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HOMER's BATRACHOMUOMACHIA:

OR, THE BATTEL OF THE FROGS and MICE.

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Names of the MICE.

  • PSYCARPAX, One who plunders Granaries.
  • Troxartas, A Bread-eater.
  • Lychomile, A Licker of Meal.
  • Pternotractas, A Bacon-eater.
  • Lychopinax, A Licker of Dishes.
  • Embasichytros, A creeper into Pots.
  • Lychenor, A Name from Licking.
  • Troglodytes, One who runs into Holes.
  • Artophagus, Who feeds on Bread.
  • Tyroglyphus, A Cheese Scooper,
  • Pternoglyphus, A Bacon Scooper.
  • Pternophogus, A Bacon eater.
  • Cnissodioctes, One who follows the Steam of Kitchins.
  • Sitophagus, An eater of Wheat.
  • Meridarpax, One who plunders his Share.

Names of the FROGS.

  • PHYSIGNATHUS, One who swells his Cheeks.
  • Pelus A Name from Mud.
  • Hydromeduse, A Ruler in the Waters.
  • Hypsiboas, A loud Bawler.
  • Pelion, From Mud.
  • Seutlaeus, Call'd from the Beets.
  • Polyphonus, A great Babbler.
  • Lymnocharis, One who loves the Lake.
  • Crambophagus, Cabbage-eater.
  • Lymnisius, Call'd from the Lake.
  • Calaminthius, From the Herb.
  • Hydrocharis, Who loves the Water.
  • Borborocates, Who lies in the Mud.
  • Prassophagus, An eater of Garlick.
  • Pelusius, From Mud.
  • Pelobates, Who walks in the Dirt.
  • Prassaeus, Call'd from Garlick.
  • Craugasides, From Croaking.
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HOMER's BATTEL of the FROGS, &c.

BOOK I.

