When we who survived reached the land
of the lotus-eaters, some of my men ate of the sweet plant, after which a
man thinks never more of wife, or friends, or home; and it was with the
utmost difficulty that we succeeded in dragging them to the ships.
"At the Cyclopean land I myself, with a few of my men, disembarked, and
went up to seek the inhabitants and conciliate them with gifts of food and
wine. The Cyclops were huge one-eyed giants who did not cultivate the
land, had no government, and cared nought for the gods. The first cave to
which we came was empty, and we went in to await the arrival of the owner,
appeasing our appetites, meanwhile, with some of his cheeses. Presently he
arrived, and after he had closed up the entrance of the cave with a huge
stone, and had milked his goats, he questioned us as to who we were. Our
story told, he seized two of my companions, dashed their heads against the
rocks, and devoured them. The next morning, after devouring two others, he
drove out his flocks, leaving us shut up in the huge cave. All that day I
revolved plans for his destruction and our escape; and at last, drawing
lots with my companions to determine who should assist me, I determined,
with their aid, to bore out his great eye with a huge olive-wood stick
that I found in the cave. We spent the day sharpening it and hardening it
in the fire, and at night hid it under a heap of litter.
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