“When I had nearly got back to the ship some god took pity upon my solitude, and sent a fine antlered stag right into the middle of my path.  He was coming down his pasture in the forest to drink of the river, for the heat of the sun drove him, and as he passed I struck him in the middle of the back; the bronze point of the spear went clean through him, and he lay groaning in the dust until the life went out of him.  Then I set my foot upon him, drew my spear from the wound, and laid it down; I also gathered rough grass and rushes and twisted them into a fathom or so of good stout rope, with which I bound the four feet of the noble creature together; having so done I hung him round my neck and walked back to the ship leaning upon my spear, for the stag was much too big for me to be able to carry him on my shoulder, steadying him with one hand.  As I threw him down in front of the ship, I called the men and spoke cheeringly man by man to each of them.  ‘Look here my friends,’ said I, ’we are not going to die so much before our time after all, and at any rate we will not starve so long as we have got something to eat and drink on board.’  On this they uncovered their heads upon the sea shore and admired the stag, for he was indeed a splendid fellow.  Then, when they had feasted their eyes upon him sufficiently, they washed their hands and began to cook him for dinner.

“Thus through the livelong day to the going down of the sun we stayed there eating and drinking our fill, but when the sun went down and it came on dark, we camped upon the sea shore.  When the child of morning, rosy-fingered Dawn, appeared, I called a council and said, ’My friends, we are in very great difficulties; listen therefore to me.  We have no idea where the sun either sets or rises, {85} so that we do not even know East from West.  I see no way out of it; nevertheless, we must try and find one.  We are certainly on an island, for I went as high as I could this morning, and saw the sea reaching all round it to the horizon; it lies low, but towards the middle I saw smoke rising from out of a thick forest of trees.’

“Their hearts sank as they heard me, for they remembered how they had been treated by the Laestrygonian Antiphates, and by the savage ogre Polyphemus.  They wept bitterly in their dismay, but there was nothing to be got by crying, so I divided them into two companies and set a captain over each; I gave one company to Eurylochus, while I took command of the other myself.  Then we cast lots in a helmet, and the lot fell upon Eurylochus; so he set out with his twenty-two men, and they wept, as also did we who were left behind.