§4.1ΜΕΛΙΤΤΑ
Εἴ τινα οἶσθα, Βακχί, γραῦν, οἷαι πολλαὶ Θετταλαὶ λέγονται ἐπᾴδουσαι καὶ ἐρασμίους ποιοῦσαι, εἰ καὶ πάνυ μισουμένη γυνὴ τυγχάνοι, οὕτως ὄναιο, παραλαβοῦσα ἧκέ μοι·
MELITTA If you know any old woman, Bacchis, of the kind that many Thessalian women are said to be, who sing incantations and make people lovely, even if a woman happens to be completely hated, so may you prosper, bring her along and come to me.
θαἰμάτια γὰρ καὶ τὰ χρυσία ταῦτα προείμην ἡδέως, εἰ μόνον ἴδοιμι ἐπ' ἐμὲ αὖθις ἀναστρέψαντα Χαρῖνον μισήσαντα Σιμίχην ὡς νῦν ἐμέ.
For I would gladly give up my clothes and these gold ornaments, if only I could see Charinus turning back to me again, having come to hate Simiche as he now hates me.
ΒΑΚΧΙΣ
Τί φῄς;
BACCHIS What are you saying?
οὐκέτι σύνεστε—ἀλλὰ παρὰ τὴν Σιμίχην, ὦ Μέλιττα, καταλιπὼν οἴχεται Χαρῖνος—δι’ ἣν τοσαύτας ὀργὰς τῶν γονέων ἠνέσχετο οὐ βουληθεὶς τὴν πλουσίαν ἐκείνην γῆμαι πέντε προικὸς τάλαντα, ὡς ἔλεγον, ἐπιφερομένην;
You are no longer together—but Charinus has left you and gone off to Simiche, Melitta—the woman for whose sake he endured so many rages of his parents, refusing to marry that rich girl who brought five talents of dowry, as they said, with her?
πέπυσμαι γὰρ ταῦτά σου ἀκούσασα.
For I remember hearing these things from you.
ΜΕΛΙΤΤΑ
Ἅπαντα ἐκεῖνα οἴχεται, ὦ Βακχί, καὶ πέμπτην ταύτην ἡμέραν οὐδ’ ἑώρακα ὅλως αὐτόν, ἀλλὰ πίνουσι παρὰ τῷ συνεφήβῳ Παμμένει αὐτός τε καὶ Σιμίχη.
MELITTA All those things are gone, Bacchis, and this is the fifth day that I have not seen him at all; but he and Simiche are drinking together at the house of Pammenes, his fellow-ephebe.
§4.2ΒΑΚΧΙΣ
Δεινά, ὦ Μέλιττα, πέπονθας.
BACCHIS Terrible things you have suffered, Melitta.
ἀλλὰ τί καὶ ὑμᾶς διέστησεν;
But what on earth separated you?
ἔοικε γὰρ οὐ μικρὸν τοῦτ' εἶναι.
For it seems to be no small matter.
ΜΕΛΙΤΤΑ
Τὸ μὲν ὅλον οὐδὲ εἰπεῖν ἔχω·
MELITTA On the whole, I cannot even say.
πρῴην δὲ ἀνελθὼν ἐκ Πειραιῶς—κατεληλύθει γάρ, οἶμαι, χρέος ἀπαιτήσων πέμψαντος τοῦ πατρός—οὔτε προσέβλεψεν ἐσελθὼν οὔτε προσήκατο ὡς ἔθος προσδραμοῦσαν, ἀποσεισάμενος δὲ περιπλακῆναι θέλουσαν, Ἄπιθι, φησί, πρὸς τὸν ναύκληρον Ἑρμότιμον ἢ τὰ ἐπὶ τῶν τοίχων γεγραμμένα ἐν Κεραμεικῷ ἀνάγνωθι, ὅπου κατεστηλίτευται ὑμῶν τὰ ὀνόματα. Τίνα Ἑρμότιμον, τίνα, ἔφην, ἢ ποίαν στήλην λέγεις;
But the day before yesterday, when he came up from Piraeus—for he had gone down, I think, to demand a debt because his father sent him—he did not even look at me when he entered, nor did he receive me as usual when I ran to him, but shaking me off when I wanted to embrace him, he said, "Go away to Hermotimus the ship-master, or read what is written on the walls in Ceramiceus, where your names are posted on a pillar." "What Hermotimus, what pillar are you talking about?" I said.
ὁ δὲ οὐδὲν ἀποκρινάμενος οὐδὲ δειπνήσας ἐκάθευδεν ἀποστραφείς.
But he answered nothing, and without even dining, he went to sleep, turning away.
