661With such talk and more they filled the long day. 662The last part of the daylight was given to the table, the night to sleep. 663The golden Sun had raised his radiance (the east wind was still blowing and held back the sails that were to return): the sons of Pallas come to Cephalus, who was older, and Cephalus together with the sons of Pallas to the king. 667But deep sleep still held the king. 668Phocus, son of Aeacus, receives them on the threshold: for Telamon and his brother were levying men for the war. 670Phocus leads the Athenians into an inner space and beautiful recesses, and sits down himself together with them.
672He notices that the grandson of Aeolus carries in his hand a javelin made from an unknown tree, whose point was gold. 674After saying a few things first in the midst of their talk, he says, 'I am devoted to the woods and the slaughter of wild beasts: yet from what wood the shaft you hold was cut I have long been wondering. 677Certainly if it were ash, it would be tawny in colour; 678if cornel, there would be knots in it. 679Where it comes from, I do not know. 679But my eyes have never seen a more beautiful weapon for throwing than that.' 681One of the Athenian brothers takes him up and says, 'You will marvel at its use, greater even than its beauty.
683It reaches whatever it aims at, and chance does not steer it once thrown, and it flies back bloody with no one to bring it back.' 685Then indeed the young grandson of Nereus asks everything: why it is so, where it came from, who was the giver of so great a gift. 687What he asks, the other tells. 687But (to tell it brings shame!) at what price he got it he keeps silent; 688and touched with grief for his lost wife, he speaks thus with welling tears: 'This weapon, son of a goddess (who could believe it?), makes me weep and will make me weep long, if the fates grant me to live long.
692This destroyed me together with my dear wife: would that I had always been without this gift! 694There was Procris (if perhaps Orithyia has come more to your ears), the sister of ravished Orithyia; if you wished to compare the looks and character of the two, she herself was the worthier to be ravished. 697Her father Erechtheus joined her to me, love joined her to me. 698I was called happy, and so I was. 699The gods did not see it so, or perhaps I would be happy even now. 700The second month after our marriage rites was passing, when, as I was spreading nets for horned stags, saffron Aurora, having routed the darkness, sees me in the morning from the top of ever-flowering Hymettus, and carries me off against my will.
704May I be allowed to tell the truth, with the goddess's leave. 705Though she is a sight to see with her rosy face, though she holds the borders of light, holds the borders of night, though she is fed on the waters of nectar, I — I loved Procris: Procris was in my heart, Procris always on my lips. 709I kept speaking of the rites of the marriage bed and our new union and our recent wedding and the first compact of the bed I had deserted. 711The goddess was angered and, 'Stop your complaints, ungrateful man: keep your Procris!' 712she said. 712'But if my mind foresees truly, you will wish you had not kept her.' 713And in her anger she sent me back to her.
714As I return and turn over in my mind what the goddess had said, I began to fear that my wife had not kept her marriage vows well. 716Her beauty and her youth bade me believe in adultery; 717her character forbade me to believe it. 718But still, I had been away, and she from whom I was returning was herself an example of the crime, and we lovers fear everything. 720I resolve to look for something to grieve me, and to tempt her chaste fidelity with gifts. 721Aurora favours this fear and changes my form (I seem to have felt it). 723I enter Pallas' Athens, not to be recognised, and go into my house.
724The house itself was free of fault, and showed signs of chastity, and was anxious for its master who had been carried off: only with difficulty, by a thousand tricks, was access made to the daughter of Erechtheus. 727When I saw her, I was dumbstruck, and almost abandoned the trial I had planned of her faithfulness. 728Wrongly I kept myself from confessing the truth, wrongly from kissing her, as I ought. 730She was sad (but yet no woman can be more beautiful than she was in her sadness), and burned with longing for her husband who had been snatched away. 732Imagine, Phocus, what beauty there was in her, whom grief itself so became.
734Why should I tell how often her chaste character repulsed my attempts, how often she said, "I keep myself for one man; 736wherever he is, I keep my joys for one man!" 737To whom in his right mind would that not have been proof enough of fidelity? 738I am not content, and I fight to my own wounding, until, by speaking of giving fortunes for a night, and by increasing my gifts, I at last forced her to hesitate. 741I cry out: "Shame on you (I am an impostor!), shame: the pretended adulterer was I, your true husband! 742you are caught, faithless woman, with me as witness!" 743She said nothing.
743Only, overcome by silent shame, she fled the treacherous threshold and her wicked husband with it; 745and offended with me, hating the whole race of men, she wandered in the mountains, devoting herself to Diana's pursuits. 747Then, deserted, I felt a more violent fire reach my bones. 748I begged pardon and confessed that I had sinned, and that I too, if such gifts were given, could have yielded to a like fault through gifts. 751When I had confessed this, having first avenged her wounded honour, she is restored to me and spends sweet years in harmony. 753She gives me besides, as if she had given herself as only a small gift, a dog as a present, of which Cynthia, when she gave it to her, had said, "It will surpass all in running."
756She gives me at the same time the javelin too, which, as you see, I hold in my hands. 757Do you ask what was the fate of the other gift? 758Hear something wondrous: you will be moved by the strangeness of the deed.