Lucian of Samosata, Cataplus, Austin Morris Harmon (Translator), 8

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CLOTHO

Come, let’s see who he is.

CYNISCUS

Megapenthes,¹ son of Lacydes, a tyrant.

CLOTHO

Aboard with you!

MEGAPENTHES

Oh no, good lady Clotho! Do let me go back to earth for a little while. Then [ll come of my own accord, you will find, without being summoned by anyone.

CLOTHO

Why is it that you want to go back?

MEGAPENTHES

Let me finish my house first, for the building has been left half-done.

CLOTHO

Nonsense! Come, get aboard.

MEGAPENTHES

It’s not much time that I ask for, Lady of Destiny; let me stay just this one day, till I can give my wife directions about my money—the place where I kept my great treasure buried.

CLOTHO

It is settled; you can’t be permitted.

MEGAPENTHES

Then is all that gold to be lost?

CLOTHO

No, it will not be lost. Be easy on that score your cousin Megacles will get it.

MEGAPENTHES

What an outrage! My enemy, whom I was too easy-going to put to death before I died?

CLOTHO

The very man; and he will outlive you forty years and a little more, taking over your concubines and your clothing and all your plate.

MEGAPENTHES

You are unjust, Clotho, to bestow my property on my worst enemies.

CLOTHO

Why, did not it formerly belong to Cydimachus, and did not you take it over after killing him and slaughtering his children upon him while the breath was still in his body?

MEGAPENTHES

But it was mine now.

CLOTHO

Well, the term of your ownership has now expired.

Cataplus. Lucian of Samosata. Austin Morris Harmon (Translator). United States. Perseus 5.0.

Funding provided by National Endowment for the Humanities.

Current edition Perseus

The Downward Journey, or the Tyrant (English) (Lucian, Vol. 2. Harmon, Austin Morris, editor. London: William Heinemann, Ltd.; Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1915.)

Editions (1)

Κατάπλους ἢ Τύραννος Perseus (Lucian, Vol. 2. Harmon, Austin Morris, editor. London: William Heinemann, Ltd.; Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1915.) — 8 focus

Κλωθώ

φέρʼ ἴδω τίς ἐστι.

Κυνίσκος¹

Μεγαπένθης ὁ Λακύδου, τύραννος.

Κλωθώ

Ἐπίβαινε σύ.

Μεγαπένθης

μηδαμῶς, ὦ δέσποινα Κλωθοῖ, ἀλλά με πρὸς ὀλίγον ἔασον ἀνελθεῖν. εἶτά σοι αὐτόματος ἥξω καλοῦντος μηδενός.

Κλωθώ

τί δὲ ἔστιν οὗ χάριν ἀφικέσθαι θέλεις;

Μεγαπένθης

τὴν οἰκίαν ἐκτελέσαι μοι πρότερον ἐπίτρεψον· ἡμιτελὴς γὰρ ὁ δόμος καταλέλειπται.

Κλωθώ

ληρεῖς· ἀλλὰ ἔμβαινε.

Μεγαπένθης

οὐ πολὺν χρόνον, ὦ Μοῖρα, αἰτῶ· μίαν με ἔασον μεῖναι τήνδε ἡμέραν, ἄχρι ἄν τι ἐπισκήψω τῇ γυναικὶ περὶ τῶν χρημάτων, ἔνθα τὸν μέγαν εἶχον θησαυρὸν κατορωρυγμένον.

Κλωθώ

Ἄραρεν· οὐκ ἂν τύχοις.

Μεγαπένθης

ἀπολεῖται οὖν χρυσὸς τοσοῦτος;

Κλωθώ

οὐκ ἀπολεῖται. θάρρει τούτου γε ἕνεκα· Μεγακλῆς γὰρ αὐτὸν ὁ σὸς ἀνεψιὸς παραλήψεται.

Μεγαπένθης

ὢ τῆς ὕβρεως. ὁ ἐχθρός, ὃν ὑπὸ ῥᾳθυμίας ἔγωγε οὐ προαπέκτεινα;

Κλωθώ

ἐκεῖνος αὐτός· καὶ ἐπιβιώσεταί σοι ἔτη τετταράκοντα καὶ μικρόν τι πρός, τὰς παλλακίδας καὶ τὴν ἐσθῆτα καὶ τὸν χρυσὸν ὅλον σου παραλαβών.

