he was in raptures with it, asking his guest's name as he pledged
him. "No-man," replied Ulysses, begging again for mercy. "This will I
grant," said the Cyclops, "in return for thy gift. No-man shall be the
last whom I devour." He drank up the whole skin of wine, and went to
sleep. Then Ulysses and four of his companions seized the staff, and
forced its sharpened top into the Cyclops' single eye, so that he awoke
blind, and roaring with pain so loud that all the other Cyclops awoke,
and came calling to know who had hurt him. "No-man," shouted back
Polyphemus; and they, thinking it was only some sudden illness, went back
to their caves. Meanwhile, Ulysses was fastening the remaining Greeks
under the bellies of the sheep and goats, the wool and hair hanging over
them. He himself clung on under the largest goat, the master of the
herd. When morning came, bleatings of the herds caused the blind giant
to rouse himself to roll back the stone from the entrance. He laid his
hand on each beast's back, that his guests might not ride out on them,
but he did not feel beneath, though he kept back Ulysses' goat for a
moment caressing it, and saying, "My pretty goat, thou seest me, but I
cannot see thee."

As soon as Ulysses was safe on board ship, and had thrust out from land,
he called back his real name to the giant, whom he saw sitting on the
stone outside his cave. Polyphemus and the other Cyclops returned by
hurling rocks at the ship, but none touched it, and Ulysses reached his
fleet safely. This adventure, however, had made Neptune his bitter foe,
and how could he sail on Neptune's realm?

However, he next came to the Isle of the Winds, which floated about in
the ocean, and was surrounded by a brazen wall. Here dwelt AEolus, with
his wife and sons and daughters, and Ulysses stayed with him a whole
month. At the end of it, AEolus gave Ulysses enough of each wind, tied
up in separate bags, to take him safely home; but his crew fancied there
was treasure in them, and while he was asleep opened all the bags at
once, and the winds bursting out tossed all the ships, and then carried
them back to the island, where AEolus declared that Ulysses must be a
wretch forsaken of the gods, and would give him no more.

Six days later the fleet came to another cannibal island, that of the
Laestrygonians, where the crews of all the ships, except that of the king
himself, were caught and eaten up, and he alone escaped, and, still