1 TO fill my rising Song with sacred Fire,
2 Ye tuneful Nine, ye sweet Celestial Quire!
3 From Helicon's imbow'ring Height repair,
4 Attend my Labours, and reward my Pray'r.
5 The dreadful Toils of raging Mars I write,
6 The Springs of Contest, and the Fields of Fight;
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7 How threat'ning Mice advanc'd with warlike Grace,
8 And wag'd dire Combats with the croaking Race.
9 Not louder Tumults shook Olympus' Tow'rs,
10 When Earth-born Giants dar'd Immortal Pow'rs.
11 These equal Acts an equal Glory claim,
12 And thus the Muse records the Tale of Fame.
13 Once on a Time, fatigu'd and out of Breath,
14 And just escap'd the stretching Claws of Death,
15 A Gentle Mouse, whom Cats pursu'd in vain,
16 Fled swift-of-foot across the neighb'ring Plain,
17 Hung o'er a Brink, his eager Thirst to cool.
18 And dipt his Whiskers in the standing Pool;
19 When near a courteous Frog advanc'd his Head;
20 And from the Waters, hoarse-resounding said,
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21 What art thou, Stranger? What the Line you boast?
22 What Chance hath cast thee panting on our Coast?
23 With strictest Truth let all thy Words agree,
24 Nor let me find a faithless Mouse in thee.
25 If worthy Friendship, proffered Friendship take,
26 And ent'ring view the pleasureable Lake:
27 Range o'er my Palace, in my Bounty share,
28 And glad return from hospitable Fare.
29 This silver Realm extends beneath my Sway,
30 And me, their Monarch, all its Frogs obey.
31 Great Physignathus I, from Peleus' Race,
32 Begot in fair Hydromede's Embrace,
33 Where by the nuptial Bank that paints his Side,
34 The swift Eridanus delights to glide.
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35 Thee too, thy Form, thy Strength, and Port proclaim
36 A scepter'd King; a Son of Martial Fame;
37 Then trace thy Line, and Aid my guessing Eyes.
38 Thus ceas'd the Frog, and thus the Mouse replies.
39 Known to the Gods, the Men, the Birds that fly
40 Thro' wild Expanses of the midway Sky,
41 My Name resounds; and if unknown to thee,
42 The Soul of Great Psycarpax lives in me.
43 Of brave Troxartas' Line, whose sleeky Down
44 In Love compress'd Lychomile the brown.
45 My Mother she, and Princess of the Plains
46 Where-e'er her Father Pternotroctas reigns:
47 Born where a Cabin lifts its airy Shed,
48 With Figs, with Nuts, with vary'd Dainties fed.
49 But since our Natures nought in common know,
50 From what Foundation can a Friendship grow?
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51 These curling Waters o'er thy Palace roll;
52 But Man's high Food supports my Princely Soul.
53 In vain the circled Loaves attempt to lye
54 Conceal'd in Flaskets from my curious Eye,
55 In vain the Tripe that boasts the whitest Hue,
56 In vain the gilded Bacon shuns my View,
57 In vain the Cheeses, Offspring of the Pale,
58 Or honey'd Cakes, which Gods themselves regale,
59 And as in Arts I shine, in Arms I fight,
60 Mix'd with the bravest, and unknown to Flight.
61 Tho' large to mine the humane Form appear,
62 Not Man himself can smite my Soul with Fear.
63 Sly to the Bed with silent Steps I go,
64 Attempt his Finger, or attack his Toe,
65 And fix indented Wounds with dext'rous Skill,
66 Sleeping he feels, and only seems to feel.
67 Yet have we Foes which direful Dangers cause,
68 Grim Owls with Talons arm'd, and Cats with Claws,
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69 And that false Trap, the Den of silent Fate,
70 Where Death his Ambush plants around the Bait:
71 All-dreaded these, and dreadful o'er the rest
72 The potent Warriors of the tabby Vest,
73 If to the dark we fly, the Dark they trace,
74 And rend our Heroes of the nibling Race.
75 But me, nor Stalks, nor watrish Herbs delight,
