Chapter 26

Chapter XXVI
Camilla Evander Nisus and Euryalus Mezentius Turnus AEneas, having parted from the Sibyl and rejoined his fleet,
coasted along the shores of Italy and cast anchor in the mouth of
the Tiber. The poet Virgil, having brought his hero to this
spot, the destined termination of his wanderings, invokes his
Muse to tell him the situation of things at that eventful moment.
Latinus, third in descent from Saturn, ruled the country. He was
now old and had no male descendant, but had one charming
daughter, Lavinia, who was sought in marriage by many neighboring
chiefs, one of whom, Turnus, king of the Rutulians, was favored
by the wishes of her parents. But Latinus had been warned in a
dream by his father Faunus, that the destined husband of Lavinia
should come from a foreign land. From that union should spring a
race destined to subdue the world. Our readers will remember that in the conflict with the Harpies,
one of those half-human birds had threatened the Trojans with
dire sufferings. In particular she predicted that before their
wanderings ceased they should be pressed by hunger to devour
their tables. This portent now came true; for as they took their
scanty meal, seated on the grass, the men placed their hard
biscuit on their laps, and put thereon whatever their gleanings
in the woods supplied. Having dispatched the latter they
finished by eating the crusts. Seeing which, the boy Iulus said
playfully, "See, we are eating our tables." AEneas caught the
words and accepted the omen. "All hail, promised land!" he
exclaimed, "this is our home, this our country!" He then took
measures to find out who were the present inhabitants of the
land, and who their rulers. A hundred chosen men were sent to
the village of Latinus, bearing presents and a request for
friendship and alliance. They went and were favorably received.
Latinus immediately concluded that the Trojan hero was no other
than the promised son-in-law announced by the oracle. He
cheerfully granted his alliance and sent back the messengers
mounted on steeds from his stables, and loaded with gifts and
friendly messages. Juno, seeing things go thus prosperously for the Trojans, felt
her old animosity revive, summoned the Fury Alecto from Erebus,
and sent her to stir up discord. The Fury first took possession
of the queen, Amata, and roused her to oppose in every way the
new alliance. Alecto then sped to the city of Turnus, and
assuming the form of an old priestess, informed him of the
arrival of the foreigners and of the attempts of their prince to
rob him of his bride. Next she turned her attention to the camp
of the Trojans. There she saw the boy Iulus and his companions
amusing themselves with hunting. She sharpened the scent of the