πόσα οἴει ἐπὶ τούτῳ μεμηχανῆσθαί με περιλαμβάνουσαν, ἐπιστρέφουσαν, φιλοῦσαν ἀπεστραμμένου τὸ μετάφρενον;
How many things do you think I devised to do at this, embracing him, turning him back, kissing the back of his turned-away neck?
ὁ δ’ οὐδ’ ὁπωστιοῦν ὑπεμαλάχθη, ἀλλ’ Εἴ μοι, φησίν, ἐπὶ πλέον ἐνοχλήσεις, ἄπειμι ἤδη, εἰ καὶ μέσαι νύκτες εἰσίν. §4.3ΒΑΚΧΙΣ
Ὅμως ᾔδεις τὸν Ἑρμότιμον;
But he was not softened in the least, but said, "If you annoy me any further, I will leave immediately, even if it is midnight." BACCHIS But did you know Hermotimus?
ΜΕΛΙΤΤΑ
Ἀλλά με ἴδοις, ὦ Βακχί, ἀθλιώτερον διάγουσαν ἢ νῦν ἔχω, εἴ τινα ἐγὼ ναύκληρον Ἑρμότιμον οἶδα.
MELITTA May you see me, Bacchis, living in a more wretched state than I am now, if I know any Hermotimus, a ship-master.
πλὴν ἀλλ’ ὁ μὲν ἕωθεν ἀπεληλύθει τοῦ ἀλεκτρυόνος ᾄσαντος εὐθὺς ἀνεγρόμενος, ἐγὼ δὲ ἐμεμνήμην ὅτι κατὰ τοίχου τινὸς ἔλεγε καταγεγράφθαι τοὔνομα ἐν Κεραμεικῷ·
However, he had departed in the morning, waking up as soon as the cock crowed, but I remembered that he said my name was written on some wall in Ceramiceus.
ἔπεμψα οὖν Ἀκίδα κατασκεψομένην·
So I sent Acis to look.
ἡ δ’ ἄλλο μὲν οὐδὲν εὗρε, τοῦτο δὲ μόνον ἐπιγεγραμμένον ἐσιόντων ἐπὶ τὰ δεξιὰ πρὸς τῷ Διπύλῳ, Μέλιττα φιλεῖ Ἑρμότιμον, καὶ μικρὸν αὖθις ὑποκάτω, Ὁ ναύκληρος Ἑρμότιμος φιλεῖ Μέλιτταν. ΒΑΚΧΙΣ
Ὢ τῶν περιέργων νεανίσκων.
And she found nothing else, but only this written as you enter near the Dipylum on the right: "Melitta loves Hermotimus," and a little below it again, "Hermotimus the ship-master loves Melitta." BACCHIS Oh, what meddlesome young men!
συνίημι γάρ.
For I understand.
λυπῆσαί τις θέλων τὸν Χαρῖνον ἐπέγραψε ζηλότυπον ὄντα εἰδώς· ὁ δὲ αὐτίκα ἐπίστευσεν.
Someone wishing to vex Charinus wrote it, knowing that he is jealous, and he immediately believed it.
εἰ δέ που ἴδοιμι αὐτόν, διαλέξομαι.
If I see him anywhere, I will speak to him.
ἄπειρός ἐστι καὶ παῖς ἔτι.
He is inexperienced and still a child.
ΜΕΛΙΤΤΑ
Ποῦ δ’ ἂν ἴδοις ἐκεῖνον, ὃς ἐγκλεισάμενος ἑαυτὸν σύνεστι τῇ Σιμίχῃ;
MELITTA But where could you see him, who shut himself up and is with Simiche?
οἱ γονεῖς δὲ ἔτι παρ' ἐμοὶ ζητοῦσιν αὐτόν.
And his parents are still searching for him at my place.
ἀλλ’ εἴ τινα εὕροιμεν ὦ Βακχί, γραῦν, ὡς ἔφην· ἀποσώσει γὰρ ἂν φανεῖσα.
But if only we could find some old woman, Bacchis, as I said; for she will save us if she appears.
§4.4ΒΑΚΧΙΣ
Ἔστιν, ὦ φιλτάτη, ὅτι χρησίμη φαρμακίς, Σύρα τὸ γένος, ὠμὴ ἔτι καὶ συμπεπηγυῖα, ἥ μοί ποτε Φανίαν χαλεπαίνοντα κἀκεῖνον εἰκῆ, ὥσπερ Χαρῖνος, διήλλαξε μετὰ μῆνας ὅλους τέτταρας, ὅτε ἐγὼ μὲν ἤδη ἀπεγνώκειν, ὁ δὲ ὑπὸ τῶν ἐπῳδῶν ἧκεν αὖθις ἐπ' ἐμέ.
BACCHIS There is indeed, my dearest, a very useful sorceress, Syrian by birth, still vigorous and robust, who once reconciled Phanias to me when he was angry, and he too in vain, just like Charinus, after four whole months, when I had already given up hope, and he came back to me under the influence of her incantations.
