The proud Rutulian shall, with greater ease,
Burn to their beds profound the wat'ry seas:
Lanch you, my ships; be Nereids of the floods;
So wills the mighty mother of the gods !"

Swift at the word, the sacred ships obey,
From their loose anchors break, and bound away;
Like sportive dolphins plunge beneath the main,
Then (wond'rous!) rise in female forms again.
So many nymphs lanch swiftly from the shore,
As rode tall gallies in the port before.
The fierce Rutulians shook with wild affright,
Ev'n brave Messapus trembled at the sight,
Nor could he rule his steeds, nor check their rapid
flight.

Old murm'ring Tyber shrunk with sudden dread,
And to his source the hoary father fled.
All, but the valiant Daunian hero, shook,
Who rais'd their drooping souls, while thus he
spoke :

"These omens threat our foes: (0 glorious day!) Lo! Jove has snatch'd their last relief away!

Lo! from our dreaded arms their ships retire, And vanish swift before our vengeful fire: To Troy, imprison'd in yon narrow coast, The wat'ry half of all the globe is lost, Their flight, the seas and hostile armies bar; The land is ours; and Italy from far Pours forth her sons, by nations, to the war. Her favouring oracles let Ilion boast: On Turnus all those empty vaunts are lost. To 'scape the seas, and reach the Latian land, Was all, their fates or Venus could demand. My fates now take their turn; and 'tis in mine, For my lost spouse, to crush the perjur'd line. Like brave Atrides, I'll redeem the dame, The same my cause, and my revenge the same. Will Troy then venture on a rape once more, Who paid so dearly for the crime before? Sure they have long ago the thought declin'd, Forsworn the sex, and curst the costly kind! Fools! will they trust yon feeble wall and gate, That slight partition betwixt them and fate, Who not long since beheld their Troy renown'd, Their god-built Troy, lie smoking on the ground! Fly then, my friends, and let us force the foe; Seize, storm the camp, and lay their ramparts low. Nor want we, o'er these dastards to prevail, Arms forg'd by Vulcan, and a thousand sail; Though to support their desp'rate cause should join Arcadia's sons with all the Tuscan line: Nor need the wretches fear, with vain affright, The sacred thefts or murders of the night. A robb'd palladium, and an ambush'd force, Lodg'd in the caverns of a monstrous horse. A conquest in the dark my soul disclaims; No-let us gird by day their walls with flames. Soon shall they find no Argive host appears, Whom Hector baffled ten revolving years. Now go, my valiant friends, and pass away In due repast the small remains of day: But rise, rise early with the dawning light, Fresh from repose, and vig'rous for the fight." Meantime it falls to great Messapus' care, The ramparts to surround with fire and war. Twice sev'n Rutulian leaders head the bands; An hundred spears each valiant chief commands: Proudly they march, in gold and purple gay, And crimson crests on every helmet play. [supine They watch, they rest, by turns; and, stretch'd On the green carpet, quaff the gen'rous wine.

The fires gleam round, and shoot a ruddy light; In plays and pleasures, pass the jovial night.

This scene the Trojans from their trenches view, All seize their arms, and to their ramparts flew ; In wild affright to guard the gates they pour, Join bridge to bridge with speed, and tow'r to tow'r. Thus while th' endanger'd bulwarks they maintain, Mnestheus and brave Serestus fire the train. (The prince had left to their experienc'd care, If aught befel, the conduct of the war.) Now all the soldiers to their posts were flown, And in their turns, successive, guard the town. The valiant Nisus took his lot, to wait Before the portal, and defend the gate. From Ida's native woods the warrior came, Skill'd with the dart to pierce the flying game: With him Euryalus, who match'd in arms Troy's bravest youths, and far excell'd in charms; So young, the springing down but just began To shade his blooming cheeks, and promise man. These boys in sacred friendship were ally'd, And join'd in martial labours, side by side; In ev'ry danger, ev'ry glory, shar'd; And both alike were planted on the guard.

"Has Heav'n," cry'd Nisus first, “ this warmth bestow'd?

Heav'n! or a thought that prompts me like a god? This glorious warmth, my friend, that breaks my rest?