Μεγαπένθης

ἀδικεῖς, ὦ Κλωθοῖ, τἀμὰ τοῖς πολεμιωτάτοις διανέμουσα.

Κλωθώ

σὺ γὰρ οὐχὶ Κυδιμάχου αὐτὰ ὄντα, ὦ γενναιότατε, παρειλήφεις ἀποκτείνας τε αὐτὸν καὶ τὰ παιδία ἔτι ἐμπνέοντι ἐπισφάξας;

Μεγαπένθης

ἀλλὰ νῦν ἐμὰ ἦν.

Κλωθώ

οὐκοῦν ἐξήκει σοι ὁ χρόνος ἤδη τῆς κτήσεως.

Translations (2)

Voyage To the Lower World Perseus (The Works of Lucian of Samosata, Vol. 1. Fowler, Henry Watson and Fowler, Francis George, translators. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1905.) — 8 focus

Clotho

Let me see; who is he?

Hermes

Megapenthes, son of Lacydes; tyrant.

Clotho

Come up, Megapenthes.

Megapenthes.

Nay, nay, my lady Clotho; suffer me to return for a little while, and I will come of my own accord, without waiting to be summoned,

Clotho

What do you want to go for?

Megapenthes.

I crave permission to complete my palace: I left the building half-finished.

Clotho

Pooh! Come along.

Megapenthes.

Oh Fate, I ask no long reprieve. Vouchsafe me this one day, that I may inform my wife where my great treasure lies buried.

Clotho

Impossible. 'Tis Fate’s decree.

Megapenthes.

And all that money is to be thrown away?

Clotho

Not thrown away. Be under no uneasiness. Your cousin Megacles will take charge of it.

Megapenthes.

Oh, monstrous! My enemy, whom from sheer good-nature I omitted to put to death?

Clotho

The same. He will survive you for rather more than forty years; in the full enjoyment of your harem, your wardrobe, and your treasure.

Megapenthes.

It is too bad of you, Clotho, to hand over my property to my worst enemy.

Clotho

My dear sir, it was Cydimachus’s property first, surely? You only succeeded to it by murdering him, and butchering his children before his eyes.

Megapenthes.

Yes, but it was mine after that.

Clotho

Well, and now your term of possession expires.

The Ferry Perseus (Selections from Lucian. Smith, Emily James, translator. New York; Harper Brothers, 1892.) — 8 focus

Klotho

Come, let me know who he is.

Hermes

Megapenthes, son of Lakydes, a despot.

Klotho

Come aboard.

Megapenthes

Not for worlds, Madam Klotho. Let me go up for a little while. Then I will come to you by my own free-will at no one's summons.

Klotho

What is the reason you want to go?

Megapenthes

Give me time to finish my house. I left my dwelling behind half built.

Klotho

Nonsense! Get in.

Megapenthes

I do not ask for a long time, Fate. Let me stay just this one day, to appear to my wife and tell her something about my moneywhere I kept my great treasure hidden.

Klotho

It is fixed. You cannot do it.

Megapenthes

Then will all that gold be lost?

Klotho

Not at all; you may be at ease about that. Your cousin Megakles will get hold of it.

Megapenthes

Oh, what an affront! My enemy, whom I was too easy-going to put to death before me?

Klotho

The same. He will survive you forty years and something over, in possession of your harem and your clothes and all your wealth.

Mcgapenthes

It is unjust, Klotho, to assign my property to my greatest enemies.

Klotho

I suppose, my noble sir, that you did not seize it when it belonged to Kydimachos, murdering the man himself and then slaying his children on their father's warm body?

Search the Perseus Catalog for:

Search the Perseus Catalog for:

CLOTHO Come, let’s see who he is.

CYNISCUS Megapenthes, 1 son of Lacydes, a tyrant.

CLOTHO Aboard with you!

MEGAPENTHES Oh no, good lady Clotho! Do let me go back to earth for a little while. Then [ll come of my own accord, you will find, without being summoned by anyone.

CLOTHO Why is it that you want to go back?

MEGAPENTHES Let me finish my house first, for the building has been left half-done.

