That even so 'twould be o'erturned) Bear thee alone across the stream. But not with common shades shalt thou Be herded. Thou with Aeacus[41] And pious kings of Crete shalt sit In judgment on the deeds of men, And punish tyrants. O ye kings, 1560 Be merciful, restrain your hands. 'Tis worthy praise to keep the sword Unstained with blood; while thou didst reign, Upon thy realm to have allowed Least privilege to bloody[42] fate. But place among the stars is given To manly virtue. Shalt thou hold 1565 Thy seat within the northern skies, Or where his fiercest rays the sun Sends forth? Or in the balmy west Wilt shine, where thou mayst hear the waves On Calpe's shore resound? What place In heaven serene shalt thou obtain? 1570 When great Alcides is received Among the stars, who will be free From fear? May Jove assign thy place Far from the raging Lion's seat, And burning Crab, lest at sight of thee The frightened stars confuse their laws And Titan quake with fear. 1575 So long as blooming flowers shall come With wakening spring; while winter's frosts Strip bare the trees, and summer suns Reclothe them with their wonted green; While in the autumn ripened fruits Fall to the ground: no lapse of time 1580 Shall e'er destroy thy memory Upon the earth. For thou shalt live As comrade of the sun and stars. Sooner shall wheat grow in the sea, Or stormy straits with gentle waves Beat on the shore; sooner descend The Bear from out his frozen sky And bathe him in forbidden waves: 1585 Than shall the thankful people cease To sing thy praise. And now to thee, O father of the world, we pray: Let no dread beast be born on earth, No monstrous pest; keep this poor world From abject fear of heartless kings; Let no one hold the reins of power 1590 Who deems his kingdom's glory lies In the terror of his naked sword. But if again some thing of dread Appear upon the earth, Oh, give, We pray, another champion. But what is this? The heavens resound. 1595 Behold Alcides' father mourns, He mourns his son. Or is't the sound Of grieving gods, or the cry of fear Of the timid stepdame? Can it be That at the sight of Hercules Great Juno flees the stars? Perchance Beneath the added weight of heaven Tall Atlas reels. Or do the shades 1600 Cry out in fear of Hercules, While Cerberus with broken chains In panic flees the sight? Not so: Behold, 'tis Poeas' son, who comes With looks of gladness. See, he bears