-NRLF 
 
HERA 
 
 From an Ancient Statue now in the Vatican Museum at Rome 
 
MYTHS OF HELLAS 
 
 OR 
 
 GREEK TALES 
 
 TOLD IN GERMAN BY 
 
 PROFESSOE C. WITT 
 
 HEAD MASTER OF THE ALTSTADT GYMNASIUM AT KOMGSBEKG 
 
 TRANSLATED INTO ENGLISH 
 
 (with the Author's sanction) 
 BY 
 
 FRANCES YOUNGHUSBAND 
 
 WITH A PREFACE 
 
 BY 
 
 ARTHUR SIDGWICK, M.A. 
 
 FELLOW AND TUTOR OP CORPUS CHMSTI COLLEGE, OXFORD 
 LATE ASSISTANT-MASTER AT RUGBY SCHOOL 
 
 FIFTH EDITION 
 LONDON 
 
 LONGMANS, GREEN, AND CO. 
 
 AND NEW YORK : 15 EAST 16 th STREET 
 1891 
 
 All rights reserved 
 
PRINTED BY 
 
 SPOTTISWOODE AXD CO., NEW-STREET SQUARE 
 LONDON 
 
TO ALL ENGLISH CHILDREN 
 
 BUT ESPECIALLY TO C. I. W. AND TO E. R. Y. AND O. Y. 
 WHOSE PLEASURE IN THESE STORIES 
 
 HAS MADE ME WISH 
 
 TO BRING THEM WITHIN THE REACH OF OTHER CHILDREN 
 I DEDICATE THIS TRANSLATION 
 
 F. M, Y. 
 
 033 
 
PEEFACB. 
 
 THE FOLLOWING COLLECTION OF LEGENDS about the 
 
 Greek gods and heroes, to which I have been asked to 
 write a few words of introduction, is a translation of a 
 little book by Professor C. Witt which has been received 
 in Germany with great favour by the public and the 
 press. This popularity has been due, not merely to 
 the intrinsic beauty of the stories, but to the skill 
 shown in the selection, and in the simplicity of the style. 
 The last quality it has been the aim of the translator to 
 retain in the English version ; and the success of the 
 book in Germany suggests a hope that the translation 
 may become a favourite in this country. 
 
 That there still exists a demand for some such 
 book, notwithstanding the deserved popularity of 
 Kingsley's 'Heroes,' Cox's Mythological Tales, and 
 Church's Stories from Greek and Latin Writers, seems 
 to be shown by the large number of encouraging 
 letters received by the translator from persons engaged 
 or interested in education. 
 
viii PEEFACE. 
 
 That Greek stories, simply told, will be acceptable 
 to children, common sense would tell us, even apart 
 from experience. Children impartially welcome all 
 tales of incident and wonder, if they can understano 
 the language in which they are written, and if theii 
 pleasure is not dashed by the medicinal flavour of a 
 moral. And even a moral will not deter them if it be 
 not too explicit or obtrusive. 
 
 Again, from the teacher's point of view as well as 
 the child's, there seems to be every reason in favour of 
 presenting to them at an early age the stories of Greek 
 mythology. There is first the obvious fact that such 
 reading trains and cultivates the imaginative faculties, 
 and that it is good to vary the ' Arabian Nights ' and 
 the German and Norse fairy-tales with such totally 
 different material as the Greek stories. There are 
 also other reasons arising from the altered position of 
 Greek in education. 
 
 Without entering on any controverted question, it 
 is clear that even in classical schools the teaching of 
 Greek will have in the future to occupy fewer hours, 
 and probably to begin at a later age, than hitherto. The 
 much greater number of subjects now taught, and 
 necessarily and rightly taught, makes this inevitable. 
 And if the same good, or anything like the same good, 
 is to be got out of the fewer hours, there must be con- 
 siderable modification of method. And one obvious 
 
PREFACE. IX 
 
 modification is, that much which before was taught 
 slowly and painfully by means of the Greek authors, 
 should be learnt quickly and pleasurably by means of 
 an English rendering. To take a very humble example : 
 The present writer would have a much less weary 
 memory of his early struggles with the ' Alcestis ' of 
 Euripides at the age of twelve, if he had been familiar 
 from the age of six with such a version of the story as 
 is presented in this volume. In short, to bring to the 
 study of a language always a difficult and tedious 
 business to a beginner some knowledge of the matter 
 with which the literature deals, and some interest in 
 the people and their life, must tend to lighten and 
 shorten the process of learning. And to this end the 
 following little book is offered as a small contribution. 
 The aim and hope of the translator may be thus 
 summed up in two or three words. All children will 
 get pleasure out of these stories, and that is much. 
 Many children will perhaps get the elements of cul- 
 ture, and that is more. And some may get at once 
 pleasure, culture, and a little real preparation for 
 severer studies ; and so receive a benefit, though 
 doubtless of a humbler kind, yet something like that 
 which Pope's ' Homer ' has given to so many genera- 
 tions of schoolboys. 
 
 A. S. 
 OXFORD : November, 1882. 
 
NOTES. 
 
 NOTE ON THE SOUECES OF THE STORIES. 
 
 The stories have been taken by the Author from many 
 sources, but chiefly from a Greek writer, A pollodorus, who 
 lived in the second century B.C., and collected the old mytho- 
 logical tales. A good deal has also been taken from the 
 poems of Hesiod and Homer, and from the tragedies of 
 Sophocles ; but in these cases it has been necessary to exer- 
 cise some care in the selection of what would be suitable for a 
 book intended to be placed in the hands of children. Several 
 of the details have been supplied by the ancient works of art 
 which have come down to us. 
 
 NOTE ON THE NAMES OF THE GODS. 
 
 As it is probable that many readers will be more familiar 
 with the Latin names of the gods, whilst the stories in this 
 book, being derived from Greek sources, give naturally the 
 Greek names, the following list will perhaps be useful, 
 which shows the corresponding names of each god in the 
 two languages : 
 
 Greek. 
 
 Aphrodite. 
 
 Apollon. 
 
 Artemis. 
 
 Athene. 
 
 Kronos. 
 
 Demeter. 
 
 Dionusos or Bacchos. 
 
 Latin. 
 
 Venus. 
 
 Apollo. 
 
 Diana. 
 
 Minerva. 
 
 Saturnus. 
 
 Ceres. 
 
 Bacchus. 
 
 Hephaistos. Vulcanus, 
 
 Hera. luno. 
 
 Hermes. Mercurius. 
 
 Persephone. Proserpina. 
 
 Plouton. Pluto. 
 
 Poseidon. Neptunus. 
 
 Zeus. luppiter. 
 
 Also the hero and demi-god Herakles is called Hercules by the 
 Komans. 
 
NOTES. xi 
 
 The young reader will naturally ask why, if the stories 
 are the same, the names are in most cases so different. And 
 the answer is briefly this : Each nation had originally its 
 own gods, with different names and quite different ideas 
 attaching to them. But the Greeks were a far more gifted 
 and imaginative people than the Romans, and, when com- 
 munication was established between the countries, became in. 
 many ways their teachers. Many Romans learned Greek, 
 and the Greek stories became current. But as the Romans 
 naturally adhered to the old names of their own gods, there 
 arose in this way an identification. The old Latin ideas 
 about their gods gave way to, or were incorporated with, the 
 much richer and more poetical Greek fancies and traditions ; 
 and thus the Greek mythology was almost bodily adopted by 
 the Roman writers. 
 
 For example, the god Saturnus was originally a Latin 
 rustic god, presiding (as the name shows) over the important 
 work of sowing corn. But when the identification took 
 place, all the stories about Kronos were gradually attached 
 to him, and thus we find him in the Roman poets the father 
 of luppiter, and the old dispossessed king of the gods. 
 
 In a few cases (as Apollo, Pluto, Bacchus), the name was 
 adopted as well as the story, the termination being Latinised. 
 Sometimes it was corrupted, as Proserpina from Persephone ; 
 and sometimes a chance resemblance (as that between the 
 Latin Hercules, originally Herculus, and the Greek Herakles) 
 determined the identification. 
 
 Accordingly when we say, as is often said, that the 
 Greek Artemis (for example) is * called Diana in Latin/ we 
 are using language which, without the above explanation, is 
 liable to mislead the beginner. 
 
