The Divine Comedy — Dante Alighieri

Line 13. Count XJgolin was a Guelph leader who at first, in concert with the Archbishop Buggieri, became the despotic master of his native town of Pisa. His conduct finally was most extravagant, and, amongst other acts, he killed with his own hands the nephew of the archbishop. The latter thto joined the faction of opposing nobles, and almost without resistance Count Ugolin was taken and imprisoned with his sons and grandsons. His story is the subject of one of Bosini's historical romances do wn to the point where the tale is told by Dante.

Canto XXXIII. HELL. 125

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p. 30

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p. 45

Had shown unto me through its opening small Now many moons ere that bad dream I made Which tore away for me the future's pall. This one appeared to me the chief and head, Chasing the wolf and whelps unto the hill, Which from the Pisans Lucca's sight doth shade. With ravening bitches, lean, and known for ill, Those of Sismondi, and Lanfranchi born, The whom he'd placed in front to work his will.

After a little course they seemed outworn, The father and the sons, with fangs sharp fed, I seemed to see their flanks in pieces torn. When I awoke, before the night had fled, I heard my sons bewailing in their sleep, Who were with me, and asking me for bread. Cruel thou art indeed, should grief not steep Thy thoughts at what that presaged to my heart ; If thou weep'st not, at what art wont to weep ?

As now the hour approached, from sleep they start, When food had hitherto been brought us, stirred A doubt in each one, through his dream apart. The locking of the gate below I heard At the horrible tower, on which I looked upon The faces of my sons, nor spake a word. I sobbed not, so within I grew to stone ; But they sobbed all, and Anselmuccio said, * Father, thou look'st so, what hast thou, my own ?

But I, I neither wept nor answer made For that whole day, nor for the following night, TIntil another sun moved overhead. As there was cast a little ray of light Into our dolorous prison, I beheld In those four faces my own aspect white. I bit my joined hands then, by grief impelled. And they, who thought from that that I did crave For food, rose sudden and to me appealed. Line 28.

The archbishop appeared hounding on the other nobles and the people in chase of Count Ugolin and his sons (the wolf and whelps) towards Mount St. Julian, half-way between Pisa and Lucca, to which the coant had endeavoured to retreat. Line 39. The ^sons also are afflicted with their own dreams of evil (see line 45), and presage in their sleep the horrors that were to come.

Line 59, et sea., thus translated by Chaucer in his " Menkes Tale" :— " His children wenden, that for hunger it was That he his armes gnowe, and not for wo, And sayden : fader, do not so, alas ! But rather etc the flesh upon us two. Our flesh thou yaf us, take our flesh us fro. " The Canterbury Tales," line 14,75/.

126 HELL. Cakto XXXIII. Saying, * O father, it would far less griere WoTildst thou eat us, for thou didst make us wear This wretched flesh, which from us thou canst reave. Then I grew still to make them not more drear : That day, and all the next we silent stayed : ^ Ah earth so hard, why didst not open there ? When to the fourth day we had still delayed, My Gaddo at my feet his form did throw, Saying, * My £a.ther, canst not give me aid ?

He died there, and as thou dost see me now, "^^ I saw them, one by one, fall down, all three, Betwixt the fifth and sixth day ; blinded now, Oroping o'er each of them, henceforth I lay. And three days called them after they were dead. Then, more than grief could do, did hunger slay. '^ When he had spoken thus, with eyes of dread Seized on the wretched skull, his teeth apace. Which, like a dog's, were strong to cranch the head.

Ah, Pisa ! thou dishonour of the race Of the fair country, where they murmur Si, ^ Since to revenge ihj neighbours do not race, Capraja and Gorgona from the sea Should move and make a dam to Amo's wave, So as to drown each habitant in thee. For if Count Ugolin thou didst beKeve ^ That he for thee thy castle had betrayed, Thou shouldst not doom his sons to such a grave.

Their youthful age them innocent had made, Uguccion and Brigata : Thebes once more ! And the other two, whose names the song displayed. ^ We travelled onwards then, there where the frore *0n other people cruelly doth steep, Not downwards bent, but backwards tumbled o'er. Their very weeping would not let them weep, The grief, which o'er their eyes found obstacle, ** Turned inwards to increase their anguish deep.

Froze in a heap the tears that earliest fell. And like a visor made of crystal glass, Beneath their eyes had wholly fiUed the well. Now by the biting cold it came to pass ^^ That from my face all feeling did appear To lose possession, so like horn it was. Line 82. Capraja and Gorgona are small islands in the moutli of the Amo.