Speaker 1: This is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in
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LibriVox dot org. The Odyssey by Homer, as translated by
Samuel Butler, Book twenty four, The Ghosts of the Suitors
in Hades, Ulysses and his men go to the house
of Laertes. The people of Ithaca come out to attack Ulysses,
but Minerva concludes a peace. Then Mercury of Silen summoned
the ghosts of the suitors, and in his hand he
held the fair golden wand with which he seals men's
eyes in sleep, or wakes them just as he pleases.
With this, he roused the ghosts and led them, while
they followed, whining and gibbering behind him, as bats fly
squealing in the hollow of some great cave when one
of them has fallen out of the cluster in which
they hang. Even so did the ghosts whine and squeal
as Mercury, the Healer of sorrow, led them down to
the dark abode of death. When they had passed the
waters of Oceanus and the roc Leaulchus, they came to
the gates of the Sun and the land of dreams,
whereon they reached the meadow of Asphodel, where dwell the
souls and shadows of them that can labor no more.
Here they found the ghost of Achilles, son of Pelius,
with those of Patroclus and Telochlus, and Ajax, who was
the finest and handsomest man of all the Danians, after
the son of Pelias himself. They gathered round the ghost
of the son of Pelias, and the ghost of Agamemnon
joined them, sorrowing bitterly. Round him were also gathered the
ghosts of those who had perished with him in the
house of Ajastus, and the ghost of Achilles spoke first,
son of Atreus, It said, we used to say that
Jove had loved you better from the first to last
than any other hero. For you were captain over many
and brave men when we were all fighting together before Troy.
Yet the hand of death, which no mortal can escape,
was laid upon you all too early. Better for you
had you fallen at Troy in the heyday of your renown,
for the Achaeans would have built a mound over your ashes,
and your son would have been heir to your good name,
whereas it has now been your lot to come to
a most miserable end. Happy son of Pelias, answered the
ghost of Agamemnon, for having died at Troy, far from Argos,
while the bravest of the Trojans and the Achaans fell
round you fighting for your body. There you lay in
the whirling clouds of dust, all huge and hugely heedless.
Now of your chivalry, we fought the whole of the
livelong day. Nor should we ever have left off if
Jove had not sent a hurricane to stay us. Then,
when we had borne you to the ships out of
the fray, we laid you on your bed and cleansed
your fair skin with warm water and with ointments. The
Danaeans tore their hair and wept bitterly round about you.
Your mother, when she heard, came with her immortal nymphs
from out of the sea, and the sound of a
great wailing went forth over the waters, so that the
Achaeans quaked for fear. They would have fled, panic stricken
to their ships, had not wise old Nestor, whose counsel
was ever truest, checked them, saying, hold argives fly not
sons of the Achaeans, this is his mother, coming from
the sea with her immortal nymphs to view the body
of her son. Thus he spoke, and the Achaeans feared
no more. The daughters of the old Man of the
Sea stood round you, weeping bitterly, and clothed you in
immortal raiment. The nine muses also came and lifted up
their sweet voices in lament, calling and answering one another.
There was not an argive, but wept for pity of
the dirge. They chanted days and nights, seven and ten.
We mourned you, mortals and immortals. But on the eighteenth
day we gave you to the flames. And many a
fat sheep, with many an ox did we slay in sacrifice.
Around you. You were burnt in raiment of the gods,
with rich resins and with honey, while heroes horse and
foot clashed their armor round the pile, as you were
burning with a tramp, as of a great multitude. But
when the flames of heaven had done their work, we
gathered your white bones at daybreak and laid them in
ointments and in pure wine. Your mother brought us a
golden vase to hold them. Gift of Bacchus, and work
of Vulcan himself. In this we mingled your bleached bones
with those of Patroclus who had gone before you, and
separate we enclosed also those of Antilochus, who had been
closer to you than any other of your comrades. Now
that Protroclus was no more over these, the host of
the archives built a noble tomb from a point jutting
out over the open Hellespont, that it might be seen
from far out upon the sea by those now living
and by them that shall be born hereafter, your mother
begged prizes from the gods and offered them to be
contended for by the noblest of the Achaeans. You must
have been present at the funeral of many a hero,
when the young men gird themselves and make ready to
contend for prizes on the death of some great chieftain.