 A. S. 
 v 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER 
 
 I. THE BEGINNING OP ALL THINGS ... 1 
 
 II. THE GOLDEN AGE 8 
 
 III. PROMETHEUS AND EPIMETHEUS .... 9 
 
 IV. DEUCALION AND PYERHA 13 
 
 V. THE RAPE OF PERSEPHONE ..... 16 
 
 VI. MARPESSA 20 
 
 VII. ARTEMIS :>3 
 
 VIII. THE GIANTS OTUS AND EPHIALTES . . . 27 
 
 IX. ENDYMION ........ 29 
 
 X. lo ,31 
 
 XI. DANAUS AND AEGYPTUS . r , 34 
 
 XII. PHAETHON . . . 39 
 
 XIII. SALMONEUS AND SISYPHUS 42 
 
 XIV. BELLEROPHON 45 
 
 XV. DAEDALUS AND ICARUS 62 
 
 XVI. EUROPA AND CADMUS 54 
 
 XVII. THE BUILDING OF THEBES 69 
 
 XVIII. SEMELE . 61 
 
 XIX. DIONYSUS 63 
 
 XX. MELAMPUS AND BIAS . . . . . . 68 
 
 XXI. TANTALUS. PELOPS 75 
 
 XXII. NIOBE 80 
 
 XXIII. MELEAGER AND ATALANTA 83 
 
 XXIV. ADMETUS AND ALCESTIS ... 91 
 
xiv CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER PACK 
 
 XXV. PEESEUS .... . 95 
 XXVI. HEEACLES : 
 
 1. The War with the Teleboae . . 104 
 
 2. The Birth and Youth of Heracles . . . 108 
 
 3. The Madness of Heracles, and his First Six 
 
 Labours ... ... 112 
 
 4. The I*^t Six Labours 122 
 
 5. The Murder of Iphitus and the Vengeances of 
 
 Heracles 137 
 
 6. The Marriage of Heracles with Deianira, and 
 
 his Death .... ... 142 
 
 XXVII. THE QUEST OF THE AEGO^AUTS: 
 
 1. The Golden Fleece 148 
 
 2. The Journey to Colchis 151 
 
 3. The Fight for the Golden Fleece . . . 159 
 
 4. The Journey Home 165 
 
 5. Medea's Revenge 171 
 
 XXVIII. THESEUS 176 
 
 XXIX. OEDIPUS ... .... c 205 
 
 XXX. THE SEVEN AGAINST THEBES . . . .212 
 
 XXXI. THE EPIGONI f . 224 
 
 XXXII. EROS AND PSYCHE . , , . 231 
 
MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 THE BEGINNING OF ALL THINGS. 
 
 LONG AGO, in the beginning of time, there was nothing 
 but a huge dark mass called Chaos. In this Chaos were 
 hidden all things that now exist, the earth and the sky, 
 light and darkness, fire and water, and everything else, 
 but they were not yet severed one from the other, and 
 were so mingled and confused that nothing had a 
 separate form of its own. After the Chaos had lasted 
 for a long time it parted asunder, and the earth was 
 divided from the heaven. The sun and the moon anci 
 the stars mounted up above into the sky, but the water 
 and the stones and the trees liked better to remain 
 below with the earth. 
 
 There was a god in the sky called Uranus, and on 
 earth there was a goddess called Gaea. They became 
 husband and wife, and had several children, of whom 
 six were ugly and twelve were beautiful. The ugly 
 ones had, each of them, either a hundred arms, or else 
 only one eye. Those who had a hundred arms had also 
 fifty heads, and they were as big as mountains, and very 
 
 6 
 
2 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 frightful. The others had only one eye apiece, and it 
 was placed in the middle of their foreheads and was as 
 large as a cart wheel. But the beautiful brothers and 
 sisters were formed like men, only they were much 
 larger and grander. Six of them were gods, and were 
 called Titans; there were also six goddesses, who were 
 called Titanides. 
 
 The gods lived on the summit of a very high mountain 
 called Mount Olympus, which almost reached the sky, 
 and Uranus was king over them all. He could not bear 
 the sight of his hundred-armed and one-eyed children 
 because they were so hideous, so he thrust them into a 
 dark pit below the earth, called Tartarus, and would 
 not let them come out of it again. But the mother 
 Gaea loved even her ugly children, and was angry with 
 Uranus for banishing them into darkness and misery. 
 And she said to her son Cronus, who was the youngest 
 of the beautiful gods, that if he would promise to fetch 
 up his hundred-armed and one-eyed brothers out of 
 Tartarus, she would help him to dethrone Uranus and 
 himself become king of the gods. Cronus promised 
 that he would do this, and Graea created the bright 
 cutting steel, and made with it a sharp sickle which 
 she gave to her son, and told him to stab Uranus with 
 it when he was asleep. Cronus did as she desired him, 
 and thus Uranus lost his kingly power. 
 , Cronus now ruled over the world in his father's 
 stead, and the other gods had to obey him. He took 
 one of the Titanides called Rhea to be his wife, and 
 made her the queen. He also fetched up his ugly 
 brothers from Tartarus, but he soon became afraid of 
 tl.em and drove them back into the dark pit. The 
 
TUP, BEGINNING OF ALL THINGS. 
 
 mother Gaea now saw how little she had gained by her 
 treachery to her husband, and she told Cronus that 
 he should lose his kingly power through one of his 
 children just as Uranus had done. This frightened 
 him so much that whenever Ehea had a child, he took 
 it and swallowed it. He swallowed five of them in this 
 way, and poor Khea was very sad because she had no 
 children left. Then Gaea told her, next time she 
 had a child, to take a stone and wrap it in swaddling 
 clothes and give it to Cronus to swallow as if it were 
 the baby, but keep the real child in some safe place till 
 it was grown up. Rhea did so, and Cronus swallowed 
 the stone she gave him, thinking it was the little 
 boy that had just been born, but Rhea hid the child in 
 a cave in the island of Crete where a beautiful goat 
 named Amalthea nourished him with her milk. And 
 there were armed men there, who, whenever the baby 
 cried, danced about and clashed their shields and spears 
 together as if they were treading a war-dance for their 
 own amusement, but it was really to prevent Cronus 
 from hearing the crying. The boy was named Zeus, 
 and in a year he was quite grown up, and was the most 
 beautiful and most powerful of all the gods. When 
 Cronus was asleep, Rhea used to go to the cave and 
 talk to him. 
 
 At last the time came when Zeus was to wage war 
 against his father, and then Gaea gave her daughter 
 Rhea a bowl containing a sweet medicine for Cronus 
 to drink. Rhea went to her husband and said, ' The 
 mother Gaea is no longer angry with you, and she has 
 sent you this sweet drink.' Cronus took the bowl and 
 drank it up ; it tasted very nice, but after he had 
 
4 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 swallowed it he began to feel very uncomfortable, and 
 presently he was sick. Then out came the stcne and 
 the children that he had swallowed, the youngest first, 
 and the eldest last ; there were two gods and three 
 goddesses, and they were all quite grown up. The 
 lames of the gods were Poseidon and Pluto, and the 
 names of the goddesses were Hera, Denieter, and 
 Kestia. 
 
 Then the young gods made war against the old ones, 
 and they sent for the hundred-armed and one-eyed 
 monsters out of Tartarus, that they might help them. 
 The One-eyed were very skilful at smith's work, and 
 they were so grateful to Zeus for setting them free that 
 they forged for him valuable weapons, thunder and light- 
 ning. The old gods took their stand on Mount Othrys, 
 and the young ones on Mount Olympus, and between 
 them was a wide far-stretching valley where they fought. 
 When there was a battle the whole earth resounded 
 at the tread of the gods. The Hundred-armed always 
 threw a hundred pieces of rock at once, and Zeus hurled 
 thunderbolt after thunderbolt, till the woods were in 
 flames and the rivers boiled. The war lasted for ten years, 
 but at last the young gods triumphed. They thrust 
 their enemies into Tartarus, and set the Hundred-armed 
 and the One-eyed to keep guard over them. 
 
 Zeus was now the king of the gods, and he married 
 his sister Hera and made her the queen. He also gave 
 an empire to each of his brothers : all the sea was made 
 subject to Poseidon, and Pluto became king of the 
 Lower! World, where the dead are. These gods had 
 children, who were also gods, and had each their part 
 in the government of the universe. The good goat 
 
THE BEGINNING OF ALL THINGS. O 
 
 Arnalthea was already dead, but Zeus honoured her bv 
 making one of her horns a wonder, which becama 
 famous all over the world. Whoever had it might wish 
 for anything he liked to eat or drink, and immediately 
 it was there ; and for this reason it was called the Horn 
 of Plenty, because it produced in abundance everything 
 that could be desired in the way of food. 
 
 The mother Gaea had planned the overthrow of 
 Cronus because he had driven back his hundred-armed 
 and one-eyed brothers into Tartarus. But she found 
 herself worse off than ever, for the only result of her 
 revenge was that now her beautiful children were 
 imprisoned instead of the ugly ones. This made her 
 very angry with the young gods, and she could not bear 
 to see them powerful and happy. So she brought into 
 the world some hideous monsters to make war against 
 the young gods. They were called Giants, and had 
 enormous strength and courage. They tore up masses 
 of rock and dashed them up into the air till the vault 
 of heaven rang again, but the gods only laughed at it, 
 for the stones were powerless to hurt them by the time 
 they had reached so great a height, and there was no 
 mountain high enough for the Giants to climb from it 
 to the top of Mount Olympus. 
 
 The Giants went on in this way for a long time, but 
 they found that, do what they would, they could not 
 inflict any injury upon the gods, and only got laughed 
 at for their pains, so they resolved to try another 
 plan. They made up their minds to build a ladder by 
 which they might climb up to the abode of the gods, 
 and they set to work to uproot a mountain called Ossa, 
 and roll it on to the top of another mountain called 
 
MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 Pelion. But whilst they were doing this, Zeus hurled 
 a mighty thunderbolt against Ossa and made it falJ 
 down again, and the gods rushed down to the earth to 
 fight the Giants, shouting their war-cry. The fight 
 lasted for a whole day, for the Giants were very strong, 
 but at last the gods gained the victory, and they 
 crushed each of the Giants beneath a huge mountain, 
 which did not kill him, but prevented his ever getting 
 up again. One of them tried to escape over the Medi- 
 terranean Sea, but the goddess Athene, who was the 
 daughter of Zeus, tore off a great three-cornered piece 
 of land and threw it after him. It hit him just as he 
 was in the middle of the sea, and he fell down and was 
 buried beneath it. After some time the land became 
 covered with forests and cities, and it is now called the 
 Island of Sicily. Every now and then the Giants turn 
 on one side beneath their mountains, and then people 
 say, 'It is an earthquake'; and sometimes they become 
 quite furious with impatience, and then their fiery 
 breath bursts through the mountains and puffs out 
 molten iron and stones. 
 
