Book XX · Feast turns to insult · Scene 2 of 4
Heralds lead hecatomb, suitors feast
36So spoke the suitor, but Telemachus
Heeded him not. Then through the city came
The heralds with a hallowed hecatomb,
Due to the gods. The long-haired people thronged
The shady grove of Phoebus, archer-god.
37Now when the flesh was roasted and was drawn
From off the spits, and each was given his share,
They held high festival. The men who served
The banquet gave Odysseus, where he sat,
A portion equal to their own, for so
His own dear son Telemachus enjoined.
Homer, The Odyssey, translated by William Cullen Bryant, 1871. Public domain.