But you never saw such prizes as silver footed Thetis
offered in your honor, For the gods loved you well. Thus,
even in death, your fame, Achilles, has not been lost,
and your name lives evermore among all mankind. But as
for me, what solace had I when the days of
my fighting were done? For Jove willed my destruction on
my return by the hands of Agisthus and those of
my wicked wife. Thus did they converse, and presently Mercury
came up to them with the ghosts of the suitors
who had been killed by Ulysses. The ghosts of Agamemnon
and Achilles were astonished at seeing them, and went up
to them. At once. The ghost of Agamemnon recognized Amphemedon,
son of Melanaeus, who lived in Ithaca and had been
his host, So it began to talk to him. Amphemiedon
it said, what has happened to all you fine young men,
all of an age too? That you come down here
under the ground. One could pick no finder body of
men from any city. Did Neptum raise his winds and
waves against you when you were at sea? Or did
your enemies make an end of you on the mainland
when you were cattle lifting or sheep stealing, or while
fighting in defense of your wives and city? Answer my question,
for I have been your guest. Do you not remember
how I came to your house with Menelaeus to persuade
Ulysses to join us with his ships against Troy. It
was a whole month ere we could resume our voyage,
for we had hard work to persuade Ulysses to come
with us. And the ghost of Amphemedon answered Agamemnon, son
of Atreus, king of Men, I remember everything that you
have said, and will tell you fully and accurately about
the way in which our end was brought about. Lysses
had been long gone, and we were courting his wife,
who did not say point blank that she would not
marry nor yet bring matters to an end, for she
meant to compass our destruction. This then, was the trick
she played on us. She set up a great tambour
frame in her room and began to work on an
enormous piece of fine needlework. Sweethearts, said she, Ulysses, and
indeed dead, still, do not press me to marry again
immediately wait, for I would not have my skill in
needlework perish unrecorded till I have completed a pall for
the hero Laertes, against the time when death shall take him.
He is very rich, and the women of the place
will talk if he is laid out without a pall.
This is what she said, and we assented. Whereupon we
could see her working upon on her great web all
day long, but at night she would unpick the stitches
again by torchlight. She fooled us in this way for
three years without our finding it out. But as time
wore on, and she was now in her fourth year
in the waning of moons, and many days had been accomplished,
one of her maids, who knew what she was doing,
told us, and we caught her in the act of
undoing her work. So she had to finish it, whether
she would or no. And when she showed us the
robe she had made after she had had it washed,
its splendor was as that of the sun or moon.
Then some malicious god conveyed Ulysses to the upland farm
where his swineherd lives. Thither presently came also his son,
returning from a voyage to Pylos, and the two came
to the town when they had had hatched their plot
for our destruction. Telemachus came first, and then after him,
accompanied by the swinnard, came Ulysses, clad in rags and
leaning on a staff, as though he were some miserable
old beggar. He came so unexpectedly that none of us
knew him, not even the older ones among us, and
we reviled him and threw things at him. He endured
both being struck and insulted, without a word, though he
was in his own house. But when the will of
aegis bearing Jove inspired him, he and Telemachus took the
armor and hid it in an inner chamber, bolting the
doors behind them. Then he cunningly made his wife offer
his bow and a quantity of iron, to be contended
for by us ill fated soars. And this was the
beginning of our end. For not one of us could
string the bow, nor nearly do so. When it was
about to reach the hands of Ulysses, we all of
us shouted out that it should not be given him,
no matter what he might say. But Telemachus insisted on
his having it. When he had got it in his hands,
he strung it with ease and sent his arrow through
the iron. Then he stood on the floor the cloister
and poured his arrows on the ground, glaring fiercely about him.