 After the Giants were conquered, Gaea created a 
 truly terrific being, far worse than they had been. 
 She brought him out of a great crack that she made 
 in the earth, and she called her son Typhoeus and was 
 quite pleased to see how hideous he was, for she 
 thought that such a monstrous creature would surely 
 be able to conquer the young gods. He could see 
 over the tops of the highest mountains, and when he 
 stretched out his hands they reached right round the 
 world. He had a hundred heads, each -of them with a 
 different kind of voice, so that he could speak like a 
 
THE BEGINNING OF ALL THINGS. 7 
 
 man, bellow like a bull, roar like a lion, bark like a dog, 
 and hiss like a snake. All the other gods were afraid of 
 him and hid themselves, but Zeus armed himself with 
 thunderbolts and went out to fight him. Typhoeus 
 threw large masses of rock at him, and screamed with 
 all his hundred mouths at once, but Zeus scorched him 
 with lightning, till at last bright flames burst out all over 
 the giant's body. Then Typhoeus howled and dashed 
 himself to the ground, rolling over and over to try and 
 put out the flames, but he could not succeed in doing 
 so, for Zeus went on hurling thunderbolts at him, and 
 the trees all round became red hot. At last Gaea began 
 bo fear that the whole earth would melt, and so she 
 seized Typhoeus and flung him down into Tartarus, 
 where he died. 
 
 After this Graea gave up fighting with the young 
 gods, for she knew that they were stronger than she 
 was, but it was a very long time before she really made 
 friends with them. 
 
MYTHS OF HELL A & 
 
 II. 
 
 THE GOLDEN AGE. 
 
 IT was during the time when Cronus was reigning 
 over the gods that men were first created, and this was 
 called the Golden Age. In the Golden Age it was 
 always springtime, and beautiful flowers blossomed the 
 whole year round in the woods and meadows. It was 
 not necessary for men to labour at tilling the ground, 
 for the earth brought forth of itself everything they 
 could possibly require : apples and melons and grapes 
 and other fruits grew wild everywhere, and in the brooks 
 there flowed a delicious kind of water that tasted like 
 milk. Men, too, were good and happy, and they all lived 
 for a long time, for three hundred years and more, 
 and did not get old and grey, but always remained 
 young. They had no need of houses, but lived out of 
 doors with the beautiful earth for a carpet' and the 
 sky for a roof. Neither were there any distinctions 
 such as we have now between rich and poor, or the 
 upper and lower classes, but all were equal and lived 
 together as friends. When they had lived for a long 
 time and had had enough of life, they fell into a deep 
 sleep and never woke again: that was their death. 
 
 The Golden Age came to an end at last, but those 
 who had lived during that time became guardian 
 spirits who still wander unseen over the earth and ar-j 
 kind to us who are now alive. 
 
in. 
 
 PROMETHEUS AND EPIMETHEUS. 
 
 AFTER the Golden Age was over, the world went on just 
 as it does now; summer and winter followed each 
 other, and there were times of bad weather as well as 
 of bright sunshine ; there were also many people who 
 had not everything they wanted, but were obliged to 
 struggle against hunger and cold and other evils. 
 But they were happy and contented, and had still a 
 spark of the god-like spirit left in them, so that under 
 the pressure of need they learnt all kinds of useful 
 arts. 
 
 There were two brothers of the race of the gods, whose 
 father had been a Titan and had fought against Zeus. 
 These brothers were kind to men and lived among 
 them ; one of them was called Prometheus, or the Fore- 
 thinker, because he was always looking forward and 
 planning for the future ; and the other was called Epi- 
 metheus, or the Afterthinker, because he never thought 
 seriously about things till they had already taken place. 
 Zeus had not gifted men with fire, but Prometheus 
 foresaw that by the help of fire they would be able to 
 make out of bronze and iron many useful tools and 
 weapons which would add to their comfort. So he 
 begged Zeus to give it to them, but Zeus said, ' They 
 will become too clever, and at last they will think 
 
10 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 themselves equal to the gods.' Prometheus thought it 
 would be a noble thing to scorn the anger of Zeus and 
 bring down fire to the earth in order to benefit man- 
 kind, and though he knew that Zeus would punish 
 him severely for doing so, he was willing to bear that. 
 He took a reed in which there was a great deal of pith 
 of the same kind that still grows in warm countries and 
 is used for fuel, and he climbed up to the sun with 
 this reed in his hand, and held it in the blaze till it 
 caught fire and burned like tinder. Then he came 
 down to earth again, and made a fire which gave out 
 warmth and a clear blaze, so that all men wondered at 
 it. And when it was dark Zeus looked down upon the 
 earth. There appeared to be a great many stars there, 
 but the lights which he saw were not stars, they were 
 the flickering fires that men had kindled, and Zeus 
 knew it, and was very, very angry. 
 
 Now at that time there were no such things as 
 diseases and cares among men, so Zeus resolved to 
 send them these unwelcome guests, because they had 
 obtained fire against his will. The god Hephaestus 
 fashioned a marvellously beautiful woman out of clay, 
 and Zeus gave life to her, and the other gods endowed 
 her with many of those gifts that call forth the love of 
 men. They gave her goodly gifts indeed good-nature, 
 pleasant speech, and skill in many arts, but no one 
 gave her an honourable, straightforward mind. The 
 gods called her Pandora, or the All-gifted, because 
 they had all brought her some gift. Hermes, the 
 messenger of the gods, took her to Epimetheus and 
 said, 'Zeus sends this beautiful woman to be your 
 wife.' Prometheus had warned his brother not to 
 
PROMETHEUS AND EPIMETHEUS. 11 
 
 accept any gift from Zeus, because he knew that he 
 would act treacherously, but when Epimetheus saw the 
 lovely woman, he forgot that she had come from Zeus 
 and took her home to live with him. Pandora showed 
 him a golden casket which she said contained her 
 dowry, and as he was very anxious to see the precious 
 jewels he expected to find in it, he begged her to open 
 it. But when she had taken off the lid, instead of 
 any jewels, there were a number of winged figures in- 
 side with corpse-like faces who struggled out and flew 
 about all over the world : these were the diseases and 
 cares that Zeus had said he would send. They fly into 
 the houses of men and nestle beside them without 
 anyone being able to see or hear them come in. Even 
 now it often happens that when a man is seated at 
 dinner with his guests, well and happy, one of the 
 diseases flies in without any one knowing it, and in 
 the night it seizes upon him and puts an end to all his 
 enjoyment. Zeus had meant to send into the world a 
 still worse fellow, called Foreboding, so that men might 
 know all their troubles beforehand, and thus lose all 
 pleasure in life. Foreboding was in the casket with 
 the others, but when Pandora took off the lid, he was 
 in such a hurry to get out that his wings caught in 
 the inner edge of the casket, and when Pandora shut 
 down the lid again she did not see that he was left 
 behind. If Foreboding had come into the world, every- 
 one would have known in childhood of the diseases and 
 troubles in store for him in his old age, and would 
 thus have lost all his spirits, even in his days of 
 health. 
 
 Thus did Zeus punish men by sending disease and 
 
12 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 care among them ; but for Prometheus, who had taken 
 the fire to them, he reserved a far severer punishment. 
 He commanded two gods to carry him to Mount Cau- 
 casus, and the god Hephaestus, who was an excellent 
 smith, bound him to a rock with strong iron chains so 
 that he could neither move hand nor foot ; but Heph- 
 aestus did so very unwillingly, for it seemed to him 
 that Prometheus had done a great and god-like thing 
 in braving the wrath of Zeus. Every morning a huge 
 eagle came and pecked open the body of Prometheus 
 arid ate his liver, and every night the liver grew again 
 and the body healed over it. Prometheus suffered in- 
 expressible agony, but he never would beg for mercy 
 from Zeus nor say that he was sorry for having brought 
 down the fire, for he was still of the same mind 
 about it. 
 
 But after many years had passed, there came a 
 great hero named Heracles, who shot the eagle with 
 his bow and arrow and delivered Prometheus. Pro- 
 metheus was now free, but he was still obliged to wear 
 on his finger a ring of the chain with which he had 
 been bound to remind him of his punishment, and 
 from that time it has always been the custom for people 
 to wear rings as reminders. 
 
13 
 
 IV. 
 
 DEUCALION AND PYRRHA. 
 
 AFTER disease and care had come into the world, men 
 became unkind and unfriendly ; instead of peace there 
 was now constant war, and murder and theft were more 
 common every day. The gods were much displeased 
 at these crimes, and Zeus said he would destroy the 
 whole race of men by a great flood. There were, how- 
 ever, one man and one woman, Deucalion and Pyrrha, 
 who took no part in the crimes that were committed, 
 but who lived peacefully and uprightly, fearing the 
 gods. Deucalion was the son of Prometheus, who knew 
 everything that the gods had resolved upon though he 
 was chained to Mount Caucasus, and when the great 
 flood was about to take place, he advised Deucnlion to 
 provide against it by building a chest that could float 
 on the water, so that when the flood began, he and his 
 wife might take shelter in it. 
 
