{"collection":"Classics","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/browse/cla/eurip/heracl.htm","path":"cla/eurip/heracl.htm","source_url":"https://sacred-texts.com/cla/eurip/heracl.htm","text":"The Heracleidae\nBy Euripides\nTranslated by E. P. Coleridge\n----------------------------------------------------------------------\nDramatis Personae\nIOLAUS, friend of Heracles\nCOPREUS, herald of EURYSTHEUS\nDEMOPHON, King of Athens\nMACARIA, daughter of Heracles\nSERVANT, of Hyllus, son of Heracles\nALCMENA, mother of Heracles\nMESSENGER\nEURYSTHEUS; King of Argos\nCHORUS OF AGED ATHENIANS\nAcamas, the brother of DEMOPHON, younger sons of Heracles,\n----------------------------------------------------------------------\nBefore the altar and temple of Zeus at Marathon. IOLAUS, an old man,\nand the children of Heracles are seen on the steps of the\naltar.\n----------------------------------------------------------------------\nIOLAUS I hold this true, and long have held: Nature hath made one\nman upright for his neighbours' good, while another hath a disposition\nwholly given over to gain, useless alike to the state and difficult\nto have dealings with, but for himself the best of men; and this I\nknow, not from mere hearsay. For I, from pure regard and reverence\nfor my kith and kin, though might have lived at peace in Argos, alone\nof all my race shared with Heracles his labours, while he was yet\nwith us, and now that he dwells in heaven, I keep these his children\nsafe beneath my wing, though myself need protection. For when their\nfather passed from earth away, Eurystheus would first of all have\nslain us, but we escaped. And though our home is lost, our life was\nsaved. But in exile we wander from city to city, ever forced to roam.\nFor, added to our former wrongs, Eurystheus thought it fit to put\nthis further outrage upon us: wheresoe'er he heard that we were settling,\nthither would he send heralds demanding our surrender and driving\nus from thence, holding out this threat, that Argos is no meal city\nto make a friend or foe, and furthermore pointing to his own prosperity.\nSo they, seeing how weak my means, and these little ones left without\na father, bow to his superior might and drive us from their land.\nAnd I share the exile of these children, and help them bear their\nevil lot by my sympathy, loth to betray them, lest someone say, \"Look\nyou! now that the children's sire is dead, Iolaus no more protects\nthem, kinsman though he is.\" Not one corner left us in the whole of\nHellas, we are come to Marathon and its neighbouring land, and here\nwe sit as suppliants at the altars of the gods, and pray their aid;\nfor 'tis said two sons of Theseus dwell upon these plains, the lot\nof their inheritance, scions of Pandion's stock, related to these\nchildren; this the reason we have come on this our way to the borders\nof glorious Athens. To lead the flight two aged guides are we; my\ncare is centred on these boys, while she, I mean Alcmena, clasps her\nson's daughter in her arms, and bears her for safety within this shrine,\nfor we shrink from letting tender maidens come anigh the crowd or\nstand as suppliants at the altar. Now Hvllus and the elder of his\nbrethren are seeking some place for us to find a refuge, if we are\ndriven by force from this land. O children, children, come hither!\nhold unto my robe; for lo! I see a herald coming towards us from Eurystheus,\nby whom we are persecuted, wanderers excluded from every land. A curse\non the and him that sent thee, hateful wretch! for that same tongue\nof thine hath oft announced its master's evil hests to these children's\nnoble sire as well. (COPREUS, the herald of EURYSTHEUS, enters.)\nCOPREUS Doubtless thy folly lets thee think this is a good position\nto have taken up, and that thou art come to a city that will help\nthee. No! there is none that will prefer thy feeble arm to the might\nof Eurystheus. Begone! why take this trouble? Thou must arise and\ngo to Argos, where awaits thee death by stoning.\nIOLAUS Not so, for the god's altar will protect me, and this land\nof freedom, wherein we have set foot.\nCOPREUS Wilt give me the trouble of laying hands on thee?\nIOLAUS By force at least shalt thou never drag these children hence.\nCOPREUS That shalt thou soon learn; it seems thou wert a poor prophet,\nafter all, in this. (COPREUS seizes the children.)\nIOLAUS This shall never happen while I live.\nCOPREUS Begone! for I will take them hence, for all thy refusals,\nfor I hold that they belong to Eurystheus, as they do indeed. (He\nthrows IOLAUS to the ground.)\nIOLAUS Help, ye who long have had your home in Athens! we suppliants\nat Zeus' altar in your market-place are being haled by force away,\nour sacred wreaths defiled, shame to your city, to the gods dishonour.\n(The CHORUS OF AGED ATHENIANS enters.)\nLEADER OF THE CHORUS Hark, hark! What cry is this that rises near\nthe altar? At once explain the nature of the trouble.\nIOLAUS See this aged frame hurled in its feebleness upon the ground!\nWoe is me!\nLEADER Who threw thee down thus pitiably?\nIOLAUS Behold the man who flouts your gods, kind sirs, and tries\nby force to drag me from my seat before the altar of Zeus.\nCHORUS (chanting) From what land, old stranger, art thou come to\nthis confederate state of four cities? or have ye left Euboea's cliffs,\nand, with the oar that sweeps the sea, put in here from across the\nfirth?\nIOLAUS Sirs, no island life I lead, but from Mycenae to thy land\nI come.\nCHORUS (chanting) What do they call thee, aged sir, those folk in\nMycenae?\nIOLAUS Maybe ye have heard of Iolaus, the comrade of Heracles, for\nhe was not unknown to fame.\nCHORUS (chanting) Yea, I have heard of him in bygone days; but tell\nme, whose are the tender boys thou bearest in thine arms?\nIOLAUS These, sirs, are the sons of Heracles, come as suppliants\nto you and your city.\nCHORUS (chanting) What is their quest? Are they anxious, tell me,\nto obtain an audience of the state?\nIOLAUS That so they may escape surrender, nor be torn with violence\nfrom thy altars, and brought to Argos.\nCOPREUS Nay, this will nowise satisfy thy masters, who o'er thee\nhave a right, and so have tracked thee hither.\nCHORUS (chanting) Stranger, 'tis but right we should reverence the\ngods' suppliants, suffering none with violent hand to make them leave\nthe altars, for that will dread justice ne'er permit.\nCOPREUS Do thou then drive these subjects of Eurystheus forth, and\nthis hand of mine shall abstain from violence.\nCHORUS (chanting) 'Twere impious for the state to neglect the suppliant\nstranger's prayer.\nCOPREUS Yet 'tis well to keep clear of troubles, by adopting that\ncounsel, which is the wiser.\nLEADER Thou then shouldst have told the monarch of this land thy\nerrand before being so bold, out of regard to his country's freedom,\ninstead of trying to drag strangers by force from the altars of the\ngods.