Some high exploit lies throbbing at my breast.
My glowing mind what gen'rous ardours raise,
And set my mounting spirits on a blaze!
See the loose discipline of yonder train ;
The lights, grown thin, scarce glimmer from the
plain;

The guards in slumber and debauch are drown'd;
And mark!-a gen'ral silence reigns around:
Then take my thought; the people, fathers, all,
Join in one wish, our leader to recall.
Now, would they give to thee the prize I claim,
(For I could rest contented with the fame-)
An easy road, methinks, I can survey
Beneath yon summit to direct my way."

The brave Euryalus, with martial pride,
Fir'd with the charms of glory, thus reply'd:
"And will my Nisus then his friend disclaim?
Deny'd his share of danger and of fame ?
And can thy dear Euryalus expose
Thy life, alone, unguarded to the foes?
Not so my father taught his gen'rous boy,
Born, train'd, and season'd, in the wars of Troy.
And, where the great Æneas led the way,
I brav'd all dangers of the land and sea.⚫
Thou too canst witness that my worth is try'd ;
We march'd, we fought, we conquer'd side by side
Like thine, this bosom glows with martial flame;
Burns with a scorn of life, and love of fame;
And thinks, if endless glory can be sought
On such low terms, the prize is cheaply bought.
Let no such jealous fears alarm thy breast:
Thy worth and valour stand to all confest.
But let the danger fall," he cries, " on me:
For this exploit, I durst not think on thee!
No:-as I hope the blest ethereal train
May bring me glorious to thy arms again!
But should the gods deny me to succeed,
Should I-(which Heav'n avert)-but should I

bleed ;

Live thou;-in death some pleasure that will give! Live for thy Nisus' sake; I charge thee, live.

Now, favour'd by the shade, the warriors go,
Pass the deep trenches, and invade the foe.
But, ere their dang'rous enterprise is o'er,
With what large slaughter shall they bathe the
shore !

All drench'd in wine and sleep, lie stretch'd around,
The careless soldiers on the verdant ground,
Annid a pile of traces, wheels, and reins,
And empty cars, encumb'ring all the plains.
Here lie the scatter'd arms; the goblets there;
A mad confusion of debauch and war.

[call;
"Now, now," cries Nisus first, "thy courage
The place, the hour, my friend, demands it all.
Here lies our road: while I the passage find,
Stay thou, and cautious watch the foe behind.
From side to side, whole squadrons will I slay,
Thro' death and horrours op'ning wide thy way."
With that, the youth in silence drew his sword,
And stabb'd proud Rhamnes, a distinguish'd lord;
In ev'ry deep prophetic art approv'd,
A king and augur, and by Turnus lov'd.
On the rich couch in slumbers deep he lay,
And, labouring, slept the full debauch away.
The fate of others he had still foreshown,
But fail'd, unhappy! to prevent his own.

Then on the 'squire of Remus fierce he flew, And, as they slept, his three attendants slew. The driver next; and cut his neck in twain, As, midst the steeds, he slumber'd on the plain; Last on their lord employ'd the deadly steel; Swift flew the head; and mutter'd as it fell. The purple blood distains the couch around; The welt'ring trunk lies beating on the ground. Next Lamyrus and Lamus meet their doom: Serranus last, in all his sprightly bloom : By the large draught o'erpow'r'd, outstretch'd he Full half the night already spent in play; [lay, Far happier had it been, if lengthen'd to the day. Thus o'er th' unguarded fence by hunger bold, Springs the grim lion, and invades the fold. All dreadful, growling in the midnight hours, The trembling flock he murders and devours; While wrapt in silence lies the fleecy brood, The savage rages in a foam of blood.

Nor with less rage Euryalus employ'd The deadly sword; but nameless crowds destroy'd. Hebesus, Fadus, as they slept, he gor'd; But wakeful Rhesus saw the slaught'ring sword: Behind a goblet he retir'd in vain; For as the foe, detected, rose again, The furious youth, with all his force imprest, Plung'd the whole sword, deep-bury'd in his breast; With blended wine and blood the ground was dy'à; The purple soul came floating in the tide.

