Trips to the Moon, of Samosata Lucian [ap literature book list TXT] 📗

Morin.

{122b} Who ravished Cassandra, the daughter of Priam and priestess of Minerva, who sent a tempest, dispersed the Grecian navy in their return home, and sunk Ajax with a thunder-bolt.

{123a} A scholar of Pythagoras.

{123b} The second king of Rome.

{123c} One of the seven sages, but excepted against by Lucian, because he was king of Corinth and a tyrant.

{123d} See his Treatise “de Republica.”  His quitting Elysium, to live in his own republic, is a stroke of true humour.

{124a} Alluding to a passage in Hesiod already quoted.

{124b} Lucian laughs at the sceptics, though he was himself one of them.

{126} Death-games, or games after death, in imitation of wedding-games, funeral-games, etc.

{127a} The famous tyrant of Agrigentum, renowned for his ingenious contrivance of roasting his enemies in a brazen bull, and not less memorable for some excellent epistles, which set a wit and scholar together by the ears concerning the genuineness of them.  See the famous contest between Bentley and Boyle.

{127b} Who sacrificed to Jupiter all the strangers that came into his kingdom.  “Hospites violabat,” says Seneca, “ut eorum sanguine pluviam eliceret, cujus penuria Ægyptus novem annis laboraverat.”  A most ingenious contrivance.

{128a} A king of Thrace who fed his horses with human flesh.

{128b} Scyron and Pityocamptes were two famous robbers, who used to seize on travellers and commit the most horrid cruelties upon them.  They were slain by Theseus.  See Plutarch’s “Life of Theseus.”

{128c} Where he ran away, but, as we are told, in very good company.  See Diog. Laert. Strabo, etc.

{132} The Antipodes.  We never heard whether Lucian performed this voyage.  D’Ablancourt, however, his French translator, in his continuation of the “True History,” has done it for him, not without some humour, though it is by no means equal to the original.

{135a} Voltaire has improved on this passage, and given us a very humorous account of “les Habitans de l’Enfer,” in his wicked “Pucelle.”

{135b} Who, the reader will remember, had just before run off with Helen.

{136a} Greek, υπνος, sleep.

{136b} As herald of the morn.

{136c} A root which, infused, is supposed to promote sleep, consequently very proper for the Island of Dreams.

                “Not poppy, nor mandragora,
     Nor all the drowsy syrups of the East,
     Shall ever medicine thee to that sweet sleep
     Which thou ow’dst yesterday.”
                              See Shakespeare’s “Othello.”

{136d} Night wanderer.

{137a} Gr. νεγρητος, inexperrectus, unwaked or wakeful.

{137b} Gr. παννυχια, pernox, all night.

{137c}  “Two portals firm the various phantoms keep;
          Of ev’ry one; whence flit, to mock the brain,
          Of wingéd lies a light fantastic train;
          The gate opposed pellucid valves adorn,
          And columns fair, encased with polished horn;
          Where images of truth for passage wait.”
                      See Pope’s Homer’s “Odyssey,” bk. xix., 1. 637.
See also Virgil, who has pretty closely imitated his master.

{138a} Gr. ταραξιωνα τον ματαιογενους, terriculum vanipori: fright, the son of vain hope, or disappointment.

{138b} Gr. πλουτοκλεα τον φαντασιωνος, divitiglorium, the pride of riches—i.e., arising from riches; son of phantasy, or deceit.

{138c} Gr. καρεωτιν, gravi-somnem, heavy sleep.

{141a} Nut sailors; or, sailors in a nut-shell.

{141b} Those who sailed in the gourds.

{147a} Cabalusa and Hydamardia are hard words, which the commentators confess they can make nothing of.  Various, however, are the derivations, and numerous the guesses made about them.  The English reader may, if he pleases, call them not improperly, especially the first, Cabalistic.

{147b} Which the reader will remember was given him by way of charm, on his departure from the Happy Island.

{148} Gr. ονοσκελεας, asini-eruras, ass-legged.

{149} The ensuing books never appeared.  The “True History,” like

          —“the bear and fiddle,
     Begins, but breaks off in the middle.”

D’Ablancourt, as I observed above, has carried it on a little farther.  There is still room for any ingenious modern to take the plan from Lucian, and improve upon it.