 Then a mighty rain poured down from heaven 
 which lasted for nine days and nine nights. The 
 valleys were soon filled with water, and the people fled 
 for safety to the tops of the highest mountains ; but 
 the flood rose higher and higher till at last the waves 
 washed right over the mountains, so that the people 
 perished miserably in the water. The great chest 
 
14 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 floated about on the top of the waves, and Deucalion and 
 Pyrrha who were safely shut up inside it, could hear 
 the pouring rain and the cries of the drowning people. 
 When they were all drowned, the rain ceased and the 
 waters began to abate, and on the next day the bottom 
 of the chest grated against dry land. Then Deucalion 
 burst it open, and he and Pyrrha came out into the 
 sunshine, but all they could see was a wide stretch of 
 sea with only the tops of the highest mountains 
 standing out above it. The mountain where the chest 
 had stranded was called Parnassus, and was specially 
 dedicated to the gods. Before this time Zeus had 
 once wanted to know where the middle of the earth was, 
 and had let fly two doves at the same moment from the 
 two ends of the world to see where they would meet : 
 they met on Mount Parnassus, and thus it was proved 
 beyond a doubt, that this mountain must be the centre 
 of the earth. 
 
 Deucalion and Pyrrha were now the only ones re- 
 maining of the whole human race, and it was on ac- 
 count of their piety that Zeus had allowed them to 
 save themselves instead of destroying them with the 
 others. The waters abated until they no longer covered 
 the earth, and then the grass and flowers and trees 
 bloomed forth again' as they do in spring, and Zeus 
 sent Hermes, the messenger of the gods, to tell Deuca- 
 lion and Pyrrha that they might ask for anything they 
 pleased, and he would grant it. They determined to 
 ask that there might again be men on the earth, and 
 Hermes told them to go into the valley where there 
 were a great many stones lying, and to take up the 
 stones and throw them over their shoulders. They did 
 
DEUCALION AND PYRRHA. 15 
 
 so, and this was what happened : every stone that Deuca- 
 lion threw became a man, and every stone that Pyrrha 
 threw became a woman. Deucalion was their king, 
 and he taught them to cultivate the land, and many 
 other useful arts. And after some time had passed 
 the whole earth was filled with people as before, and 
 no one would have known that the great Flood had ever 
 taken place. 
 
16 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 V. 
 
 THE RAPE OF PERSEPHONE. 
 
 THE goddess Demeter had a daughter named Perse- 
 phone, who lived in the island of Sicily. Her mother 
 had given her several maidens to be her playfellows, 
 and she herself often came down from Mount Olympus 
 to see her daughter. The maidens played and danced 
 together, or wandered about over the hills and valleys 
 looking for beautiful flowers, and were as happy as the 
 days were long. One day whilst they were all scattered 
 about looking for flowers, it happened that Persephone 
 strayed away from the others and was quite alone. 
 Then suddenly the earth opened beside her, and out of 
 it there came a chariot drawn by fierce coal-black 
 horses, in which was a man with a pale face and a 
 black beard and a golden circlet round his hair. He 
 put out his hand and took hold of the beautiful Per- 
 sephone, and drew her into the chariot beside him. 
 She screamed out to her companions, but it was of no 
 use, for the man with the pale face and the black 
 beard held her fast, and the horses ran like lightning 
 till very soon they had disappeared under the earth 
 and she could no longer be seen or heard. Her com- 
 panions had heard her cries and they ran to look for 
 
THE RAPE OF PEESEPHONE. 17 
 
 her, but they could not tell what had become of 
 her. 
 
 Now when Demeter found that her daughter had 
 been carried off she was very much distressed, and she 
 lighted a torch and wandered all over the world trying 
 to find her. She lit up every cranny and cavern with 
 her torch, and climbed all the highest mountains, asking 
 gods and men if they had seen her child, but no trace 
 of her could she find. 
 
 I must tell you that the pale dark man was the god 
 Pluto, the kinor of the Lower World. It was so dismal 
 
 ' O 
 
 down there that no woman would consent to be his 
 wife, so he made up his mind to carry off the beautiful 
 Persephone by force, and Zeus had given him leave to 
 do this, but he did not tell Demeter about it. Demeter 
 wandered about for a whole year, growing every day 
 sadder and sadder, till at last the sun-god, Helios, 
 took pity on her. Helios could see everything that 
 happened on the earth, and he had been looking on 
 when Pluto ran away with Persephone, so he told 
 Demeter that her daughter was in the Lower World, 
 and that the gods knew all about it and allowed it. 
 Then Demeter was angry with Zeus and the other 
 gods for having given her so much pain, and she 
 refused to live with them any longer, but remained on 
 earth among men. 
 
 The gods were sorry for this, for they honoured and 
 loved Demeter, so after a little while Zeus proposed 
 that a council of all the gods should be held, and that 
 they should judge between Demeter and Pluto. A day 
 was appointed, and they all came together, Demeter 
 and Pluto among the rest; and it was decided that if 
 
 c 
 
18 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 Persephone had as yet eaten nothing since she left the 
 earth she should return to her mother, but that other- 
 wise she should remain in the Lower World. Now 
 Persephone had been so sad in the Lower World that 
 during all this time she had neither eaten nor drunk 
 anything but once. This was one day when, as she was 
 walking by the side of the river that flows through the 
 Lower World and came to some pomegranate trees 
 laden with beautiful red fruit, she plucked a pome- 
 granate and ate it ; and Pluto told this in the assembly 
 of the gods, hoping that it would make good his claim 
 to keep her. But the gods decreed that as she had 
 eaten nothing but a pomegranate in the Lower World 
 she should not remain there altogether, but only for a 
 third of the year, and that during the remaining two 
 thirds she should be allowed to live on the earth. So 
 it was arranged in this way : as long as the ears of 
 corn were below the ground, Persephone had to remain 
 in the Lower World with her husband, but as soon as 
 the blades appeared above the soil, she too came up 
 into the sunlight to her mother. 
 
 At this time corn was already growing upon the 
 earth, for Demeter had created it for the use of men, 
 and she often wore a wreath of wheat-ears round her 
 head. But when she was wandering over the earth 
 looking for her daughter, she found that no one under- 
 stood the best means of making it grow, and as she 
 knew that men would be more peaceful and friendly if 
 they cultivated the ground and surrounded themselves 
 vvith beautiful plants, she determined to teach them 
 how to do so. Demeter loved all men, but most of 
 all a man named Triptolemus, and sue gave him a 
 
THE EAPE OF PERSEPHONE. 10 
 
 cluiriot drawn by two winged dragons, and put into hij 
 hand a quantity of corn, which she told him to strew 
 over the earth. Triptolemus flew through the air in his 
 chariot, scattering the grains of corn as- he went; and 
 then there fell a gentle rain which made them sink 
 into the ground, so that they became firmly rooted, 
 and soon shot forth little blades. The people were 
 much pleased when the corn grew up and ripened, and 
 Triptolemus taught them all that he had learnt from 
 Demeter about the best way of cultivating it and turn- 
 ing it to good account. Soon there were fields of waving 
 corn all over the earth, and instead of always going out 
 hunting, men tilled the ground and waited for the 
 harvest. When it was ripe, they raised altars of earth 
 and green grass, and laid the fresh ears upon them as 
 a thank-offering to the gods for having sent rain and 
 sunshine to make the corn grow. Demeter especially 
 was held in great honour, and they prayed to her when 
 they sowed their crops. 
 
20 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 VI. 
 
 MARPESSA. 
 
 THERE was once a king of Greece named Evenus, who 
 had a beautiful daughter called Marpessa. There was 
 also a brave and noble hero called Idas, and he came 
 one day to the king and asked him to let him have 
 Marpessa for his wife. Marpessa would have been 
 quite willing to agree to this, but the old king was 
 very selfish, and he said that he would not let his 
 daughter leave him to marry anyone. So Idas had to 
 go away with a heavy heart, but the sea-god Poseidon 
 was his friend, and he gave him a wonderful chariot 
 in which to carry off the beautiful Marpessa by stealth. 
 The chariot was drawn by very swift horses, and it had 
 wings on both sides which flapped as the horses ran, 
 so that nothing on earth could go faster than this 
 chariot. 
 
 One day when Marpessa went to the well to draw 
 water, she found Idas waiting there for her in the 
 winged chariot, and she got up beside him and drove 
 away. The old king saw them go, and he was very angry 
 and said that he would fetch back Marpessa and kill 
 Idas. He had the swiftest team of horses in the whole 
 country, and he drove them furiously along the track 
 of the other chariot, but even at their utmost speed 
 
MARPESSA. 21 
 
 they could not go fast enough to please him. At last 
 he came to a river, and then he knew that it was hope- 
 less to pursue his daughter and Idas any further, and 
 he starbbed the horses and broke the chariot to pieces, 
 and then he threw himself into the river and was 
 drowned. 
 
 Idas was for on in front, and he thought there was 
 no fear now of anyone attempting to interfere between 
 him and the beautiful Marpessa. But there was a 
 mighty god named Apollo, who loved Marpessa, and 
 was not willing that Idas should have her for his wife, 
 for he wanted to marry her himself. He was very 
 beautiful in face and in form, and had the appearance of 
 a youth just reaching the age of manhood. He was 
 the brother of Artemis the goddess of the woods, and 
 carried a bow of pure silver, while round his neck there 
 hung a golden quiver full of arrows, and he could 
 always hit whatever he aimed at, even if it were many 
 miles off. He came and seized the horses' bridle, and 
 said to Idas that he must either give up the maiden or 
 else fight with him. Idas was very brave and was 
 always quite ready to fight, and he at once jumped 
 down from the chariot and prepared to begin the 
 struggle. But at that moment there fell a thunderbolt 
 on the ground between them, and they heard the voice 
 of Zeus calling to them, and saying, k The maiden shall 
 decide.' 
 
