradually working to bring about not only the plans of Zeus but secondarily, the promise of Aphrodité to Parts.CHAPTER. Tt, HELEN. WHILE the events recorded in the pre- coe vious chapter were occurring at Troy, other no less important events were taking place on the other side of the Egean in Lacedzmon, which were destined to have an extraordinary bearing on the fate of Troy. Tyndarus was king of Laconia, or Sparta, or Lacedemon, as it is indifferently called, the south- ernmost kingdom of Greece. To him were born four chiidren, Castor and Poilux, and their sisters, Helen and Clytemnestra.* Castor and Helen were twins and were reputed to be the offspring of Zeus. The god in the shape of a swan surprised Leda, the spouse of Tyndarus, and as a result of the amour Helen was be- gotten, destined to become the most celebrated woman of antiquity, both for her beauty and the stupendous events of which it was the occasion. In order to ac- complish the originating idea of the divine purpose more consistently, it was stated by some f that Helen was the daughter of Zeus and Nemesis. But this is evidently an allegorical afterthought, intended to give an ex- planation of the remarkable disasters directly springing from the beauty of the Spartan princess. Hesiod also further differs from other narrators of the legend; he states that Helen was the daughter of Oceanus and Te- thys. So renowneddid Helen become, even in child- hood, that the Athenian hero Theseus and his friend * Jliad, Odyss., passim. 7 Stasinus, Cyprian Epics.ftelen and the Princes of Greece. 13 Pirithous, formed a plot to abduct her. The friends SUC- ceeded in their design on the occasion of a festival, when the maiden was dancing with her companions at the shrine of Diana Orthia. Theseus bore her through the Peloponnessus to Aphidne, and placed her in charge of his mother, A2thra, to educate her until such time as she should reach years of maturity. But it is said on the other hand that she was of nubile age * and became by Theseus the mother of a Hoeue. child, entrusted to Clytemnestra. ees But Helen was forcibly recovered by her brothers, Castor and Pollux, who invaded and ravaged Attica. The inevitable crisis could not, however, be long de- ferred. The violence of Theseus was but a prelude and a type of the agitation which was to arouse the princes of Greece until the great question was decided as to the matrimonial fate of the peerless woman of the age. From city to city, from province to province, from isle to isle, of Hellas, her fame was sung, her beauty was extolled. The princes and heroes of the land, to the number of thirty, gathered in succession to the court of Tyndarus, and offered them- he Princes of Greece suing selves as suitors for the hand of Helen. As_ [er the hand the marriage of her sister Clytemnestra to Agamemnon, king of Mycene, and the death of her brothers, Castor and Pollux, had left Helen the heiress to her father’s throne, the question assumed a double importance. It became a matter of serious moment how to bestow a powerful throne as well as a daughter endowed with such charms, and Tyndarus was not the man to act in a hurry, nor was Helen a woman who would allow herself to be given in marriage without * Pausanias.r4 Troy. having a choice in the matter. This as well as other points in the legend, clearly indicate the independence that was accorded to the women of Greece in that early age when they had the character to assert their claims. The suitors, in the meantime, were becoming clamorous for a decision, as if they had any rights in the matter. The question was indeed becoming serious, when a set- tlement was opportunely reached in this wise. Odysseus, of Ithaca, was one of the Odysseus sug- : gests a solu- suitors. He was the son of Laertes, the ae king of that hardy island, and was reputed to be the wisest man of his time. Soon after arriving at Sparta and surveying the field, he came to the conclu- sion that among so many suitors his chance of success was very slight. But Odysseus had already fallen in love with Penelope, the niece of Tyndarus, and solicited her hand. His suit was granted. In exchange for this favor, or to state it more precisely, on this condition, Odysseus suggested a plan for solving the grea* question which was at once adopted with a successful result. It was agreed that the choice of a husband should be left to Helen. The suitors in turn swore a solemn oath to accept her decision as final, and that if, at any future time, the husband she selected should be robbed of her, a contingency by no means impossible, considering her attractions and the character of the time, they were to reassemble with all their available forces and aid in restoring her to her husband. Menelaus, Bearers brother of Agamemnon, was the fortunate suitor.’ After the marriage the rejected rivals swallowed their chagrin and departed in good faith to their homes. Ere long King Tyndarus died, and Menelaus and Helen succeeded to the joint possession of his throne.Paris turns his eyes toward Sparta. 5 Menelaus was a prince without territory of his own, al- though of lofty descent; nor does he seem to have been a man of pre-eminent intellectual qualities, if we judge from the record. But he was handsome, good- hearted and sincere. Helen herself said of her hus. band, that he lacked no noble, personal or intellectual gift.* The illustrious pair seem to have been well mated, since the marriage proved a happy one, for over three years. During that time a daughter was born to them named Hermione. Everything promised for them a long and prosperous reign of public and domestic peace. Butanameless doom brocded over their palace. Destiny had willed another Aphrodité re- members her fate. She had marked them as instruments to promise to carry out her purposes; but as responsible beings, they were to be unwilling sufferers for the bene- fit of others. How the results decreed by Zeus, when he ordered Discord to produce the golden apple, were to be brought about, now became yet more apparent. Helen, as the one who far excelled the most beautiful women of her time, was evidently the woman whom Aph- rodité had promised to Paris. At the instigation of the goddess, therefore, he began to turn longing eyes to- wards Sparta. The fame of Helen had reached Troy. But how to get to Greece was the problem which caused the handsome prince some trouble. It is evident that for unrecorded reasons, which are obvious enough, how- ever, Paris had not deemed it wise to mention to his family the promise of Aphrodité. As so distant a voyage was a very serious undertaking for the time, the consent of Priam could only be obtained by inventing some * Odyss, C16 Troy. plausible pretext. Paris found one in his father's love for his sister Hesione, who, as the reader will remember, ransomed Priam and had been bestowed by Hercules on Telamon, king of Salamis. It would seem that little or no tidings of her had reached Troy during all this period, a very strong proof of the meagreness of navigation in that age. Playing on his father’s partiality for him, Geeta Paris persuaded Priam, in spite of the pro- phetic warnings of Helenus and Cassandra, to allow a fleet to be constructed by Harmodius* to carry his son to Salamis in quest of information concerning Hesione. From Salamis, Paris sailed for Lacedzemon, On the voyage he was met by Nereus, who foretold the Trojan war.t In order to insure a favorable reception from Menelaus, Paris was obliged to devise a suffi- cient reason for his voyage. He accordingly arrived at Sparta under pretence of sacrificing at the shrine of Apollo. The reception accorded the Trojan prince by the Spartan monarch and his queen was of the kind- est. He was urged to prolong his visit, and such confi- dence was reposed in his integrity that Menelaus left Paris alone with Helen, while he himself sailed ona short expedition to Crete. But Paris took advantage of the absence of his host to corrupt the affections of Helen. Infatuated by the personal attractions of her foreign guest, Helen con- sented to fly her kingdom and family and return with him to Troy. They were accused of carrying with them much of the treasure of Menelaus. By nght of marriage it might have been his, while Helen might very naturally think that she retained the right to carry it with her on * Tliad. + Hor. Ode x. id Sp Os SECT DIE EOE Las PaLG eee ORR Se Soe ah wkd SEs eee 8 8 OOS eae bo he Ba fe ee)Llelen flies from her Throne. 17 renouncing her husband. The love of the guilty pair for each other was undoubtedly genuine, and endured with both for many years, It must be admitted that there was a strong palliating reason for modifying our opinion of ee of the guilt of Paris and Helen. They both un- derstood that they had been predestined for each other, and had the divine sanction for their love. Aphrodité had promised them to each other. ““T blame thee not The blame is with th’ immortals,” said Priam to Helen, in the Iliad. The ancient world generally allowed the lovers the benefit of this palliative plied. To affirnn it, however, is to accept fatalism and the unaccountability of man for his deeds. While to deny it is scarcely just to man, and places the deity in the position of doing evil or tempting to evil in order