Part 14

"Welcome joy, and feast, Midnight shout and revelry, Tipsy dance and jollity. Braid your locks with rosy twine, Dropping odours, dropping wine, Rigour now is gone to bed, And Advice with scrupulous head: Strict age and sour severity, With their grave saws, in slumber lie. We, that are of purer fire, Imitate the starry quire, Who, in their nightly watchful spheres, Lead in swift round the months and years. * * * * * * What hath night to do with sleep? Night hath better sweets to prove; Venus now wakes, and wakens love. {161} Come, let us our rites begin; 'Tis only day-light that makes sin, Which these dim shades will ne'er report. Come, knot hands, and beat the ground In a light fantastic round."

MILTON.

Momus, his companion, is the god of joy and pleasantry, and was the buffoon and satirist of Olympus. He wears as head dress, a cap adorned with small bells, a mask in one hand, and on the other a bauble, the symbol of folly. He was constantly engaged in mocking the Gods, and whatever they did was freely turned into ridicule. He laughed at Minerva, who had made a house, because she had not formed it moveable, that the annoyance of a bad neighbourhood might be avoided. He sneered at Neptune's bull, because the eyes were not placed near enough to the horn, to render his blows surer. He irritated Vulcan, by observing that if he wished to make man perfect, he should have placed a window at his heart; and when he found the beauty of Venus was too perfect to allow of any truth to be mixed with his bitterness, he declared that the noise made by the goddess in walking was far too loud to be agreeable, and detracted from her beauty. At last these illiberal reflections were the cause of his being turned out of Olympus.

Momus has been sung many times by the choice spirits whom he inspired, as well as by the dissipated youth of the city, and occupies in poetry, a rank more elevated than that of Comus. He was greatly honoured during the more dissipated times of Rome, and it was the custom to pour libations to him, before commencing a nocturnal revel.

* * * * *

HYMEN.

This child of Venus and Bacchus presided over marriages, and has the appearance of a beautiful youth, holding a torch in his hand, and in the other a purple garment, with his head ornamented by a crown of roses.

"Till Hymen brought his love-delighted hour. There dwelt no joy in Eden's rosy bower! In vain the viewless seraph lingering there, At starry midnight charmed the silent air; In vain the wild bird carolled on the steep To hail the sun, slow wheeling from the deep; {162} In vain, to soothe the solitary shade, Aerial notes in mingling pleasure played; The Summer wind that shook the spangled trees, The whispering wave, the murmuring of the breeze; Still slowly passed the melancholy day, And still the stranger wist not where to stray. The world was sad; the garden was a wild! And man, the hermit, sighed,--till woman smiled!"

CAMPBELL.

According to the more received opinions of others, Hymenaeus was a young Athenian of extraordinary beauty, but of low origin. Becoming enamoured of one of the richest and noblest of his countrywomen, he worshipped her at a distance, and followed her, though respectfully, wherever she went: and, on one occasion, joined the nations of Athens in a religious procession, disguising his sex by women's clothes. When they reached Eleusis, a great part of the procession were seized by a band of pirates, who suddenly appeared amongst them: Hymenaeus shared the captivity of his mistress, and encouraging the captives, they slew their ravishers while they slept. Immediately after this, Hymenaeus repaired to Athens, and promised to deliver them if he were allowed to marry the one he might choose from amongst them.

The Athenians consented; and the lover received so much happiness in the marriage state, that festivals were instituted in his honour, and he was solemnly invoked at their nuptials.

"Hail, wedded love, mysterious law, true source Of human offspring, sole propriety, In paradise of all things common else! By thee adulterous lust was driven from men Among the bestial herds to range; by thee Founded in reason, loyal, just, and pure, Relations dear, and all the charities Of father, son, and brother, first were known, Far be it that I should write thee sin or blame, Or think thee unbefitting holiest place; Perpetual fountain of domestic sweets, Whose bed is undefiled, and chaste pronounced, Present, or past, as saints and patriarchs used. Here love his golden shafts employs, here lights His constant lamp, and waves his purple wings, Reigns here and revels, not in the bought smile Of harlots, loveless, joyless, unendeared, Casual fruition; nor in court amours, Mixed dance or wanton mask, or midnight ball, Or serenade, which the starved lover sings To his proud fair, best quitted with disdain."