76 Nor can the crimson Radish charm my Sight,
77 The Lake-resounding Frogs selected Fare,
78 Which not a Mouse of any Taste can bear.
79 As thus the downy Prince his Mind exprest,
80 His Answer thus the croaking King addrest.
81 Thy Words luxuriant on thy Dainties rove,
82 And, Stranger, we can boast of bounteous Jove:
83 We sport in Water, or we dance on Land,
84 And born amphibious, Food from both command.
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85 But trust thy self where Wonders ask thy View,
86 And safely tempt those Seas, I'll bear thee thro':
87 Ascend my Shoulders, firmly keep thy Seat,
88 And reach my marshy Court, and feast in State.
89 He said, and bent his Back; with nimble Bound
90 Leaps the light Mouse, and clasps his Arms around,
91 Then wond'ring floats, and sees with glad Survey
92 The winding Banks resembling Ports at Sea.
93 But when aloft the curling Water rides,
94 And wets with azure Wave his downy Sides,
95 His Thoughts grow conscious of approaching Woe,
96 His idle Tears with vain Repentance flow,
97 His Locks he rends, his trembling Feet he rears,
98 Thick beats his Heart with unaccustom'd Fears;
99 He sighs, and chill'd with Danger, longs for Shore:
100 His Tail extended forms a fruitless Oar,
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101 Half-drench'd in liquid Death his Pray'rs he spake,
102 And thus bemoan'd him from the dreadful Lake.
103 So pass'd Europa thro' the rapid Sea,
104 Trembling and fainting all the vent'rous Way;
105 With oary Feet the Bull triumphant road,
106 And safe in Crete depos'd his lovely Load.
107 Ah safe at last! may thus the Frog support
108 My trembling Limbs to reach his ample Court.
109 As thus he sorrows, Death ambiguous grows,
110 Lo! from the deep a Water-Hydra rose;
111 He rolls his sanguin'd Eyes, his Bosom heaves,
112 And darts with active Rage along the Waves.
113 Confus'd, the Monarch sees his hissing Foe,
114 And dives to shun the sable Fates below.
115 Forgetful Frog! The Friend thy Shoulders bore,
116 Unskill'd in Swimming, floats remote from Shore.
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117 He grasps with fruitless Hands to find Relief,
118 Supinely falls, and grinds his Teeth with Grief,
119 Plunging he sinks, and struggling mounts again,
120 And sinks, and strives, but strives with Fate in vain.
121 The weighty Moisture clogs his hairy Vest,
122 And thus the Prince his dying Rage exprest.
123 Nor thou, that flings me flound'ring from thy Back,
124 As from hard Rocks rebounds the shatt'ring Wrack,
125 Nor thou shalt'scape thy Due, perfidious King!
126 Pursu'd by Vengeance on the swiftest Wing:
127 At Land thy Strength could never equal mine,
128 At Sea to conquer, and by Craft, was thine.
129 But Heav'n has Gods, and Gods have searching Eyes:
130 Ye Mice, ye Mice, my great Avengers rise!
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131 This said, he sighing gasp'd, 'and gasping dy'd.
132 His Death the young Lychopinax espy'd,
133 As on the flow'ry Brink he pass'd the Day,
134 Bask'd in the Beams, and loyter'd Life away.
135 Loud shrieks the Mouse, his Shrieks the Shores repeat;
136 The nibbling Nation learn their Heroe's Fate:
137 Grief, dismal Grief ensues; deep Murmurs sound,
138 And shriller Fury fills the deafen'd Ground.
139 From Lodge to Lodge the sacred Heralds run,
140 To fix their Council with the rising Sun;
141 Where great Troxartas crown'd in Glory reigns,
142 And winds his length'ning Court beneath the Plains;
143 Psycarpax Father, Father now no more!
144 For poor Psycarpax lies remote from Shore;
145 Supine he lies! the silent Waters stand,
146 And no kind Billow wafts the Dead to Land!
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HOMER's BATTEL of the FROGS, &c.

