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What occafions your diftrefs, faid he? Who were you on the earth? I was, replied the shade, Nabopharzan king of haughty Babylon. All the nations of the eaft trembled at the very found of my name; I caufed myfelf to be worshipped by the Babylonians in a marble temple, where I was reprefented by a golden ftatue, before which were burnt both_night and day the most precious perfumes of Ethiopia. Whoever prefumed to contradict me, was immediately chaftifed for it. New pleasures were daily invented to make my life more delightful, and I was still young and robuft. Oh! what joys had I to taste on a throne! But a woman whom I loved, and who did not love me, made me very fenfible that I was not a God. She poifoned me. I now am nothing. My ashes were yesterday depofited in a pompous manner in a golden urn. My people wept for me; they tore off their hair; they feemed as if they would throw themfelves into my flaming pyre to die with me, and they ftill go and pour forth their groans at the foot of the ftately tomb in which my ashes are laid But nobody really laments me; my memory is abhorred even in my own family, and I already fuffer here below an horrible kind of treatment.

Telemachus moved by this fight, faid, Were you really happy while you reigned? Did you feel that fweet peace of mind, without which the heart is always oppreft and withers in the midst of pleasures? No, replied the Babylonian, I do not even know. what you mean. The fages indeed vaunt of this peace as the only good; but for me, I never experienced it. My heart was continually agitated by new defires, by fear and by hope. I endeavoured to make myfelf giddy by the rapid motions of my paffions, and I took care to maintain the intoxicating career, and to make it lafting. The shorteft interval of calm reafon had been very irkfome to me. This is the peace which I enjoyed; all other feemed to me but a fable and a dream. Thefe are the bleffings which I regret.

The Babylonian, as he fpoke thus, wept like a mean-fpirited wretch, that had been enervated by TOM. II. profperity

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& qui n'eft point accoutumé à fupporter conftamment un malheur. Il avoit auprès de lui quelques efclaves qu'on avoit fait mourir pour honorer fes funérailles. Mercure les avoit livrés à Caron avec leur roi, & leur avoit donné une puiffance abfolue fur ce roi qu'ils avoient fervi fur la terre. Ces ombres d'efclaves ne craignoient plus l'ombre de Nabopharzan ; elles la tenoient enchaînée, & lui faifoient les plus cruelles indignités. L'un lui difoit : N'étions - nous pas hommes auffi-bien que toi ? Comment étois - tu affez infenfé pour te croire un Dieu; & ne falloit-il pas te fouvenir que tu étois de la race des autres hommes? Un autre pour lui infulter, difoit: Tu avois raifon de ne vouloir pas qu'on te prît pour un homme; car tu étois un monftre fans humanité. Un autre lui difoit: Hé bien! où font maintenant tes flatteurs ? Tu n'as plus rien à donner malheureux : tu ne peux plus faire aucun mal; te voilà devenu efclave de teş efclaves mêmes. Les Dieux font lents à faire justice, mais enfin ils la font.

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A ces dures paroles, Nabopharzan fe jettoit le vifage contre terre, arrachant fes cheveux dans un excès de rage & de défefpoir. Mais Caron difoit aux efclaves: Tirez-le par fa chaîne; relevez-le malgré lui; il n'aura pas même la confolation de cacher fa honte il faut que toutes les ombres du Sryx en foient témoins, pour juftifier les Dieux qui ont fouffert fi long-temps que cet impie regnât fur la terre. Ce n'eft encore là, ô Babylonien, que le commencement de tes douleurs; prépare-toi à être jugé par l'infléxible Minos, juge des enfers.

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Pendant ce difcours de terrible Caron, la barque touchoit déjà le rivage de l'empire de Pluton. Toutes les ombres accouroient pour confidérer cet homme vivant, qui paroiffoit au milieu de ces morts dans la barque; mais dans le moment où Télémaque mit pied à terre, elles s'enfuirent, femblables aux ombres de la nuit, que la moindre clarté du jour diffipe. Caron montrant au jeune Grec un front moins ridé, & des yeux moins farouches qu'à l'ordinaire, lui dit: Mortel chéri des Dieux, puifqu'il t'eft donné d'entrer dans le

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profperity, and had not been used to bear adverfity with fortitude. There were feveral flaves about him who had been put to death to honour his funeral. Mercury had delivered them up to Charon with their king, and had given them an abfolute power over him whom they had ferved on the earth. The shades of thefe flaves were no longer afraid of Nabopharzan's shade; they held it in chains, and offered it the most cruel indignities. One faid to him, Were we not men as well as thee? What made thee fo frantic as to think thyfelf a God? Shouldeft thou not have remembered that thou wert of the fame race as others? Another, to infult him, faid, Thou were in the right in being unwilling to be taken for a man; for thou wert a monster void of humanity. A third cried out, Well where are thy flatterers now? Wretch, thou haft no longer any thing to give; thou haft not the power to do any more mischief; thou art become the flave even of thy own flaves. The Gods are flow to do juftice, but they do it at last.