MILTON

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It was supposed that he always attended at nuptials; if not, matrimonial connections were fatal, and ended unhappily, and therefore people ran about calling aloud, Hymen! Hymen!

"God of the torch, whose soul-illuming flame Beams brightest radiance o'er the human heart, Of many a woe the cure, Of many a joy the source.

Friend to each better feeling of the soul, I sing to thee, for many a joy is thine, And many a virtue comes To join thy happy train.

Parent of every bliss, the busy hand Of Fancy, oft will paint in brightest hues How calm, how clear thy torch Illumes the wintry hour.

We'll paint the well-trimmed fire, the frugal meal, Prepared with good solicitude to please, The ruddy children round, Climbing the father's knee.

And oft will fancy rise above the lot Of honest poverty, and dream how man Nor rich, nor poor, enjoys His best and happiest state.

When toil no longer irksome, and restrained By hard necessity, but comes to please, To vary the still hour Of tranquil happiness,

Lured by the splendour of thy sacred torch, The beacon light of bliss, young Love draws near, And leads his willing slaves To wear thy flowery chain."

SOUTHEY.

"Hymen, late, his love-knots selling, Called at many a maiden's dwelling; None could doubt, who saw, or knew them, Hymen's call was welcome to them. 'Who'll buy my love-knots? Who'll buy my love knots?' Soon as that sweet cry resounded, How his baskets were surrounded!

Maids, who now first dreamt of trying Those gay knots of Hymen's tying; Dames, who long had sat to watch him Passing by, but ne'er could catch him, 'Who'll buy my love-knots? Who'll buy my love-knots?' All at that sweet cry assembled; Some laughed, some blushed, and others trembled.

{164} 'Here are knots,' said Hymen, taking Some loose flowers of Love's own making; 'Here are good ones, you may trust 'em,' (These, of course, found ready custom,) 'Come buy my love-knots, Come buy my love-knots! Some are labelled-knots to tie men, Love, the maker--Bought of Hymen.'

Scarce their bargains were completed, When the nymphs all cried, 'We're cheated; 'See these flowers, they're drooping sadly, This gold-knot, too, ties but badly'-- 'Who'll buy my love-knots, Who'll buy my love-knots!' Even this tie, with Love's name round it, All a sham, he never bound it!

Love, who saw the whole proceeding, Would have laughed, but for good breeding; While old Hymen, who was used to, Cries like that these dames gave loose to, 'Take back our love-knots, Take back our love-knots!' Coolly said, 'There's no returning Wares on Hymen's hands--Good morning!'"

MOORE.

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PLUTUS

"All bountiful, who roams Earth, and the expanded surface of the sea; And him that meets him on his way, whose hands He grasps, him gifts he with abundant gold, And large felicity."

HESIOD.

Plutus is the god of Riches, and as the minister of the deity of the dead, inhabits the court of Pluto, thereby indicating that the precious metals are in the bowels of the earth. He was brought up by the goddess of peace, and the Greeks spoke of him as a fickle divinity, because represented as blind, he spreads by chance in his rapid course, the gold, silver, and precious stones, which escape from a box he holds in his hands; as lame, because he came slow and gradually; and with wings, to intimate that he flew away with greater velocity than he approached mankind.

Fortuna was the goddess of Fortune, and from her hands were derived riches and poverty, pleasures and misfortunes, blessings and pains.

Governed by Destiny, she guides by Occasion; and before her marches Necessity, the inflexible goddess. {165}

In Boeotia she had a statue, represented as holding Plutus in her arms, to intimate that fortune is the source whence wealth and honours flow. She is blind-folded, and her hand rests on a wheel, to intimate her inconstancy.

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HARPOCRATES.

Harpocrates, the son of Isis and Osiris, is the god of Silence. He is represented, in his statues as young, but with a countenance calm and severe, and on his brow a mitre, divided into two equal portions. His finger is placed upon his lip, to intimate the silence he maintains, and hence, all modern works of art adopt the same sign, when they wish to represent the quality over which Harpocrates is supposed to preside.

The Romans placed his statue at the entrance of their temples, to intimate that the mysteries of religion should never be revealed to the people.

"There is a lake that to the North Of Memphis, stretches grandly forth, Upon whose silent shore the dead Have a proud city of their own, With shrines and pyramids o'erspread-- Where many an ancient, kingly head Slumbers, immortalized in stone; And where, through marble grots beneath, The lifeless, ranged like sacred things, Nor wanting aught of life, but breath, Lie in their painted loveliness, {166} And in each new successive race, That visit their dim haunts below, Look with the same unwithering face, They wore three thousand years ago. There Silence, thoughtful god, who loves The neighbourhood of death, in groves Of Asphodel lies hid, and weaves His hushing spell among the leaves-- Nor ever noise disturbs the air, Save the low, humming, mournful sound Of priests, within their shrines at prayer, For the fresh dead, entombed around."

MOORE.

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THEMIS, ASTRAEA.

Themis, daughter of heaven and of earth, was the goddess of Justice, She wears a bandage over her eyes, and holds in her hands a sword, scales, and the mirror of truth. Her temple is always open.

Astraea, with Law and Peace, are her children, the former of whom was worshipped as Justice on the earth during the golden age; but the wickedness of mankind drove her from the world, during the succeeding periods of brass and iron, and she was placed among the constellations of the Zodiac, under the name of Virgo. She is represented as a maiden, with a stern but majestic countenance, holding a pair of scales in one hand, and a sword in the other.

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DEMI-GODS.

The demi-gods are those, who, sprung from the union of a mortal with a divinity, have taken their place among the Immortals; and "Fabulous History" is the name given to the recital of their deeds.

CASTOR AND POLLUX.

From the love of Jupiter for Leda, wife of Tyndarus, king of Sparta, sprang these twin-brothers. Under the form of a swan, pursued by Venus: in the shape of an eagle, the God sought refuge in Leda's arms, who in due time produced two eggs, from one of which came Pollux and Helena, and from the other, Castor and Clytemnestra.

Scarcely had Pollux emerged from childhood, when, being on an expedition with the Argonauts, they stopped in the domains of Amycus, (famous for his skill in the management of the cestus,) who challenged all strangers seeking his dominions to a trial of strength. Pollux accepted his challenge, and surpassed him in skill, on which Amycus attempting to conquer by fraud, Pollux slew him on the spot; and became the patron of athletic exercises.

Castor was skilful in the art of guiding chariots, and subduing the most fiery coursers. These brothers fought Theseus for outraging their sister Helena; they destroyed the pirates who infested {168} Hellespont and the neighbouring seas, and from this have always been considered as gods favourable to sailors. During the Argonautic expedition, in which they had accompanied Jason, when a violent storm was raging, a couple of names were seen playing over their heads, and immediately the tempest was appeased, and the sea became calm.

They were invited to a marriage feast, in which Lynceus and Idas were to be wedded to Phoebe and Talaria the daughters of Leucippus, who was brother to Tyndarus. Becoming enamoured of the two women whose nuptials they had met to celebrate, they resolved to carry them off. This violence provoked the bridegrooms: a combat ensued, in which Castor killed Lynceus, and was slain in return by Idas--Pollux revenged the death of his brother, by slaying Idas, but was unable after this to support life, so devotedly was he attached to his brother: and implored Jupiter either to restore him to life, or that he might be deprived himself of his immortality. His prayers were granted, and the two brothers passed in turn six months in the infernal regions, and six months on earth. This fraternal affection Jupiter rewarded by turning the two brothers into constellations, under the name of Gemini.

Sparta, celebrated in honour of them, a fete called Dioscuria, which was observed with jovial festivity: and in which free use was made of the gifts of Bacchus, accompanied with sports, in which wrestling matches always formed an important part.