BOOK II.

1 WHEN rosy-finger'd Morn had ting'd the Clouds,
2 Around their Monarch-Mouse the Nation crouds,
3 Slow rose the Sov'reign, heav'd his anxious Breast,
4 And thus, the Council fill'd with Rage, addrest.
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5 For lost Psycarpax much my Soul endures,
6 'Tis mine the private Grief, the publick, yours.
7 Three warlike Sons adorn'd my nuptial Bed,
8 Three Sons, alas, before their Father dead!
9 Our Eldest perished by the rav'ning Cat,
10 As near my Court the Prince unheedful sate.
11 Our next, an Engine fraught with Danger drew,
12 The Portal gap'd, the Bait was hung in View,
13 Dire Arts assist the Trap, the Fates decoy,
14 And Men unpitying kill'd my gallant Boy!
15 The last, his Country's Hope, his Parent's Pride,
16 Plung'd in the Lake by Physignathus, dy'd.
17 Rouse all the War, my Friends! avenge the Deed,
18 And bleed that Monarch, and his Nation bleed.
19 His Words in ev'ry Breast inspir'd Alarms,
20 And careful Mars supply'd their Host with Arms.
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21 In verdant Hulls despoil'd of all their Beans,
22 The buskin'd Warriors stalk'd along the Plains:
23 Quills aptly bound, their bracing Corselet made,
24 Fac'd with the Plunder of a Cat they flay'd:
25 The Lamp's round Boss affords their ample Shield;
26 Large Shells of Nuts their cov'ring Helmet yield;
27 And o'er the Region, with reflected Rays,
28 Tall Groves of Needles for their Lances blaze.
29 Dreadful in Arms the marching Mice appear;
30 The wond'ring Frogs perceive the Tumult near,
31 Forsake the Waters, thick'ning form a Ring,
32 And ask, and hearken, whence the Noises spring.
33 When near the Croud, disclos'd to publick View,
34 The valiant Chief Embasichytros drew:
35 The sacred Herald's Scepter grac'd his Hand,
36 And thus his Words exprest his King's Command.
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37 Ye Frogs! the Mic with Vengeance fir'd, advance,
38 And deckt in Armour shake the shining Lance:
39 Their hapless Prince by Physignathus slain,
40 Extends incumbent on the watry Plain.
41 Then arm your Host, the doubtful Battel try;
42 Lead forth those Frogs that have the Soul to die.
43 The Chief retires, the Crowd the Challenge hear,
44 And proudly-swelling yet perplex'd appear,
45 Much they resent, yet much their Monarch blame,
46 Who rising, spoke to clear his tainted Fame.
47 O Friends, I never forc'd the Mouse to Death,
48 Nor saw the Gaspings of his latest Breath.
49 He, vain of Youth, our Art of Swimming try'd '
50 And vent'rous, in the Lake the Wanton dy'd.
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51 To Vengeance now by false Appearance led,
52 They point their Anger at my guiltless Head.
53 But wage the rising War by deep Device,
54 And turn its Fury on the crafty Mice.
55 Your King directs the Way; my Thoughts elate
56 With Hopes of Conquest, form Designs of Fate.
57 Where high the Banks their verdant Surface heave,
58 And the steep Sides confine the sleeping Wave,
59 There, near the Margin, clad in Armour bright,
60 Sustain the first impetuous Shocks of Fight:
61 Then, where the dancing Feather joins the Crest,
62 Let each brave Frog his obvious Mouse arrest;
63 Each strongly grasping, headlong plunge a Foe,
64 'Till countless Circles whirl the Lake below;
65 Down sink the Mice in yielding Waters drown'd;
66 Loud flash the Waters; and the Shores resound:
67 The Frogs triumphant tread the conquer'd Plain,
68 And raise their glorious Trophies of the slain.
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69 He spake no more, his prudent Scheme imparts
70 Redoubling Ardour to the boldest Hearts.
71 Green was the Suit his arming Heroes chose,
