THE RAPE OF HELEN 



Ye Nyniphs of Troy, children of the river Xanthus," 

 who oft-times leave on your father's sands the snoods 

 that bind your tresses and the sacred toys of your 

 hands, and array you for the dance on Ida,^ come 

 hither, leaving the sounding river, and declare to 

 me the counsel of the herdsman judge *" : say whence 

 from the hills he came, sailing the unaccustomed 

 deep, albeit ignorant of the business of the sea ; and 

 what was the occasion of the ships that were the 

 spring of woe, that a cowherd should stir heaven 

 and earth together ; and what was the primeval 

 begimiing of the feud, that herdsmen should deal 

 judgement to immortals : what was the suit : whence 

 heard he the name of the Argive nymph ^ ? For ye 

 came yourselves and beheld, beneath the three- 

 peaked cliff of Idaean Phalacra,* Paris sitting on 

 his shepherd seat and the queen of the Graces, even 

 Aphrodite, glorj'ing. So among the high-peaked 

 hills of the Haemonians/ the marriage song of 

 Peleus was being sung while, at the bidding of 

 Zeus, GanjTnede " poured the wine. And all the 

 race of the gods hasted to do honour to the white- 



' Paris. <* Helen. 



' Peak of Ida, cf. Lye. 24. -'■ Thessalians. 



* Son of Tros, for his beauty carried away and made 

 cup-bearer to Zeus (Horn. 11. xx. 232). 



543 