\nCOPREUS Who is monarch of this land and state?\nLEADER Demophon, son of gallant Theseus.\nCOPREUS Surely it were most to the purpose to discuss this matter\nsomewhat with him; all else has been said in vain.\nLEADER Lo! here he comes in person, in hot haste, and Acamas his\nbrother, to hear what thou hast to say. (DEMOPHON, Acamas, and their\nretinue enter.)\nDEMOPHON Since thou for all thy years hast outstripped younger men\nin coming to the rescue to this altar of Zeus, do thou tell me what\nhath chanced to bring this crowd together.\nLEADER There sit the sons of Heracles as suppliants, having wreathed\nthe altar, as thou seest, O king, and with them is Iolaus, trusty\ncomrade of their sire.\nDEMOPHON Why should this event have called for cries of pain?\nLEADER (turning to COPREUS) This fellow caused the uproar by trying\nto drag them forcibly from this altar, and he hurled down the old\nman, till my tears for pity flowed.\nDEMOPHON Hellenic dress and fashion in his robes doth he no doubt\nadopt, but deeds like these betray the barbarian. Thou, sirrah, tell\nme straight the country whence thou camest thither.\nCOPREUS An Argive I; since that thou seek'st to know. Who sent me,\nand the object of my coming, will I freely tell. Eurystheus, king\nof Mycenae, sends me hither to fetch these back; and I have come,\nsir stranger, with just grounds in plenty, alike for speech or action.\nAn Argive myself, Argives I come to fetch, taking with me these runaways\nfrom my native city, on whom the doom of death was passed by our laws\nthere; and we have right, since we rule our city independently, to\nratify its sentences. And though they have come as suppliants to the\naltars of numerous others, we have taken our stand on these same arguments,\nand no one has ventured to bring upon himself evils of his own getting.\nBut they have come hither, either because they perceived some folly\nin thee, or, in their perplexity, staking all on one risky throw to\nwin or lose; for surely they do not suppose that thou, if so thou\nhast thy senses still, and only thou, in all the breadth of Hellas\nthey have traversed, wilt pity their foolish troubles. Come now, put\nargument against argument: what will be thy gain, suppose thou admit\nthem to thy land, or let us take them hence? From us these benefits\nare thine to win: this city can secure as friends Argos, with its\nfar-reaching arm, and Eurystheus' might complete; whilst if thou lend\nan ear to their piteous pleading and grow soft, the matter must result\nin trial of arms; for be sure we shall not yield this struggle without\nappealing to the sword. What pretext wilt thou urge? Of what domains\nart thou robbed that thou shouldst take and wage war with the Tirynthian\nArgives? What kind of allies art thou aiding? For whom will they have\nfallen whom thou buriest? Surely thou wilt get an evil name from the\ncitizens, if for the sake of an old man near the grave, a mere shadow\nI may say, and for these children, thou wilt plunge into troublous\nwaters. The best thou canst say is, that thou wilt find in them a\nhope, and nothing more; and yet this falls far short of the present\nneed; for these would be but a poor match for Argives even when fully\narmed and in their prime, if haply that raises thy spirits; moreover,\nthe time 'twixt now and then is long, wherein ye may be blotted out.\nNay, hearken to me; give me naught, but let me take mine own, and\nso gain Mycenae; but forbear to act now, as is your Athenian way,\nand take the weaker side, when it is in thy power to choose the stronger\nas thy friends.\nLEADER Who can decide a cause or ascertain its merits, till from\nboth sides he clearly learn what they would say?\nIOLAUS O king, in thy land I start with this advantage, the right\nto hear and speak in turn, and none, ere that, will drive me hence\nas elsewhere they would. 'Twixt us and him is naught in common, for\nwe no longer have aught to do with Argos since that decree was passed,\nbut we are exiles from our native land; how then can he justly drag\nus back as subjects of Mycenae, seeing that they have banished us?\nFor we are strangers. Or do ye claim that every exile from Argos is\nexiled from the bounds of Hellas? Not from Athens surely; for ne'er\nwill she for fear of Argos drive the children of Heracles from her\nland. Here is no Trachis, not at all; no! nor that Achaean town, whence\nthou, defying justice, but boasting of the might of Argos in the very\nwords thou now art using, didst drive the suppliants from their station\nat the altar. If this shall be, and they thy words approve, why then\nI trow this is no more Athens, the home of freedom. Nay, but I know\nthe temper and nature of these citizens; they would rather die, for\nhonour ranks before mere life with men of worth. Enough of Athens!\nfor excessive praise is apt to breed disgust; and oft ere now have\nmyself felt vexed at praise that knows no bounds. But to thee, as\nruler of this land, fain would show the reason why thou art bound\nto save these children. Pittheus was the son of Pelops; from him sprung\nAethra, and from her Theseus thy sire was born. And now will I trace\nback these children's lineage for thee. Heracles was son of Zeus and\nAlcmena; Alcmena sprang from Pelops' daughter; therefore thy father\nand their father would be the sons of first cousins. Thus then art\nthou to them related, O Demophon, but thy just debt to them beyond\nthe ties of kinship do I now declare to thee; for I assert, in days\ngone by, I was with Theseus on the ship, as their father's squire,\nwhen they went to fetch that girdle fraught with death; yea, and from\nHades' murky dungeons did Heracles bring thy father up; as all Hellas\ndoth attest. Wherefore in return they crave this boon of thee, that\nthey be not surrendered up nor torn by force from the altars of thy\ngods and cast forth from the land. For this were shame on thee, and\nhurtful likewise in thy state, should suppliants, exiles, kith and\nkin of thine, be haled away by force. In pity cast one glance at them.\nI do entreat thee, laying my suppliant bough upon thee, by thy hands\nand beard, slight not the sons of Heracles, now that thou hast them\nin thy power to help. Show thyself their kinsman and their friend;\nbe to them father, brother, lord; for better each and all of these\nthan to fall beneath the Argives' hand.\nLEADER O king, I pity them, hearing their sad lot. Now more than\never do see noble birth o'ercome by fortune; for these, though sprung\nfrom noble sire, are suffering what they ne'er deserved.