that good may come. The primitive character of navigation protracted the return to Troy. Driven by adverse winds sent by Heré, the fleet went as far eastward as Sidon, * which Paris is said to have taken and sacked. Probably a brawl of the crews with Sidonian shipmen led to the latter state- ment. 204 ee cient times has delved in them for gold to fuse over again in the alembic of his imagination. And to-day, nearly three thousand years after those poems were composed, the Homeric legend and literature actually receive more attention and possess more importance than ever before; the vitality of the Homeric question is the most remark- able phenomenon in secular history. The subject has assumed a certain precision, and out of 4 vast amount of discussion several disputed points have been evolved scarcely less important than the question regarding the North Pole. Critics, Teer poets, historians, archeologists, ethnologists, topographical engineers, and almost all other men of scholarly attainments are divided on the following ques- tions. Was there ever such a man as Homer? If so, did he write both the Iliad and the Odyssey ° If not, is he the author of the whole of the Mad? Did the Homeric Troy ever exist? Was there ever such a war as the Trojan War? Where is the site of Troy? Are104 Troy. the discoveries of Dr. Schliemann to be accepted as the authentic remains of the original Troy? These inquiries have been discussed Points to be : : : : is settled in the from generation we generation, with ee Homeric haustible enthusiasm, and too often with question. acrimonious heat, as if each writer based his argument upon incontrovertible facts. Whereas, there never was a question more speculative and hypo-~ thetical and demanding greater toleration of opinion, and moderation in argument. With slight exceptions the evidence on the Homeric question has until recently been internal, and therefore critical, and therefore ex- actly of such a nature as to prove almost anything in accordance with the prepossessions of the critic. In- ternal evidence regarding the authenticity of an anony- mous bock or a work of art by an unknown artist can be made to suit as many different opinions as the Constitution of the United States or the Epistles of St. Paul. All this goes to prove that the Homeric question Should be approached with becoming modesty, and discussed dispassionately and with the avoidance of positive assertion. After the Iliad and the Odyssey our next source of authority for the Trojan legend, is found in the so-called Cyclic Poems, which are acknowledged tc have been composed in every case sub- Seuss sequently to Homer; although the arrange- ment adopted apparently suggests that a number of them had precedence in time at least. The Iliad and the Odyssey were included in the original list of these epics, but their extraordinary ex- cellence gradually separated them from the thirty poems which were conventionally termed Cyclic in op- position te the Homeric epic. The information we pos-Arctinus, 10S sess regarding the Cyclic poets is obscure i i Arrangement and chiefly at second hand from Eutychias of the Cyclic Proclus, a writer of the second century, ot We gather from Proclus the fact that the grammarian school of Alexandria issued a corrected edition of all the Greek epics then extant to the Telegonia, arranging them at the same time in such order as to give a con- nected epical narrative from the mythological creation of the world. Of these five besides the Homeric epics, were devoted to the relation of the Trojan legend. They were so inferior to Homer, however, that they fell into neglect, and not even a copy of the epic cycle now ex- ists. Sixty-two lines, quoted here and there in the classic writers, alone survive of a vast literature more or less legendary or historical. But Proclus gave the argu- ments of these lost poems, and numerous allusions or works of which they furnished the basis enable us to collect the various disjointed Bs ee: elements of the legend and weave a con- nected narrative of the Trojan war. In general the cyclic poets avoided treating the same portion of the legend, and thus each furnished a genuine contribution to the subject. Stasinus or Hegesias was the author of the first in order of theCyclicepics, the Cy- ee pria or Cyprian Epic. The poem might have been so-called because the author was from Cy- prus, but more likely because it included an account of the influence of Cypria or Aphrodité on the destiny of Troy from the marriage of Peleus and Thetis to the quarrel of Agamemnon and Achilles. Arctinus, a native of Miletus, was reputed to be a pupil of