CLOTHO Nonsense! Come, get aboard.

MEGAPENTHES It’s not much time that I ask for, Lady of Destiny; let me stay just this one day, till I can give my wife directions about my money—the place where I kept my great treasure buried.

CLOTHO It is settled; you can’t be permitted.

MEGAPENTHES Then is all that gold to be lost?

CLOTHO No, it will not be lost. Be easy on that score your cousin Megacles will get it.

MEGAPENTHES What an outrage! My enemy, whom I was too easy-going to put to death before I died?

CLOTHO The very man; and he will outlive you forty years and a little more, taking over your concubines and your clothing and all your plate.

MEGAPENTHES You are unjust, Clotho, to bestow my property on my worst enemies.

CLOTHO Why, did not it formerly belong to Cydimachus, and did not you take it over after killing him and slaughtering his children upon him while the breath was still in his body?

MEGAPENTHES But it was mine now.

CLOTHO Well, the term of your ownership has now expired.

Current edition Perseus

Κλωθώ φέρʼ ἴδω τίς ἐστι.

Κυνίσκος 1 Μεγαπένθης ὁ Λακύδου, τύραννος.

Κλωθώ Ἐπίβαινε σύ.

Μεγαπένθης μηδαμῶς, ὦ δέσποινα Κλωθοῖ, ἀλλά με πρὸς ὀλίγον ἔασον ἀνελθεῖν. εἶτά σοι αὐτόματος ἥξω καλοῦντος μηδενός.

Κλωθώ τί δὲ ἔστιν οὗ χάριν ἀφικέσθαι θέλεις;

Μεγαπένθης τὴν οἰκίαν ἐκτελέσαι μοι πρότερον ἐπίτρεψον· ἡμιτελὴς γὰρ ὁ δόμος καταλέλειπται.

Κλωθώ ληρεῖς· ἀλλὰ ἔμβαινε.

Κλωθώ Ἄραρεν· οὐκ ἂν τύχοις.

Μεγαπένθης ἀπολεῖται οὖν χρυσὸς τοσοῦτος;

Κλωθώ οὐκ ἀπολεῖται. θάρρει τούτου γε ἕνεκα· Μεγακλῆς γὰρ αὐτὸν ὁ σὸς ἀνεψιὸς παραλήψεται.

Μεγαπένθης ὢ τῆς ὕβρεως. ὁ ἐχθρός, ὃν ὑπὸ ῥᾳθυμίας ἔγωγε οὐ προαπέκτεινα;

Κλωθώ ἐκεῖνος αὐτός· καὶ ἐπιβιώσεταί σοι ἔτη τετταράκοντα καὶ μικρόν τι πρός, τὰς παλλακίδας καὶ τὴν ἐσθῆτα καὶ τὸν χρυσὸν ὅλον σου παραλαβών.

Μεγαπένθης ἀδικεῖς, ὦ Κλωθοῖ, τἀμὰ τοῖς πολεμιωτάτοις διανέμουσα.

Κλωθώ σὺ γὰρ οὐχὶ Κυδιμάχου αὐτὰ ὄντα, ὦ γενναιότατε, παρειλήφεις ἀποκτείνας τε αὐτὸν καὶ τὰ παιδία ἔτι ἐμπνέοντι ἐπισφάξας;

Μεγαπένθης ἀλλὰ νῦν ἐμὰ ἦν.

Κλωθώ οὐκοῦν ἐξήκει σοι ὁ χρόνος ἤδη τῆς κτήσεως.

Clotho Let me see; who is he?

Hermes Megapenthes, son of Lacydes; tyrant.

Clotho Come up, Megapenthes.

Megapenthes. Nay, nay, my lady Clotho; suffer me to return for a little while, and I will come of my own accord, without waiting to be summoned,

Clotho What do you want to go for?

Megapenthes. I crave permission to complete my palace: I left the building half-finished.

Clotho Pooh! Come along.

Megapenthes. Oh Fate, I ask no long reprieve. Vouchsafe me this one day, that I may inform my wife where my great treasure lies buried.

Clotho Impossible. 'Tis Fate’s decree.

Megapenthes. And all that money is to be thrown away?

Clotho Not thrown away. Be under no uneasiness. Your cousin Megacles will take charge of it.