\nDEMOPHON Three aspects of the circumstance constrain me, Iolaus,\nnot to spurn the guests thou bringest; first and foremost, there is\nZeus, at whose altar thou art seated with these tender children gathered\nround thee; next come ties of kin, and the debt I owe to treat them\nkindly for their father's sake; and last, mine honour, which before\nall I must regard; for if I permit this altar to be violently despoiled\nby stranger hands, men will think the land I inhabit is free no more,\nand that through fear I have surrendered suppliants to Argives, and\nthis comes nigh to make one hang oneself. Would that thou hadst come\nunder a luckier star! yet, as it is, fear not that any man shall tear\nthee and these children from the altar by force. (to COPREUS) Get\nthee to Argos and tell Eurystheus so; yea and more, if he have any\ncharge against these strangers, he shall have justice; but never shalt\nthou drag them hence.\nCOPREUS Not even if I have right upon my side and prove my case?\nDEMOPHON How can it be right to drag the suppliant away by force?\nCOPREUS Well, mine is the disgrace; no harm will come to thee.\nDEMOPHON 'Tis harm to me, if I let them be haled away by thee.\nCOPREUS Banish them thyself, and then will I take them from elsewhere.\nDEMOPHON Nature made thee a fool, to think thou knowest better than\nthe god.\nCOPREUS It seems then evildoers are to find a refuge here.\nDEMOPHON A temple of the gods is an asylum open to the world.\nCOPREUS Maybe they will not take this view in Mycenae.\nDEMOPHON What! am I not lord of this domain?\nCOPREUS So long as thou injure not the Argives, and if wise, thou\nwilt not.\nDEMOPHON Be injured for all I care, provided I sin not against the\ngods.\nCOPREUS I would not have thee come to blows with Argos.\nDEMOPHON I am of like mind in this; but I will not dismiss these\nfrom my protection.\nCOPREUS For all that, I shall take and drag my own away.\nDEMOPHON Why then perhaps thou wilt find a difficulty in returning\nto Argos.\nCOPREUS That shall I soon find out by making the attempt.\nDEMOPHON Touch them and thou shalt rue it, and that without delay.\nLEADER I conjure thee, never dare to strike a herald.\nDEMOPHON Strike I will, unless that herald learn discretion.\nLEADER Depart; and thou, O king, touch him not.\nCOPREUS I go; for 'tis feeble fighting with a single arm. But I will\ncome again, bringing hither a host of Argive troops, spearmen clad\nin bronze; for countless warriors are awaiting my return, and king\nEurystheus in person at their head; anxiously he waits the issue here\non the borders of Alcathous' realm. And when he hears thy haughty\nanswer, he will burst upon thee, and thy citizens, on this land and\nall that grows therein; for all in vain should we possess such hosts\nof picked young troops in Argos, should we forbear to punish thee.\n(COPREUS departs.)\nDEMOPHON Perdition seize thee! I am not afraid of thy Argos. Be very\nsure thou shalt not drag these suppliants hence by force, to my shame;\nfor I hold not this city subject unto Argos, but independently.\nCHORUS (singing) 'Tis time to use our forethought, ere the host\nof Argos approach our frontier, for exceeding fierce are the warriors\nof Mycenae, and in the present case still more than heretofore. For\nall heralds observe this custom, to exaggerate what happened twofold.\nBethink the what a tale he will tell his master of his dreadful treatment,\nhow he came near losing his life altogether.\nIOLAUS Children have no fairer prize than this, the being born of\na good and noble sire, and the power to wed from noble families; but\nwhoso is enslaved by passion and makes a lowborn match, I cannot praise\nfor leaving to his children a legacy of shame, to gratify himself.\nFor noble birth offers a stouter resistance to adversity than base\nparentage; for we, in the last extremity of woe, have found friends\nand kinsmen here, the only champions of these children through all\nthe length and breadth of this Hellenic world. Give, children, give\nto them your hand, and they the same to you; draw near to them. Ah!\nchildren, we have made trial of our friends, and if ever ye see the\npath that leads you back to your native land, and possess your home\nand the honours of your father, count them ever as your friends and\nsaviours, and never lift against their land the foeman's spear, in\nmemory of this, but hold this city first midst those ye love. Yea,\nthey well deserve your warm regard, in that they have shifted from\nour shoulders to their own the enmity of so mighty a land as Argos\nand its people, though they saw we were vagabonds and beggars; still\nthey did not give us up nor drive us forth. So while I live, and after\ndeath,-come when it will,-loudly will I sing thy praise, good friend,\nand will extol thee as I stand at Theseus' side, and cheer his heart,\nas I tell how thou didst give kind welcome and protection to the sons\nof Heracles, and how nobly thou dost preserve thy father's fame through\nthe length of Hellas, and hast not fallen from the high estate to\nwhich thy father brought thee, a lot which few others can boast; for\n'mongst the many wilt thou find one maybe, that is not degenerate\nfrom his sire.\nLEADER OF THE CHORUS This land is ever ready in an honest cause to\naid the helpless. Wherefore ere now it hath endured troubles numberless\nfor friends, and now in this I see a struggle nigh at hand.\nDEMOPHON Thou hast spoken well, and I feel confident their conduct\nwill be such; our kindness will they not forget. Now will I muster\nthe citizens and set them in array, that I may receive Mycenae's host\nwith serried ranks. But first will I send scouts to meet them, lest\nthey fall upon me unawares; for at Argos every man is prompt to answer\nto the call, and I will assemble prophets and ordain a sacrifice.\nBut do thou leave the altar of Zeus and go with the children into\nthe house; for there are those who will care for thee, even though\nI be abroad. Enter then my house, old man.\nIOLAUS I will not leave the altar. Let us sit here still, praying\nfor the city's fair success, and when thou hast made a glorious end\nof this struggle, will we go unto the house; nor are the gods who\nchampion us weaker than the gods of Argos, O king; Hera, wife of Zeus,\nis their leader; Athena ours. And this I say is an omen of success,\nthat we have the stronger deity, for Pallas will not brook defeat.\n(DEMOPHON and his retinue go out.)\nCHORUS (singing, strophe)\nThough loud thy boasts, there be others care no more for thee for\nthat, O stranger from the land of Argos; nor wilt thou scare my soul\nwith swelling words. Not yet be this the fate of mighty Athens, beauteous\ntown! But thou art void of sense, and so is he, who lords it o'er\nArgos, the son of Sthenelus,\n(antistrophe)\nthou that comest to another state, in no wise weaker than Argos,\nand, stranger that thou art, wouldst drag away by force suppliants\nof the gods, wanderers that cling to my land for help, refusing to\nyield to our king, nor yet having any honest plea to urge. How can\nsuch conduct count as honourable, at least in wise men's judgment?