First he killed Antinous, and then, aiming straight before him,
he let fly his deadly darts, and they fell thick
on one another. It was plain that some one of
the gods was helping them, for they fell upon us
with might and main throughout the cloisters, and there was
a hideous sound of groaning, as our brains were being
battered in and the ground seethed with our blood. This, Agamemnon,
is how we came by our end. And our bodies
are lying still uncared for in the house of Ulysses,
for our friends at home do not yet know what
has happened, so that they cannot lay us out and
wash the black blood from our wounds, making moan over
us to the offices due to the departed, Happy Ulysses,
son of Laertes, replied the ghost of Agamemnon, you are
indeed blessed in the possession of a wife endowed with
such rare excellence of understanding, and so faithful to her
wedded lord as Penelope, the daughter of Ecarius. The fame
therefore of her virtue shall never die, and the immortals
shall compose a song that shall be welcome to all
mankind in honor of the constancy of Penelope. How far
otherwise was the wickedness of the daughter of Tyndareus, who
killed her lawful husband. Her song shall be hateful among men,
for she has brought disgrace on all womankind, even on
the good ones. Thus did they converse in the house
of Hades, deep down within the bowels of the earth. Meanwhile,
Ulysses and the others passed out of the town and
soon reached the fair and well tilled farm of Laertes,
which he had reclaimed with infinite labor. Here was his house,
with a lean to running all round it, where the
slaves who worked for him slept and sat and ate,
while inside them there was an old sy cell woman
who looked after him in this his country farm. When
Ulysses got there, he said to his son and to
the other two, go to the house and kill the
best pig that you can find for dinner. Meanwhile, I
want to see whether my father will know me or
fail to recognize me after so long an absence. He
then took off his armor and gave it to Eumaeus
and Philoetius, who went straight on to the house, while
he turned off into the vineyard to make trial of
his father. As he went down into the great orchard,
he did not see Dolius, nor any of his sons,
nor of the other bondsmen, for they were all gathering
thorns to make offense for the vineyard at the place
where the old man had told them. He therefore found
his father alone, hoeing a vine. He had on a
dirty old shirt, patched and very shabby. His legs were
bound round with thongs of ox hide to save him
from the brambles, and he also wore sleeves of leather.
He had a goat skin cap on his head, and
was looking very woebegone. When Ulysses saw him, so worn,
so old, and full of sorrow, he stood still under
a tall pear tree, and began to weep. He doubted
whether to embrace him, kiss him, and tell him all
about his having come home, or whether he should first
question him and see what he would say. In the end,
he deemed it best to be crafty with him. So
in this mind he went up to his father, who
was bending down and digging about a plant. I see, sir,
said Ulysses, that you are an excellent guard. What pains
you take with it? To be sure? There is not
a single plant, not a fig tree, vine, olive, pear,
nor flower bed, but bears the trace of your attention.
I trust, however, that you will not be offended if
I say that you take better care of your garden
than of yourself. You are old, a savory, and very
meanly clad. It cannot be because you are idle that
your master takes such poor care of you. Indeed, your
face and figure have nothing of the slave about them,
and proclaim you of noble birth. I should have said
that you were one of those who should wash well,
eat well, and lie soft at night, as old men
have a right to do. But tell me, and tell
me true, whose bondsman are you and in whose garden
are you working? Tell me also about another manner. Is
this place that I have come to really Ithaca? I
met a man just now who said so. But he
was a dull fellow and had not the patience to
hear my story out when I was asking him about
an old friend of mine, whether he was still living
or was already dead and in the house of Hades.