So vents the youth his vengeance on his foes, And scatters death and slaughter as he goes. Now when to brave Messapus' tents they came, The fires just glimmer'd with a quiv'ring flame. The train lie scatter'd, while the steeds, unbound, Expatiate wide, and graze the verdant ground. Then Nisus warn'd him; for he saw the boy Too fierce for blood, too eager to destroy; "Enough of death-our swords have hew'd the We stand detected by the dawning day." [way They part; and leave, in piles confus'dly roll'd, Bright arms, embroider'd robes, and bowls of gold. But yet the fond Euryalus would stay, Resolv'd to seize one rich distinguish'd prey; The shining trappings Rhamnes' coursers bore, And the broad golden belt the monarch wore,

Of old, to Remulus was sent the prize
By Cædicus, the pledge of social ties;
Which with his grandson at his death remain'd,
And last by war the fierce Rutulians gain'd.
This belt he bore, exulting, from the plain,
And in gay triumph wore, but wore in vain!
Next, with Messapus' helm, his brows he spread,
Adorn'd with plumes, that nodded o'er his head.
Then, flush'd with slaughter and the glorious prey,
They quit the camp, and seek a safer way.

Meantime, the Dannian hero to support,
Advanc'd a legion from the Latian court;
Three hundred horse, while slow the foot succeed,
Fly swift before, with Volscens at their head.
Now to the camp the warriors bend their way,
And, on the left, the hapless youths survey.
Euryalus' bright helm the pair betray'd,
On which the Moon in all her glory play'd,
""Tis not for nought, those youths appear; de-

clare "

[are;

(Cries the stern gen'ral) "who, and whence you And whither bound; and wherefore arm'd for war?" Nought they reply, but took their sudden flight To the thick forests, and the shades of night. But the fierce warriors spurr'd their steeds, and stood

All round, to guard the op'nings of the wood.
O'ergrown and wild, the darksome forest lay,
And trees and brakes perplex'd the winding way.
Hither, encumber'd with his gaudy prize,
Distress'd Euryalus for shelter flies;
But miss'd the turnings, in his wild surprise.
Not so, swift Nisus, who the foes declin'd,
Nor knew th' endanger'd boy was left behind;
Beyond the once-fam'd Alban fields he fled,
Where the fleet coursers of Latinus fed. [plain,
There stood the mournful youth; and from the
Cast a long look, to find his friend, in vain!
"Where is Euryalus, my only joy?
Where shall I find," he cry'd, the hapless boy?"
Then he retrac'd his former steps, and trod,
Once more, the winding mazes of the wood,
The trampling steeds and warriors pour behind,
And the loud cries come thick in ev'ry wind.
Here, while he paus'd, a general shout he heard;
And lo! his lov'd Euryalus appear'd,
Surrounded by the foe: the gloomy night,
And pathless thickets, intercept his flight.
With joyful clamours crowd the gath`ring train
Around the captive, who resists in vain.
What can his friend attempt, what means employ,
What arms, what succours, to redeem the boy?
Or through th' embattled squadrons shall he fly,
And, prest by hostile numbers, nobly die?
Then on the Moon he cast a mournful look,
And in his hand the pointed jav'lin shook:
"Great guardian goddess of the woods !?" he cries,
"Pride of the stars, and empress of the skies!
If e'er with gifts my father hung thy shrine,
For his dear son, and sought thy pow'r divine,
Or increas'd them with my sylvan toils,
And grac'd thy sacred roof with savage spoils;
Direct my lance, nor let it fly in vain,
But wing'd with death, disperse the hostile train."
This said; with all his strength the spear he threw;
Swift through the parting shade the weapon flew.
In Sulmo's back the point all-quiv'ring stood,
And pierc'd his heart, but left the broken wood.
He pour'd a purple flood, as prone he lay;
While in thick sobs he gasp'd his soul away.

