e crept between two thick olive
trees that grew close together and made a shelter against the wind, and
he covered himself all over thickly with fallen dry leaves, till he grew
warm again and fell into a deep sleep.

While Ulysses slept, alone and naked in an unknown land, a dream came to
beautiful Nausicaa, the daughter of the King of that country, which is
called Phaeacia. The dream was in the shape of a girl who was a friend
of Nausicaa, and it said: 'Nausicaa, how has your mother such a careless
daughter? There are many beautiful garments in the house that need to be
washed, against your wedding day, when, as is the custom, you must give
mantles and tunics to the guests. Let us go a washing to the river
to-morrow, taking a car to carry the raiment.'

When Nausicaa wakened next day she remembered the dream, and went to her
father, and asked him to lend her a car to carry the clothes. She said
nothing about her marriage day, for though many young princes were in
love with her, she was in love with none of them. Still, the clothes
must be washed, and her father lent her a waggon with a high frame, and
mules to drive. The clothes were piled in the car, and food was packed
in a basket, every sort of dainty thing, and Nausicaa took the reins and
drove slowly while many girls followed her, her friends of her own age.
They came to a deep clear pool, that overflowed into shallow paved runs
of water, and there they washed the clothes, and trod them down in the
runlets. Next they laid them out to dry in the sun and wind on the
pebbles, and then they took their meal of cakes and other good things.

When they had eaten they threw down their veils and began to play at
ball, at a game like rounders. Nausicaa threw the ball at a girl who was
running, but missed her, and the ball fell into the deep swift river.
All the girls screamed and laughed, and the noise they made wakened
Ulysses where he lay in the little wood. 'Where am I?' he said to
himself; 'is this a country of fierce and savage men? A sound of girls
at play rings round me. Can they be fairies of the hill tops and the
rivers, and the water meadows?' As he had no clothes, and the voices
seemed to be voices of women, Ulysses broke a great leafy bough which
hid all his body, but his feet were bare, his face was wild with
weariness, and cold, and hunger, and his hair and beard were matted and
rough with the salt water.

The girls, when they saw such a face peering over th