72 Around their Legs the Greaves of Mallows close,
73 Green were the Beets about their Shoulders laid,
74 And green the Colewort, which the Target made.
75 Form'd of the vary'd Shells the Waters yield,
76 Their glossy Helmets glist'ned o'er the Field:
77 And tap'ring Sea-Reeds for the polish'd Spear,
78 With upright Order pierc'd the ambient Air.
79 Thus dress'd for War, they take th' appointed Height,
80 Poize the long Arms, and urge the promis'd Fight.
81 But now, where Jove's irradiate Spires arise,
82 With Stars surrounded in Aethereal Skies,
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83 (A Solemn Council call'd) the brazen Gates
84 Unbar; the Gods assume their golden Seats:
85 The Sire superior leans, and points to show
86 What wond'rous Combats Mortals wage below:
87 How strong, how large, the num'rous Heroes stride!
88 What Length of Lance they shake with warlike Pride!
89 What eager Fire, their rapid March reveals!
90 So the fierce Centaurs ravag'd o'er the Dales;
91 And so confirm'd, the daring Titans rose,
92 Heap'd Hills on Hills, and bid the Gods be Foes.
93 This seen, the Pow'r his sacred Visage rears,
94 He casts a pitying Smile on worldly Cares,
95 And asks what heav'nly Guardians take the List,
96 Or who the Mice, or who the Frogs assist?
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97 Then thus to Pallas. If my Daughter's Mind
98 Have join'd the Mice, why stays she still behind;
99 Drawn forth by sav'ry Steams they wind their Way,
100 And sure Attendance round thine Altar pay,
101 Where while the Victims gratify their Taste,
102 They sport to please the Goddess of the Feast.
103 Thus spake the Ruler of the spacious Skies,
104 But thus, resolv'd, the blue-ey'd Maid replies.
105 In vain, my Father! all their Dangers plead,
106 To such, thy Pallas never grants her Aid.
107 My flow'ry Wreaths they petulantly spoil,
108 And rob my chrystal Lamps of feeding Oil.
109 (Ills following Ills) but what afflicts me more,
110 My Veil, that idle Race profanely tore.
111 The Web was curious, wrought with Art divine;
112 Relentless Wretches! all the Work was mine!
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113 Along the Loom the purple Warp I spread,
114 Cast the light Shoot, and crost the silver Thread;
115 In this their Teeth a thousand Breaches tear,
116 The thousand Breaches skilful Hands repair,
117 For which vile earthly Dunns thy Daughter grieve,
118 (The Gods, that use no Coin, have none to give.
119 And Learning's Goddess never less can owe,
120 Neglected Learning gains no Wealth below.)
121 Nor let the Frogs to win my Succour sue,
122 Those clam'rous Fools have lost my Favour too.
123 For late, when all the Conflict ceast at Night,
124 When mystretch'd Sinews work'd with eager Fight,
125 When spent with glorious Toil, I left the Field,
126 And sunk for Slumber on my swelling Shield;
127 Lo from the Deep, repelling sweet Repose,
128 With noisy Croakings half the Nation rose:
129 Devoid of Rest, with aking Brows I lay,
130 'Till Cocks proclaim'd the crimson Dawn of Day.
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131 Let all, like me, from either Host forbear,
132 Nor tempt the flying Furies of the Spear.
133 Let heav'nly Blood (or what for Blood may flow)
134 Adorn the Conquest of a meaner Foe,
135 Some daring Mouse may meet the wond'rous Odds,
136 Tho' Gods oppose, and brave the wounded Gods.
137 O'er gilded Clouds reclin'd, the Danger view,
138 And be the Wars of Mortals Scenes for you.
139 So mov'd the blue-ey'd Queen; her Words persuade,
140 Great Jove assented, and the rest obey'd.
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HOMER's BATTEL of the: FROGS, &c.