Homer. There is no ques- tion made regarding the actual existence of this poet, Arctinus.106 Troy. although dating back to 776 B.c. This, by the way, seems to be a point in favor of also admitting the ex- istence of such a man as Homer, who is reported to have lived not far from that time. Arctinus was the author of a poem containing gooo lines. It began where the Iliad left off, opening at the death of Hector, and describing among other events the death of Memnon and Penthesilea, and ending with the destruction of the city. The poem was The Athiopis practically divided into two parts under and Sack of different titles—the A®thiopis and the sack woe of Troy, or ’[Alou Tépace. Another epic which sometimes went by the same name, although generally known as the Little Iliad, ae was composed by Lesches of Lesbos. He and the gave a narrative or poetic chronicle of the Mittle Tad. events of the Trojan war, beginning with the competition for the celestial armor of Achilles, and including accounts of the deeds of Philoctetes, Odysseus and Ajax, together with a version of the capture of Ilium. So far as can be judged from ancient criticism and the fragments yet extant of this work, Lesches either drew on his invention largely or obtained his facts from tradi- tions differing from those followed by Arctinus.* It must be remembered, however, that much of the criti- cism regarding the character of the Little Iliad as well as the other Cyclic epics is speculative and hence inde- cisive. Aristotle states that being more in the nature of a chronicle than an epic account of one central dramatic action, the Leschian epic afforded material for at least eight dramas, while the unity of the Iliad and the Odys- sey permitted only one drama to be taken from them * Muller, de Lesche Poéta.Stesichorus’ account of Helen, 107 respectively. The opinion of the Stagyrite philosopher has been ably combated by a number of modern critics, of whom the most prominent are Welcher and Colonel Mure, wno have exhaustively considered the question of the Cyclic poets, and arrived at positive conclusions which are satisfactory to themselves regarding the litera- ry merit of their works. But when we con- ; . Modern criti- sider the excessive meagerness of the frag- cism of the ments which have been rescued from S%'? PS oblivion, it must be evident that it is futile to waste much time on this part of the discussion. Besides the Cyclic poets which we have mentioned, there was Eugammon of Cyrene, who com- : Eugammon posed the. Telegonia about 560 B.c. It andthe. narrated the adventures of Telegonus, son 7 of Odysseus and Circe, while searching for his father. Hagias of Trcezen closed the Trojan Cycle with the Nostos, in which he recorded the adven- tures of the Greek heroes on their return Hagias of from the siege of Troy, with the exception of Odysseus. Stesichorus of Himeera, like the Cyclic poets, is known to us almost entirely by allusions in the : d Stesichorus classic commentators. He was one of the account greatest musicians and lyric poets of anti- re quity, and flourished about the first half of the sixth century before our era. He caused a great impression by the variations he introduced in a lyrical epic of which Helen was the subject. Unlike Homer, who always spoke of Helen with the utmost consideration, Stesicho- rus gave her the character of the basest of women. Soon after this he was struck with blindness. This affliction caused him to repent the impiety of desecrating the fame of the daughter of Zeus. Under the influence108 Troy. of his revised opinions Stesichorus composed a palinode, in which he restored Helen to her good name. He did this by daring to tamper with the Homeric nvrrative; inventing the theory already alluded to on a previous page, that Helen never went to Troy, but that Paris had only carried away her image or semblance. Herodotus obtained another version of this episode, in Egypt, which is not unlikely founded on that of Stesi- chorus. Paris, he says, on his return to Account of : i 5 : Helen’s flight Troy stopped in Egypt. Proteus, king of i that country, learning that he was escaping with the wife of Menelaus, detained Helen but permitted Paris to sail away. But the Trojans never could per- suade the Greeks that Helen was not in Troy. This was so designed because the gods wished to destroy Ilium, and thus the Greeks came and razed it to the ground. When the war was over Menelaus returned home by way of Egypt and found Helen there. To the great dramatic school of Athens we are also indebted for many of the details of the Trojan legend. While it is possible that the tragedians drew on