At thefe grating words Nabopharzan threw himself proftrate on the earth, tearing off his hair in a fit of rage and defpair. But Charon faid to the flaves, Haul him up by his chain, raise him whether he will or no; he shall not have even the confolation of hiding his confufion; all the ghofts of Styx must be witnef fes of it, to juftify the Gods, who have fo long fuffered this impious wretch to reign on the earth. This, Babylonian, is but the beginning of thy forrows; prepare thyfelf to be tried by' Minos the inflexible judge of hell.

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During this fpeech of the terrible Charon, the bark reached the shore of Pluto's realm. All the ghofts ran to view the living mortal that appeared in the boat in the midst of the dead; but the moment Telemachus fet his foot on the shore, they fled like the shades of night, which the leaft glimpse of day difperfes. Charon with a brow lefs wrinkled, and eyes lefs fierce than ufual, faid to the young Greek, Thou mortal beloved of the Gods, fince it is given thee to enter the kingdom of night, which is inacceffible to Ha

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royaume de la nuit, inacceffible aux autres vivans, hâte-toi d'aller où les Deftins t'appellent; va par ce chemin fombre au palais de Pluton, que tu trouveras fur fon trône; il te permettra d'entrer dans les lieux dont il m'eft défendu de te découvrir le fecret.

Auffi-tôt Télémaque s'avance à grands pas. Il voit de tous côtés voltiger des ombres plus nombreufes que les grains de fable qui couvrent les rivages de la mer, & dans l'agitation de cette multitude infinie, il eft faifi d'une horreur divine, obfervant le profond filence de ces valtes lieux. Ses cheveux fe dreffent fur la tête 9 quand il aborde le noir féjour de l'impitoyable Pluton; il fent fes genoux chancelans, la voix lui manque; & c'eft avec peine qu'il peut prononcer aux Dieux ces paroles: Vous voyez, ô terrible Divinité, le fils du malheureux Ulyffe, je viens vous demander fi mon pere eft defcendu dans votre empire, ou s'il est encore errant fur la terre.

Pluton étoit fur un trône d'ébène, fon vifage étoit pâle & févere, fes yeux creux & étincellans, fon front ridé & menaçant. La vue d'un homme vivant lui étoit odieufe, comme la lumiere offenfe les yeux des ani«, maux qui ont accoutumé de ne fortir de leurs retraites que pendant la nuit. A fon côté paroiffoit Proferpine, qui attiroit feule fes regards, & qui fembloit un peu adoucir fon cœur. Elle jouiffoit d'une beauté toujours nouvelle; mais elle paroiffoit avoir joint à fes graces divines je ne fais quoi de dur & de cruel de fon époux.

Aux pieds du trône étoit la mort pâle & dévorante avec fa faux tranchante qu'elle aiguifoit fans ceffe. Autour d'elle voloient les noirs foucils, les cruelles défiances, les vengeances toures dégoutantes de fang, & couvertes de plaies; les haines injustes; l'avarice qui fe ronge elle-même; le défefpoir qui fe déchire de fes propres mains; l'ambition forcenée qui renverse tout; la trahifon qui veut fe repaître de fang, & qui ne peut jouir des maux qu'elle a faits; l'envie qui verfe fon venin mortel autour d'elle, & qui fe tourne en rage dans l'impuiffance où elle eft de nuire; l'imoù piété qui fe creufe elle-même un abyme fans fond,

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the living, make hafte and go where the Deftinies call thee; go along this gloomy path to the palace of Pluto, whom you will find on his throne; he will permit you to enter regions whofe fecrets I am forbidden to difcover to you.

Hereupon Telemachus advances with hafty fteps. He fees on all fides fluttering shades more numerous than the grains of fand on the fea-shore; and obferving the confusion and hurry of this infinite multitude, and the profound filence of thefe fpacious regions, he is ftruck with an holy fear. His hair rifes upright on his head, on his arrival at the inexorable Pluto's dreary abode; his knees tremble, his voice fails him, and it is with difficulty that he is able to address these words to the God: You behold, O tremendous Deity, the fon of the unhappy Ulyffes; I am come to enquire if my father be defcended into your empire, or if he be Atill wandering on the earth.

Pluto was feated on a throne of ebony. His coun tenance was pale and fevere, his eyes hollow and fparkling his brows wrinkled and threatning. The fight of a living ran was hateful to him, as the light is offenfive to the eyes of animals that are ufed to go out of their retreats only by night. By his fide appeared Proferpine, who alone attracted his looks, and feemed a little to mollify his heart. She enjoyed an ever blooming beauty; but she feemed to have joined to her divine charms I know not what of the obduracy and cruelty of her husband.

At the foot of the throne was pale devouring death, with his keen fcythe, which he was continually wheting. Around him hovered gloomy cares, cruel jealoufy, revenge all dropping with blood and covered with wounds; groundlefs hate; avarice gnawing her own flesh; defpair rending herself with her own hands; mad ambition overthrowing every thing; treafon thirsting for blood, and unable to enjoy the evils she had occafioned; envy pouring her deadly venom around her, and raging at her want of power to injure; impiety digging a bottomlefs pit, and flinging herfelf in defpair into it; ghaftly spectres; phan

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