 So Marpessa had to choose between a god and a 
 hero, and she looked down and thought for a mo- 
 ment. Then she raised her eyes and held out her 
 hand to Idas, and said, ' When I am old, you will be old 
 also, and will honour me and take care of me, but 
 
22 'MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 Apollo always remains young, and iu my old age he 
 would thrust me away and would take another wife.' 
 So Marpessa made her choice and preferred to marry 
 the hero Idas, and Apollo had to go away without 
 her. 
 
23 
 
 YIL 
 
 ARTEMIS 
 
 ARTEMIS was the goddess of the woods. She was the 
 daughter of Zeus and of the goddess Leto, who had 
 gone through many troubles before Artemis was born. 
 For Zeus had married the beautiful Leto secretly, and 
 when Hera heard of it she was very angry, and drove 
 her away from Mount Olympus. Leto took shelter on 
 the earth, but Hera commanded the earth to deny her 
 rest, and whenever she lay down it began to tremble 
 under her and quaked horribly. She fled like a 
 hunted deer from one end of the world to the other, 
 till after long wanderings she came to the floating 
 island of Delos over which the earth had no power, 
 and here at last she could rest. The island was not 
 fixed to the bottom of the sea, and the waves played 
 roughly with it and tossed it about, so the sea-god 
 Poseidon, who was sorry for Leto, caused four granite 
 pillars to spring up and hold it fast, and ever since 
 that time it has stood perfectly still. Leto had two 
 children, a boy and a girl, and Zeus named them Apollo 
 and Artemis. After the children were born, Hera be- 
 came kinder, and allowed Leto to come back to Mount 
 
24 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 Olympus, and desired the earth to give her re^,t wher- 
 ever she wished. The island of Delos was ever after- 
 wards held m great esteem by the Greeks, and they 
 came from long distances in beautifully decked ships 
 to honour the island by offering sacrifices upon it. 
 
 Artemis was a glorious goddess, and she chose the 
 woods for her dominion, and the chase for her occupa- 
 tion. She delighted in wandering through the forests 
 with the nymphs who attended her, killing wolves and 
 wild-boars. But she was kind to the tame animals 
 that she met, and stroked and petted them. Her 
 favourite creatures were some beautiful hinds, and she 
 punished anyone who killed them. Artemis towered a 
 head above all her nymphs, and she was also easily to 
 be recognised by her godlike beauty, and by her 
 golden bow and quiver of golden arrows. In the even- 
 ing she often laid aside her weapons and danced in the 
 moonlight with her maidens ; their light footsteps did 
 not even bend the grass, only the next morning, traces 
 of them could be seen in the dew. Often too, when 
 the chase led them past a clear forest lake overshadowed 
 by sweet-smelling trees, they undressed and bathed in 
 the pleasant pool, and the nymphs splashed about in 
 the water and had all kinds of games. Artemis did not 
 marry, for she said she would neither be the wife of 
 9 god nor of a man, but would always have her home 
 in the forest among her nymphs. 
 
 There was once a hunter named Actaeon, who loved 
 hunting better than anything else, and who honoured 
 Artemis, the goddess of the chase, above all other gods 
 and goddesses. He had fifty splendid hounds who 
 were very fond of their master, and in the morning 
 
ARTEMIS. 20 
 
 when he came out of his house they used to crowd 
 round him barking for joy and licking his hands; he 
 had given each of them a special name, and he patted 
 them and talked to them as if they could understand 
 him. They always went out hunting with him, and 
 chased the wild animals which he shot with his arrows. 
 One day Actaeon was out hunting, and it was so hot 
 that about noon he gave his dogs a rest and let them 
 go to sleep, whilst he himself strolled about among 1 the 
 cool bushes looking for a spring where he might quench 
 his thirst. Presently he heard a splashing of water 
 and the laughter of maidens' voices, and going a little 
 nearer, he pushed aside the branch of a tree and beheld 
 the glorious goddess and her nymphs in the bath. He 
 could not turn away his eyes, and for a little while 
 Artemis did not notice him, but when she looked up 
 and saw the hunter who had so forgotten himself, her 
 eyes filled with anger at his having dared to watch her. 
 She raised her beautiful hand, and in a moment Actaeon 
 was changed into a stag with long light feet and branch- 
 ing horns, but still able to think like a man. He 
 shuddered and rushed away to the place where he had 
 left his dogs ; they awoke, but they did not know him, 
 and gave chase to him. He tried to make them under- 
 stand by looking back and calling to them, but no 
 words would come out. of his mouth, only a sound like 
 the cry of a stag, and at last they overtook him and 
 tore him to pieces. Thus he was miserably killed by 
 his own dogs, as a punishment for not having turned 
 away his eyes when he came upon the severe goddess 
 at her bath. The dogs wandered for a long time 
 through the forest looking for their master, pining 
 
26 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 because they could not find him, and refusing to eat. 
 But there was a skilled artist who took pity on them, 
 and lie made an image of clay so exactly like Actaeon, 
 that the dogs thought it was their master himself, and 
 were comforted. 
 
27 
 
 
 VI11, 
 
 THE GIAXTS OTUS AND EPHIALTES. 
 
 THERE was once a woman who had so great a love for 
 the sea that she was never tired of looking at it. One 
 day, as she was sitting on the shore, the god Poseidon 
 came driving over the waves in his chariot, for the sea 
 was subject to him. When he saw the beautiful woman 
 who was gazing at it so tenderly, a great love for her 
 sprang up in his heart, and he took her to be his wife. 
 Some time afterwards she had two children, called Otus 
 and Ephialtes, and by the time they were a year old 
 they were two yards in height and a yard in width. 
 Every year the children grew two yards in height and a 
 yard in width, so that when they were nine years old 
 they were so big and strong that they could tear up the 
 largest oak trees and break them in two across their 
 knees. But they were ignorant and foolish, and instead 
 of honouring the gods, they made a silly plan to get up 
 to Mount Olympus, where the gods lived, and overturn 
 everything that they had arranged. They settled that 
 Hera, the queen of the gods, should be the wife of Otus, 
 and that Artemis, the goddess of the woods, should be 
 the wife of Ephialtes, and that the other gods should be 
 loaded with chains and imprisoned in dark caves ; and 
 they said they would change everything on the earth, 
 
28 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 and throw all the mountains into the sea till it was 
 choked up, and then make rivers flow where there had 
 been land before. 
 
 The gods could hear this foolish talk, for the giants' 
 voices were as loud as the most tremendous gale, and 
 Ares, the god of war, armed himself and went out to 
 fight them. But the giants were stronger than he, and 
 they fastened him to the ground with two iron rings 
 round his body, attached to chains which they held in 
 their hands and pulled whenever he tried to get up, so 
 that he could not move without great pain. They gave 
 him nothing to eat or drink, and at mid-day the sun 
 beat down upon his face and scorched him with its heat. 
 None of the gods dared to try and free Ares by force, so 
 Zeus commanded Hermes, the Messenger, to get him 
 away by stealth. Hermes was the most cunning of all 
 the gods, and at night, when the giants were asleep, ho 
 went and drew Ares out of the iron rings so cautiously 
 that they made no noise, and the giants did not awake. 
 The two gods then ran away, and the next morning 
 the giants sa\v that their rings were empty, which 
 made them very angry. 
 
 They went on for some time in their old way, boast- 
 ing of all the wonderful things they were going to do, 
 till one day the goddess Artemis changed herself into 
 a little white doe. The giants were lying in the forest 
 side by side, with their great hunting spears in their 
 hands, when the little doe came running out of the 
 wood and passed right between them. They both 
 raised their spears at the same moment and threw them 
 at her, but she was so swift that they did not hit her, 
 instead of that each giant was stabbed by his brother's 
 spear, and Ihey both bled to death. 
 
29 
 
 IX. 
 
 ENDYMION. 
 
 As long as Zens was with the gods on Mount Olympus, 
 Hera, the queen of the gods, was his wife, but from 
 time to time he came to live on the earth for a little 
 while, and then he married a noble and beautiful 
 woman who was his wife whilst he remained among 
 men. 
 
 Once Zeus married a very beautiful princess whom 
 he loved dearly, and they had a little boy named 
 Kndymion. When Endymion had grown up to be a 
 young man, his father told him that he might wish for 
 whatever he liked and he would grant it. Endymion 
 might have chosen to become a mighty king, but he 
 had no desire for anything of the sort. Instead of that, 
 his wish was that he might go to sleep and never wake 
 again, but always have pleasant dreams. And Zeus 
 granted him what he asked. There was a lonely valley 
 which no one ever came near. Soft green grass grew there, 
 and sweet-smelling flowers, and there were shady trees, 
 with birds singing and making their nests among the 
 branches, and a brook flowing through it that chattered 
 pleasantly night and day. Endymion lay down under 
 a tree beside the brook and went to sleep, and he never 
 grew any older, but slept on for ever, dreaming happily, 
 immortal like the gods. 
 
30 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 Now there was a mild, gentle goddess, the goddess 
 of the moon, whose name was Selene. As she passed 
 along the heaven with the little stars by her side, she 
 used to look down upon Endymion lying asleep, and 
 she gazed at the beautiful son of Zeus until she felt a 
 deep love for him spring up in her heart, so that he was 
 continually in her thoughts. She shed her softest and 
 mildest rays upon him, and then Endymion dreamt 
 more happily than ever. It was like no other love, for 
 she could neither speak to him nor caress him, she 
 could only look at him from a distance ; but she has 
 always remained true to him, and has never loved 
 another as she loved the sleeping Endymion. 
 