The crowds gaze round; when lo! a second flies,
Fierce as the first, and sings along the skies.
Through Tagus' temples, o'er the shrinking train,
It flew, and sunk deep-bury'd in the brain.
Now, mad for vengeance, Volscens storm'd, nor
The daring author of the distant wound : [found
"But thy curst blood shall pay for both," he said;
Then rush'd impetuous with the flaming blade
Against the trembling boy-with wild affright,
All pale, confus'd, distracted at the sight,
From his close covert Nisus rush'd in view,
And sent his voice before him as he flew :
"Me, me, to me: one, your rage confine;
Here sheath your javelins; all the guilt was mine.
By you bright stars, by each immortal god,
His hands, his thoughts, are innocent of blood!
Nor could, nor durst the boy the deed intend;
His only crime (and oh! can that offend?)
Was too much love to his unhappy friend!"

In vain he spoke, for ah! the sword, addrest
With ruthless rage, had pierc'd his lovely breast.
With blood his snowy limbs are purpled o'er,
And, pale in death, he welters in his gore.
As a gay flow'r, with blooming beauties crown'd,
Cut by the share, lies languid on the ground;
Or some tall poppy, that o'er-charg'd with rain,
Bends the faint head, and sinks upon the plain;
So fair, so languishingly sweet he lies,
His head declin'd and drooping, as he dies!

Now midst the foe, distracted Nisus flew ;
Volscens, and him alone, he keeps in view.
The gath'ring train the furious youth surround;
Dart follows dart, and wound succeeds to wound;
All, all, unfelt; he seeks their guilty lord;
In fiery circles flies his thund'ring sword;

Nor ceas'd, but found, at length, the destin'd way;
And, bury'd in his mouth, the falchion lay.
Thus cover'd o'er with wounds on ev'ry side,
Brave Nisus slew the murd'rer as he dy'd;
Then, on the dear Euryalus his breast,
Sunk down, and slumber'd in eternal rest.

Hail, happy pair! if fame our verse can give,
From age to age, your memory shall live;
Long as th' imperial Capitol shall stand, [mand!
Or Rome's majestic lord the conquer'd world com-
The victors first divide the gaudy prey;
Then to the camp their breathless chief convey:
There too a scene of gen'ral grief appears; [tears.
There, crowds of slaughter'd princes claim their
Stretch'd o'er the plain their hapless friends they
found,

Some pale in death, some gasping on the ground.
With copious slaughter all the field was dy'd,
And streams of gore run thick on ev'ry side.
All knew the belt and helm divinely wrought;
But mourn the fatal prize, so dearly bought.

Now dappled streaks of light Aurora shed,
And ruddy rose from Tithon's saffron bed:
Then fiery Phoebus, with his golden ray,
Pour'd o'er the op'ning world a flood of day.
When furious Turnus gave the loud alarms; •
First arm'd himself; then call'd the host to arms.
The chiefs their soldiers to the field excite,
Inflame their rage, and lead them to the fight.
On pointed spears, a dreadful sight! they bore
The heads of both the hapless youths, before;
With barb'rous joy survey the bloody prize,
And shout, and follow, with triumphant cries.
The Trojans, on the left, sustain the fight
From their high walls; the river guards the right.

They line the trenches, and the tow'rs maintain ;
Thick on the ramparts stand the peusive train,
And know the heads too well, though cover'd o'er
With sanguine stains, and all deform'd with gore.
Now to the mother's ears the news had fled,
Her son, her dear Euryalus, was dead:
The vital warmth her trembling limbs forsook,
She dropp'd the shuttle, and with horrour shook;
With hair dishevell❜d from the walls she flies,
And rends the air with agonizing cries;
Breaks through the foremost troops in wild despair,
Nor heeds the darts, or dangers of the war.
"And is it thus, the comfort of my years,
Thus, thus, my dear Euryalus appears?
And could'st thou fly, my child, to certain harms),
To death (oh cruel!) from thy mother's arms?
So fond a mother?-nor thy purpose tell?
Nor let me take my last, my sad, farewell?
A prey to dogs, alas! thy body lies,
And ev'ry fowl that wings the Latian skies!
Nor did thy mother close thy eyes in death,
Compose thy limbs, nor catch thy parting breath;
Nor bathe thy gaping wounds, nor cleanse the gore,
Nor throw the rich embroider'd mantle o'er;
The work that charm'd the cares of age away,
My task all night, my labour all the day;
The robe I wove, thy absence to sustain,
For thee, my child;-but wove, alas! in vain.
Where shall I find thee now? what land contains
Thy mangled members and thy dear remains?
How on thy face these longing eyes I fed?
Ah! how unlike the living is the dead!
For that, o'er lands and oceans have I gone?
Is that, the sole sad relic of my son'
That bloody ball!-No more!-ye foes of Troy,
Come all, a poor abandon'd wretch destroy;
Here, here, direct, in pity, ev'ry dart,
Plant ev'ry jav❜lin in this breaking heart:
Or with thy bolts, O Jove! conclude my woe,
And plunge me flaming to the shades below.
Strike and I'll bless the stroke, that sets me free ;
'Tis ease, 'tis mercy, to a wretch like me!"