ΜΕΛΙΤΤΑ
Τί δὲ ἔπραξεν ἡ γραῦς, εἴπερ ἔτι μέμνησαι;
MELITTA And what did the old woman do, if you still remember?
ΒΑΚΧΙΣ
Λαμβάνει μὲν οὐδὲ πολύν, ὦ Μέλιττα, τὸν μισθόν, ἀλλὰ δραχμὴν καὶ ἄρτον·
BACCHIS She does not take a large fee, Melitta, but a drachma and a loaf of bread.
ἐπικεῖσθαι δὲ δεῖ μετὰ τῶν ἁλῶν καὶ ὀβολοὺς ἑπτὰ καὶ θεῖον καὶ δᾷδα.
And there must be laid out, together with some salt, seven obols, sulfur, and a torch.
ταῦτα δὲ ἡ γραῦς λαμβάνει, καὶ κρατῆρα κεκερᾶσθαι δεῖ καὶ πίνειν ἐκείνην μόνην.
The old woman takes these, and a bowl of wine must be mixed and she must drink it alone.
δεήσει αὐτοῦ μέντοι τι τοῦ ἀνδρὸς εἶναι, οἷον ἱμάτια ἢ κρηπῖδας ἢ ὀλίγας τῶν τριχῶν ἤ τι τῶν τοιούτων.
But it will be necessary to have something belonging to the man, such as clothes, or sandals, or a few of his hairs, or something of that kind.
ΜΕΛΙΤΤΑ
Ἔχω τὰς κρηπῖδας αὐτοῦ.
MELITTA I have his sandals.
§4.5ΒΑΚΧΙΣ
Ταύτας κρεμάσασα ἐκ παττάλου ὑποθυμιᾷ τῷ θείῳ, πάττουσα καὶ τῶν ἁλῶν ἐπὶ τὸ πῦρ· ἐπιλέγει δὲ ἀμφοῖν τὰ ὀνόματα καὶ τὸ ἐκείνου καὶ τὸ σόν.
BACCHIS Hanging these from a peg, she fumigates them with sulfur, sprinkling some of the salt onto the fire too; and she pronounces over both of them their names, both his and yours.
εἶτα ἐκ τοῦ κόλπου προκομίσασα ῥόμβον ἐπιστρέφει ἐπῳδήν τινα λέγουσα ἐπιτρόχῳ τῇ γλώττῃ, βαρβαρικὰ καὶ φρικώδη ὀνόματα.
Then, taking a rhombos from her bosom, she spins it, speaking an incantation with a rapid tongue, foreign and hair-raising names.
ταῦτα ἐποίησε τότε.
This is what she did then.
καὶ μετ' οὐ πολὺ Φανίας, ἅμα καὶ τῶν συνεφήβων ἐπιτιμησάντων αὐτῷ καὶ τῆς Φοιβίδος, ᾗ συνῆν, πολλὰ αἰτούσης, ἧκέ μοι, τὸ πλέον ὑπὸ τῆς ἐπῳδῆς ἀγόμενος.
And not long after, Phanias—while at the same time his fellow-ephebes were reproaching him, and Phoibis, with whom he was living, was demanding many things—came to me, led for the most part by the incantation.
ἔτι δὲ καὶ τοῦτό με σφόδρα κατὰ τῆς Φοιβίδος τὸ μίσηθρον ἐδιδάξατο, τηρήσασαν τὸ ἴχνος, ἐπὰν ἀπολίποι, ἀμαυρώσασαν ἐπιβῆναι μὲν τῷ ἀριστερῷ ἐκείνης τὸν ἐμὸν δεξιόν. τῷ δεξιῷ δὲ τὸν ἀριστερὸν ἔμπαλιν καὶ λέγειν, Ἐπιβέβηκά σοι καὶ ὑπεράνω εἰμί· καὶ ἐποίησα ὡς προσέταξε.
And besides, she also taught me this strong charm of hatred against Phoibis: having watched for her footprint, whenever she left one, to efface it and step on it, my right foot on her left, and conversely my left on her right, and say, "I have stepped on you and I am above you." And I did as she directed.
ΜΕΛΙΤΤΑ
Μὴ μέλλε, μὴ μέλλε, ὦ Βακχί, κάλει ἤδη τὴν Σύραν.
MELITTA Do not delay, do not delay, Bacchis, call the Syrian woman now!
σὺ δέ, ὦ Ἀκί, τὸν ἄρτον καὶ τὸ θεῖον καὶ τὰ ἄλλα πάντα πρὸς τὴν ἐπῳδὴν εὐτρέπιζε.
And you, Acis, prepare the bread, the sulfur, and all the other things for the incantation.