\n(epode)\nI am for peace myself; yet I tell thee, wicked king, although thou\ncome unto my city, thou shalt not get so easily what thou expectest.\nThou art not the only man to wield a sword or targe with plates of\nbrass. Nay, thou eager warrior, I warn thee, bring not war's alarms\nagainst our lovely town; restrain thyself. (DEMOPHON re-enters.)\nIOLAUS My son, why, prithee, art thou returned with that anxious\nlook? Hast thou news of the enemy? Are they coming, are they here,\nor what thy tidings? For of a surety yon herald will not play us false.\nNo! sure I am their captain, prosperous heretofore, will come, with\nthoughts exceeding proud against Athens. But Zeus doth punish overweening\npride.\nDEMOPHON The host of Argos is come, and Eurystheus its king; my own\neyes saw him, for the man who thinks he knows good generalship must\nsee the foe not by messengers alone. As yet, however, he hath not\nsent his host into the plain, but, camped upon a rocky brow, is watching-I\nonly tell thee what I think this means-to see by which road to lead\nhis army hither without fighting, and how to take up a safe position\nin this land. However, all my plans are by this time carefully laid;\nthe city is under arms, the victims stand ready to be slain to every\ngod, whose due this is; my seers have filled the town with sacrifices,\nto turn the foe to flight and keep our country safe. All those who\nchant prophetic words have I assembled, and have examined ancient\noracles, both public and secret, as means to save this city. And though\nthe several answers differ in many points, yet in one is the sentiment\nof all clearly the same; they bid me sacrifice to Demeter's daughter\nsome maiden from a noble father sprung. Now I, though in your cause\nI am as zealous as thou seest, yet will not slay my child, nor will\nI compel any of my subjects to do so against his will; for who of\nhis own will doth harbour such an evil thought as to yield with his\nown hands the child he loves? And now thou mayest see angry gatherings,\nwhere some declare, 'tis right to stand by suppliant strangers, while\nothers charge me with folly; but if I do this deed, a civil war is\nthen and there at hand. Do thou then look to this and help to find\na way to save yourselves and this country without causing me to be\nslandered by the citizens. For I am no despot like a barbarian monarch;\nbut provided do what is just, just will my treatment be.\nLEADER OF THE CHORUS Can it be that heaven forbids this city to help\nstrangers, when it hath the will and longing so to do?\nIOLAUS My children, we are even as those mariners, who have escaped\nthe storm's relentless rage, and have the land almost within their\nreach, but after all are driven back from shore by tempests to the\ndeep again. Even so we, just as we reach the shore in seeming safety,\nare being thrust back from this land. Ah me! Why, cruel hope, didst\nthou then cheer my heart, though thou didst not mean to make the boon\ncomplete? The king may well be pardoned, if he will not slay his subjects'\nchildren; and with my treatment here I am content; if indeed 'tis\nheaven's will, I thus should fare, still is my gratitude to thee in\nno wise lost. Children, I know not what to do for you. Whither shall\nwe turn? for what god's altar have we left uncrowned? to what fenced\ncity have we failed to go? Ruin and surrender are our instant lot,\npoor children! If I must die, 'tis naught to me, save that thereby\nI give those foes of mine some cause for joy. But you, children, I\nlament and pity, and that aged mother of your sire, Alcmena. Ah, woe\nis thee for thy long span of life! and woe is me for all my idle toil!\n'Twas after all our destined doom to fall into the hands of our hated\nfoe, and die a death of shame and misery. But lend me thine aid, thou\nknowest how; for all hope of these children's safety has not yet left\nme. Give me up instead of them to the Argives, O king; run no risk,\nbut let me save the children; to love my life becomes me not; let\nit pass. Me will Eurystheus be most glad to take and treat despitefully,\nas I was Heracles' companion; for the man is but a boor; wherefore\nwise men ought to pray to get a wise man for their foe, and not a\nproud senseless fool; for so, even if by fortune flouted, one would\nmeet with much consideration.\nLEADER Old man, blame not this city; for though perhaps a gain to\nus, yet would it be a foul reproach that we betrayed strangers.\nDEMOPHON A generous scheme is thine, but impossible. 'Tis not in\nquest of the yon king comes marching hither; what would Eurystheus\ngain by the death of one so old? Nay, 'tis these children's blood\nhe wants. For there is danger to a foe in the youthful scions of a\nnoble race, whose memory dwells upon their father's wrongs; all this\nEurystheus must foresee. But if thou hast any scheme besides, that\nbetter suits the time, be ready with it, for, since I heard that oracle,\nI am at a loss and full of fear. (MACARIA enters from the temple.)\nMACARIA Sirs, impute not boldness to me, because I venture forth;\nthis shall be my first request, for a woman's fairest crown is this,\nto practise silence and discretion, and abide at home in peace. But\nwhen I heard thy lamentations, Iolaus, I came forth, albeit I was\nnot appointed to take the lead in my family. Still in some sense am\nI fit to do so, for these my brothers are my chiefest care, and I\nfain would ask, as touching myself, whether some new trouble, added\nto the former woes, is gnawing at thy heart.\nIOLAUS My daughter, 'tis nothing new that I should praise thee, as\nI justly may, above all the children of Heracles. Our house seemed\nto be prospering, when back it fell again into a hopeless state; for\nthe king declares the prophets signify that he must order the sacrifice,\nnot of bull or heifer, but of some tender maid of noble lineage, if\nwe and this city are to exist. Herein is our perplexity; the king\nrefuses either to sacrifice his own or any other's child. Wherefore,\nthough he use not terms express, yet doth he hint, that, unless we\nfind some way out of this perplexity, we must seek some other land,\nfor he this country fain would save.\nMACARIA Are these indeed the terms on which our safety depends?\nIOLAUS Yea, on these; if, that is, we are successful otherwise.\nMACARIA No longer then cower before the hated Argive spear; for I,\nof my own free will, or ever they bid me, am ready to die and offer\nmyself as a victim. For what excuse have we, if, while this city deems\nit right to incur great danger on our behalf, we, though we might\nsave ourselves, fly from death, by foisting our trouble on others?