Joyful Reunion

67“Bring sulphur, dame, the cure of noxious air,
And fire, that I may purge the hall with smoke;
And go, and bid Penelope come down,
With her attendant women, and command
That all the handmaids of the household come.”

68And thus in turn Dame Eurycleia spoke:
“Well have you said, my son, but suffer me
To bring you clothes, a tunic and a cloak,
Nor with those rags on your broad shoulders stand
In your own palace; it becomes you not.”

69Odysseus, the sagacious, answered thus:
“First let a fire be kindled in this hall.”

70He spoke, and Eurycleia, the dear nurse,
Obeyed, and brought the sulphur and the fire.
Odysseus steeped in smoke the royal pile.
Both hall and court. The matron, passing through
The stately palace of Odysseus, climbed
The stair to find and summon all the maids.
And forth they issued, bearing in their hands
Torches, and, crowding round Odysseus, gave
Glad greeting, seized his hands, embraced him, kissed
His hands and brow and shoulders. The desire
To weep for joy overcame the chief; his eyes
Overflowed with tears; he sobbed; he knew them all.