Megapenthes. Oh, monstrous! My enemy, whom from sheer good-nature I omitted to put to death?

Clotho The same. He will survive you for rather more than forty years; in the full enjoyment of your harem, your wardrobe, and your treasure.

Megapenthes. It is too bad of you, Clotho, to hand over my property to my worst enemy.

Clotho My dear sir, it was Cydimachus’s property first, surely? You only succeeded to it by murdering him, and butchering his children before his eyes.

Megapenthes. Yes, but it was mine after that.

Clotho Well, and now your term of possession expires.

Klotho Come, let me know who he is.

Hermes Megapenthes, son of Lakydes, a despot.

Klotho Come aboard.

Megapenthes Not for worlds, Madam Klotho. Let me go up for a little while. Then I will come to you by my own free-will at no one's summons.

Klotho What is the reason you want to go?

Megapenthes Give me time to finish my house. I left my dwelling behind half built.

Klotho Nonsense! Get in.

Megapenthes I do not ask for a long time, Fate. Let me stay just this one day, to appear to my wife and tell her something about my moneywhere I kept my great treasure hidden.

Klotho It is fixed. You cannot do it.

Megapenthes Then will all that gold be lost?

Klotho Not at all; you may be at ease about that. Your cousin Megakles will get hold of it.

Megapenthes Oh, what an affront! My enemy, whom I was too easy-going to put to death before me?

Klotho The same. He will survive you forty years and something over, in possession of your harem and your clothes and all your wealth.

Mcgapenthes It is unjust, Klotho, to assign my property to my greatest enemies.

Klotho I suppose, my noble sir, that you did not seize it when it belonged to Kydimachos, murdering the man himself and then slaying his children on their father's warm body?

Megapenthes But at present it was mine.

Klotho Well, your time of possession had run out.

Notes on the current edition

Stable identifiers

CLOTHO

Come, let’s see who he is.

CYNISCUS

Megapenthes,¹ son of Lacydes, a tyrant.

CLOTHO

Aboard with you!

MEGAPENTHES

Oh no, good lady Clotho! Do let me go back to earth for a little while. Then [ll come of my own accord, you will find, without being summoned by anyone.

CLOTHO

Why is it that you want to go back?

MEGAPENTHES

Let me finish my house first, for the building has been left half-done.

CLOTHO

Nonsense! Come, get aboard.

MEGAPENTHES

It’s not much time that I ask for, Lady of Destiny; let me stay just this one day, till I can give my wife directions about my money—the place where I kept my great treasure buried.

CLOTHO

It is settled; you can’t be permitted.

MEGAPENTHES

Then is all that gold to be lost?

CLOTHO

No, it will not be lost. Be easy on that score your cousin Megacles will get it.

MEGAPENTHES

What an outrage! My enemy, whom I was too easy-going to put to death before I died?

CLOTHO

The very man; and he will outlive you forty years and a little more, taking over your concubines and your clothing and all your plate.

MEGAPENTHES

You are unjust, Clotho, to bestow my property on my worst enemies.

CLOTHO

Why, did not it formerly belong to Cydimachus, and did not you take it over after killing him and slaughtering his children upon him while the breath was still in his body?

MEGAPENTHES

But it was mine now.

CLOTHO

Well, the term of your ownership has now expired.

Κλωθώ

φέρʼ ἴδω τίς ἐστι.

Κυνίσκος¹

Μεγαπένθης ὁ Λακύδου, τύραννος.

Κλωθώ

Ἐπίβαινε σύ.

Μεγαπένθης

μηδαμῶς, ὦ δέσποινα Κλωθοῖ, ἀλλά με πρὸς ὀλίγον ἔασον ἀνελθεῖν. εἶτά σοι αὐτόματος ἥξω καλοῦντος μηδενός.

Κλωθώ

τί δὲ ἔστιν οὗ χάριν ἀφικέσθαι θέλεις;

Μεγαπένθης

τὴν οἰκίαν ἐκτελέσαι μοι πρότερον ἐπίτρεψον· ἡμιτελὴς γὰρ ὁ δόμος καταλέλειπται.

Κλωθώ

ληρεῖς· ἀλλὰ ἔμβαινε.

Κλωθώ

Ἄραρεν· οὐκ ἂν τύχοις.