\nNo! indeed, 'twere surely most ridiculous to sit and mourn as suppliants\nof the gods, and show ourselves but cowards, children as we are of\nthat illustrious sire. Where among the brave is such conduct seen?\nBetter, I suppose, this city should be taken and I (which Heaven forefend!)\nfall into the hands of the enemy, and then, for all I am my noble\nfather's child, meet an awful doom, and face the Death-god none the\nless. Shall I wander as an exile from this land? Shall I not feel\nshame then, when someone says, as say they will, \"Why are ye come\nhither with suppliant boughs, loving your lives too well? Begone from\nour land! for we will not succour cowards.\" Nay, if these be slain\nand I alone be saved, I have no hope in any wise of being happy, though\nmany ere now have in this hope betrayed their friends, For who will\ncare to wed a lonely maid or make me mother of his children? 'Tis\nbetter I should die than meet such treatment, little as I merit it.\nThis were fitter treatment for some other, one that is not born to\nfame as I am. Conduct me to the scene of death, crown me with garlands,\nand begin the rites, if so it please you; then be victorious o'er\nthe foe, for here I offer my life freely and without constraint, and\nfor my brothers and myself I undertake to die. For I, by loving not\nmy life too well, have found a treasure very fair, a glorious means\nto leave it.\nLEADER Ah, what shall I say on hearing the maid's brave words, she\nthat is ready to die for her brothers? Who can speak more noble words\nor do more noble deeds henceforth for ever?\nIOLAUS Daughter, thou art his own true child, no other man's but\nHeracles', that godlike soul; proud am I of thy words, though I sorrow\nfor thy lot. Yet will I propose a fairer method: 'tis right to summon\nhither all the sisters of this maiden, and then let her, on whom the\nlot shall fall, die for her family; for that thou shouldst die without\nthe lot is not just.\nMACARIA My death shall no chance lot decide; there is no graciousness\nin that; peace! old friend. But if ye accept and will avail you of\nmy readiness, freely do I offer my life for these, and without constraint.\nIOLAUS Ah, this is even nobler than thy former word; that was matchless,\nbut thou dost now surpass thy bravery and noble speech. I cannot bid,\nwill not forbid thy dying, O my daughter! for by thy death thou dost\nthy brothers serve.\nMACARIA A cautious bidding thine! Fear not to take a stain of guilt\nfrom me, only let me die as one whose death is free. Follow me, old\nfriend, for in thy arms I fain would die; stand by and veil my body\nwith my robe, for I will go even to the dreadful doom of sacrifice,\nseeing whose daughter I avow myself.\nIOLAUS I cannot stand by and see thee bleed.\nMACARIA At least do thou beg me this boon of the king, that I may\nbreathe out my life in women's arms instead of men's.\nDEMOPHON It shall be so, unhappy maid; for this were shame to me\nto refuse the honour due, for many reasons: because thou hast a soul\nso brave; because 'tis right; and thou hast shown more courage than\nany of thy sex my eyes have ever seen. Now, if thou hast aught to\nsay to these children or thy aged guide. oh! say the last thou hast\nto say-then go.\nMACARIA Farewell, old friend, farewell and prithee teach these children\nto be like thyself, wise at every point; let them strive no further,\nfor that will suffice them. And seek to save them from death, even\nas thou art anxious to do; thy children are we, thy care it was that\nnurtured us. Thou seest how I yield my bridal bloom to die for them.\nFor you, my brothers gathered here, may you be happy! and may every\nblessing be yours, for the which my blood shall pay the price! Honour\nthis old friend, and her that is within the house, Alcmena, the aged\nmother of my sire, and these strangers too. And if ever heaven for\nyou devise release from trouble and a return to your home, remember\nthe burial due to her that saved you, funeral fair as I deserve; for\nI have not failed, but stood by you, and died to save my race. This\nshall be my pearl of price instead of children, and for the maiden\nlife I leave, if there be really aught beyond the grave-God grant\nthere may not be! For if, e'en there, we who are to die shall find\na life of care, I know not whither one shall turn; for death is held\na sovereign cure for every ill.\nIOLAUS Maiden of heroic soul, transcending all thy race, be sure\nthe fame that thou shalt win from us, in life, in death, shall leave\nthe rest of women far behind; farewell to thee! I dare not say harsh\nwords of her to whom thou art devoted, the goddess-daughter of Demeter.\n(DEMOPHON leads MACARIA away.) Children, I am undone, grief unnerves\nmy limbs; take hold and support me to a seat hard by, when ye have\ndrawn my mantle o'er my face, my sons. For I am grieved at what hath\nhappened, and yet, were it not fulfilled, we could not live; thus\nwere our fate worse, though this is grief enough.\nCHORUS (singing, strophe)\nWithout the will of heaven none is blest, none curst, I do maintain;\nnor doth the same house for ever tread the path of bliss; for one\nkind of fortune follows hard upon another; one man it brings to naught\nfrom his high estate, another though of no account it crowns with\nhappiness. To shun what fate decrees, is no wise permitted; none by\ncunning shall thrust it from him; but he, who vainly would do so,\nshall have unceasing trouble.\n(antistrophe)\nThen fall not prostrate thou, but bear what heaven sends, and set\nlimit to thy soul's grief; for she, poor maid! in dying for her brothers\nand this land, hath won a glorious death, and splendid fame shall\nbe her meed from all mankind; for virtue's path leads through troublous\nways. Worthy of her father, worthy of her noble birth is this she\ndoes. And if thou dost honour the virtuous dead, I share with thee\nthat sentiment. (The SERVANT OF HYLLUS enters.)\nSERVANT OF HYLLUS All hail, ye children! Where is aged Iolaus? where\nthe mother of your 'sire, absent from their place at this altar?\nIOLAUS Here am I, so far as I can be here at all.\nSERVANT Why dost thou lie there? Why that downcast look?\nIOLAUS There is come a sorrow on my house, whereby I suffer.\nSERVANT Arise, lift up thy head.\nIOLAUS I am old, and all my strength is gone.\nSERVANT But I come with tidings of great joy for thee.\nIOLAUS Who art thou? Where have I met thee? I have no remembrance.\nSERVANT I am a vassal of Hyllus; dost not recognize me now?\nIOLAUS Best of friends, art thou come to save us twain from hurt?\nSERVANT Assuredly; and moreover thou art lucky in the present case.\nIOLAUS Alcmena, mother of a noble son, to thee I call! come forth,\nhear this welcome news. For long has anguish caused thee inwardly\nto waste, wondering if those, who now are here, would ever come.\n(ALCMENA enters from the temple in answer to the call.)