Page:The Iliad and Odyssey of Homer (IA iliadodysseyofho02home).pdf/166

158 But still Ulysses in the hall remain'd, Where, godlike King, Alcinoüs at his side Sat, and Areta; the attendants clear'd Meantime the board, and thus the Queen white-arm'd, (Marking the vest and mantle, which he wore And which her maidens and herself had made) In accents wing'd with eager haste began. Stranger! the first enquiry shall be mine; Who art, and whence? From whom receiv'dst thou these? Saidst not—I came a wand'rer o'er the Deep? To whom Ulysses, ever-wise, replied. Oh Queen! the task were difficult to unfold In all its length the story of my woes, For I have num'rous from the Gods receiv'd; But I will answer thee as best I may. There is a certain isle, Ogygia, placed Far distant in the Deep; there dwells, by man Alike unvisited, and by the Gods, Calypso, beauteous nymph, but deeply skill'd In artifice, and terrible in pow'r, Daughter of Atlas. Me alone my fate Her miserable inmate made, when Jove Had riv'n asunder with his candent bolt My bark in the mid-sea. There perish'd all The valiant partners of my toils, and I My vessel's keel embracing day and night With folded arms, nine days was borne along. But on the tenth dark night, as pleas'd the Gods,