BOOK III.

1 NOW Front to Front the marching Armies shine,
2 Halt e'er they meet, and form the length'ning Line:
3 The Chiefs conspicuous seen and heard afar,
4 Give the loud Signal to the rushing War;
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5 Their dreadful Trumpets deep mouth'd Hornets sound,
6 The sounded Charge remurmurs o'er the Ground,
7 Ev'n Jove proclaims a Field of Horror nigh,
8 And rolls low Thunder thro' the troubled Sky.
9 First to the Fight the large Hypsiboas flew,
10 And brave Lychenor with a Javelin slew.
11 The luckless Warrior fill'd with gen'rous Flame,
12 Stood foremost glitt'ring in the Post of Fame;
13 When in his Liver struck, the Jav'lin hung;
14 The Mouse fell thund'ring, and the Target rung;
15 Prone to the Ground he sinks his closing Eye,
16 And soil'd in Dust his lovely Tresses lie.
17 A Spear at Pelion Troglodytes cast,
18 The missive Spear within the Bosom past;
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19 Death's sable Shades the fainting Frog surround,
20 And Life's red Tide runs ebbing from the Wound.
21 Embasichytros felt Seutlaeus' Dart
22 Transfix, and quiver in his panting Heart;
23 But great Artophagus aveng'd the slain,
24 And big Seutlaeus tumbling loads the Plain,
25 And Polyphonus dies, a Frog renown'd,
26 For boastful Speech and Turbulence of Sound;
27 Deep thro' the Belly pierc'd, supine he lay,
28 And breath'd his Soul against the Face of Day.
29 The strong Lymnocharis, who view'd with Ire,
30 A Victor triumph, and a Friend expire;
31 And fiercely flung where Troglodytes fought;
32 With heaving Arms a rocky Fragment caught,
33 (A Warrior vers'd in Arts, of sure Retreat,
34 But Arts in vain elude impending Fate;)
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35 Full on his sinewy Neck the Fragment fell,
36 And o'er his Eye-lids Clouds eternal dwell.
37 Lychenor (second of the glorious Name)
38 Striding advanc'd, and took no wand'ring Aim;
39 Thro' all the Frog the shining Jav'lin flies,
40 And near the vanquish'd Mouse the Victor dies;
41 The dreadful Stroke Crambophagus affrights,
42 Long bred to Banquets, less inur'd to Fights,
43 Heedless he runs, and stumbles o'er the Steep,
44 And wildly flound'ring flashes up the Deep;
45 Lychenor following with a downward Blow,
46 Reach'd in the Lake his unrecover'd Foe;
47 Gasping he rolls, a purple Stream of Blood
48 Distains the Surface of the Silver Flood;
49 Thro' the wide Wound the rushing Entrails throng,
50 And slow the breathless Carkass floats along.
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51 Lymnisius good Tyroglyphus assails,
52 Prince of the Mice that haunt the flow'ry Vales,
53 Lost to the milky Fares and rural Seat,
54 He came to perish on the Bank of Fate.
55 The dread Pternoglyphus demands the Fight,
56 Which tender Calaminthius shuns by Flight,
57 Drops the green Target, springing quits the Foe,
58 Glides thro' the Lake, and safely dives below.
59 But dire Pternophagus divides his Way
60 Thro' breaking Ranks, and leads the dreadful Day.
61 No nibbling Prince excell'd in Fierceness more,
62 His Parents fed him on the savage Boar;
63 But where his Lance the Field with Blood imbru'd,
64 Swift as he mov'd, Hydrocharis pursu'd,
65 'Till fall'n in Death he lies, a shatt'ring Stone
66 Sounds on the Neck, and crushes all the Bone,
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67 His Blood pollutes the Verdure of the Plain,
68 And from his Nostrils bursts the gushing Brain.
69 Lycopinax with Borbocaetes fights
70 A blameless Frog, whom humbler Life delights;
71 The fatal Jav'lin unrelenting flies,
72 And Darkness seals the gentle Croaker's Eyes.
73 Incens'd Prassophagus with spritely Bound,
74 Bears Cnissiodortes off the rising Ground,
75 Thendragshim o'er the Lake depriv'd of Breath,
76 And downward plunging, sinks his Soul to Death.
77 But now the great Psycarpax shines afar,
78 (Scarce he so great whose Loss provok'd the War)
79 Swift to Revenge his fatal Jav'lin fled,
80 And thro' the Liver struck Pelusius dead;
81 His freckled Corps before the Victor fell,
82 His Soul indignant fought the Shades of Hell.
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83 This saw Pelobates, and from the Flood
84 Heav'd with both Hands a monst'rous Mass of Mud,
85 The Cloud obscene o'er all the Hero flies,
86 Dishonours his brown Face, and blots his Eyes.
87 Enrag'd, and wildly sputt'ring, from the Shore
88 A Stone immense of Size the Warrior bore,
89 A Load for lab'ring Earth, (whose Bulk to raise,
90 Asks ten degen'rate Mice of modern Days.)
91 Full on the Leg arrives the crushing Wound;
92 The Frog supportless, wriths upon the Ground.
93 Thus flush'd, the Victor wars with matchless Force,
94 'Till loud Craugasides arrests his Course,
95 Hoarse-croaking Threats precede! with fatal Speed
96 Deep thro' the Belly run the pointed Reed,
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97 Then strongly tug'd, return'd imbru'd with Gore,
98 And on the Pile his reeking Entrails bore.
99 The lame Sitophagus oppress'd with Pain,
100 Creeps from the desp'rate Dangers of the Plain;
101 And where the Ditches rising Weeds supply
102 To spread their lowly Shades beneath the Sky,
103 There lurks the silent Mouse reliev'd from Heat
104 And safe embowr'd, avoids the Chance of Fate.
105 But here Troxartes, Physignathus there,
106 Whirl the dire Furies of the pointed Spear:
107 But where the Foot around its Ankle plies,
108 Troxartes wounds, and Physignathus flies,
109 Halts to the Pool, a safe Retreat to find,
110 And trails a dangling Length of Leg behind.
111 The Mouse still urges, still the Frog retires,
