Chorus.
The dark wave whelm thee rounding ness on ness
Where Cyprus' forests clothe her capes of wrath,
And Nile, that mighty Nile which sent thee forth,
Strike out thy name—one insolent the less.
Herald.
Aboard! Aboard! The ship has put about
Ready to go to sea. Get thee aboard,
Or I will lug thee by the forelock.
[He rushes at the Danaides, followed by his men.
Chorus.
Father, a thing in human shape and yet
A lurker in the net
That Evil spins for mortal woe,
Like an industrious spider to and fro
Weaves link by link and thread by thread
Its latticed snare.
Earth, Mother Earth, the spectre dread,
The black nightmare
Drive far away,
Mother Earth! O Father Zeus, I pray!
Herald.
I am not fearful of your Argive Gods:
They suckled not my youth nor fed my age.
Chorus.
What shall I call thee? A two-footed snake,
A viper creeping from the brake
With venomed fang to bruise
My heel. O Mother Earth,
Drive hence the beast of monstrous birth!
Hear, Mother Earth! Hearken, O Father Zeus!
