Weep o'er my husband, who in death reclines; My loss as wife with handmaids I deplore, O'er my dear Tammuz let my teardrops pour." And Allat said, "Go! keeper, open wide The gates to her! she hath me once defied; Bewitch her as commanded by our laws." To her thus Hades opened wide its jaws. "Within, O goddess! Cutha thee receives! Thus Hades' palace its first greeting gives." He seized her, and her crown aside was thrown. "O why, thou keeper, dost thou seize my crown?" "Within, O goddess! Allat thee receives! 'Tis thus to thee our Queen her welcome gives." Within the next gate he her earrings takes, And goddess Ishtar now with fury shakes. "Then why, thou slave, mine earrings take away?" "Thus entrance, goddess, Allat bids this day." At the third gate her necklace next he takes, And now in fear before him Ishtar quakes. "And wilt thou take from me my gems away?" "Thus entrance, goddess, Allat bids this day." And thus he strips the goddess at each gate, Of ornaments upon her breast and feet And arms; her bracelets, girdle from her waist, Her robe next took, and flung the Queen undrest Within a cell of that dark solitude. At last, before Queen Ishtar Allat stood, When she had long remained within the walls, And Allat mocked her till Queen Ishtar falls Humiliated on the floor in woe; Then turning wildly, cursed her ancient foe. Queen Allat furious to her servant cries: "Go! Naintar! with disease strike blind her eyes! And strike her side! her breast and head and feet; With foul disease her strike, within the gate!" [Footnote 1: "Ir-kal-la," the King of Hades, who was hurled from the heights of heaven with the evil gods who rebelled with Tiamatu, the goddess of chaos, against the reign of the gods of heaven.] COLUMN II EFFECT OF ISHTAR'S IMPRISONMENT IN HADES--LOVE DEPARTS FROM THE EARTH--THE EARTH'S SOLEMN DIRGE OF WOE. When Ishtar, Queen of Love, from Earth had flown, With her love fled, and left all nature prone; From Earth all peace with love then fled amain. In loneliness the bull stalked o'er the plain, And tossed his drooping crest toward the sky, In sadness lay upon the green to die; On the far kine looked weary and bereaved, And turned toward the gods, and wondering grieved. The troubled kine then gravely chewed their cud, And hungerless in the rich pastures stood. The ass his mate abandoned, fled away, And loveless wives then cursed the direful day; And loving husbands kiss their wives no more, And doves their cooing ceased, and separate soar; And love then died in all the breasts of men, And strife supreme on earth was reveling then.