their imagination for occasional incidents in their plots relat- ing to this subject, and while it is certain that they em- ployed them as vehicles for the expression of their Opinions, yet we know that in most cases they gathered their material largely from the Cyclic poets then in the full tide of their popularity ; sometimes also they doubt- less drew from traditions to which they now afford the only clue. Of the plays yet extant by the three leading tragedians of Greece, and suggested by the Trojan legend, three are by Atschylus,— the Coéphore, the Furies, and the Aga- memnon. The latter describes the death of Agamemnon and Cassandra, and justly stands at the head of the Greek The tragic poets.Lnctys Cretensts. 1ag drama. In the whole range of literature we find nothing to exceed the agonizing strophes of Cassandra, or the stately and awful measures in which we see the noble and unsuspecting hero marching to his doom. A number of dramas by Sophocles, suggested by the same general subject, still exist; these are the Philoctes, Klectra, and Ajax armed with a Lash. Of the eighteen plays of Euripides now remaining, the Trojan legend sug- gested Hecuba, Andromache, Iphigenia in Aulis, Orestes, Rhesus, Iphigenia in Tauris, the Troades, Helen, and Electra. When we study these wonderful productions of the greatest minds of antiguity, we are not only lost in contemplation of the mysterious problems of human existence which perplex the thoughtful mind in all ages, but we also gain a more vivid conception of the pro- found significance and inexhaustible richness of the Homeric legend. Whether it has a historical basis, or is purely an invention of the imagination, or an attempt to explain the relations of God and man, it is alike the most remarkable subject to be found in the whole range of the intellectual progress of the race. Ovid and Virgil have also contributed Bt additions to the legend, which, in the ab- sources of , ; the legend. sence of contradictory evidence, must be assumed to be founded on floating traditions. From Pausanias, Herodotus, Thucydides, and other prose writers, including the grammarians, we are able to ob- tain fresh versions or incidents elsewhere unrecorded concerning Troy. There is also another source of infor- mation on the subject, about whose anti- | quity and authorship there is great dispute. paren leatee In the reign of Nero, while he was journey- ing in the Aigean, a violent earthquake occurred in Crete. It was stated that a tomb at Cnossus was remKIO Lroy. open by the convulsion and a manuscript was disclosed written in Phoenician; it purported to be an account of the Trojan War, by Dictys, a Cretan priest, who accom- panied Idomeneus to Troy. It is further stated that the poem was afterwards translated into Greek by Euprax- ides. Q. Septimius produced a Latin version in the reign of Dioclesian. That this poem was by Dictys is generally discredited; it is attributed by many to Eup- raxides himself, who enriched it with many details from works now extinct. But it is quite within the limits of conjecture that it was the work of an earlier and now unknown writer. The story of the discovery of the manuscript is not by any means impossible, although improbable. In the severe earthquakes of 1870, ancient Peruvian tombs were opened and the interior disclosed, with their long buried occupants and treasures; while the shores of the eastern Mediterranean have for ages been liable to violent volcanic convulsions, fEhan alludes to another authority on this subject whose work is now lost. This was Dares Phrygius, re- puted to be a priest of Troy. From his account a Latin poem was composed in six books, entitled De Bello Zrojano, and falsely credited to Nepos, in an edition published at Bale in 1523; for it has been discovered that it was really the creation of Joseph Iscanus, a monk. It was often printed and bound with the poem attributed to Dictys Cretensis. The two works seemed to have possessed a peculiar attraction for the intellects of the Middle Ages. This was shown in a remarkable manner when Guido del Colonne, a Sicilian jurist and poet, composed in 1237 a Latin romance on the Trojan war; he drew his information from these two poems, and gave his narra- ve a medieval flavor by the addition of the customs Dares Phry- glus.Gocthe’s Helena. I1I1 and modes of thought of the days of chivairy. This nondescript romance became as popular as , ; : : Romance of Amadis de Gaul. It was translated into Guido del most of the languages of Europe. Inthose °0m illiterate times, when only the clergy were interested in the literature of the past, and that chiefly Latin, except Aristotle and the Fathers, the tale of Troy as told by Colonne was implicitly accepted as a genuine historic chronicle. The noble houses of Europe were fired by the impulse to trace their origin to some hero of Troy, and the monks found new employment in composing genealogies dating from the Trojan war. Even royal houses were infected by the enthusiasm aroused in the story of Ilium, and the English assumed that their history began with Brute of Troy.