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The Humour of Homer and Other Essays by Samuel Butler
page 62 of 297 (20%)
Juno tells him the same rigmarole about Oceanus and Mother Tethys
that she had told Venus, and when she has done Jove tries to embrace
her.

"What," exclaims Juno, "kiss me in such a public place as the top of
Mount Ida! Impossible! I could never show my face in Olympus
again, but I have a private room of my own and"--"What nonsense, my
love!" exclaims the sire of gods and men as he catches her in his
arms. On this Sleep sends him into a deep slumber, and Juno then
sends Sleep to bid Neptune go off to help the Greeks at once.

When Jove awakes and finds the trick that has been played upon him,
he is very angry and blusters a good deal as usual, but somehow or
another it turns out that he has got to stand it and make the best
of it.

In an earlier book he has said that he is not surprised at anything
Juno may do, for she always has crossed him and always will; but he
cannot put up with such disobedience from his own daughter Minerva.
Somehow or another, however, here too as usual it turns out that he
has got to stand it. "And then," Minerva exclaims in yet another
place (VIII. 373), "I suppose he will be calling me his grey-eyed
darling again, presently."

Towards the end of the poem the gods have a set-to among themselves.
Minerva sends Mars sprawling, Venus comes to his assistance, but
Minerva knocks her down and leaves her. Neptune challenges Apollo,
but Apollo says it is not proper for a god to fight his own uncle,
and declines the contest. His sister Diana taunts him with
cowardice, so Juno grips her by the wrist and boxes her ears till
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