Page:The Iliad and Odyssey of Homer (IA iliadodysseyofho02home).pdf/280

272 Of Pytho into pleasant Panopeus. Next, suff'ring grievous torments, I beheld Tantalus; in a pool he stood, his chin Wash'd by the wave; thirst-parch'd he seem'd, but found Nought to assuage his thirst; for when he bow'd His hoary head, ardent to quaff, the flood Vanish'd absorb'd, and, at his feet, adust The soil appear'd, dried, instant, by the Gods. Tall trees, fruit-laden, with inflected heads Stoop'd to him, pomegranates, apples bright, The luscious fig, and unctuous olive smooth; Which when with sudden grasp he would have seized, Winds hurl'd them high into the dusky clouds. There, too, the hard-task'd Sisyphus I saw, Thrusting before him, strenuous, a vast rock. With hands and feet struggling, he shoved the stone Up to a hill-top; but the steep well-nigh Vanquish'd, by some great force repulsed, the mass Rush'd again, obstinate, down to the plain. Again, stretch'd prone, severe he toiled, the sweat Bathed all his weary limbs, and his head reek'd. The might of Hercules I, next, survey'd; His semblance; for himself their banquet shares