* This absurd claim was maintained in official documents as late as the fourteenth century, and was perpetuated by the historians for two centuries later. The famous legend of King Arthur shows traces of Homeric influence in the names of Sir Ector, Sir Palamides, Sir Alisander and Elaine. The latter is far more like the Greek than Helen. In the Middle Ages, when the legend of Faust was current among the masses, the name of Helen of Troy became associated with the name of that arch magician. Kit Marlowe in a few vivid ne and impassioned lines of his Fausteian drama availed himself of this bizarre ideal. In a later age, a mind of different type and colossal proportions also employed the medizval legend as a means to aid him in grappling with the problem of life. Goethe in the second part of Faust includes a majestic act of which Helen is the leading character. Goethe’s Helena. * Geoffrey of Monmouth, Hollinshed, etc. I112 Troy. Shakespeare, Racine, Alfierri and other modern dramatists have also composed plays suggested by the Ylian legend, and have aided by their genius to perpetu- ate the world’s interest in it, and give fresh evidence of the inexhaustible opulence of the mine from which they have drawn such treasure. The Iliad and the Odyssey have been translated into a number of the European languages. In Translations French the most important versions are by of Homer. Bitoubé and Madame Dacier; in Italian by Monti and Cesarotti; in German by Voss. In English by Chapman, Hobbes, Pope (assisted by Tickle in the Odyssey), Cowper, Newman, Sotheby, Derby and Bryant, Of the English translations we prefer those by Chapman, Pope, and Derby, although neither of the two former are so correct and literal as Cowper or Bryant. But the trans- lator of the Iliad should be fired by enthu- Bn siasm, and wield a fervid, energetic style of expression. These requisites we find in Chapman and Pope, and to a less degree in Derby. It is not the literal meaning of each word that is needed in the translation of poetry so much as a rendering of its spirit, which can sometimes be better done by a paraphrase than a literal rendering. But Chapman is perhaps too gothic and undignified in his style; with all his fire Homer is always stately and ele- gant; he is ever master of his subject. It is for this reason that the translation of the Iliad by Pope gives a better conception of the original than all other English versions. He who wrote the stinging invectives of the Dunciad knew Bie Ge how to render with force yet with exquisite Poseidon to polish such a powerful speech as that of Po- the Greeks. ; ; B Satine seidon personating Calchas and inciting the Greeks to resist the onset of the Trojans on the fleet.* * 1]. X11.Speech of Poseidon to the Grecks. ** Oh lasting infamy, oh dire disgrace, To chiefs of vigorous youtn and manly race ; I trusted in the gods, and you. to see Brave Greece victorious and her navy free; Ah no—the glorious combat you disclaim. And one black day clouds all her former fame. Heavens! what a prodigy these eyes survey, Unseen, unthought, till this amazing day ! Fly we at length from Troy's oft-conquered bands ? And falls our fleet by such inglorious hands? A rout undisciplined, a straggling train, Not born to glories of the dusty plain ; Like frighted fawns, from hill to hill pursued, A prey to every savage of the wood ; Shall these, so late who trembled at your name, Invade your camps, involve your ships in flame ? A change so shameful, say, what cause has wrought? The soldier’s baseness, or the general's fault ? Fools! will ye perish for your leader’s vice; The purchase infamy, and life the price ? "Tis not your cause, Achilles’ injured fame: Another's is the crime, but yours the shame. Grant that our chief offend through rage or lust, Must you be cowards if your king’s unjust? Prevent this evil, and your country save : Small thought retrieves the spirit of the brave. Think and subdue! on dastards dead to fame I waste no anger for they feel no shame ; But you, the pride, the flower of all our host, My heart weeps blood to see your glory lost! Nor deem this day, this battle all you lose ; A day more black, a fate more vile