§2.1τὸ δὲ ἀπὸ τούτου μηκέτι φέρων ἐγὼ τὴν ἐν τῷ κήτει δίαιταν ἀχθόμενός τε τῇ μονῇ μηχανήν τινα ἐζήτουν, διʼ ἧς ἂν ἐξελθεῖν γένοιτο·
But from this time on, no longer bearing the life in the whale and being vexed by the stay, I was seeking some device by which we might escape.
καὶ τὸ μὲν πρῶτον ἔδοξεν ἡμῖν διορύξασι κατὰ τὸν δεξιὸν τοῖχον ἀποδρᾶναι, καὶ ἀρξάμενοι διεκόπτομεν· ἐπειδὴ δὲ προελθόντες ὅσον πέντε σταδίους οὐδὲν ἠνύομεν, τοῦ μὲν ὀρύγματος ἐπαυσάμεθα, τὴν δὲ ὕλην καῦσαι διέγνωμεν· οὕτω γὰρ ἂν τὸ κῆτος ἀποθανεῖν· εἰ δὲ τοῦτο γένοιτο, ῥᾳδία ἔμελλεν ἡμῖν ἔσεσθαι ἡ ἔξοδος.
And at first it seemed best to us, having dug through the right wall, to run away, and having begun we were cutting through; but when, having advanced about five stadia, we accomplished nothing, we ceased from the digging, and decided to burn the forest; for [we thought] that in this way the whale would die; and if this should happen, our exit was likely to be easy for us.
ἀρξάμενοι οὖν ἀπὸ τῶν οὐραίων ἐκαίομεν, καὶ ἡμέρας μὲν ἑπτὰ καὶ ἴσας νύκτας ἀναισθήτως εἶχε τοῦ καύματος, ὀγδόῃ δὲ καὶ ἐνάτῃ συνίεμεν αὐτοῦ νοσοῦντος· ἀργότερον γοῦν ἀνέχασκεν, καὶ εἴ ποτε ἀναχάνοι, ταχὺ συνέμυεν.
Having begun therefore from the tail parts, we were burning it, and for seven days and an equal number of nights it was insensible of the burning, but on the eighth and ninth we perceived it being sick; at any rate, it yawned more sluggishly, and if ever it did open, it closed quickly.
δεκάτῃ δὲ καὶ ἑνδεκάτῃ τέλεον ἀπενεκροῦτο καὶ δυσῶδες ἦν· τῇ δωδεκάτῃ δὲ μόλις ἐνενοήσαμεν ὡς, εἰ μή τις χανόντος αὐτοῦ ὑποστηρίξειεν τοὺς γομφίους, ὥστε μηκέτι συγκλεῖσαι, κινδυνεύσομεν κατακλεισθέντες ἐν νεκρῷ αὐτῷ ἀπολέσθαι.
And on the tenth and eleventh it was completely mortifying and was foul-smelling; but on the twelfth we barely realized that, unless someone, when it yawned, propped up its molars so that it could no longer close, we should run the risk, being shut up in its corpse, of perishing.
οὕτω δὴ μεγάλοις δοκοῖς τὸ στόμα διερείσαντες τὴν ναῦν ἐπεσκευάζομεν ὕδωρ τε ὡς ἔνι πλεῖστον ἐμβαλλόμενοι καὶ τἆλλα ἐπιτήδεια· κυβερνήσειν δὲ ἔμελλεν ὁ Σκίνθαρος.
So indeed, having propped open the mouth with large beams, we fitted out the ship, putting on board as much water as possible and other provisions; and Scintharus was to steer.
§2.2τῇ δὲ ἐπιούσῃ τὸ μὲν ἤδη ἐτεθνήκει.
On the next day, it was already dead.
ἡμεῖς δὲ ἀνελκύσαντες τὸ πλοῖον καὶ διὰ τῶν ἀραιωμάτων διαγαγόντες καὶ ἐκ τῶν ὀδόντων ἐξάψαντες ἠρέμα καθήκαμεν ἐς τὴν θάλατταν· ἐπαναβάντες δὲ ἐπὶ τὰ νῶτα καὶ θύσαντες τῷ Ποσειδῶνι αὐτοῦ παρὰ τὸ τρόπαιον ἡμέρας τε τρεῖς ἐπαυλισάμενοι — νηνεμία γὰρ ἦν — τῇ τετάρτῃ ἀπεπλεύσαμεν.
And we, having hauled up the boat and having led it through the gaps and having fastened ropes from the teeth, gently let it down into the sea; and having gone up onto its back and having sacrificed to Poseidon there, right by the trophy, and having encamped for three days—for there was a calm—on the fourth we sailed away.
ἔνθα δὴ πολλοῖς τῶν ἐκ τῆς ναυμαχίας νεκροῖς ἀπηντῶμεν καὶ προσωκέλλομεν, καὶ τὰ σώματα καταμετροῦντες ἐθαυμάζομεν.
There indeed we met many dead bodies of those from the sea-fight and ran against them, and measuring their bodies we wondered.
καὶ ἡμέρας μέν τινας ἐπλέομεν εὐκράτῳ ἀέρι χρώμενοι, ἔπειτα βορέου σφοδροῦ πνεύσαντος μέγα κρύος ἐγένετο, καὶ ὑπʼ αὐτοῦ πᾶν ἐπάγη τὸ πέλαγος, οὐκ ἐπιπολῆς μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐς βάθος ὅσον ἐς ἓξ ὀργυιάς, ὥστε καὶ ἀποβάντας διαθεῖν ἐπὶ τοῦ κρυστάλλου.
