Together, the priest and Menedemos chanted the Homeric hymn to Poseidon: ' 'I begin to sing about Poseidon, great god, Mover of earth and of the unfruitful sea. Deep-sea lord who also holds Helikon and broad Aigai. The gods divided your rule in two, Earthshaker: To be both tamer of horses and savior of ships. Hail, dark-haired Poseidon,Earth-holder. And, blessed one, have a kind heart and help those who go sailing.' ' 'He's done that for me,' Menedemos added. 'I thank him for it.' While they were reciting the Homeric hymn, the attendant began butchering the lamb's little carcass. He gave the god his portion: the thighbones wrapped in fat. As he set them on the fire, the scent of the burning fat sent spit rushing into Menedemos' mouth. Like most Hellenes, he seldom ate meat except after a sacrifice. With ease born of long practice, the attendant cut up the carcass into chunks of meat of roughly the same size. Butchery after a sacrifice got no fancier than that. The attendant skewered one piece of meat for Menedemos, one for the priest, and one for himself. The two musicians came forward to get their share. They all roasted the tender bits of lamb over the fire on the altar. After he'd wolfed down his share, Menedemos asked, 'Is it permitted to take the rest of the carcass out of the sacred precinct?' Some temples allowed that, some didn't. The priest tossed his head. 'I am sorry, but no - it is not permitted.' 'All right, then,' Menedemos said. 'The god has his fair share of my thanks-offering; the people here are welcome to the rest.' 'Many men would argue more,' the priest said. When he smiled, he looked years younger. 'Many men 'ave argued more. Good fortune go with you, Rhodian, and may the Earthshaker always smile on you.' 'My thanks,' Menedemos said, and started back toward the city of Khios. Aristagoras the wine seller dipped his head to his slave. As the Lydian scraped away the pitch around the stopper so he could open a new jar of wine, Aristagoras told Sostratos, 'Truly, O best one, you must sample the vintages so you know what you are getting.' 'I thank you for your generosity,' replied Sostratos, 'but if you keep feeding me even little cups of neat wine, pretty soon I'll be too drunk to tell one from another. My head's already starting to spin.' Aristagoras laughed heartily, just as if Sostratos were joking. 'Oh, you are the funniest
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