The mirror. (Stillwater, Minn.) 1894-1925, 1906-06-07
H0MER'S LEGACY TO MANKIND,
in THREE PARTS.
Part III.-Odyssey.

-Odyssey.
~~.
der, the blinded giant jumped to his
feet, knocking scaffold and men into
all directions, and quickly placed a
huge rock before the cave entrance,
thereby making the entire party of
Greeks his prisoners. There they re.
mained many a long day, continually
lodging the hands of Polyphemus,
who was trying to get them into his
clutches. But Polyphemus had to let
out and in his sheep every morning
and evening, and he did this by raising
the rock just far enough to admit, or
let out one sheep at time, passing his
hands over each sheep, to make sure
that none of the Greeks could escape.
Odysseus finally got all his men out by
tying one under each sheep, and
then he also escaped by crawling thru
the opening under the last and biggest
of the sheep. All this is described by
Homer in a wonderfully humorous
manner. When Polyphemus felt his
largest and favorite sheep under his
hands, he held on to it a long while,
unburdening his great grief to the
dumb animal, and telling it of what
the villainous miscreant Odysseus had
done to him, and with what terrible
punishment he would revenge himself,
as soon as ever he got hold of his tor
mentor. Likewise the speech of
derision, made by Odysseus to Poly
phemus, when the former was safe on
board his ship once more, is magnifi-
cent example Of Homer's genius; but
it came near destroying the entire
Greek party, as Polyphemus hurled a
tremendous rock into the direction
from where he heard Odysseus' voice,
and missed the ship only by hairs
breadth. The ideas, underlying those
scenes, have furnished themes to many
poets and authors. George Du Mau-
rier's best scene in his "Trilby," when
Little Billee, sitting on the beach, tells
his ideas of religion to the dog Trix,
for instance, was modelled after Poly
phemus' talk to his sheep.
Sailing away from the land of
Cyclops, Odysseus was obliged to pass
thru the narrow straits separating the
Island of Sicily from the mainland.
On the Sicilian side is the Charybdis,
a great whirlpool, which drew in every
ship sailing near it, sprewing it out
again in fragments later on. To pass
there would have been certain destruc-
tion. Opposite to it, on the other shore
is great rock cave, wherein, according
to Homer, used to dwell a monstrous
dragon, called Scylla, whose portions
below the hips consisted of six fero-
cious dogs. Whenever a ship passed
on her side of the straits, Scylla would
descend upon it, seizing man in each
of her twelve forepaws, and devouring
them afterwards. These descents she
would repeat, as long as the ship was
in the straits. This risk Odysseus was
forced to encounter, and he lost twelve
of his men; but managed to get away
before Scylla could come again. Since
that time, these two rocks are geo.
graphically known as ScylIa and
Charybdis, and the passage is still haz-
ardous. The proYerb: "From Scylla
into Charybdis," is used by many
nations, and means the same as the
proverbial: From the frying pan into
the fire" of English speakers.
On another occasion, Odysseus had to
pass the island inhabited by the Sirens.
These were most beautiful sea nymphs,
who had such melodious and sweet
voices, that nobody had ever been able
to resist the temptation of going on
shore, when, passing the island in q
ship, they heard the singing and saw
the beckoning Of these alluring Sirens.
Another nymph, the gentle and ami.
able Calypso, on whose island Odysseus
had spent several pleasant months,
had cautioned him against the Sirens,
who invariably killed all the men they
could entice to their island. Fore
warned Is forearmed-not always, but
it was so with Odysseus this time,
When nearing the island, he ordered