{153} The ancient Greek stadium is supposed to have contained a hundred and twenty-five geometrical paces, or six hundred and twenty-five Roman feet, corresponding to our furlong.  Eight stadia make a geometrical, or Italian mile; and twenty, according to Dacier, a French league.  It is observed, notwithstanding, by Guilletiere, a famous French writer, that the stadium was only six hundred Athenian feet, six hundred and four English feet, or a hundred and three geometrical paces.

The Greeks measured all their distances by stadia, which, after all we can discover concerning them, are different in different times and places.

{154} The Phœnicians, it is supposed, were the first sailors, and steered their course according to the appearance of the stars.

{155} Greek, ουρανιων, cœlicolœ, Homer’s general name for the gods.

{156} Ganymede, whom Jupiter fell in love with, as he was hunting on Mount Ida, and turning himself into an eagle, carried up with him to heaven.  “I am sure,” says Menippus’s friend, archly enough, “you were not carried up there, like Ganymede, for your beauty.”

{157a} “Icarus Icariis nomina fecit aquis.”  The story is too well known to stand in need of any illustration.  This accounts for the title of Icaro-Menippus.

{157b} See Bishop Wilkins’s “Art of Flying,” where this ingenious contrivance of Menippus’s is greatly improved upon.  For a humorous detail of the many advantages attending this noble art, I refer my readers to the Spectator.

{159} Even Lucian’s Menippus, we see, could not reflect on the works of God without admiration; but with how much more dignity are they considered by the holy Psalmist!—

“O praise the Lord of heaven, praise Him in the height.  Praise Him, sun and moon; praise Him, all ye stars; praise the Lord upon earth, ye dragons and all deeps; fire and hail, snow and vapours, wind and storm fulfilling His word.”—Psalm cxlviii.

{161} This was the opinion of Anaxagoras, one of the Ionic philosophers, born at Clazomene, in the first year of the seventieth Olympiad.  See Plutarch and Diogenes Laert.

{162} Alluding to the doctrines of Plato and Aristotle.

{163a} This was the opinion of Democritus, who held that there were infinite worlds in infinite space, according to all circumstances, some of which are not only like to one another, but every way so perfectly and absolutely equal, that there is no difference betwixt them.  See Plutarch, and Tully, Quest. Acad.

{163b} Empedocles, of Agrigentum, a Pythagorean; he held that there are two principal powers in nature, amity and discord, and that

     “Sometimes by friendship, all are knit in one,
      Sometimes by discord, severed and undone.”
                 See Stanley’s “Lives of the Philosophers.”

{163c} Alluding to the doctrine of Pythagoras, according to whom, number is the principle most providential of all heaven and earth, the root of divine beings, of gods and demons, the fountain and root of all things; that which, before all things, exists in the divine mind, from which, and out of which, all things are digested into order, and remain numbered by an indissoluble series.  The whole system of the Pythagoreans is at large explained and illustrated by Stanley.  See his “Lives of Philosophers.”

{164} See our author’s “Auction of Lives,” where Socrates swears by the dog and the plane-tree.

This was called the ορκος Ραδαμανθιος, or oath of Rhadamanthus, who, as Porphyry informs us, made a law that men should swear, if they needs must swear, by geese, dogs, etc. υπερ που μη τους θεους επι πασιν ονομαζω, that they might not, on every trifling occasion, call in the name of the gods.  This is a kind of religious reason, the custom was therefore, Porphyry tells us, adopted by the wise and pious Socrates.  Lucian, however, who laughs at everything here (as well as the place above quoted), ridicules him for it.

{165a} See Homer’s “Odyssey,” book ix. 1. 302.  Pope translates it badly,

     “Wisdom held my hand.”

Homer says nothing but—my mind changed.

{165b} One of the fables here alluded to is yet extant amongst those ascribed to Æsop, but that concerning the camel I never met with.

{166a} That part of Athens which was called the upper city, in opposition to the lower city.  The Acropolis was on the top of a high rock.

{166b} Mountains near Athens.

{166c} A mountain between Geranea and Corinth.

{166d} A high mountain in Arcadia, to the west of Elis.  Erymanthus another, bordering upon Achaia.  Taygetus another, reaching northwards, to the foot of the mountains of Arcadia.

