down."

With these words she moved the heart of Helen to anger. When she marked
the beautiful neck of the goddess, her lovely bosom, and sparkling
eyes, she marvelled at her and said, "Goddess, why do you thus beguile
me? Are you going to send me afield still further to some man whom you
have taken up in Phrygia or fair Meonia? Menelaus has just vanquished
Alexandrus, and is to take my hateful self back with him. You are come
here to betray me. Go sit with Alexandrus yourself; henceforth be
goddess no longer; never let your feet carry you back to Olympus; worry
about him and look after him till he make you his wife, or, for the
matter of that, his slave--but me? I shall not go; I can garnish his
bed no longer; I should be a by-word among all the women of Troy.
Besides, I have trouble on my mind."

Venus was very angry, and said, "Bold hussy, do not provoke me; if you
do, I shall leave you to your fate and hate you as much as I have loved
you. I will stir up fierce hatred between Trojans and Achaeans, and you
shall come to a bad end."

At this Helen was frightened. She wrapped her mantle about her and went
in silence, following the goddess and unnoticed by the Trojan women.

When they came to the house of Alexandrus the maid-servants set about
their work, but Helen went into her own room, and the laughter-loving
goddess took a seat and set it for her facing Alexandrus. On this
Helen, daughter of aegis-bearing Jove, sat down, and with eyes askance
began to upbraid her husband.

"So you are come from the fight," said she; "would that you had fallen
rather by the hand of that brave man who was my husband. You used to
brag that you were a better man with hands and spear than Menelaus. Go,
then, and challenge him again--but I should advise you not to do so,
for if you are foolish enough to meet him in single combat, you will
soon fall by his spear."

And Paris answered, "Wife, do not vex me with your reproaches. This
time, with the help of Minerva, Menelaus has vanquished me; another
time I may myself be victor, for I too have gods that will stand by me.
Come, let us lie down together and make friends. Never yet was I so
passionately enamoured of you as at this moment--not even when I first
carried you off from Lacedaemon and sailed away with you--not even when
I had converse with you upon the couch of love in the island of Cranae
was I so enthralled by desire of you as now." On this he led her
towards the bed, and hi