10 
 
 THERE was once a princess named lo, whose father was 
 king of the town of Argos, in Greece. Zeus loved lo be- 
 cause she was fair and gentle, and he often carne down 
 to earth in order to be with her. But Hera was angry 
 with Zeus for going away from her, and one day when 
 he went to see the beautiful lo, she followed him. 
 Then Zeus changed lo into a white cow, and pretended 
 that he had only come to look at the cow. .But Hera 
 knew it was lo, and she begged him so earnestly to 
 make her a present of the cow that he could not refuse. 
 Hera gave the white cow into the charge of the watch- 
 man Argus, who had a hundred eyes that slept by 
 turns so that half of them were always on the watch. 
 He took her to a sacred grove and tied her to an olive 
 tree, and then he climbed a little hill that was close 
 by, and sat there day and night watching her. lo ate 
 grass and flowers when she was hungry, but she was 
 very sad and lowed mournfully, for she longed to see 
 her father and her playfellows again. 
 
 After some time Zeus commanded the crafty god 
 Hermes to steal away the cow, and Hermes went into 
 the wood and began to play upon the shepherd's flute. 
 Argus called him to his side for the playing pleased 
 
32 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 him well, so Hermes came and played all his most 
 beautiful tunes, whilst Argus stretched himself out on 
 the grass and enjoyed himself more than he had ever 
 done in his life before. Then all the hundred eyes fell 
 asleep at once, and Hermes took a sharp sickle and cut 
 off his head. After that he loosed the cow, and was 
 preparing to take her home to her father, but Hera, 
 who had seen what he had done, was very angry, 
 and she came down and commanded him to let go the 
 cow. As Hera was mightier than he, Hermes was 
 obliged to obey, and then Hera made a great insect as 
 large as a bat, which buzzed horribly and tormented lo. 
 She ran away in order to try and escape from it, but it 
 pursued her all over the country, and even though she 
 swam across a wide sea and went on through the 
 country on the further side, still the insect kept flying 
 round and round her and gave her no peace. For a 
 whole year she fled from it, till at last when she had 
 reached the land of Egypt in Africa she was so tired 
 that she could go no further. Hera was just then 
 asleep, and Zeus was able to come quickly down and 
 kill the cruel gad-fly ; then he stroked the back of 
 the cow with his hand and she received back her 
 human form, but she was pale and wasted, and not so 
 beautiful as before. After this she remained in Egypt 
 where the people of the country were good to her, but 
 Hera was even more unkind than before, and when 
 after a time lo had a little son, she caused the child to 
 be stolen from her. Then lo was again in great 
 distress, and she set out to seek for her child. She 
 journeyed from morning to night without stopping, 
 and she had gone through the whole country without 
 
ro. 33 
 
 being able to find it and was beginning to be terribly 
 afraid that it must have perished, when someone 
 told her that Hera had given it to a queen in the 
 land of Syria to take care of. It was a long way off, 
 and the journey was full of danger on account of rob- 
 bers and wild beasts, but lo set off at once for the land 
 of Syria, and when she got there, the queen gave back 
 the child to her. 
 
 After this, Hera left off persecuting lo, and the 
 King of Egypt asked her to be his wife and made her 
 the queen. But she could never forget her past 
 troubles, and as often as she saw a white cow, she 
 thought of how she too had once been a cow, and had 
 eaten grass and flowers. 
 
34 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 XL 
 
 DANAUS AND AEGYPTUS. 
 
 THERE were once two kings, called Danaus and Aegyptus, 
 who were brothers, and whose dominions lay side by 
 side. They lived in Africa, and were descended from 
 lo, who had now been dead a long time. Aegvptus 
 had fifty sons, and Danaus had fifty daughters. But 
 the sons of Aegyptus were wicked men, and they tried 
 to kill their uncle; so Danaus built a great ship with 
 fifty oars, and when it was ready, he and his fifty 
 daughters got into it and sailed away ; each daughter 
 took an oar, and Danaus steered. They sailed far 
 away over the sea till they came to the country of 
 Argos in Greece, where the father of lo had been king. 
 The Argives (as the people of Argos were called) 
 wondered when they saw the ship with the old man 
 and the fifty maidens in it, but they received them 
 kindly and gave them a large piece of land to live upon, 
 and also a herd of fine cattle. Danaus tilled the ground, 
 and his daughters took care of the cattle. Danaus was 
 very wise, and he gave the Argives much good counsel, 
 till at last they wished he could be their king. But 
 the} 7 had a king already, who though he was not nearly 
 eo wise as Danaus, had a great many soldiers to fight 
 
DANAUS AND AEGYPTUS. 35 
 
 for him, and he was by no means willing to give up 
 the kingdom. This led to many disputes among the 
 people, and a civil war had nearly broken out, when it 
 happened that the king, and Danaus, and many of the 
 Argives, were assembled one day in a field where there 
 were a number of sheep and cattle feeding, and all at 
 once a great wolf rushed out of the forest, who, passing 
 by the sheep and cows, ran straight at the great bull 
 that belonged to the flock and tore him to pieces. 
 The Argives felt sure that this must be a sign from 
 heaven, for never before had a wolf been able to kill a 
 strong bull. And there was a soothsayer among them 
 who declared that as the bull had been overcome by the 
 wolf, so would the king be overcome by Danaus and 
 deprived of his kingdom. When the king heard that, 
 he was afraid that he might lose his life as well as his 
 dominions, and he fled hastily out of the country. 
 
 So Danaus became king, and lived in the beautiful 
 palace with his daughters. His brother's sons heard 
 that he was king of Argos, and that his daughters were 
 beautiful maidens, and they thought they would like to 
 be reconciled to their uncle and to have their cousins for 
 their wives. So they built a ship like the one that 
 Danaus had sailed away in, and came to Argos, and 
 when they arrived there, they said to their uncle that 
 they desired to be at peace with him, and begged him to 
 give them his daughters in marriage. Danaus agreed to 
 do so, and he called his daughters together and allotted 
 one of them to each brother. A few days afterwards 
 the wedding was celebrated with the greatest mag- 
 nificence, and many sacrifices were offered to the gods. 
 But Danaus took his daughters aside and gave to each 
 
 D 2 
 
36 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 one a shining dagger, telling her to hide it in her dress 
 and kill her husband with it when he was asleep. 
 That night the fifty princes slept in fifty chambers and 
 their wives with them, and about midnight each wife 
 took out her dagger and stabbed her husband with it. 
 The only one who did not do so was Hypermnestra, the 
 most beautiful of all, who was married to one of the 
 brothers named Lynceus. He was not wicked like the 
 rest, but noble and brave, and Hypermnestra awoke him 
 and said, ' Thy brothers have been killed by their wives, 
 prepare to flee for thy life.' She gave him an unlighted 
 torch, and told him, when he reached the mountain near 
 the city, to light it and hold it up in the air, so that she 
 might know that he had not been seized by the king's 
 soldiers, but had been able to make his escape. She 
 led him out of the palace and pointed out to him the 
 direction in which he was to go ; then she ascended to 
 the roof, which, like all the roofs of the Greek houses, 
 was not sloping like ours, but flat, so that people could 
 walk upon it. Hypermnestra remained there for a 
 long time with her eyes fixed on the mountain before 
 any light appeared, but at last she saw a little flame 
 which came from the torch, and then she knew that 
 Lynceus was safe. Then she went down again with a 
 brave heart, though she had good reason to fear that 
 her father would be very angry. 
 
 The next morning, Hypermnestra's sisters came to 
 Danaus, each holding in her hand the bloody head of 
 her husband which she had seized by the hair, and 
 Danaus praised them for what they had done; but 
 when he asked Hypermnestra why she had not also 
 brought him a bloody head, she said, ' I have helped 
 
DANAUS AND AEGYPTUS. 37 
 
 Lynceus to escape.' Now Hypermnestra was the king's 
 favourite daughter, but he was so angry with her for 
 having disobeyed him, that he struck her and pushed 
 her away from him, and said that she should be tried 
 publicly, and shut up meanwhile in a dark under- 
 ground dungeon, as if she had been guilty of some 
 crime. He called together all the old wise men in 
 the land to be her judges, and they came and sat in 
 the market-place to pass sentence. Danaus declared 
 that whatever they decided on should be certainly 
 carried out, and when the judges asked him if he 
 would indeed abide by what they said, he swore that 
 even if they condemned Hypermnestra to death, the 
 sentence should be executed. The beautiful Hyperm- 
 nestra was led into the market-place by the king's 
 spearmen, and the judges questioned her. Then they 
 consulted together and found that they were all agreed, 
 and they said, ' What Hypermnestra deserves is that 
 she be the king's best-beloved daughter, and that 
 Lynceus come back and be the king's son-in-law.' 
 That did not please Danaus, for he wished to have 
 Hypermnestra punished, but because of his oath, he 
 was obliged to let her go free and live in the palace as 
 before. He also made a sacred treaty with Lynceus, 
 and he came back to be the husband of Hypermnestra. 
 As Jong as Danaus lived, he was next to him in power 
 and wealth, and after the death of his father-in-law, he 
 succeeded him as king of Argos. 
 