Believe me when I tell you that this man came
to my house once when I was in my own country,
and never did yet any stranger come to me whom
I liked better. He said that his family came from Ithaca,
and that his father was Laertes, son of Arsasius. I
received him hospitably, making him welcome to all the abundance
of my house. And when he went away, I gave
him all the customary presents. I gave him seven talents
of fine gold and a cup of solid silver with
flowers chased upon it. I gave him twelve of light
cloaks and as many pieces of tapestry. I also gave
him twelve cloaks of single fold, twelve rugs, twelve fair mantles,
and an equal number of shirts. To all this, I
added four good looking women, skilled in all useful arts,
and I let him take his choice. His father shed
tears and answered, Sir, you have indeed come to the
country that you have named, but it has fallen into
the hands of wicked people. All this wealth of presents
has been given to no purpose. If you could have
found your friend here alive in Ithaca, he would have
entertained you hospitably, and would have requited your presence amply
when you left him, as would have been only right
considering what you had already given him. But tell me,
and tell me true, how many years is its since
you entertained this guest? My unhappy son as ever was
alas he has perished far from his own country, the
fishes of the sea have eaten him, or he has
fallen a prey to the birds and wild beasts of
some continent. Neither his mother nor I his father, who
were his parents, could throw our arms about him and
wrap him in his shroud. Nor could his excellent and
richly dowered wife, Penelope bewail her husband as was natural
upon his deathbed, and to close his eyes according to
the offices due to the departed. But now tell me truly,
for I want to know who and whence are you.
Tell me of your town and parents. Where is the
ship lying that has brought you and your men to Ithaca?
Or were you a passenger on some other man's ship,
and those who brought you here have gone on their
way and left you. I will tell you everything, answered, Ulysses,
quite truly. I come from Alibis, where I have a
fine house. I am son of King Ephadus, who is
the son of Polypemmon. My own name is Apparatus. Heaven
drove me off my course as I was leaving Psyrcania,
and I have been carried here against my will, as
for my ship. It is lying over yonder off the
open country outside the town. And this is the fifth
year since Ulysses left my country, poor fellow. Yet the
omens were good for him when he left me. The
birds all flew on our right hands, and both he
and I rejoiced to see them as we parted, for
we had every hope that we should have another friendly
meeting and exchange presence. A dark cloud of sorrow fell
upon Laertes as he listened. He filled both hands with
dust from off the ground and poured it over his
gray head, groaning heavily as he did so. The heart
of Ulysses was touched and his nostrils quivered as he
looked upon his father. Then he sprang towards him, flung
his arms about him, and kissed him, saying, I am
he father about whom you are asking. I have returned
after having been away for twenty years. But cease your
sighing and lamentation, for we have no time to lose.
For I should tell you that I have been killing
the suitors in my house to punish them for their
insolence and crimes. If you really are my son, Ulysses replied,
and have come back again. You must give me such
manifest proof of your identity shall convince me. First observe
this scar, answered Ulysses, which I got from a Boeres
tusk when I was hunting on Mount Parnassus. You and
my mother had sent me to Autolaichus, my mother's father,
to receive the presence which when he was over here
he had promised to give me. Furthermore, I will point
out to you the trees and the vineyard which you
gave me, and I asked you all about them. As
I followed you round the garden. We went over them all,
and you told me their names and what they all were.