* * * * *

JASON.

This celebrated hero was the son of Alcemede, by Aeson; the education of the youthful Jason, whose right of succession to the throne of Iolchos had been wrested from him by Pelias, was entrusted to the care of the centaur Chiron, and he was removed from the presence of the usurper of the kingdom of Iolchos, because the latter had been informed by an oracle that one of the descendants of Aeolus, (from whom Jason had come) would dethrone him. After he had distinguished himself by the most rapid success in every branch of science, Jason left the country, and by the advice of his preceptor, went to consult the oracle. He was ordered to {169} go to Iolchos, his native country, covered with the spoils of a leopard, and dressed in the garments of a Magnesian. In his journey he was stopped by the inundation of a river, over which, however, he was carried by Juno, in the character of an old woman. In crossing the stream, he lost one of his sandals, and on his arrival at Iolchos, the singularity of his dress, and the fairness of his complexion, attracted the notice of the people, and drew a crowd round him in the market place. Pelias came to see him with the others, and, as he had been warned by the oracle, to beware of a man who should appear at Iolchos with one foot bare, and the other shod, the appearance of Jason, who as we have seen, had lost one of his sandals, alarmed him, and his terrors were soon after augmented, as Jason, accompanied by his friends repaired to the palace of Pelias, and demanded the kingdom of which he had been unjustly deprived. The boldness of Jason intimidated Pelias; he was unwilling to abdicate the crown, yet he feared the resentment of his adversary.

As Jason was young and desirous of glory, Pelias reminded him that their common relation, Phryxus, had been inhumanly murdered by Aeetes, king of Colchis, in order to obtain possession of the golden fleece which belonged to the murdered man; observing, that, the deed merited punishment, and was one which would produce a crown of glory to him who should inflict it; adding, that if Jason, were to undertake it, he would resign his own crown and kingdom to him, immediately on his return. Burning with the desire of {170} military fame, Jason readily undertook an expedition which seemed to promise so much glory. The expedition was bruited about all Greece, and the young and ardent of the nation were called upon to join him in the glory and the danger.

They set sail in a ship called Argo and after a series of adventures arrived at Colchis. Alarmed at an invasion which appeared so formidable, Aeetes promised to restore the golden fleece for the possession of which he had slain Phryxus, provided the invaders consented to the conditions he should propose, and which were as follows: Jason was to tame bulls whose breath were fierce flames, with feet and horns of brass, and to plough with them, when subdued, a field sacred to Mars. He was then to sow in the ground the teeth of a serpent, from which armed men would spring up, whose rage would be directed against him who should be daring enough to plough the field; and as a conclusion to his arduous tasks, he was to kill a frightful dragon which remained ever on the watch at the tree where the golden fleece was suspended. All were in fear for the fate of the Argonauts, but Juno watched over their safety, and extricated them from their difficulties. Medea, the king's daughter, fell in love with Jason, and in an interview with her lover in the temple of Hecate, in which they swore a mutual fidelity, and bound themselves by the most solemn oaths, she pledged herself to deliver her lover from all his dangers. Her knowledge of herbs, enchantments and incantations, was uncommon, and he received from her whatever instruments and herbs could protect him against the coming dangers.

"She then retires to Hecate's shrine, that stood Far in the covert of a shady wood: She finds the fury of her flames assauged, But, seeing Jason there, again they raged. Blushes and paleness did by turns invade Her tender cheeks, and secret grief betrayed; As fire, that sleeping under ashes lies, Fresh blown and roused, does up in blazes rise, New kindled by her lover's sparkling eyes, So flamed the virgin's breast. For chance, that day, had with uncommon grace;, Adorned the lovely youth, and thro' his face Displayed an air so pleasing, as might charm A goddess, and a vestal's bosom warm. Her ravished eyes survey him o'er and o'er, As some gay wonder never seen before; Transported to the skies she seems to be And thinks she gazes on a deity, {171} But when he spoke and pressed her trembling hand, And did with tender words her heart demand, With vows and oaths to make her soon his bride, She wept a flood of tears, and thus replied. 'I see my error, yet to ruin move, Nor owe my fate to ignorance, but love: Your life I'll guard, and only crave of you To swear once more--and to your oath be true.' He swears by Hecate, he would all fulfil, And by her grandfather's prophetic skill By everything that doubting love could press, His present danger and desired success. She credits him, and kindly does produce Enchanted herbs, and teaches him their use, Their mystic names, and virtues he admires. And with his booty joyfully retires."