ensues. Let each reflect, who prizes fame or breath, On endless infamy, on instant death, For lo, the fated time, th’ appointed shore ; Hark! the gates burst, the brazen barriers roar Impetuous Hector thunders at the wall ; The hour, the spot, to conquer, or to fall.”CHAPTER II. HOMER. Homer and the two works attributed to Poecnly of him, the Iliad and the Odyssey, are then the centre from whence the whole of this legend springs so far as our direct knowledge extends. It is therefore of moment to inquire who was this great poet whose character looms up vast and mysterious through the nebulous haze of the traditionary past. Did he indeed have a being? Is hea personality of whom the imagination can form a distinct conception ? Was he in very sooth the author of the great Homeric epos ? What did the master minds nearest to his time consider him to be? and what, in the light of long investigation, severer methods of criticism and far more extensive philological resources, do the leading minds of these later days think of Homer, of the Iliad, and of Troy? In a few brief pages let us endeavor to find the answer to these questions. The ancients believed earnestly and entirely in the Bierce identity of Homer. Several biographies details aboat were written of him, which, although their Homer. 2 : watt : truth is greatly questioned, it is worth while to notice. The most important came into notice about the time of Herodotus and has been attributed to him for no other reason apparently, than because he was the most prominent historical writer of the time. its au- thenticity has been severely handled by che critics andTravels of FHomer. it. is long since it has’ been, accepted as a credible record of the career of the immortal bard. But what- evcr is known or suppesed to be known of Homer is derived chiefly from this narrative, and from a later one falsely attributed to Plutarch. We learn from these works that Menalippus, an Athenian, went to Cumez in Ionia. He had a daughter named Critheis, whom he left at his death in the charge cf Cleanax, his friend. But Cleanax proved unworthy of his trust, and when he found she was with child by him sent Critheis to Smyrna. Sens of | There Homer was born on the bank of the Meles. His mother wove woolen stuffs to earn a living for herself and her infant. There was at that time in Smyrna, a famous school of music and letters kept by Phemius. He was not so wedded to these pursuits, however, as to disdain the passions with which other men are concerned. Having seen Critheis he discerned in her qualities which won his love. He frankly wooed and married her, adopted her son and gave him instruction. At the death of Phemius, Homer or Melesigenes, as he was sometimes called, from the place of his birth, in- herited his step-father’s effects including the school, and acquired repute as a teacher. During this period he seems to have conceived the idea of composing the Iliad. Having this in view and being apparently of an inquiring mind, and thirsting for information, he ac- cepted the invitation of a shipman named Mentes, who urged him to accompany him on a cruise to distant lands, and over remote seas. During Teneo this voyage, one of the most important ever taken, if it occurred, Homer went as far as Italy and Spain. On his return he stopped at Ithaca, and116 Troy. saw Ulysses, from whom he doubtless obtained many important particulars regarding the Trojan war. On arriving at Smyrna, after this long voyage of dis- covery, protracted doubtless for many years, Homer found that he had been comparatively forgotten ; others had taken his place; but he had brought back with him the greatest poem ever composed by mortal man ; it was a fortune to him and was to be a heritage of price- less value for many cycles after he was so forgotten that his very existence would be brought into question. Wandering from city to city, he recited his poem with alternating success, and finally settled at the village of Volisso, in Chios, where he opened a school and married. Like Milton, he became the father of two daughters, and lost his sight in old age. In Chios, it is said, he composed the Odyssey. Still restless and ambitious, the blind bard aspired to recite in Greece the songs of whose merit he was doubtless aware; but he died on the voyage, at the island of Ios, whose people raised a tomb to his memory on the shore of the sea that none of that age knew better. Such is a brief outline of the life of Homer as handed down to us in records which the critics have pronounced unreliable. There is certainly nothing improbable in these details. The difficulty in accepting them