\nALCMENA What means that shout, that echoes throughout the house?\nHath there come yet a herald from Argos, O Iolaus, and is he treating\nthee with violence? Feeble is any strength of mine; yet thus much\nlet me tell thee, stranger, never, whilst I live, shalt thou drag\nthem hence. Shouldst thou succeed, no more let me be thought the mother\nof that hero. And if thou lay a finger on them, thou wilt struggle\nto thy shame with two aged foes.\nIOLAUS Courage, aged dame, fear not; not from Argos is a herald come,\nwith hostile messages.\nALCMENA Why then didst raise a cry, fear's harbinger?\nIOLAUS I called thee to come to me in front of this temple.\nALCMENA I know not what it means; who is this?\nIOLAUS A messenger who says thy grandson cometh hither.\nALCMENA All hail to thee for these thy tidings! But why is he not\nhere, where is he? if in this land he hath set foot. What hath happened\nto keep him from coming hither with thee, to cheer my heart?\nSERVANT He is posting the army he brought with him, and seeing it\nmarshalled.\nALCMENA Then have I no concern herein.\nIOLAUS Yes, thou hast; though it is my business to inquire.\nSERVANT What then wouldst thou learn of these events?\nIOLAUS About how many allies has he with him?\nSERVANT A numerous force; I cannot otherwise describe the number.\nIOLAUS The leaders of the Athenians know this, I suppose?\nSERVANT They do; already is their left wing set in array.\nIOLAUS Is then the host already armed for battle?\nSERVANT Yea, and already are the victims brought near the ranks.\nIOLAUS About what distance is the Argive host from us?\nSERVANT Near enough for their general to be plainly seen.\nIOLAUS What is he about? marshalling the enemy's line?\nSERVANT So we guessed; we could not hear exactly. But I must go,\nfor I would not that my master should engage the foe without me, if\nI can help it.\nIOLAUS I also will go with thee; for I like thee am minded, so it\nseems, to be there and help my friends.\nSERVANT It least of all becomes thee thus to utter words of folly.\nIOLAUS Far less to shrink from sharing with my friends the stubborn\nfight.\nSERVANT Mere looks can wound no one, if the arm do naught.\nIOLAUS Why, cannot I smite even through their shields?\nSERVANT Smite perhaps, more likely be smitten thyself.\nIOLAUS No foe will dare to meet me face to face.\nSERVANT Friend, the strength, that erst was thine, is thine no more.\nIOLAUS Well, at any rate, I will fight with as many as ever I did.\nSERVANT Small the weight thou canst throw into the balance for thy\nfriends,\nIOLAUS Detain me not, when I have girded myself for action.\nSERVANT The power to act is thine no more, the will maybe is there.\nIOLAUS Stay here I will not, say what else thou wilt.\nSERVANT How shalt thou show thyself before the troops unarmed?\nIOLAUS There be captured arms within this shrine; these will I use,\nand, if I live, restore; and, if I am slain, the god will not demand\nthem of me back. Go thou within, and from its peg take down a suit\nof armour and forthwith bring it to me. To linger thus at home is\ninfamous, while some go fight, and others out of cowardice remain\nbehind. (The SERVANT goes into the temple.)\nCHORUS (singing) Not yet hath time laid low thy spirit, 'tis young\nas ever; but thy body's strength is gone. Why toil to no purpose?\n'Twill do thee hurt and benefit our city little. At thy age thou shouldst\nconfess thy error and let impossibilities alone. Thou canst in no\nway get thy vigour back again.\nALCMENA What means this mad resolve to leave me with my children\nundefended here?\nIOLAUS Men must fight; and thou must look to them.\nALCMENA And what if thou art slain? what safety shall I find?\nIOLAUS Thy son's surviving children will care for thee.\nALCMENA Suppose they meet with some reverse? which Heaven forefend!\nIOLAUS These strangers will not give thee up, fear not.\nALCMENA They are my last and only hope, I have no other.\nIOLAUS Zeus too, I feel sure, cares for thy sufferings.\nALCMENA Ah! of Zeus will I never speak ill, but himself doth know\nwhether he is just to me. (The SERVANT enters from the temple, carrying\nthe arms.)\nSERVANT Lo! here thou seest a full coat of mail; make haste to case\nthyself therein; for the strife is nigh, and bitterly doth Ares loathe\nloiterers; but if thou fear the weight of the armour, go now without\nit, and in the ranks do on this gear; meantime will I carry it.\nIOLAUS Well said! keep the harness ready to my hand, put a spear\nwithin my grasp, and support me on the left side, guiding my steps.\nSERVANT Am I to lead this warrior like a child?\nIOLAUS To save the omen, we must go without stumbling.\nSERVANT Would thy power to act were equal to thy zeal!\nIOLAUS Hasten; I shall feel it grievously, if I am too late for the\nbattle.\nSERVANT 'Tis thou who art slow, not I, though thou fanciest thou\nart doing wonders.\nIOLAUS Dost not mark how swift my steps are hasting?\nSERVANT I mark more seeming than reality in thy haste,\nIOLAUS Thou wilt tell a different tale when thou seest me there.\nSERVANT What shall I see thee do? I wish thee all success, at any\nrate.\nIOLAUS Thou shalt see me smite some foeman through the shield.\nSERVANT Perhaps, if ever we get there. I have my fears of that.\nIOLAUS Ah! would to Heaven that thou, mine arm, e'en as I remember\nthee in thy lusty youth, when with Heracles thou didst sack Sparta,\ncouldst so champion me to-day! how I would put Eurystheus to flight!\nsince he is to craven to wait the onslaught. For prosperity carries\nwith it this error too, a reputation for bravery; for we think the\nprosperous man a master of all knowledge. (IOLAUS and the SERVANT\ndepart.)\nCHORUS (singing, strophe 1)\nO earth, and moon that shines by night, and dazzling radiance of\nthe god, that giveth light to man, bear the tidings to me, shout aloud\nto heaven for joy, and beside our ruler's throne, and in the shrine\nof grey-eyed Athene. For my fatherland and home will I soon decide\nthe issue of the strife with the gleaming sword, because I have taken\nsuppliants under my protection.\n(antistrophe 1)\n'Tis a fearful thing, that a city prosperous as Mycenae is, one famed\nfor martial prowess, should harbour wrath against my land; still,\nmy countrymen, it were a shameful thing in us to yield up suppliant\nstrangers at the bidding of Argos. Zeus is on my side, I am not afraid;\nZeus hath a favour unto me, as is my due; never by me shall gods be\nthought weaker than mortal men.\n(strophe 2)\nO dread goddess, thine the soil whereon we stand, thine this city,\nfor thou art its mother, queen, and saviour; wherefore turn some other\nway the impious king, who leadeth a host from Argos with brandished\nlance against this land; for, such my worth, I little merit exile\nfrom my home.