Her loud complaints the melting Trojans hear,
Sigh back her sighs, and answer tear for tear,
Their courage slackens; and the frantic dame,
With her wild anguish, damps the martial flame
But young Ascanius, while his sorrows flow,
And his full eyes indulge the gush of woe,
With great Ilioneus, commands the train
To bear the matron to her tent again.

Now the shrill trumpet's dreadful voice from far, With piercing clangours, animates the war. The troops rush on; the deaf'ning clamours rise, And the long shouts run echoing round the skies. Straight, in a shell, their shields the Volscians

threw ;

And the close cohorts march, conceal'd from view,
To fill the trenches which the camp surround,
And tug th' aspiring bulwarks to the ground.
Where thinly rang'd appear the op'ning pow'rs,
They fix their scaling engines in the tow'rs.
From far the Trojans missive weapons throw,
And with tough poles repel the rising foe ;
Thus wont, of old, th' advancing Greeks to dare,
And guard the ramparts in their ten years' war.
Long with huge pointed stones, they strove in
vain,

To burst the cov'ring of the hostile train.
Yet still the bands maintain the fight, below
The brazen concave, and defy the fee.

At length the Trojans with a mighty shock,
Roll'd down a pond'rous fragment of a rock;
Full where the thick-einbody'd squadron spreads;
Th' enormous mass came thund'ring on their heads,
Broke through the shining arch, and crush'd the
train;

And with a length of slaughter smok'd the plain.
In this blind fight no more the foes engage,
But with their darts a distant combat wage.

There with a blazing pine Mezentius came,
And tost within the works the dreadful flame;
Tremendous chief!-while bold Messapus calls
To scale the tow'rs, and thunders at the walls.
Ye sacred Nine, inspire me to record
What numbers fell by Turnus' slaught'ring
What foes each hero plung'd to Hell, declare,
Each death display, and open all the war!
Those mighty deeds which you alone can know,
Repeat, ye Muses! to the world below.

sword.

Full o'er the wall a turret rose on high,
Stage above stage, unrivall'd, to the sky.
This fort to gain, the Latians bend their care,
Point their full strength, their whole collected war.
Vast fragments from above the Trojans throw,
And through the walls their jav'lins gall the foe.
A blazing torch the mighty Turnus flung;
Close to the sides the flaming mischief hung:
Then, thund'ring through the planks, in fury grew,
Swell'd in the wind, and round the structure
flew.

