CHAPTER XXIX. After Twenty Years.

“How terrible is time! his solemn years,

The tombs of all our hopes and all our fears,

In silent horror roll! the gorgeous throne,

The pillared arch, the monumental stone,

Melt in swift ruin; and of mighty¹ climes,

Where Fame told tales of virtues² and of crimes,

Where Wisdom taught, and Valor³ woke to strife⁴,

And Art’s creations breathed their mimic⁵ life,

And the young poet when the stars shone high

Drank the deep rapture⁶ of the quiet sky,

Naught⁷ now remains⁸ but Nature’s placid⁹ scene,

Heaven’s deathless blue and earth’s eternal green.”

Winthrop Mackworth Præd.

To Themistocles in Magnesia, greetings from Zopyrus at Gela in Sicily:—

After a silence of many years I write you again of affairs of state and even of many personal things which I know will be of interest to you. I want to assure you, my friend that I have never doubted your true loyalty¹⁰ to Athens, and I write you freely knowing that Greece is dearer to you than Persia. Your memory is and always will be in the hearts of the majority, for who can forget the glories of Salamis and the hero to whom we owe that victory!
217

Would that you could once more behold¹¹ Athens—our Athens—and yet not as she was in the years that you, my dear friend, walked her streets, stood in her buzzing mart, or ascended¹² her divine hill. The crystalline air, the song of the nightingale in the olive groves¹³, the shaggy peak of Hymettus, the blue of the bay, and the familiar rose-tinted rock of the Acropolis—these the Persian has been unable to destroy.

Your once hated rival Aristides is dead. I know that though bitter enmity once filled your heart, you will regret to hear that he died so poor that he was buried at the public expense. After his death Cimon became undisputed leader, and greatly has Athens been benefitted by the rule of this brilliant man whom we knew well as a youth. But alas¹⁴, for the brevity of popular favor! But a few years ago he was ostracized¹⁵ by the most talked of man in all Athens today, Pericles, son of Xanthippus. On the eve of the battle of Tanagra, Cimon left his place of banishment¹⁶ and fought bravely with the Athenians against the Spartans¹⁷. This so pleased Pericles that he proposed a measure recalling Cimon from exile and it was passed by the assembly. Cimon has succeeded in putting down many revolts, and you know of his great victory over the Persians in Asia. From the proceeds from the spoils of this battle he had planned to build a temple to Athena, but this work is being carried on by Pericles. It is plain that Cimon, however sincerely he had the welfare of his city at heart, was too fond of personal praise and worship. He failed in his attempt to unite Athens and Sparta. Pericles stands for the independence of Athens and for pure democracy.
218

During the Thasian Revolt about ten years ago, Mimnermus distinguished¹⁸ himself by bravery, but he confided¹⁹ to us that he did not relish²⁰ the task of overseeing the Thacians tear down their walls at the command of the Athenians, for his brother-in-law, Polygnotus, was a native of Thasos. Mimnermus is now at Aegina helping²¹ to suppress a similar revolt.

And now I will tell you of Polygnotus. He and other artists adorned²² the interior of the Painted Porch with mural pictures of great beauty representing scenes from the myths and from recent history. Polygnotus married Eumetis, the daughter of Pasicles, and to this union were born three daughters, Corinna, Cleodice and Neobule. Pasicles resides with his daughter and her husband, but his wife, Cleodice, whose health failed rapidly after the death of her daughter, Corinna, died within a few years after that tragic²³ event.

I know it will interest you to hear of Ladice and Lysimachus, both of whom spoke²⁴ of you affectionately whenever we met while in Athens. Their son, Aristides, in whom they feel the usual pride common to parents of an only child, gives promise of exceptional ability along the lines of his grandfather, and if I may say so, his foster-grandparent.
219

Yesterday I stood at a newly made grave on the banks of a river which pours its waters into the African Sea. In the distance to the north stretched the wheat-bearing land of Gela. Before I could give my thoughts wholly to the honored dead, I gazed with pride and happiness upon the family with which I have been blessed. My eldest²⁵ son Phales, stood by my side, stalwart of body and thoughtful of mind, not unlike his grandfather, Aeschylus. Persephone, our eldest daughter is very like her mother was at her age, so it is needless to mention here the pride I feel in her. My second son Masistius, at times reminds me of my father, Artaphernes, but the loving guidance of his mother has softened²⁶ the severity that was his grandfather’s. The youngest child, a daughter, Protomache, stood upon this occasion with tears in her usually laughing eyes. She clung tightly to the hand of her mother whose eyes rested lovingly upon each member of the little group in turn.

