“Have pity on me, O queen!” he began, in soft and insinuating tones.  “Art thou a goddess, or a mortal woman?  If thou art a goddess, thou seemest to me most like to Artemis, daughter of great Zeus, both in face, and in stature, and in form.  But if thou art mortal, then thrice blessed are thy father and mother, and thrice blessed thy brethren, and their spirits are refreshed because of thee, when thou goest, a very rose of beauty, to the dance.  Happy the man who wins thee for his bride!  Never yet have I seen the like of thee among all the children of men.  Only once have I beheld aught to compare unto thee, a young palm-tree which I saw growing tall and straight by the altar of Apollo at Delos.  I saw it, and was amazed, for it was wondrous fair; and even so is my soul filled with wonder and dread when I look upon thy face, so that I am afraid to draw near unto thee, though sore is my need.  Yesterday I was flung naked on thy coast, after a voyage of twenty days.  Many things have I suffered, and more, I ween, remains for me in store; for I am a man of many woes.  Have compassion on me, dread lady!  I am thy suppliant, and to thee first I address my prayer.  Show me the way to the city, and give me a cloth to wrap round me, that I may go among the people without shame.  And may the gods give thee all, whatsoever thy heart desireth, a husband and a home, and happy wedded love, shedding warmth in thine house, and a strong defence against all ills from without, but above all a sacred treasure in thy husband’s heart, and in thine.”

“Whatever be thy misfortunes,” answered Nausicaae, “I am sure they are not the fruit of thine own folly or wickedness.  And since thou art come as a suppliant to this land of ours, thou shalt want nothing, whether it be raiment, or aught else that befits thy state.  I will show thee our city, and tell thee the name of the people.  Know that thou hast come to the country of the Phaeacians, whose ruler and king is Alcinous, and I am his daughter.”

Then she called to her handmaids, who were looking on, half frightened, half curious, from behind rocks and trees, a long way off, ready to resume their flight at the slightest alarm:  “Come hither, and fear not the man; neither he nor any other shall ever come to this land with thoughts of harm; for we are very dear to the immortal gods.  Far away we dwell amidst the rolling seas, remote from the haunts of men.  But this is some hapless wanderer, driven by chance to our shores, and we must cherish him, for from Zeus come all strangers and beggars, and a little gift is a great thing to them.  Take the stranger to a sheltered place, where he may wash and dress him, and give him wherewithal to clothe himself, and after that, meat and drink.”

When they heard the words of their mistress the girls came stealing timidly back, one by one.  And they gave Odysseus clean raiment, and when he had washed and clothed himself, he came back to the place where Nausicaae was waiting.  Wonderful was the change which had been made in his appearance by the refreshing bath and fitting apparel.  Instead of the squalid, battered wretch who had begged for countenance and shelter, Nausicaae saw before her a stalwart, stately man, broad-shouldered, and deep of chest, with dark clustering hair and beard, like the curling hyacinth, and an air of majesty and command.