Μεγαπένθης

ἀπολεῖται οὖν χρυσὸς τοσοῦτος;

Κλωθώ

οὐκ ἀπολεῖται. θάρρει τούτου γε ἕνεκα· Μεγακλῆς γὰρ αὐτὸν ὁ σὸς ἀνεψιὸς παραλήψεται.

Μεγαπένθης

ὢ τῆς ὕβρεως. ὁ ἐχθρός, ὃν ὑπὸ ῥᾳθυμίας ἔγωγε οὐ προαπέκτεινα;

Κλωθώ

ἐκεῖνος αὐτός· καὶ ἐπιβιώσεταί σοι ἔτη τετταράκοντα καὶ μικρόν τι πρός, τὰς παλλακίδας καὶ τὴν ἐσθῆτα καὶ τὸν χρυσὸν ὅλον σου παραλαβών.

Μεγαπένθης

ἀδικεῖς, ὦ Κλωθοῖ, τἀμὰ τοῖς πολεμιωτάτοις διανέμουσα.

Κλωθώ

σὺ γὰρ οὐχὶ Κυδιμάχου αὐτὰ ὄντα, ὦ γενναιότατε, παρειλήφεις ἀποκτείνας τε αὐτὸν καὶ τὰ παιδία ἔτι ἐμπνέοντι ἐπισφάξας;

Μεγαπένθης

ἀλλὰ νῦν ἐμὰ ἦν.

Κλωθώ

οὐκοῦν ἐξήκει σοι ὁ χρόνος ἤδη τῆς κτήσεως.

Clotho

Let me see; who is he?

Hermes

Megapenthes, son of Lacydes; tyrant.

Clotho

Come up, Megapenthes.

Megapenthes.

Nay, nay, my lady Clotho; suffer me to return for a little while, and I will come of my own accord, without waiting to be summoned,

Clotho

What do you want to go for?

Megapenthes.

I crave permission to complete my palace: I left the building half-finished.

Clotho

Pooh! Come along.

Megapenthes.

Oh Fate, I ask no long reprieve. Vouchsafe me this one day, that I may inform my wife where my great treasure lies buried.

Clotho

Impossible. 'Tis Fate’s decree.

Megapenthes.

And all that money is to be thrown away?

Clotho

Not thrown away. Be under no uneasiness. Your cousin Megacles will take charge of it.

Megapenthes.

Oh, monstrous! My enemy, whom from sheer good-nature I omitted to put to death?

Clotho

The same. He will survive you for rather more than forty years; in the full enjoyment of your harem, your wardrobe, and your treasure.

Megapenthes.

It is too bad of you, Clotho, to hand over my property to my worst enemy.

Clotho

My dear sir, it was Cydimachus’s property first, surely? You only succeeded to it by murdering him, and butchering his children before his eyes.

Megapenthes.

Yes, but it was mine after that.

Clotho

Well, and now your term of possession expires.

Klotho

Come, let me know who he is.

Hermes

Megapenthes, son of Lakydes, a despot.

Klotho

Come aboard.

Megapenthes

Not for worlds, Madam Klotho. Let me go up for a little while. Then I will come to you by my own free-will at no one's summons.

Klotho

What is the reason you want to go?

Megapenthes

Give me time to finish my house. I left my dwelling behind half built.

Klotho

Nonsense! Get in.

Megapenthes

I do not ask for a long time, Fate. Let me stay just this one day, to appear to my wife and tell her something about my moneywhere I kept my great treasure hidden.

Klotho

It is fixed. You cannot do it.

Megapenthes

Then will all that gold be lost?

Klotho

Not at all; you may be at ease about that. Your cousin Megakles will get hold of it.

Megapenthes

Oh, what an affront! My enemy, whom I was too easy-going to put to death before me?

Klotho

The same. He will survive you forty years and something over, in possession of your harem and your clothes and all your wealth.

Mcgapenthes

It is unjust, Klotho, to assign my property to my greatest enemies.

Klotho

I suppose, my noble sir, that you did not seize it when it belonged to Kydimachos, murdering the man himself and then slaying his children on their father's warm body?

Megapenthes

But at present it was mine.

Klotho

Well, your time of possession had run out.