Then in low tones and with head bent²⁷ in a reverent²⁸ attitude, Persephone my dear wife, read this epitaph which was engraved²⁹ upon the tomb:

“This tomb the dust of Aeschylus doth hide—

Euphorion’s son and fruitful Gela’s pride;

How famed his valor Marathon may tell,

And long-haired Medes, who knew it all too well.”

As the last word trembled into a silence that seemed to permeate³⁰ Nature all about us, a few lines that had been composed by Aeschylus on the subject of death, came to my mind, and I could not but repeat them upon this occasion:

“Smitten by Him, from towering hopes degraded,

Mortals lie low and still;

Tireless and effortless works forth³¹ its will

The arm divine!

God from His holy seat, in calm of unarmed power,

Brings forth the deed at its appointed hour!”

The End.

1 mighty   

adj.强有力的；巨大的

参考例句：

• A mighty force was about to break loose.一股巨大的力量即将迸发而出。
• The mighty iceberg came into view.巨大的冰山出现在眼前。

2 virtues   

美德( virtue的名词复数 )； 德行； 优点； 长处

参考例句：

• Doctors often extol the virtues of eating less fat. 医生常常宣扬少吃脂肪的好处。
• She delivered a homily on the virtues of family life. 她进行了一场家庭生活美德方面的说教。

3 valor   

n.勇气，英勇

参考例句：

• Fortitude is distinct from valor.坚韧不拔有别于勇猛。
• Frequently banality is the better parts of valor.老生常谈往往比大胆打破常规更为人称道。

4 strife   

n.争吵，冲突，倾轧，竞争

参考例句：

• We do not intend to be drawn into the internal strife.我们不想卷入内乱之中。
• Money is a major cause of strife in many marriages.金钱是造成很多婚姻不和的一个主要原因。

5 mimic   

v.模仿，戏弄；n.模仿他人言行的人

参考例句：

• A parrot can mimic a person's voice.鹦鹉能学人的声音。
• He used to mimic speech peculiarities of another.他过去总是模仿别人讲话的特点。

6 rapture   

n.狂喜；全神贯注；着迷；v.使狂喜

参考例句：

• His speech was received with rapture by his supporters.他的演说受到支持者们的热烈欢迎。
• In the midst of his rapture,he was interrupted by his father.他正欢天喜地，被他父亲打断了。

7 naught   

n.无，零 [=nought]

参考例句：

• He sets at naught every convention of society.他轻视所有的社会习俗。
• I hope that all your efforts won't go for naught.我希望你的努力不会毫无结果。

8 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

9 placid   

adj.安静的，平和的

参考例句：

• He had been leading a placid life for the past eight years.八年来他一直过着平静的生活。
• You should be in a placid mood and have a heart-to- heart talk with her.你应该心平气和的好好和她谈谈心。

10 loyalty   

n.忠诚，忠心

参考例句：

• She told him the truth from a sense of loyalty.她告诉他真相是出于忠诚。
• His loyalty to his friends was never in doubt.他对朋友的一片忠心从来没受到怀疑。

11 behold   

v.看，注视，看到

参考例句：

• The industry of these little ants is wonderful to behold.这些小蚂蚁辛勤劳动的样子看上去真令人惊叹。
• The sunrise at the seaside was quite a sight to behold.海滨日出真是个奇景。

12 ascended   

v.上升，攀登( ascend的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He has ascended into heaven. 他已经升入了天堂。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The climbers slowly ascended the mountain. 爬山运动员慢慢地登上了这座山。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 groves   

树丛，小树林( grove的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The early sun shone serenely on embrowned groves and still green fields. 朝阳宁静地照耀着已经发黄的树丛和还是一片绿色的田地。
• The trees grew more and more in groves and dotted with old yews. 那里的树木越来越多地长成了一簇簇的小丛林，还点缀着几棵老紫杉树。

14 alas   

int.唉(表示悲伤、忧愁、恐惧等)