112 And half in Anguish of the Flight expires:
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113 Then pious Ardor young Prassaeus brings,
114 Betwixt the Fortunes of contending Kings:
115 Lank, harmless Frog! with Forces hardly grown,
116 He darts the Reed in Combats not his own,
117 Which faintly tinkling on Troxartes' Shield,
118 Hangs at the Point, and drops upon the Field.
119 Now nobly tow'ring o'er the rest appears
120 A gallant Prince that far transcends his Years,
121 Pride of his Sire, and Glory of his House,
122 And more a Mars in Combat than a Mouse:
123 His Action bold, robust his ample Frame,
124 And Meridarpax his resounding Name.
125 The Warrior singled from the fighting Crowd,
126 Boasts the dire Honours of his Arms aloud;
127 Then strutting near the Lake, with Looks elate;
128 To all its Nations threats approaching Fate.
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129 And such his Strength, the Silver Lakes around
130 Might roll their Waters o'er unpeopled Ground.
131 But pow'rful Jove, who shews no less his Grace
132 To Frogs that perish, than to human Race,
133 Felt soft Compassion rising in his Soul,
134 And shook his sacred Head, that shook the Pole.
135 Then thus to all the gazing Pow'rs began
136 The Sire of Gods, and Frogs, and Mice, and Man,
137 What Seas of Blood I view! what Worlds of slain!
138 An Iliad rising from a Day's Campaign!
139 How fierce his Jav'lin o'er the trembling Lakes
140 The black-fur'd Hero Meridarpax shakes!
141 Unless some fav'ring Deity descend,
142 Soon will the Frogs loquacious Empire end.
143 Let dreadful Pallas wing'd with Pity fly,
144 And make her AEgis blaze before his Eye:
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145 While Mars refulgent on his ratling Car,
146 Arrests his raging Rival of the War.
147 He ceas'd, reclining with attentive Head,
148 When thus the glorious God of Combats said.
149 Nor Pallas, Jove! tho' Pallas take the Field,
150 With all the Terrors of her hissing Shield,
151 Nor Mars himself, tho' Mars in Armour bright
152 Ascend his Car, and wheel amidst the Fight;
153 Not these can drive the des'prate Mouse afar,
154 Or change the Fortunes of the bleeding War.
155 Let all go forth, all Heav'n in Arms arise,
156 Or launch thy own red Thunder from the Skies.]
157 Such ardent Bolts as flew that wond'rous Day,
158 When Heaps of Titans mix'd with Mountains lay,
159 When all the Giant-Race enormous fell,
160 And huge Enceladus was hurl'd to Hell.
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161 'Twas thus th' Armipotent advis'd the Gods,
162 When from his Throne the Cloud-Compeller nods,
163 Deep length'ning Thunders run from Pole to Pole,
164 Olympus trembles as the Thunders roll.
165 Then swift he whirls the brandish'd Bolt around,
166 And headlong darts it at the distant Ground,
167 The Bolt discharg'd inwrap'd with Light'ning flies,
168 And rends its flaming Passage thro' the Skies,
169 Then Earth's Inhabitants, the Niblers, shake,
170 And Frogs, the Dwellers in the Waters, quake.
171 Yet still the Mice advance their dread Design,
172 And the last Danger threats the croaking Line,
173 'Till Jove that inly mourn'd the Loss they bore,
174 With strange Assistants fill'd the frighted Shore.
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175 Pour'd from the neighb'ring Strand, deform'd to View,
176 They march, a sudden unexpected Crew!
177 Strong Sutes of Armor round their Bodies close,
178 Which, like thick Anvils, blunt the Force of Blows;
179 In wheeling Marches turn'd oblique they go;
180 With Harpy Claws their Limbs divide below;
181 Fell Sheers the Passage to their Mouth command;
182 From out the Flesh their Bones by Nature stand;
183 Broad spread their Backs, their shining Shoulders rise;
184 Unnumber'd Joints distort their lengthen'd Thighs;
185 With nervous Cords their Hands are firmly brac'd;
186 Their round black Eye-balls in their Bosom plac'd;
187 On eight long Feet the wond'rous Warriors tread;
188 And either end alike supplies a Head.
189 These, mortal Wits to call the Crabs, agree,
190 The Gods have other Names for Things than we.
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191 Now where the Jointures from their Loins depend,
192 The Heroes Tails with sev'ring Grasps they rend.
193 Here, short of Feet, depriv'd the Pow'r to fly,
194 There, without Hands, upon the Field they lie.
195 Wrench'd from their Holds, and scatter'd all around,
196 The bended Lances heap the cumber'd Ground.
197 Helpless Amazement, Fear pursuing Fear,
198 And mad Confusion thro' their Host appear:
199 O'er the wild Wast with headlong Flight they go,
200 Or creep conceal'd in vaulted Holes below.
201 But down Olympus to the Western Seas
202 Far-shooting Phoebus drove with fainter Rays;
203 And a whole War (so Jove ordain'd) begun,
204 Was fought, and ceas'd, in one revolving Sun.

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About this text

Title (in Source Edition): HOMER's BATRACHOMUOMACHIA: OR, THE BATTEL OF THE FROGS and MICE.
Author: Thomas Parnell
Themes:
Genres: heroic couplet; narrative verse

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Source edition

Parnell, Thomas, 1679-1718. Poems on Several Occasions: Written by Dr. Thomas Parnell, Late Arch-Deacon of Clogher: and Published by Mr. Pope. London: printed for B. Lintot, 1722 [1721], pp. []-104. [8],221,[3]p.; 8⁰. (ESTC T42652; Foxon p. 554; OTA K041605.000) (Page images digitized from microfilm of a copy in the English Faculty Library, Oxford [XL62.1[Poe]].)

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