You gave me thirteen pear trees, ten apple trees, and
forty fig trees. You also said you would give me
fifty rows of vines. There was corn planted between each row,
and they yield grapes of every kind when the heat
of heaven has been laid heavy upon them. Laerti's strength
failed him when he heard the convincing proofs which his
son had given him. He threw his arms about him,
and Ulysses had to support him or he would have
gone off into a swoon. But as soon as he
came too, and was beginning to recover his senses. He said, oh,
Father Jove, then you gods are still in Olympus after all,
if the suitors have really been punished for their insolence
and folly. Nevertheless, I am much afraid that I shall
have all the townspeople of Ithaca up here directly, and
they will be sending messengers everywhere throughout the cities of
the Cephallenians. Ulysses answered, take heart, and do not trouble
yourself about that. But let us go into the house
hard by your garden. I have already told Telemachus, Philoetius,
and Eumaeus to go on there and get dinner ready
as soon as possible. Thus conversing, the two made their
way towards the house. When they got there, they found
Telemachus with the stockman and the swinnard, cutting up meat
and mixing wine with water. Then the old size sell
woman took Layertes inside and washed him and anointed him
with oil. She put him on a good cloak, and
Minerve came up to him and gave him a more
imposing presence, making him taller and stouter than before. When
he came back his son was surprised to see him
looking so like an immortal, and said to him, my
dear father, some one of the gods has been making
you much taller and better looking. Laertis answered would by Father, Jove, Minerva,
and Apollo, that I were the man I was when
I ruled among the Cephallenians and took Nerikum, that strong
fortress on the foreland. If I were still what I
then was, and had been in our house yesterday with
my armor on, I should have been able to stand
by you and help you against the suitors. I should
have killed a great many of them, and you would
have rejoiced to see it. Thus did they converse, but
the others, when they had finished their work, and when
the feast was ready, left off working, and took each
his proper place on the benches and seats. Then they
began eating by and bye. Old Dolius and his sons
left their work and came up for their mother. The Sisol,
woman who looked after Laertes now that he was growing old,
had been to fetch them. When they saw Ulysses and
were certain it was they stood there lost in astonishment,
but Ulysses scolded them good naturedly, and said, sit down
to your dinner, old man, and never mind about your surprise.
We have been wanting to begin for some time and
have been waiting for you. Then Dulius put out both
his hands and went up to Ulysses, Sir, said, he
seizing his master's hand and kissing it at the wrist.
We have been long wishing you home, and now Heaven
has restored you to us, after we had given up hoping.
All hail therefore, and may the gods prosper you. But
tell me, does Penelope know of your return? Or shall
we send some one to tell her? Old man answered Ulysses,
she knows already, so you need not trouble about that.
On this he took his seat, and the sons of
Dolius gathered round Ulysses to give him greeting and embrace him,
one after the other. Then they took their seats in
due order near Dolius their father. While they were thus
busy getting their dinner ready, rumor went round the town
and noised abroad the terrible fate that had befallen the suitors.
As soon therefore, as the people heard of it, they
gathered from every quarter groaning and hooting before the house
of Ulysses. They took the dead away, buried every man
his own, and put the bodies of those who came
from elsewhere on board the fishing vessels, for the fishermen
to take each of them to his own place. They
then met angrily in the place of assembly, and when
they were got together, Eupaiethes rose to speak. He was
overwhelmed with grief for the death of his son Antinou,
who had been the first man killed by Ulysses. So
he said, weeping bitterly, my friends, this man has done
the Achaeans great wrong. He took many of our best
men away with him in his fleet, and he has
lost both ships and men. Now moreover, on his return
he has been killing all the foremost men among the Cecealenians.
Let us be up and doing before he can get
away to Pylos or to Ellis, where the Apians rule,
or we shall be ashamed of ourselves forever afterwards. It
will be an everlasting disgrace to us if we do
not avenge the murder of our sons and brothers. For
my own part, I should have no more pleasure in life,
but had rather die at once let us up then
and after them before they could cross over to the
main land. He wept as he spoke, and every one
pitied him. But Madawn and the barred Fhemius had now
woke up and came to them from the house of Ulysses.
Every one was astonished at seeing them, for they stood
in the middle of the assembly, and medon, said hear me,
men of Ithaca, Ulysses did not do these things against
the will of Heaven. I myself saw and immortal God
take the form of Mentor and stand beside him. This
God appeared now in front of him, encouraging him, and
now going furiously about the court and attacking the suitors,
whereon they fell thick on one another on this pale
Fear laid hold of them, and old halethurses son of Mastor,
rose to speak, for he was the only man among
them who knew both past and future. So he spoke
to them plainly and in all honesty, saying, men of Ithaca,
it is all your own fault that things have turned
out as they have. You would not listen to me,
nor yet to Mentor, when he bade you check the
folly of your sons, who were doing much wrong in
the wantonness of their hearts, wasting the substance, and dishonoring
the wife of a chieftain, who they thought would not return. Now, however,
let it be as I say, and do as I
tell you. Do not go out against ulysses, or you
may find that you have been drawing down evil on
your own heads. That was what he said, And more
than half raised a loud shout, and at once left
the assembly, But the rest stayed where they were, for
the speech of Halethurses displeased them, and they sided with Eupaiethes.