参考例句：

• Alas!The window is broken!哎呀！窗子破了！
• Alas,the truth is less romantic.然而，真理很少带有浪漫色彩。

15 ostracized   

v.放逐( ostracize的过去式和过去分词 )；流放；摈弃；排斥

参考例句：

• He was ostracized by his colleagues for refusing to support the strike. 他因拒绝支持罢工而受到同事的排斥。
• The family were ostracized by the neighborhood. 邻居们都不理睬那一家人。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

16 banishment   

n.放逐，驱逐

参考例句：

• Qu Yuan suffered banishment as the victim of a court intrigue. 屈原成为朝廷中钩心斗角的牺牲品，因而遭到放逐。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• He was sent into banishment. 他被流放。 来自辞典例句

17 spartans   

n.斯巴达（spartan的复数形式）

参考例句：

• The ancient Spartans used to expose babies that they did not want. 古斯巴达人常遗弃他们不要的婴儿。
• But one by one the Spartans fell. 可是斯巴达人一个一个地倒下了。

18 distinguished   

adj.卓越的，杰出的，著名的

参考例句：

• Elephants are distinguished from other animals by their long noses.大象以其长长的鼻子显示出与其他动物的不同。
• A banquet was given in honor of the distinguished guests.宴会是为了向贵宾们致敬而举行的。

19 confided   

v.吐露（秘密，心事等）( confide的过去式和过去分词 )；（向某人）吐露（隐私、秘密等）

参考例句：

• She confided all her secrets to her best friend. 她向她最要好的朋友倾吐了自己所有的秘密。
• He confided to me that he had spent five years in prison. 他私下向我透露，他蹲过五年监狱。 来自《简明英汉词典》

20 relish   

n.滋味，享受，爱好，调味品；vt.加调味料，享受，品味；vi.有滋味

参考例句：

• I have no relish for pop music.我对流行音乐不感兴趣。
• I relish the challenge of doing jobs that others turn down.我喜欢挑战别人拒绝做的工作。

21 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

22 adorned   

[计]被修饰的

参考例句：

• The walls were adorned with paintings. 墙上装饰了绘画。
• And his coat was adorned with a flamboyant bunch of flowers. 他的外套上面装饰着一束艳丽刺目的鲜花。

23 tragic   

adj.悲剧的，悲剧性的，悲惨的

参考例句：

• The effect of the pollution on the beaches is absolutely tragic.污染海滩后果可悲。
• Charles was a man doomed to tragic issues.查理是个注定不得善终的人。

24 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

25 eldest   

adj.最年长的，最年老的

参考例句：

• The King's eldest son is the heir to the throne.国王的长子是王位的继承人。
• The castle and the land are entailed on the eldest son.城堡和土地限定由长子继承。

26 softened   

（使）变软( soften的过去式和过去分词 )； 缓解打击； 缓和； 安慰

参考例句：

• His smile softened slightly. 他的微笑稍柔和了些。
• The ice cream softened and began to melt. 冰淇淋开始变软并开始融化。

27 bent   

n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的

参考例句：

• He was fully bent upon the project.他一心扑在这项计划上。
• We bent over backward to help them.我们尽了最大努力帮助他们。

28 reverent   

adj.恭敬的，虔诚的

参考例句：

• He gave reverent attention to the teacher.他恭敬地听老师讲课。
• She said the word artist with a gentle,understanding,reverent smile.她说作家一词时面带高雅，理解和虔诚的微笑。

29 engraved   

v.在（硬物）上雕刻（字，画等）( engrave的过去式和过去分词 )；将某事物深深印在（记忆或头脑中）

参考例句：

• The silver cup was engraved with his name. 银杯上刻有他的名字。
• It was prettily engraved with flowers on the back. 此件雕刻精美，背面有花饰图案。 来自《简明英汉词典》

30 permeate   

v.弥漫，遍布，散布；渗入，渗透

参考例句：

• Water will easily permeate a cotton dress.水很容易渗透棉布衣服。
• After a while it begins to permeate through your skin.过了一会，它会开始渗入你的皮肤。

31 forth   

adv.向前；向外，往外

参考例句：

• The wind moved the trees gently back and forth.风吹得树轻轻地来回摇晃。
• He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。