\n(antistrophe 2)\nFor thy worship is aye performed with many a sacrifice, and never\nart thou forgotten as each month draweth to its close, when young\nvoices sing and dancers' music is heard abroad, while on our wind-swept\nhill goes up the cry of joy to the beat of maidens' feet by night.\n(The SERVANT enters.)\nSERVANT Mistress, the message that I bring is very short for thee\nto hear and fair for me, who stand before thee, to announce. O'er\nour foes we are victorious, and trophies are being set up, with panoplies\nupon them, taken from thy enemies.\nALCMENA Best of friends! this day hath wrought thy liberty by reason\nof these tidings. But there still remains one anxious thought thou\ndost not free me from;-a thought of fear;-are those, whose lives I\ncherish, spared to me?\nSERVANT They are, and high their fame through all the army spreads.\nALCMENA The old man Iolaus,-is he yet alive?\nSERVANT Aye, that he is, a hero whom the gods delight to honour.\nALCMENA How so? Did he perform some deed of prowess?\nSERVANT He hath passed from age to youth once more.\nALCMENA Thy tale is passing strange; but first I would that thou\nshouldst tell me how our friends won the day.\nSERVANT One speech of mine puts it all clearly before thee. When\nwe had deployed our troops and marshalled them face to face with one\nanother, Hyllus dismounted from his four-horsed chariot and stood\nmidway betwixt the hosts. Then cried he, \"Captain, who art come from\nArgos, why cannot we leave this land alone? No hurt wilt thou do Mycenae,\nif of one man thou rob her; come! meet me in single combat. and if\nthou slay me, take the children of Heracles away with thee, but, if\nthou fall, leave me to possess my ancestral honours and my home.\"\nThe host cried yes! saying the scheme he offered was a fair one, both\nto rid them of their trouble and satisfy their valour. But that other,\nfeeling no shame before those who heard the challenge or at his own\ncowardice, quailed, general though he was, to come within reach of\nthe stubborn spear, showing himself an abject coward; yet with such\na spirit he came to enslave the children of Heracles. Then did Hyllus\nwithdraw to his own ranks again, and the prophets seeing that no reconciliation\nwould be effected by single combat, began the sacrifice without delay\nand forthwith let flow from a human throat auspicious streams of blood.\nAnd some were mounting chariots, while others couched beneath the\nshelter of their shields, and the king of the Athenians, as a highborn\nchieftain should, would exhort his host-\"Fellow-citizens, the land,\nthat feeds you and that gave you birth, demands to-day the help of\nevery man.\" Likewise Eurystheus besought his allies that they should\nscorn to sully the fame of Argos and Mycenae. Anon the Etrurian trumpet\nsounded loud and clear, and hand to hand they rushed; then think how\nloudly clashed their ringing shields, what din arose of cries and\ngroans confused! At first the onset of the Argive spearmen broke our\nranks; then they in turn gave ground; next, foot to foot and man to\nman, they fought their stubborn fray, many falling the while. And\neither chief cheered on his men, \"Sons of Athens! Ye who till the\nfields of Argos! ward from your land disgrace.\" Do all we could, and\nspite of every effort, scarce could we turn the Argive line in flight.\nWhen lo! old Iolaus sees Hyllus starting from the ranks, whereon he\nlifts his hands to him with a prayer to take him up into his chariot.\nThereon he seized the reins and went hard after the horses of Eurystheus.\nFrom this point onward must I speak from hearsay, though hitherto\nas one whose own eyes saw. For as he was crossing Pallene's hill,\nsacred to the goddess Athene, he caught sight of Eurystheus' chariot,\nand prayed to Hebe and to Zeus, that for one single day he might grow\nyoung again and wreak his vengeance on his foes. Now must thou hear\na wondrous tale: two stars settled on the horses' yokes and threw\nthe chariot into dark shadow, which-at least so say our wiser folk-were\nthy son and Hebe; and from that murky gloom appeared that aged man\nin the form of a youth with strong young arms; then by the rocks of\nSciron the hero Iolaus o'ertakes Eurystheus' chariot. And he bound\nhis hands with gyves, and is bringing that chieftain once so prosperous\nas a trophy hither, whose fortune now doth preach a lesson, clear\nas day, to all the sons of men, that none should envy him, who seems\nto thrive, until they see his death; for fortune's moods last but\na day.\nLEADER OF THE CHORUS O Zeus, who puttest my foes to flight, now may\nI behold the day that frees me from cruel fear!\nALCMENA At last, O Zeus, hast thou turned a favouring eye on my affliction;\nyet do I thank thee for what has happened. And though ere this I did\nnot believe my son was gathered to the gods, now am I convinced thereof.\nMy children, now at last from toil shall ye be free, free from him,\nwhom hideous death awaits, Eurystheus; now shall ye behold your father's\ncity, and set foot in the land of your inheritance, and sacrifice\nto those ancestral gods, from whom ye have been debarred and forced\nto lead in strangers' lands a life of wretched vagrancy. But tell\nme, what sage purpose Iolaus nursed in his heart, that he spared the\nlife of Eurystheus, for to my mind this is no wisdom, to catch a foe\nand wreak no vengeance on him.\nSERVANT 'Twas his regard for thee, that thou might'st see him subject\nto thy hand, and triumph o'er him. Rest assured, 'twas no willing\nprisoner he made, but by strong constraint he bound him, for Eurystheus\nwas loth indeed to come alive into thy presence and pay his penalty.\nFarewell, my aged mistress; I pray thee remember thy first promise\nwhen I was beginning my story; set me free; for, at such a time as\nthis, sincerity becometh noble lips. (The SERVANT departs.)\nCHORUS (singing, strophe 1)\nSweet is the dance to me, whenso the clear-toned flute and lovely\nAphrodite shed grace upon the feast; and a joyful thing too it is,\ntrow, to witness the good luck of friends, who till then ne'er dreamt\nof it. For numerous is the offspring of Fate, that bringeth all to\npass, and of Time, the son of Cronus.\n(antistrophe 1)\nThine is the path of justice, O my city; this must no man wrest from\nthee, thy reverence for the gods, and, whoso denieth it of thee, draws\nnigh to frenzy's goal, with these plain proofs in view. Yea, for the\ngod proclaims it clearly, by cutting short the bad man's pride in\nevery case.\n(strophe 2)\nIn heaven, mother, lives thy son, passed from earth away; that he\nwent down to Hades' halls, his body burnt by the fire's fierce flame,\nis past belief; in golden halls reclined he has to wife Hebe, lovely\nnymph. Thou, O Hymen, hast honoured them, children both of Zeus.