{167} See Homer’s “Iliad,” book xiii. 1. 4

{168} See note on this in a former dialogue.

{169} It is reported of Empedocles, that he went to Ætna, where he leaped into the fire, that he might leave behind him an opinion that he was a god, and that it was afterwards discovered by one of his sandals, which the fire cast up again, for his sandals were of brass.  See Stanley’s “Lives of the Philosophers.”  The manner of his death is related differently by different authors.  This was, however, the generally received fable.  Lucian, with an equal degree of probability, carries him up to the moon.

{170} See Homer’s Odyssey, b. xvi. 1. 187.  The speech of Ulysses to his son, on the discovery.

{171} When Empedocles is got into the moon, Lucian makes him swear by Endymion in compliment to his sovereign lady.

{172a} Agathocles.

{172b} Stratonice.

{173} Of Achilles.  See the 18th book of the “Iliad.”

{175a} Greek, ο χορηγος.

{175b} Sicyon was a city near Corinth, famous for the richness and felicity of its soil.

{176a} The famous Ager Cynurius, a little district of Laconia, on the confines of Argolis; the Argives and Spartans, whom it laid between, agreed to decide the property of it by three hundred men of a side in the field: the battle was bloody and desperate, only one man remaining alive, Othryades, the Lacedæmonian, who immediately, though covered with wounds, raised a trophy, which he inscribed with his own blood, to Jupiter Tropæus.  This victory the Spartans, who from that time had quiet possession of the field, yearly celebrated with a festival, to commemorate the event.

{176b} A mountain of Thrace.  Dion Cassius places it near Philippi.  It was supposed to have abounded in golden mines in some parts of it.

{177} When Æacus was king of Thessaly, his kingdom was almost depopulated by a dreadful pestilence; he prayed to Jupiter to avert the distemper, and dreamed that he saw an innumerable quantity of ants creep out of an old oak, which were immediately turned into men; when he awoke the dream was fulfilled, and he found his kingdom more populous than ever; from that time the people were called Myrmidons.  Such is the fable, which owed its rise merely to the name of Myrmidons, which it was supposed must come from μυρμηξ, an ant.  To some such trifling circumstances as these we are indebted for half the fables of antiquity.

{178a} See Homer’s “Iliad,” book i. 1. 294.

{178b} This was the opinion of Anaxagoras, and is confirmed by the more accurate observations of modern philosophy.

{179} See Pope’s Homer’s “Odyssey,” book x. 1. 113.

{180a} I.e. Such a countenance as he put on when he slew the rebellious Titans.

{180b} See Homer’s “Odyssey,” A. v. 170

{181} Otus and Ephialtes were two giants of an enormous size; some of the ancients, who, no doubt, were exact in their measurement, assure us that, at nine years old, they were nine cubits round, and thirty-six high, and grew in proportion, till they thought proper to attack and endeavour to dethrone Jupiter; for which purpose they piled mount Ossa and Pelion upon Olympus, made Mars prisoner, and played several tricks of this kind, till Diana, by artifice, subdued them, contriving, some way or other, to make them shoot their arrows against, and destroy each other, after which Jupiter sent them down to Tartarus.  Some attribute to Apollo the honour of conquering them.  This story has been explained, and allegorised, and tortured so many different ways, that it is not easy to unravel the foundation of it.

{182} Jupiter thought himself, we may suppose, much obliged to Phidias for the famous statue which he had made of him, and therefore, in return, complaisantly inquires after his family.

{183a} From Aratus.

{183b} A city of Elis, where there was a temple dedicated to Olympian Jupiter, and public games celebrated every fifth year.

{183c} A city of Thessaly, where there was a temple to Jove; this was likewise the seat of the famous oracle.

{183d} A goddess worshipped in Thrace.  Hesychius says this was only another name for Diana.  See Strabo.

{184} Alluding to his Republic, which probably was considered by Lucian and others as a kind of Utopian system.

{185a} See Homer’s “Iliad,” book xvi. 1. 250.

{185b} Of Elis, founder of the Sceptic sect, who doubted of everything.  He flourished about the hundred and tenth Olympiad.

{187a} ’Ου γαρ σιτον εδουα’, ου πινουσ’ αιθοπα οινον.
     “—Not the bread of man their life sustains,
      Nor wine’s inflaming juice