Page:Four Plays of Aeschylus (1908) Morshead.djvu/205

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Unveil, say forth to us the tale entire,

Under what imputation Zeus laid hands

On thee, to rack thee thus with shameful pangs?

Tell us—unless the telling pain thee—all!

Grievous alike are these things for my tongue,

Grievous for silence—rueful everyway.

Know that, when first the gods began their strife,

And heaven was all astir with mutual feud—

Some willing to fling Cronos from his throne,

And set, forsooth, their Zeus on high as king,

And other some in contrariety

Striving to bar him from heaven's throne for aye—

Thereon I sought to counsel for the best

The Titan brood of Ouranos and Earth;

Yet I prevailed not, for they held in scorn

My glozing wiles, and, in their hardy pride,

Deemed that sans effort they could grasp the sway.

But, for my sake, my mother Themis oft,

And Earth, one symbol of names manifold,

Had held me warned, how in futurity

It stood ordained that not by force or power,

But by some wile, the victors must prevail.

In such wise I interpreted; but they

Deigned not to cast their heed thereon at all.

Then, of things possible, I deemed it best,

Joining my mother's wisdom to mine own,

To range myself with Zeus, two wills in one.

Thus, by device of mine, the murky depth

Of Tartarus enfoldeth Cronos old