seems to be because they were written centuries after the latest date allowable for his birth, and “because the internal evidence from the poems themselves is believed by some of the most important Homeric writers to preclude the necessity of believing that any such man ever lived. The name of Homer, they allege, was a generic term derived from the Sanscrit, having several meanings, but none especially applicable to the point. Death of Homer.Existence of Homer. Li Some say that Homeros means hostage; others that it signifies compiler; Suidas asserts that it is equivalent to counselor. On the island of ee Ios they said it meant follower. Sengen- ene busch surmises that Homeros was the Zolic form for Thamyris, the blind bard of Thrace,—not by any means a bad guess. The ancient writers generally considered the word to be a pseudonym; it undoubtedly did become an eponym for the schools of epic poetry. Others again assert that notwithstanding there are two or three biographies of Homer extant, the manifest spuriousness of these works and the absolute absence of any authentic information about the man Homer is suf- ficient to prove that he is a myth, a mere shadowy name. It would be simple presumption to assert, in the pre- mises, that Homer lived; farther on in the discussion however, the evidence in his favor may be satisfactorily explained. But it may be suggested here that the argu- ment drawn from analogy tends to support Existence of Homer Shakespeare lived in an age remarkable indicated by analogy. the faith of those who believe in his identity. for its literary activity, an age abounding in printed records, and he himself the greatest author since Homer, and yet how little we know about him that is authentic compared with his less important contempo- raries. The authenticity of many of his works is obscure, and there are some people of sense who deny him the credit of the authorship of his plays; and yet it is not three centuries since he died. The Dark Ages abound in historic records; it was a period of intense activity, as is shown by the superb architectural structures that covered Europe at that time: but while these Cathedrals were celebrated tar and wide in those Dark Ages as we call them, how118 Troy. rarely is the name of the architect recorded. The saine has been the case with the literatures of people possess- ing far better means of preserving the names of their authors than the Greeks had in the time of Homer. The epic literature of the Saxons, the Moorish poetry of Spain, the vast mass of romances of the days of chivalry, the pathetic ballads of the Slavic races, among many instances that we could adduce, have come down to us often in admirable condition, but how little is said of the authors of these works, how rarely are their names re- corded in history, and yet no one questions that each of these poems or romances owed its respective existence to an author who had an actual existence. Aware of the facility with which people remember a literary work but ignore or forget its authors, a fact which any person of ordinary observation can put to the proof, the Persian poets have always perpetuated their names by incor- porating them in some part of their works, whether they be merely distichs or elaborate epics. Instead, therefore, of agreeing with many critics that the slight knowledge we have of Homer, and the possi- ble myths that have grown up around his name are indications that he never existed, we consider, in view of the arguments we have already adduced, that the simple recollection of his name, the importance attributed to it by antiquity, almost amounts to a demonstration of his existence, The ancients never wavered, however, in their belief in the reality of Homer’s identity. He wasto thema living personality, whose genius had breathed inspiration into the national life of Greece. So vast was the in- fluence of the growing reputation of Homer that seven cities laid claim to his birth.* On examining these * Aulus Gellius.The Homeride. 11g claims, it is found that in no case did any of them seem to be. so strong as the right of Smyrna. The claim of several was indirect, as that they aided to colonize Smyrna, while the existence of a myth associating him with that city, is additional proof, in the then condition of society. But it is quite probable that the poet passed much of his life in Chios, at Volisso, a village on the west side of the isle, which still goes by that name. Koray, one of the most learned and entertaining of modern Homeric commentators, and himself a na- Koray on Homer. tive of the Levant, lays the scene of his Prolegomena in Volisso.