Page:Thirty poems (IA thirtypoems00bryarich).pdf/177

This page has been proofread, but needs to be validated.
FIFTH BOOK OF HOMER'S ODYSSEY.
171
A huge and frightful billow broke; it whirledThe raft around, and far from it he fell.His hands let go the rudder; a fierce rushOf all the winds together snapped in twainThe mast; far off the yard and canvas flewInto the deep; the billow held him longBeneath the waters, and he strove in vainQuickly to rise to air from that huge swellOf ocean, for the garments weighed him downWhich fair Calypso gave him. But, at length,Emerging, he rejected from his throatThe bitter brine that down his forehead streamed.Even then, though hopeless with dismay, his thoughtWas on the raft, and, struggling through the waves,He seized it, sprang on board, and seated thereEscaped the threatened death. Still to and froThe rolling billows drove it. As the windIn autumn sweeps the thistles o'er the field,
This article is issued from Wikisource. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.