They therefore hurried off for their armor, and when they
had armed themselves, they met together in front of the city,
and Eupaiethes led them on. In their folly, he thought
he was going to avenge the murder of his son,
whereas in truth he was never to return, but was
himself to perish in his attempt. Then Minerva said to Jove, father,
son of Saturn, king of Kings, answer me this question,
what do you propose to do? Will you set them
fighting still further? Or will you make peace between them?
And Jove answered, my child, why should you ask me?
Was it not by your own arrangement that Ulysses came
home and took his revenge upon the suitors. Do whatever
you like, but I will tell you what I think
will be the most reasonable arrangement. Now that Ulysses is revenged,
let them swear to a solemn covenant in virtue of
which he shall continue to rule, while we cause the
others to forgive and forget the massacre of their sons
and brothers. Let them then all become friends as heretofore,
and let peace and plenty reign. This was what Minerva
was already eager to bring about, so down she darted
from off the topmost summits of Olympus. Now, when Laertes
and the others had done dinner, Ulysses began and by saying,
some of you, go out and see if they are
not getting close up to us. So one of Dolis's
sons went, as he was bid. Standing on the threshold,
he could see them all quite near, and said to Ulysses,
here they are, Let us put on our armor at once.
They put on their armor as fast as they could,
that is to say, Ulysses, his three men, and the
six sons of Dolius. Laertes also and Dolius did the
same warriors by necessity in spite of their gray hair.
When they had all put on their armor, they opened
the gate and sallied forth, Ulysses leading the way. Then
Jove's daughter Minerva came up to them, having assumed the
form and voice of mentor. Ulysses was glad when he
saw her, and said to his son Telemachus, Telemachus, now
that you are about to fight in an engagement which
will show every man's mettle, be sure not to disgrace
your ancestors, who were eminent for their strength and courage
all the world over. You say truly, my dear father,
answered Telemachus, and you shall see if you will, that
I am in no mind to disgrace your family. Laertes
was delighted when he heard this. Good Heavens, he exclaimed,
what a day I am enjoying. I do indeed rejoice
at it. My son and grandson are vine with one
another in the matter of valor. On this, Minerva came
close up to him and said, son of Arcissius, best
friend I have in the world. Pray to the blue
eyed damsel and to Jove her father. Then poise your
spear and hurl it. As she spoke, she infused fresh
vigor into him, and when he had prayed to her,
he poised his spear and hurled it. He hit Eupaethe's helmet,
and the spear went right through it, for the helmet
stayed it not, and the armor rang rattling round him
as he fell heavily to the ground. Meanwhile, Ulysses and
his son fell upon the front line of the foe
and smote them with their swords and spears. Indeed, they
would have killed every one of them and prevented them
from ever getting home again. Only Minerva raised her voice
aloud and made everyone pause. Men of Ithaca, She cried,
cease this dreadful war, and settle the matter at once
without further bloodshed. On this pale, fear seized every one.
They were so frightened that their arms dropped from their
hands and fell upon the ground at the sound of
the goddess's voice, and they fled back to the city
for their lives. But Ulysses gave a great cry, and,
gathering himself together, swooped down like a soaring eagle. Then
the son of Saturn sent a thunderbolt of fire that
fell just in front of Minerva. So she said to Ulysses, Ulysses,
noble son of Laertes, stop this warful strife, or Jove
will be angry with you. Thus spoke Minerva, and Ulysses
obeyed her gladly. Then Minerva assumed the form and voice
of Mentor, and presently made a covenant of peace between
the two contending parties. End of Book twenty four and
End of the Odyssey by Homer, as translated by Samuel Butler,
read by Dennis Sayers and Modesto, California, for LibriVox Fall,
two thousand and six