With headlong speed th' imprison'd troops retire,
Throng'd in huge heaps, before the spreading fire.
While on one side their weight incumbent lay,
The beams all burst, the crackling walls give way,
The pond'rous pile comes tumbling to the ground,
And all Olympus trembled at the sound.
With the proud structure fall the Trojan train,
Wrapp'd in the smoky ruins, to the plain,
Their souls crush'd out, the warriors bury'd lie;
Or on the points of their own lances die.
Sav'd from the general fate, but two remain,
And ah! those hapless two were sav'd in vain!
Unbless'd Helenor, most advanc'd in years,
At once encompass'd by the foe appears;
Him to the Lydian king, his beauteous slave
Lycimnia bore; unfortunately brave.
Though born of servile blood, the gen'rous boy
In arms forbidden sought the wars of Troy.
With glory fir'd he took the dang'rous field;
Light was his sword, and unadorn'd his shield.
At first with wild surprise the youth descry'd
The gath'ring Latian troops on ev'ry side;
Then (bent on death) where thick the jav'lins rise,
Fierce on the close embattled war he flies.
So the stern savage, whom the train surrounds
Of shouting bunters, steeds, and op'ning hounds,
On death determin'd, and devoid of fears,
Springs forth undaunted on a grove of spears.
But swifter Lycus urg'd his rapid way,
Though jav'lins hiss, and swords around him play;
Flies to the walls, and battlements again,
Leaps high, and reaches at his friends in vain.
For close behind the furious Turnus flew :
"Fool! couldst thou hope to 'scape when I pursue,
Though swifter than the wind?" (aloud he cries)
Then by the foot he seiz'd his trembling prize;
And, as he hung aloft in dire dismay,
Tugg'd him with half the shatter'd wall away.
So Jove's imperial bird, through fields of air,
Snatches the snowy swan or quiv'ring bare :

So the grim prowling wolf, amidst her play,
Leaps on the lamb, and rends the tender prey;
Wild roams the bleating mother round the plain,
Seeks, and laments, her slaughter'd child in vain.
Now with loud shouts they rend the tortur'd air,
Fill the deep trench, and lay the bulwarks bare.
Some load with hostile fires their vengeful hands,
And at the turrets toss the blazing brands.
As to the gates the bold Lucetius came,
Tow'r'd in the front, and shook the waving flame;
The great Ilioneus with vigour threw

A rocky fragment, and the warrior slew.
Young Liger's certain spear, Emation sped;
Asylas' shaft laid Chorineus dead.
Ortygius bleeds by Cæneus' fatal steel,
But by great Turnus' hand the victor fell;
Clonius with, him, and Dioxippus falls,
And hapless Idas, while he guards the walls.
Sagar, the next, with Promulus, was slain ;
And Capys stretch'd Privernus on the plain:
First slightly wounded by Themilla's dart;
(The shield thrown by) to mitigate the smart,
His hand the warrior to the wound apply'd;
Swift flew the second dart, and nail'd it to his sider
Its fatal course through all his vitals held;
And the pale corse lay panting on the field.

All bright in arms, the son of Arcens stood,
Bred in the grove of Mars, the warrior god;
From where Palicus' loaded altars flame,
In gold and purple gay, the blooming hero came.
Mezentius mark'd him, as he tow'r'd on high;
Then seiz'd a sling, and laid the jav'lin by:
Thrice whirl'd around, the whistling bullet threw
The glowing metal melted as it flew;
Through both his temples cut its dreadful way;
And, roll'd in dust, the beauteous warrior lay.
Then first in fight the young Ascanius bore
His bow; employed on beasts alone before.
His vengeful shafts a royal victim found,
And stretch'd the bold Numanus on the ground.
Not long before the haughty chief had led
Brave Turnus' sister to his bridal bed:
Now, of his high alliance vain and proud,
He stalks before the troops, and vaunts aloud:
"What shame, ye Phrygians, ye twice-van-
quish'd train,

To lie beleaguer'd in your walls again!
All pale and trembling, in yon tow'rs to wait!
That rise, ye cowards, between you and fate!
Brave chiefs! bold heroes these!-who come so far
To gain their brides by violence and war!
From Troy what god, what madness, call'd you o'et,
To fall and perish on a foreign shore?
Far other foes than Atreus' sons appear;
No crafty talking Ithacus is here.
We plunge our infants in the hard'ning streams,
And season in the frost their tender limbs.
Our boys the forest range, and lead the course,
Bend the tough bow, and break the prancing horse.

| Long thirst, long hunger, our bold youths can bear,

Plough, fight, or shake embattled towns with war.
We live in steel; in arms our hinds appear;
And the turn'd jav'lin goads the lab'ring steer.
Nor flags our gen'rous warmth, by years declin'd;
Still flames the noble ardour of the mind.
Ev'n the grave sire with martial vigour glows,
And crushes with the casque his hoary brows.
All, all, engag'd alike in warlike toils,
Subsist on rapine, and divide the spoils.