And for some days we sailed, enjoying moderate weather; then, a strong north wind blowing, a great cold arose, and by it all the sea was frozen, not only on the surface, but also to a depth of about six fathoms, so that even getting off we could run about on the ice.
ἐπιμένοντος δὲ τοῦ πνεύματος φέρειν οὐ δυνάμενοι τοιόνδε τι ἐπενοήσαμεν — ὁ δὲ τὴν γνώμην ἀποφηνάμενος ἦν ὁ Σκίνθαρος — σκάψαντες γὰρ ἐν τῷ ὕδατι σπήλαιον μέγιστον ἐν τούτῳ ἐμείναμεν ἡμέρας τριάκοντα, πῦρ ἀνακαίοντες καὶ σιτούμενοι τοὺς ἰχθῦς· εὑρίσκομεν δὲ αὐτοὺς ἀνορύττοντες.
And the wind persisting, since we were not able to bear it, we devised something of this sort—and the one who declared the opinion was Scintharus—for having dug a very large cave in the ice-water, we remained in it for thirty days, burning a fire and feeding on the fish; and we found them by digging them up.
ἐπειδὴ δὲ ἤδη ἐπέλειπε τὰ ἐπιτήδεια, προελθόντες καὶ τὴν ναῦν πεπηγυῖαν ἀνασπάσαντες καὶ πετάσαντες τὴν ὀθόνην ἐσυρόμεθα ὥσπερ πλέοντες λείως καὶ προσηνῶς ἐπὶ τοῦ πάγου διολισθάνοντες.
But when the provisions were now failing, having gone forward and having hauled up the ship which was frozen in, and having spread the sail, we were dragged along just as if sailing, sliding smoothly and gently over the ice.
ἡμέρᾳ δὲ πέμπτῃ ἀλέα τε ἦν ἤδη καὶ ὁ πάγος ἐλύετο καὶ ὕδωρ πάντα αὖθις ἐγίνετο.
And on the fifth day, it was already warm and the ice was melting, and everything became water again.
§2.3πλεύσαντες οὖν ὅσον τριακοσίους σταδίους νήσῳ μικρᾷ καὶ ἐρήμῃ προσηνέχθημεν, ἀφʼ ἧς ὕδωρ λαβόντες — ἐπελελοίπει γὰρ ἤδη — καὶ δύο ταύρους ἀγρίους κατατοξεύσαντες ἀπεπλεύσαμεν.
Having sailed, therefore, about three hundred stadia, we were carried to a small and deserted island, from which having taken water—for it had already failed—and having shot down two wild bulls, we sailed away.
οἱ δὲ ταῦροι οὗτοι τὰ κέρατα οὐκ ἐπὶ τῆς κεφαλῆς εἶχον, ἀλλʼ ὑπὸ τοῖς ὀφθαλμοῖς, ὥσπερ ὁ Μῶμος ἠξίου.
And these bulls had their horns not upon their head, but under their eyes, just as Momus deemed fit.
μετʼ οὐ πολὺ δὲ εἰς πέλαγος ἐμβαίνομεν, οὐχ ὕδατος, ἀλλὰ γάλακτος· καὶ νῆσος ἐν αὐτῷ ἐφαίνετο λευκὴ πλήρης ἀμπέλων.
And not long after, we entered a sea, not of water, but of milk; and a white island appeared in it, full of vines.
ἦν δὲ ἡ νῆσος τυρὸς μέγιστος συμπεπηγώς, ὡς ὕστερον ἐμφαγόντες ἐμάθομεν, σταδίων εἴκοσι πέντε τὸ περίμετρον· αἱ δὲ ἄμπελοι βοτρύων πλήρεις, οὐ μέντοι οἶνον, ἀλλὰ γάλα ἐξ αὐτῶν ἀποθλίβοντες ἐπίνομεν.
And the island was a very large congealed cheese, as we later learned by eating of it, twenty-five stadia in circumference; and the vines were full of clusters, however, not wine, but milk we squeezed from them and drank.
ἱερὸν δὲ ἐν μέσῃ τῇ νήσῳ ἀνῳκοδόμητο Γαλατείας τῆς Νηρηίδος, ὡς ἐδήλου τὸ ἐπίγραμμα.
And a temple in the middle of the island had been built to Galatea the Nereid, as the inscription showed.
ὅσον δʼ οὖν χρόνον ἐκεῖ ἐμείναμεν, ὄψον μὲν ἡμῖν καὶ σιτίον ἡ γῆ ὑπῆρχεν, ποτὸν δὲ τὸ γάλα τὸ ἐκ τῶν βοτρύων.
So for as long a time as we remained there, the earth supplied us with relish and bread, and the milk from the clusters was our drink.
βασιλεύειν δὲ τῶν χωρίων τούτων ἐλέγετο Τυρὼ ἡ Σαλμωνέως, μετὰ τὴν ἐντεῦθεν ἀπαλλαγὴν ταύτην παρὰ τοῦ Ποσειδῶνος λαβοῦσα τὴν τιμήν.
And Tyro, the daughter of Salmoneus, was said to rule these regions, having received this honor from Poseidon after her departure from there.