Page:Tragedies of Seneca (1907) Miller.djvu/447

Rh How deep and real her fear; for her, indeed, Shall wingéd Cupid, false and fickle god, Abandon and betray. Though face and form Be passing fair, though beauty vaunt herself, And boast her power, still are her triumphs brief, Her joys a passing dream. Nay, Juno's self, Though queen of heaven, endured such grief as thine, When he, her lord, and father of the gods, Stole from her side to seek in mortal forms The love of mortal maids. Now, in his need, He dons the snowy plumage of a swan; Now hornéd seems, like a Sidonian bull; And now a glorious, golden shower he falls, And rests within the arms of Danaë. Nor yet is Juno's sum of woe complete: The sons of Leda glitter in the sky In starry splendor; Bacchus proudly stands Beside his father on Olympus' height; Divine Alcides hath to Hebe's charms Attained, and fears stern Juno's wrath no more. Her very son-in-law hath he become Whom once she hated most. Yet in her heart Deep down she pressed her grief, and wisely won, By mild compliance to his wayward will, Her husband's love again. And now the queen, Secure at last from rivalry, holds sway Alone, within the Thunderer's heart. No more, By mortal beauty smitten, does he leave His royal chambers in the vaulted sky. Thou, too, on earth, another Juno art, The wife and sister of our mighty lord. Then be thou wise as she, make show of love, And hide thy crushing sorrows with a smile. Octavia: The savage seas shall sooner mate with stars, And fire with water, heav'n with gloomy hell, Glad light with shades, and day with dewy night, Than shall my soul in amity consort With his black heart, most foul and impious: