The fastenings give way; and the wax melts, the Divinity being so near; and his arms, when moved, no longer catch the light breeze. Alarmed, he looks down upon the sea from the lofty heavens; darkness, arising from trembling apprehension, comes over his eyes. The wax has now melted; he waves his bare arms, and he trembles, and has no means whereby to be supported. Downward he falls; and as he falls, he cries, "Father! O father! I am undone!" As he spoke, the azure waves closed his mouth. But the unhappy father, a father now no longer, cried aloud, "Icarus, where art thou? Or under what part of the sky dost thou fly?"
"Icarus," again he cried aloud; his feathers he beheld in the waves. The dry land covers his bones; the sea retains his name.
Minos could not restrain the wings of a mortal; I myself am attempting to arrest a winged Divinity. If any one has recourse to the Hæmonian arts, and gives that which he has torn from the forehead of the young horse, [911] he is mistaken. The herbs of Medea will not cause love to endure; nor yet the Marsian spells [912] mingled with the magic notes. The Phasian damsel would have retained the son of Æson, Circe Ulysses, if love could only have been preserved through incantations. Philtres, too, causing paleness, [913] are of no use when administered to the fair. Philtres injure the intellect, and have a maddening effect. Afar be all criminal attempts; to be loved, be worthy to be loved; a property which comeliness, or beauty alone, will not confer upon you. Though you should be Nireus, [914] be praised by ancient Homer, and the charming Hylas, [915] carried off by the criminality of the Naiads; that you may retain your mistress, and not have to wonder that you are deserted, add the endowments of the mind to the advantages of the person. Beauty is a fleeting advantage; and the more it increases in years, the less it becomes, and, itself, is consumed by length of time.
Neither the violets nor the opening lilies bloom for ever; and, the roses lost, the thorny bush is prickly left behind. And, handsome man, soon shall come to you the hoary locks; soon shall come the wrinkles, to furrow your body over. Now form a disposition which may be lasting, and add it to your beauty; that alone endures to the closing pile. And be it no light care to cultivate the mind with the liberal arts, and to learn thoroughly the two languages, the Latin and the Greek. Ulysses was not handsome, but he was fluent; and yet with love he racked the ocean Goddesses. [916] Ah! how oft did Calypso grieve at his hastening to depart, and declare that the waves were not favorable to his oars! Again and again did she enquire into the catastrophe of Troy. Often in another manner was he wont to repeat the same thing. On the shore they were standing; even there did the beauteous Calypso enquire about the blood-stained death of the Odrysian chief.
With a little stick, for by chance he was holding a stick, he depicted on the firm shore the subject on which she was enquiring. "This is Troy," said he; and the walls he drew on the shore; "This must be Simois for thee, and suppose these to be my tents. There was a plain," and here he drew the plain, "which we moistened with the blood of Dolon, [917] while, as a spy, he was longing for the Hæmonian horses. [918] There were the tents of the Sithonian Rhesus; in this direction was I borne back again by the captured steeds." And many other things was he depicting, when the waves suddenly carried off both Pergamus and the tents of Rhesus together with their chief. Then the Goddess said, "Dost thou behold how famous names these waves have swept away, which thou dost trust will be favorable to thee about to depart?"
Come then, with hesitation, feel confidence in beauty so deceiving, whoever you are; or else possess something of more value than comeliness. A beseeming courtesy especially enlists the feelings; rudeness and harsh language promote hatred. We dislike the hawk, because it is always living in warfare; the wolves too, that are wont to rush upon the startled flocks. But the swallow, because it is gentle, is exempt from the snares of men; and the Chaonian bird [919] has the turrets for it to inhabit.
Afar lie all strife and contentions of the abusive tongue; with sweet words must gentle love be cherished. With strife let both wives persecute their husbands, and husbands their wives; and, each in their turn, let them ever be thinking that they must resort to law. [920] This is the part of wives; strife is the dowry of the wife. Let the mistress ever hear the accents that she longs for. At the bidding of no law have you come to live together; in your case 'tis love that performs the duties of the law. Bring soft caresses, and words that delight the ear, that she may ever be joyous at your approach.
I do not come as the instructor of the wealthy in Love; he who makes presents has no need of my experience. He who says, whenever he pleases, "Accept this," has a genius of his own. To him do I yield: he has greater attractions than have any discoveries of mine. I am the instructor of the poor, because, as a poor man, I have been in love. When I could not give presents, I gave verses. [921] Let the poor man love with caution, let the poor man stand in fear of bad language, and let him put up with many a thing, not to be endured by the rich.
I remember that once, when in a rage, I disarranged the hair of my mistress; of how many a day did that anger deprive me! I do not think I did, and I did not see that I had, torn her tunic, but she said so, and at my cost it was replaced. But you who are wise, avoid the errors of your instructor; and stand in awe of the punishment of my transgressions.
Let battles be with the Parthians, but be there peace with your refined mistress; mirth too, and whatever besides contains a reason for love. If she is not sufficiently kind or affable to you her lover; have patience, and bear it; after a time she will be softened. By giving way the supple branch is bent from the tree; if you make trial of your strength, you break it. By giving way the waves are swam across; but you cannot overcome the stream if you swim against the flood which the tide carries down. 'Tis yielding that subdues the tigers and the Numidian lions. By degrees only does the bull submit to the rustic plough. What was there more coy than Atalanta of Nonacris? [922] Yet, untamed as she was, she yielded to the deserving qualities of a man. They say that many a time, beneath the trees, Milanion wept at his mishaps, and the unkind conduct of the fair one. Full oft on his neck, as ordered, did he bear the treacherous toils; full oft with his cruel spear did he transfix the savage boars. Wounded, too, he experienced the stretched bow of Hylæus; [923] but yet there was another bow still more felt than this.