OVID.

He made his appearance in the field of Mars, he tamed the fury of the oxen, he ploughed the earth, and he sowed the teeth of the dragon. Immediately a band of armed men arose and rushed towards Jason: nothing daunted, the hero threw a stone amongst them, and they fell one upon the other till they were entirely destroyed. He lulled to sleep the watchfulness of the dragon, by the power of herbs, and grasped in triumph the golden fleece which was the the object of his expedition.

"Impatient for the wonders of the day, Aurora drives the loitering stars away. Now Mars's mount the pressing people fill, The crowd below, the nobles crown the hill: The king himself, high throned above the rest, With ivory sceptre, and in purple drest. Forthwith the brass hoofed bulls are set at large, Whose furious nostrils sulphurous flames discharge, The blasted herbage by their breath expires, As forges rumble with excessive fires, And furnaces with fiercer fury glow, When water in the panting mass ye throw, With such a noise from their convulsive breast, Through bellowing throats the struggling vapour pressed. Yet Jason marches up without concern, While on the adventurous youth the monsters turn Their glaring eyes, and eager to engage, Brandish their steel-tipt horns in threatening rage: With brazen hoofs they beat the ground, and choke The ambient air, with clouds of dust and smoke. Each gazing Grecian for his champion shakes, While bold advances he securely makes Through singeing blasts: such wonders magic art Can work, when love conspires and plays his part. The passive savages like statues stand, While he their dewlap strokes with soothing hand; {172} To unknown yokes their brawny necks they yield, And like tame oxen, plough the wondering field. The Colchians state, the Grecians shout, and raise Their champion's courage with inspiring praise. Emboldened now, in fresh attempts he goes, With serpent's teeth the fertile furrows sows; The glebe, fermenting with enchanted juice, Makes the snakes' teeth a human crop produce, And from the labouring earth, no single birth But a whole troop of lusty youths rush forth, And what's more strange, with martial fury warmed, And for encounter all completely armed; In rank and file, as they were sowed, they stand Impatient for the signal of command, No foe, but the Aemonian youth appears, As there they level their steep pointed spears. Wonders ensue, among his gazing foes The fragment of a massy rock he throws, This charm in civil war engaged them all, By mutual wounds these earth-born brothers fall. One labour more remains, and, though the last, In danger far surmounting all the past; That enterprize by fate in store was kept To make the dragon sleep, that never slept, Whose crest shoots dreadful lustre; from his jaws A triple tier of forked stings he draws, With fangs and wings of a prodigious size; Such was the guardian of the golden prize. Yet him besprinkled with Lethean dew The fair enchantress into slumber threw; While the soft guest his drowsy eyelids seals, Th' unguarded golden fleece the stranger steals; Proud to possess the purchase of his toil, Proud of his royal bride, the richer spoil, To sea both prize and patroness he bore, And lands triumphant on his native shore."

OVID.

All these deeds being performed in the presence of the monarch and his subjects, they were struck with surprise at the boldness and success of the young hero, who immediately embarked for Europe with Medea, the great instrument of his preservation. Enraged at the desertion of his daughter, Oeetes sent his son Absyrtus to bring back the fugitives. Absyrtus overtook them, but was slain by Medea, who scattered his limbs upon the path of his father, trusting that Oeetes' paternal affection, would make him anxious to render due homage to the remains of his son, and prevent him from following with success.

On the return of the expedition to Thessaly, they were received with unusual festivity; but Oeson, Jason's father was unable to be there, owing to the infirmities of age, and Medea at her husband's desire, restored him to all the power and vigour of youth.

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