Page:The Mythology of the Aryan Nations.djvu/437

Rh CHAP.

but one of many Achaian chieftains, although he is second only to Achilleus ; and thus he goes with Menelaos to Ilion to demand the surrender of Helen, before the strife is formerly begun. In the long contest which follows he is renowned chiefly for his wisdom and his eloquence. In the council none has greater power ; and his cool unimpassioned sobriety stands out in singular contrast with the fierce impetuosity of Achilleus. He can also serve, if need be, as a spy, and in ambush none are more formidable. With him, according to one tradition, originated that device of the wooden horse which simply reproduces the Argo on dry land. As the ship bears the confederated Achaians who contrive to win a welcome from the Kolchian king, so the wooden horse carries all the bravest of the Argives on their errand of death to the Trojans and of rescue to Helen, whose wealth is the Golden Fleece.

With the fall of Ilion Odysseus at once appears in another aspect. Odysseus ,, . . ^ , the Wan- He IS now the man who longs to see his wife, who cannot tarry derer. where he is, and who must go on his way homewards in spite of all that may oppose him or seek to weaken the memory of her beauty and her love. On this thread the poet of the Odyssey has strung together the series of adventures, most of which we have already sufficiently examined in the myths under which each naturally falls. These adventures are interwoven with wonderful skill ; but they may each be traced to some simple phrase denoting originally the phenomena of the sun's daily or yearly course through the heaven. Among the most remarkable features of the story are the changes in the companions of Odysseus. He sets out from Ilion with a gallant fleet and a goodly company : he lands in Ithaka from a beautiful bark with a noble crew : but of those who had left Troy with him not one remained — a vivid image of the sun setting among clouds, but the clouds are not the same as those which surrounded him at his birth. These must vanish away and die continually, and a stock of stories to account for each disaster was the inevitable result The means by which the misfortunes were brought about would also be readily suggested by the daily appearances of the sky. Of all the clouds which are seen in the heavens the delicate vapours which float like islets through the blue seas of air would be the friends of the sun; the black clouds which rudely thrust these aside, or blot them out of sight, would be the enemies who devour his men. The same phenomena would suggest their features and their raiment, the rough shaggy locks and uncouth faces of the beings who represent the dark vapours, the pure white robes and heavenly countenances of the maidens who dwell in the fair Phaiakian land. Thus the enemies