 The other daughters of Danaus, who had killed their 
 husbands, were held in greater esteem by their father, 
 but the gods caused them to die early, and when they 
 came into the Lower World, they inflicted on them a 
 
38 MYTHS OF BELLAS. 
 
 never-ending punishment. There was a stream of 
 rushing water, close to which a great vessel had been 
 placed, and each of the Danai'des, or daughters of 
 Danaus, was given a bucket and commanded to fill the 
 vessel with water from the stream, and was told that 
 she was never to stop pouring in the water till the 
 vessel was quite full. The Danaides did as they were 
 required, but the vessel was full of holes, so that as fast 
 as they tried to fill it, the water ran back again into the 
 stream, and though they did their utmost by pouring 
 it in as fast as possible, it was of no use, they were 
 never able to accomplish their task, and were obliged toj 
 go toiling on at it in vain for ever- 
 
XII. 
 
 PHAETHOtf. 
 
 HELIOS was the sun-god, and he used to drive along 
 the sky in his shining chariot drawn by four milk-white 
 horses, who bathed themselves every evening in the 
 great stream Ocean us that flows right round the world. 
 As he looked down from the sky, he saw a beautiful 
 woman whom he loved and longed to have for his wife, 
 so he came down to the earth and was married to her, 
 and they had a son named Phaethon. When Phaethon 
 was a little boy, his mother used to point up to the sky 
 where his father was, and teach him to throw up kisses 
 to him. As he grew up to be a young man he was 
 distinguished from all others by his brave spirit and 
 remarkable beauty, but though it was evident that he 
 was the son of a god, there were many people who, 
 because they were jealous of him, tried to vex him by 
 saying that this was not really the case. This made 
 him very anxious to show that Helios was in truth his 
 father, and he resolved to find some means of proving 
 it beyond a doubt. So he set out for the stream 
 Oceanus, and when Helios brought his horses there in 
 the evening he was rejoiced to find his son waiting for 
 him, and he kissed him many times. Then he asked 
 him if he had any special reason for taking such a long 
 
40 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 journey in order to see him, and Phaethon said it was 
 because lie had something to ask him, which he longed 
 for more than anything else in the world. Helios 
 promised to grant bis wish, never suspecting what it 
 was, and to please Phaethon, he even sealed the 
 promise by his oath as a god that he would give him 
 whatever he should ask. The gods swore by the river 
 Styx which flowed through the Lower World, and any- 
 one who ventured to break that oath had to suffer a 
 severe punishment, for nine years he had to lie on the 
 ground as if he were dead, and for nine years after- 
 wards he was shut out from the company of the other 
 gods. So when Helios had confirmed his promise by 
 this solemn oath, Phaethon was full of joy, and he said 
 that his wish was that on the following day he might 
 be allowed to take his father's place in driving the 
 chariot of the sun. Helios was terrified at his audacity, 
 and he told him that this was what no mortal could do 
 and that he must give up all thought of such a thing. 
 But Phaethon was light-hearted, and he delighted in 
 danger and thought he could accomplish anything he 
 pleased, however hard it might be. He thought too, that 
 if he had once driven the chariot of the sun and could 
 tell people of all he had seen whilst he was doing this, 
 everyone would be ready to acknowledge that he was 
 indeed the son of Helios. So he would not give up his 
 wish, and as Helios had sworn by the Styx, he was 
 obliged to grant it, though he felt sure that it would be 
 the death of the boy. The next morning the fiery 
 horses were harnessed as usual, and Phaethon clambered 
 up into the shining chariot, more proud and happy than 
 he had ever been in his life. The horses flew along 
 
PHAETHON. 41 
 
 the usual path, and Phaethon, looking down, could see 
 the trees and houses and rivers on the earth. As long 
 as he was near the earth he was very happy, but when 
 they had got higher than eagles can fly, his head began 
 to swim, and the horses soon found out that it was not 
 Helios who was guiding them with his godlike wisdom, 
 and they refused to obey the rein and keep in the right 
 path, but flew up and down just as they pleased. First 
 they went too near the heaven, and then they flew 
 down lower and came too near the earth ; and the flowers 
 withered and the streams dried up, and it became so 
 hot that the mountains began to melt. As they passed 
 over Africa they came so near to the earth that all the 
 people of the land were burnt black by the heat of the 
 sun, and the black colour continued in their children 
 and grandchildren, so that they were given the name 
 of Moors, or black people. The goddess Gaea, who was 
 queen of the earth, saw the trees and flowers and 
 springs perishing miserably from the fierce blaze of the 
 sun, and she begged Zeus not to let the earth be 
 destroyed. Then Zeus took a thunderbolt and hurled 
 it at Phaethon, who fell dead from the chariot. Helios 
 saw it with deep sorrow. He rushed forward and seized 
 the reins and guided the chariot back into the right 
 path, but for many days after this the heaven was 
 covered with black clouds, and the sun-god would not 
 let his face be seen. 
 
MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 xin. 
 
 SALMONEUS AND SISYPHUS. 
 
 THERE was a country of Greece called Elis, and there 
 was once a king of Elis named Salmoneus, whom the 
 gods favoured in all manner of w r ays. If he w r ent 
 to war with another king he was sure to gain the 
 victory. His fields brought forth abundant harvests, 
 and his flocks prospered and increased. Never was 
 there a hailstorm or any other disaster in his country. 
 But Salmoneus was presumptuous and thought he 
 could get everything he wished by his own cleverness, 
 and at last he came to despise the gods and to consider 
 himself on equal terms with them. He commanded 
 the people to call him Zeus and to offer sacrifices to 
 him, and he had a chariot drawn by fiery horses, with 
 dried cows' hides and copper kettles hanging from it, 
 which clashed and rumbled together and made a 
 tremendous noise as he drove along, and then the 
 people had to shout, ' Zeus is thundering ! ' He had 
 also burning torches in the chariot which he threw 
 right and left among the people, and then they had to 
 shout, f Zeus is lightning! ' And whoever was hit by 
 the torches was immediately killed by the king's spear- 
 men, that it might seem as if he had been struck dead 
 by his lightning. The gods let Salmoneus go on for 
 
SALMONEUS AND SISYPHUS. 43 
 
 gome time in this foolish way, but at last when he was 
 one day driving through the streets with his thunder 
 and lightning, a real thunderbolt came down from 
 heaven which struck the king and killed him in a 
 moment. Then the people fell to the earth in fear, 
 and one of them said in a half-whisper, ' Zeus hay 
 indeed thundered ! ' 
 
 Salmoneus had a brother named Sisyphus, who was 
 king of the city of Corinth, and surpassed all other 
 men in deceit and craftiness. There was a cunning 
 robber, not far from Corinth, who was very clever in 
 stealing cattle, and when he had carried off a herd he 
 took care to make it impossible for it to be recognised 
 again. He painted over any white spots on the bodies 
 or foreheads of the animals, and had various ways of 
 obliterating all other marks by which they could be 
 identified. Sisyphus had a beautiful herd on which 
 the robber had for some time cast envious eyes, and 
 one dark night he stole them away and painted over 
 all the marks that distinguished them from any other 
 animals. The next day Sisyphus went to the robber's 
 dwelling and told him to give up his cattle, but the 
 robber said he had not got them, and that Sisyphus 
 might see for himself whether they were there or not. 
 Then the king said that he had marked each of his 
 cattle with a little notch on the fore foot, and that all 
 the animals he could find marked in that way would be 
 his. The robber had never thought of looking out for 
 such a mark as this, and he was thus outwitted by the 
 king and obliged to give back the beautiful herd. 
 
 No one could cheat Sisyphus, but he cheated and 
 robbed many people, and was wicked and treacherous. 
 
'U MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 He lay in wait for those who happened to be passing 
 through his country and spoiled them of their goods, 
 and then he killed them by crushing them beneath a 
 huge stone. He even tried to cheat the gods, for when he 
 died and came into the Lower World, he begged Pluto 
 to give him leave to go back to the Upper World again 
 for one day in order to divide his kingdom between his 
 sons, and as he swore by the most sacred oaths that he 
 would return at the end of that time, Pluto granted his 
 request; but Sisyphus did not return until a messenger 
 was sent to fetch him from the earth for the second time. 
 And because he had been so wicked and deceitful both 
 in life and in death, the gods laid upon him a heavy 
 punishment, to which there was no end. He was told 
 to roll a fearfully heavy stone up the side of a mountain, 
 until he had brought it to the top and let it fall down 
 the further side. But it was an enchanted stone, and 
 every time that, with the greatest effort, Sisyphus 
 had at last got it almost to the top of the mountain, it 
 suddenly rolled back with a crash into the depths from 
 which he had brought it, so that he had to begin his 
 work all over again; and thus he never could succeed 
 in Accomplishing his task, and his toil w^as never at an 
 end. 
 
XIV. 
 
 BELLEROPHOIS. 
 