\n(antistrophe 2)\nThings for the most part form a single chain; for men say Athene\nused to champion their father, and now the citizens of that goddess\nhave saved his children, and checked the insolence of him whose heart\npreferred violence to justice. God save me from such arrogance, such\ngreed of soul! (A MESSENGER enters. He is followed by guards who\nbring in EURYSTHEUS bound.)\nMESSENGER Mistress, though thine eyes see him, yet will I announce\nwe have brought Eurystheus hither for thy pleasure, an unexpected\nsight, for him no less a chance he ne'er foresaw; for little he thought\nof ever falling into thy hands, what time he marched from Mycenae\nwith his toil-worn warriors, to sack Athens, thinking himself far\nabove fortune. But a power divine hath reversed our destinies, changing\ntheir position. Now Hyllus and brave Iolaus I left raising an image\nto Zeus, who routs the foe, for their triumphant victory, whilst they\nbid me bring this prisoner to thee, wishing to gladden thy heart;\nfor 'tis the sweetest sight to see a foe fall on evil days after prosperity.\nALCMENA Art come, thou hateful wretch? Hath justice caught thee then\nat last? First, turn thy head this way to me, and endure to look thy\nenemies in the face, for thou art no more the ruler, but the slave.\nArt thou the man-for this I fain would learn-who didst presume to\nheap thy insults on my son, who now is where he is, thou miscreant?\nWhat outrage didst thou abstain from putting upon him? Thou that didst\nmake him go down alive even to Hades, and wouldst send him with an\norder to slay hydras and lions? Thy other evil schemes I mention not,\nfor to tell them were a tedious task for me. Nor did it content thee\nto venture thus far only; no! but from all Hellas wouldst thou drive\nme and my children, heaven's suppliants though we were, grey-beards\nsome of us, and some still tender babes. But here hast thou found\nmen and a free city, that feared not thee. Die in torment must thou,\nand e'en so wilt thou gain in every way, for one death is not thy\ndue, after all the sorrow thou hast caused.\nMESSENGER Thou mayst not slay him.\nALCMENA Then have we taken him captive in vain. But say, what law\nforbids his death?\nMESSENGER It is not the wiff of the rulers of this land.\nALCMENA Why, what is this? Do they not approve of slaying enemies?\nMESSENGER Not such as they have taken alive in battle.\nALCMENA Did Hyllus uphold this decision?\nMESSENGER He, I suppose, ought to have disobeyed the law of the land.\nALCMENA The prisoner's life ought not to have been spared a moment.\nMESSENGER It was then that he was wronged, by not being slain at\nfirst.\nALCMENA Why, then, he is still in time to pay his penalty.\nMESSENGER There is no one who will slay him now.\nALCMENA I will; and yet I count myself someone.\nMESSENGER Well, thou wilt incur great blame, if thou do this deed.\nALCMENA I love this city well; that cannot be gainsaid. But since\nthis man hath fallen into my power, no mortal hand shall wrest him\nfrom me. Wherefore let who will, call me the woman bold, with thoughts\ntoo high for her sex; yet shall this deed be brought to pass by me.\nLEADER OF THE CHORUS Lady, full well I understand thou hast a dire\nquarrel with this man, and 'tis pardonable.\nEURYSTHEUS Woman, be sure I will not flatter thee nor say aught to\nsave my life, that can give any occasion for a charge of cowardice.\nIt was not of my own free will I took this quarrel up; I am aware\nthat I was born thy cousin, and kinsman to Heracles, thy son; but\nwhether I would or no, Hera, by her power divine, caused me to be\nafflicted thus. Still, when undertook to be his foe, and when I knew\nI had to enter on this struggle, I set myself to devise trouble in\nplenty, and oft from time to time my midnight communing bore fruit,\nscheming how to push aside and slay my foes, and for the future divorce\nmyself from fear; for I knew that son of thine was no mere cipher,\nbut a man indeed; yea, for, though he was my foe, I will speak well\nof him, because he was a man of worth. Now, after he was taken hence,\nwas I not forced, by reason of these children's hatred, and because\nI was conscious of an hereditary feud, to leave no stone unturned\nby slaying, banishing, and plotting against them? So long as I did\nso, my safety was assured. Suppose thyself hadst had my lot, wouldst\nnot thou have set to harassing the lion's angry whelps, instead of\nletting them dwell at Argos undisturbed? Thou wilt not persuade us\notherwise. Now therefore, since they did not slay me then, when I\nwas prepared to die, by the laws of Hellas my death becomes a curse\non him who slays me now. The city wisely let me go, in that she regarded\nthe gods more than her hatred of me. Thou hast had my answer to thy\nwords; henceforth must I be called avenging spirit and noble hero\ntoo. 'Tis even thus with me; to die have I no wish, but, if I leave\nmy life, I shall in no way be grieved.\nLEADER Alcmena, fain I would advise thee somewhat; let this man go,\nfor 'tis the city's will.\nALCMENA Suppose he die, and yet I obey the city?\nLEADER That would be best of all; but how can this be?\nALCMENA I will teach thee easily. I will slay him and then give up\nhis corpse to those of his friends who come for it, for, as regards\nhis body, I will not disobey the state; but by his death shall he\npay me the penalty.\nEURYSTHEUS Slay me, I do not ask thee for mercy; yet since this city\nlet me go and shrunk from slaying me, I will reward it with an old\noracle of Loxias, which in time will benefit them more than doth appear.\nBury my body after death in its destined grave in front of the shrine\nof the virgin goddess at Pallene. And I will be thy friend and guardian\nof thy city for ever, where I lie buried in a foreign soil, but a\nbitter foe to these children's descendants, whensoe'er with gathered\nhost they come against this land, traitors to your kindness now; such\nare the strangers ye have championed. Why then came I hither, if I\nknew all this, instead of regarding the god's oracle? Because I thought,\nthat Hera was mightier far than any oracle, and would not betray me.\nWaste no drink-offering on my tomb, nor spill the victim's blood;\nfor I will requite them for my treatment here with a journey they\nshall rue; and ye shall have double gain from me, for I will help\nyou and harm them by my death.\nALCMENA Why, why delay to kill this man, after hearing this, since\nthis is needed to secure the safety of your city and your children?\nHimself points out the safest road. Though the man is now our foe,\nyet after death is he our gain. Away with him, ye servants, and cast\nhim to the dogs when ye have slain him. Think not thou shalt live\nto cast me forth from my native land again. (The guards lead out\nEURYSTHEUS.)\nCHORUS (chanting) I agree. Lead on, servants. Our conduct shall\nbring no stain of guilt upon our rulers.\nTHE END","title":"The Heracleidae, By Euripides","type":"page"}