r ridding the court of that unsavory morsel, as
they called him; but in their inward souls they would not have cared
if Irus had been victor, and Ulysses had taken the foil, but it was
mirth to them to see the beggars fight. In such pastimes and light
entertainments the day wore away.

When evening was come the suitors betook themselves to music and
dancing. And Ulysses leaned his back against a pillar from which
certain lamps hung which gave light to the dancers, and he made show
of watching the dancers, but very different thoughts were in his head.
And as he stood near the lamps, the light fell upon his head, which
was thin of hair and bald, as an old man's. And Eurymachus, a suitor,
taking occasion from some words which were spoken before, scoffed and
said, "Now I know for a certainty that some god lurks under the poor
and beggarly appearance of this man, for as he stands by the lamps,
his sleek head throws beams around it, like as it were a glory." And
another said, "He passes his time too not much unlike the gods, lazily
living exempt from labour, taking offerings of men." "I warrant," said
Eurymachus again, "he could not raise a fence or dig a ditch for his
livelihood, if a man would hire him to work in a garden."

"I wish," said Ulysses, "that you who speak this, and myself, were to
be tried at any task-work, that I had a good crooked scythe put in
my hand, that was sharp and strong, and you such another, where the
grass grew longest, to be up by day-break, mowing the meadows till
the sun went down, not tasting of food till we had finished, or that
we were set to plough four acres in one day of good glebe land, to
see whose furrows were evenest and cleanest, or that we might have
one wrestling-bout together, or that in our right hands a good
steel-headed lance were placed, to try whose blows fell heaviest and
thickest upon the adversary's head-piece. I would cause you such work,
as you should have small reason to reproach me with being slack at
work. But you would do well to spare me this reproach, and to save
your strength, till the owner of this house shall return, till the
day when Ulysses shall return, when returning he shall enter upon his
birth-right."

This was a galling speech to those suitors, to whom Ulysses's return
was indeed the thing which they most dreaded; and a sudden fear fell
upon their souls, as if they were sensible of the real presence of
that man who did indeed stand amongst them, but no