Inferno: Canto Xxi
INFERNO: CANTO XXI
We walked from one bridge to the next bridge,
Speaking of many things that I will not include here.
When we came to the summit of the bridge,
We stopped to see another group
Of Malebolge and heard other vain laments;
And I noticed that it was suddenly very dark.
As in the Arsenal of the Venetians
When they boil pitch in the winter
To smear on their leaky vessels to repair them,
Because they are too badly damaged to sail;
And instead of making a new ship, they patch
The ribs of older ones that have already made many voyages;
One hammers at the prow, one at the stern,
This one makes oars, and that one makes ropes,
Another mends the mainsail and another, the mizzen;
Not by fire, but by divine intervention,
The dense pitch below us was boiling
And covered all sides of the bank.
I saw it, but I could not see what was in it
Except for the bubbles that the boiling raised,
Which swelled up and then burst and subsided.
While I gazed fixedly at the activity below,
My Leader, crying out: "Look out, Look out!"
And pulled me back to him.
Then I turned around, as one who is impatient
To see what it was that concerned him,
And what would cause a man to become suddenly afraid,
And who, while still looking back, continues to run;
And I saw behind us a black devil,
Running along the ridge, and coming towards us quickly.
He looked ferocious in both his appearance and his movements!
And he seemed as though he was going to attack,
With open wings and swift feet!
His shoulders, were high and sharply pointed,
And he held a sinner closely to his body,
Clutching him tightly with his claws.
From our bridge he shouted: "O Malebranche,
Look, here is one of the elders of Saint Zita;
Keep him down in the pitch, and I will go get more
From that place, which has so many of them.
They are all a bunch of cheaters, except Bonturo;
'No' is changed into 'Yes' for the right amount of money."
He hurled him down over the hard ledge and
Turned round. Never was a hound, when turned loose,
In so much of a hurry to pursue a thief.
The other sank into the pitch, and rose again face downward;
But the demons, under cover of the bridge,
Cried: "This is not the place for those actions!
The swimming is very different here than in the Serchio;
Unless you want to feel the sharp ends of our pitch forks,
You will not lift yourself out of the pitch."
They stabbed him with over a hundred forks; and shouted:
"You will learn that it is best to stay covered in pitch,
You will have to do your cheating under the surface."
They stabbed him again as cooks make their apprentices
Push the meat down into the middle of the pot
With their forks so that it does not float.
The good Master said to me:
"They must not know that you are here, crouch down
Behind a pillar, so that it will keep you hidden;
And no matter what they may do to me
Do not be afraid, because I know these creatures.
I was in a scuffle with them before."
Then he walked to the end of the bridge,
And stepped on to the bank of the sixth circle,
He stood straight and still, but showed his courage.
With the same fury, and the same uproar,
As dogs leap out upon a weak beggar,
Making him stop and stay where he stands,
The devils flew out from beneath the little bridge,
And turned against him with their pitch forks;
But he cried out: "Stop it. All of you!
Before you lay those hooks of yours on me,
One of you should listen well to what I have to say,
And then decide if you think it is wise to attack."
They all cried out: "Let Malacoda go speak with him;"
Then Malacoda stepped forward, and the rest stayed back,
And he approached my master saying:
"And how will your words help you?"
"Do you think, Malacoda, that I could have
Advanced so far into this place," My Master said,
"Safe and unharmed against all opposition, without the aid And assistance of God? Let me pass, for Heaven has willed
That I escort another person along this savage road."
Then Malacoda's arrogance faded away,
And he dropped his pitchfork at his feet,
He turned to the others and said:
"Nobody touch him." And my Guide called to me:
"You, who are crouched down behind the pillars
Of the bridge, you can safely come to me now."
I stood up quickly and ran to him;
And all the devils lunged forward at the same time,
So that I was afraid they would not keep their word.
I remember seeing the fear in the eyes of soldiers
Though passing under a flag of truce from Caprona,
As they moved along past so many of the enemy soldiers.
I pressed myself very close
To my Leader's side, but did not take my eyes
From their faces which looked at me very sternly.
They lowered their pitchforks at me, and said
"Do you think I should take a stab at him?"
Then another one said, "On the rump?"
And another one answered: "Yes; See if you can
Poke him there."But the same demon who had spoken
With my Master turned very quickly, and said:
"Shut your mouth, Scarmiglione; Be quiet." Then said to Us: "You cannot go any further on this bridge, Because It Is lying shattered at the bottom of the sixth circle.
But if you insist on going forward,
Make your way along this rock;
Near here is another bridge on the path.
In five hours, it will be exactly
One thousand two hundred and sixty-six
Years and one day, that this bridge was broken.
I will send some of my men to escort you
To make sure that you are not bothered along your way;
Go with them. They will not harm you.
Step forward, Alichino and Calcabrina,"
He began to cry out, "And you, Cagnazzo;
And Barbariccia, you will lead them.
Come forward, Libicocco and Draghignazzo,
And Ciriatto with the jagged teeth and Graffiacane,
And Farfarello and Rubicante the furious;
Take them around this boiling pitch;
And keep them safe as far as the next bridge
Which is still unbroken over the next circle."
"Master, I don't trust them. Please, just the two of us Should go." I said, "We don't need an escort,
If you know the way, that is good enough for me.
If you are as observant as you always have been,
You can see that they gnash their teeth,
And look at us with threats in their eyes."
And he said to me: "You need not be afraid of them;
Let them gnash their teeth, if it makes them happy,
Because they do it for those boiling wretches, not us."
Along the left side of the dike they wheeled around;
But before we left, one of them stuck his tongue out
At their leader;
And the leader replied with a loud fart.