Hast thou lost Parthus, lost Oebares great?
Alas, the sorrow! blow succeedeth blow On Persia"s pride; thou tellest woe on woe!
XERXES
Bitter indeed the pang for comrades slain, The brave and bold! thou strikest to my soul Pain, pain beyond forgetting, hateful pain.
My inner spirit sobs and sighs with dole!
CHORUS
Another yet we yearn to see, And see not! ah, thy chivalry, Xanthis, thou chief of Mardian men Countless! and thou, Anchares bright, And ye, whose cars controlled the fight, Arsaces and Diaixis wight, Kegdadatas, Lythimnas dear, And Tolmus, greedy of the spear!
I stand bereft! not in thy train Come they, as erst! ah, ne"er again Shall they return unto our eyes, Car-borne, "neath silken canopies!
XERXES
Yea, gone are they who mustered once the host!
CHORUS
Yea, yea, forgotten, lost!
XERXES
Alas, the woe and cost!
CHORUS
Alas, ye heavenly powers!
Ye wrought a sorrow past belief, A woe, of woes the chief!
With aspect stern, upon us Ate looms!
XERXES
Smitten are we-time tells no heavier blow!
CHORUS
Smitten! the doom is plain!
XERXES
Curse upon curse and pang on pang we know!
CHORUS
With the Ionian power We clashed, in evil hour!
Woe falls on Persia"s race, yea, woe again, again!
XERXES
Yea, smitten am I, and my host is all to ruin hurled!
CHORUS
Yea verily-in mighty wreck hath sunk the Persian world!
XERXES (holding up a torn robe and a quiver)
See you this tattered rag of pride?
CHORUS
I see it, welladay!
XERXES
See you this quiver?
CHORUS
Say, hath aught survived and "scaped the fray?
XERXES
A store for darts it was, erewhile!
CHORUS
Remain but two or three!
XERXES
No aid is left!
CHORUS
Ionian folk such darts, unfearing, see!
XERXES
Right resolute they are! I saw disaster unforeseen.
CHORUS
Ah, speakest thou of wreck, of flight, of carnage that hath been?
XERXES
Yea, and my royal robe I rent, in terror at their fall!
CHORUS
Alas, alas!
XERXES