 IN the city of Corinth there were two young brothers, 
 the sous of Glaucus, the son of Sisyphus, one of 
 whom was called Bellerophon, and was gifted by the 
 gods with great strength and beauty. But one day, 
 when he was out hunting with his brother, he threw 
 his spear at a hind, and the spear missed its aim and 
 accidentally hit his brother, who died of the wound. 
 Bellerophon was very much grieved, and wished he 
 could have been killed himself rather than have done 
 this ; but nevertheless he had to leave his father's house 
 and the city of Corinth, for everyone who killed 
 another by accident was banished. He set out, not 
 knowing who would receive him, but he determined 
 first of all to seek for someone who would purge him 
 from the stain of blood ; for the Greeks held that who- 
 ever had killed another, even though unintentionally, 
 was denied, and needed to be purified by means of 
 sacrifices and baths. It was not everyone who under- 
 stood how to do this, but Bellerophon heard that King 
 Proetus was learned in these matters, and he went to 
 him and begged him to purify him. Proetus did what 
 was necessary, and as the young hero pleased him, he 
 begged him to stay with him and be his guest, and 
 
46 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 treated him as his own son. But the queen was so 
 much struck with the beauty of Bellerophon that she 
 longed to have him for her husband, and she had a 
 secret conversation with him, and proposed that they 
 should both flee out of the country and be married. 
 But Bellerophon could not have acted so ungratefully 
 towards his kind host if the queen had been the most 
 beautiful woman in the world, and he told her plainly that 
 he would not do as she wished. Then all her fondness 
 was turned into hatred and a fierce desire to kill him, 
 and she went to her husband and said that Bellerophon 
 had begged her to go away with him and be his wife, 
 and that when she had refused, he had got angry and 
 had said he should put the king to death. The king be- 
 lieved his wife and was exceedingly angry, but as Belle- 
 rophon was his guest, he would not himself lay hands 
 on him. He thought of another way of taking his life, 
 and concealing his resentment, asked Bellerophon if 
 he would take a message from him to his father-in-law 
 lobates, who was king of Lycia. It was a long dis- 
 tance by sea as well as by land to the country of Lycia, 
 but Bellerophon was glad to do anything to please 
 Proetus, and he at once promised to go. Proetus took 
 a wooden tablet, and made signs upon it to signify that 
 his father-in-law was to put the messenger to death, 
 and then he covered the tablet with another, and tied a 
 string round it. This was the way in w T hich all letters 
 were sent at that time, for paper and ink were not yet 
 invented. 
 
 Bellerophon took the letter and set out, suspecting 
 nothing. He travelled for some time till he came to 
 the sea, where he found a ship about to sail to the 
 
BELLEROPHON. 47 
 
 opposite coast, so lie got into it, and after a few days' 
 journey, arrived at the country of King lobates 
 who received him in a very friendly manner. It was 
 not then the custom to ask a guest his name and his 
 business as soon as he arrived, and for nine days 
 lobates entertained Bellerophon without knowing who 
 he was, and every day he sacrificed a bull, and feasted 
 with his guest. The Greeks used to cut off the thigh- 
 bones of the animals they sacrificed, for the gods ; they 
 covered these bones with skin and placed them in the 
 fire to make a pleasant odour for them, and then they 
 consumed the rest of the animal themselves. On the 
 tenth day, King lobates asked his guest what his name 
 was and whether he had brought any message, and 
 Bellerophon told his name and delivered the letter 
 which Proetus had sent. But when the king had made 
 out the meaning of the signs, he was greatly troubled, 
 for he had become very fond of the young hero, and 
 the idea of killing him had been far from his thoughts. 
 Still, as his son-in-law urged him to do this, he supposed 
 that Bellerophon must have committed some great 
 crime, and he determined to carry out the wishes of 
 Proetus. He might have murdered Bellerophon in his 
 sleep, but he would not do that, he willed rather that 
 he should die like a hero, fighting for his life. There 
 was at that time in the land of Lycia a horrible monster 
 called the Chimaera, whose forepart was like a lion, her 
 back like a dragon, and in the middle she was a goat. 
 At night the Chimaera remained on her mountain, 
 but in the daytime she came down and laid waste the 
 cornfields and devoured men and cattle, causing great 
 distress all over the country. The king asked Belle- 
 
48 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 rophon whether he had courage enough to encounter 
 the monster, and Bellerophon said yes, for he longed to 
 be a real hero whose exploits men relate in song, arid 
 he was ready to venture upon any errand howevei 
 dangerous it might be. So he armed himself with 
 spear and sword, and set out in search of the Chimaera. 
 The gods were pleased with him for his courage, 
 but they knew that he must perish in the fight if they 
 did not help him. He had not gone far when there 
 came down from heaven a beautiful horse with wings 
 like a bird, which flew round and round him. This 
 horse was called Pegasus, and belonged to the gods. 
 Bellerophon was delighted with the beautiful animal, 
 and tried to attract him by whistling and coaxing. At 
 last he persuaded him to come near enough to be 
 stroked, and after that the hero soon succeeded in 
 placing himself on his back, and they flew away together 
 through the air. Bellerophon was the first man who 
 had ever ridden upon such a horse. He would have 
 found Pegasus a perfect steed if he had understood 
 what was said to him, but instead of doing as he wished, 
 he always went the wrong way. So he dismounted and 
 continued his journey on foot, and Pegasus flew round 
 him in beautiful curves, and was his travelling com- 
 panion. By-and-by he met an old man who was a 
 soothsayer, and he asked the hero how he came to 
 possess such a beautiful animal. Bellerophon told him 
 all about it, and added that he wished he knew how to 
 make the horse obedient to his will, and then the 
 soothsayer said that he would soon come to a place- 
 dedicated to the goddess Athene, and that if anyone 
 who was in need of counsel chose to sleep in the temple, 
 
BELLEROPHON. 49 
 
 the goddess would often help him by a dream. Belle- 
 rophon resolved to try this, and as the stars were 
 beginning to shine, he reached the temple of Athene ; 
 and he went in and stretched himself on the floor with 
 his head resting on the step of the altar for a pillow, 
 while the horse slept outside the door. When it was 
 nearly morning, the goddess Athene appeared to him in 
 a dream and told him that she loved all brave heroes, 
 and was glad to help him. She showed him a golden 
 ribbon, and said that if he put it into the mouth of 
 the horse and held the two ends in his hand, it would 
 be a means of communication between them. She 
 placed the golden ribbon in his hand, and he awoke, 
 still holding it. It was the first bridle, and had been 
 invented by the goddess Athene. He went out at 
 once, put the ribbon into the mouth of the horse, and 
 swung himself on to his back. Then they flew away, 
 and the steed obeyed the rein, and went just where 
 the hero wished. Bellerophon was very much pleased 
 at this, and he offered up prayers and thanks to 
 Athene for the help she had given him. 
 
 After this Bellerophon continued his journey through 
 the air, and when it was evening he came to a moun- 
 tain by the sea from which he saw a flame of fire as- 
 cending, and this showed him where the Chimaera was. 
 He flew towards the place on the back of Pegasus, 
 and perceived the horrible form of the monster. Pe- 
 gasus hovered over her, and Bellerophon shot an arrow 
 which wounded her in the neck and gave her great 
 pain ; this made her furious, and she stood up on her 
 hind feet and puffed out her fiery breath into the air, 
 hoping to scorch Bellerophon to death. But he was so 
 
 
 
50 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 high up that he was not hurt by it, and he shot her in 
 the back with another arrow, so that she rolled about 
 in pain, howling horribly, and then he sent a third 
 arrow into her side. She had now only strength 
 enough to moan, and in a little while she was dead. 
 Then Bellerophon could come down to the mountain 
 which was no longer unsafe for people to set foot upon ; 
 he slept there that night, and in the morning he cut 
 off the head of the Chimaera, and set out upon his way 
 home again. 
 
 When Bellerophon stood before lobates with the 
 head of the Chirnaera in his hand, the king was very 
 much astonished, for he had thought there was not a 
 chance that he would escape being killed by her. But 
 he was still desirous of carrying out the wishes of 
 Proetus, and he therefore sent the hero to fight against 
 a barbarous people on the outskirts of his kingdom, 
 who lived by plunder and robbery. No one who had 
 hitherto been sent against them had ever returned 
 alive, but the gods helped Bellerophon, and he slew a 
 great many of the robbers and drove away the rest. 
 
 A third time the king sent him away, and now it 
 was to fight against a still stronger people. But after 
 a few days had passed, there came messengers to tell 
 him that the hero had put the enemy to flight and 
 was about to return. Then the king chose out the 
 strongest I.ycian youths, and set them in ambush on 
 the road leading to the city. In the evening, however, 
 Bellerophon entered the palace unhurt. The king 
 thought he must have come by another road, and he 
 asked him if he had met nothing on the way. Belle- 
 rophon answered, ' Near the city there were some 
 
BELLEROPHON. 61 
 
 cowardly knaves lying in ambush, whom I slew.' Then 
 the king knew that Bellerophon must be under the 
 protection of the gods, and he laid aside all thoughts 
 of doing him any injury, and told him that on account 
 of the request of Proetus he had sent him on these 
 expeditions in order that he might meet his death, but 
 that from henceforth he would be his friend. He gave 
 him the most beautiful of all his daughters for his 
 wife, and begged him to stay with him and take part 
 in the government of the country. The wedding soon 
 took place, and from that time Bellerophon had a kingly 
 staff like lobates, and sat beside him on the throne to 
 give judgment in all cases of difficulty. The Lycians 
 gave him some of their land for his own, of which one 
 part consisted of corn-fields, another part was a wine 
 country, and the third was planted with beautiful fruit 
 trees. The winged horse Pegasus was well taken care of, 
 and Bellerophon ever treasured him as one of his dearest 
 friends. 
 
 E2 
 
52 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 XV. 
 DAEDALUS AND ICARUS. 
 
 THERE was once a king of Crete called Mines, who had 
 a great many ships and soldiers ; and there was also a 
 clever artist named Daedalus, who had built a wonder- 
 ful house for Minos with such an immense number of 
 rooms in it that no one who entered it could ever find 
 his way out again. There lived a monster in the house, 
 and every year prisoners were taken to it, who wandered 
 about trying in vain to find their way out again, until 
 at last the monster came and devoured them. This 
 wonderful house was called the Labyrinth. 1 The king 
 wanted Daedalus to spend his time and skill in invent- 
 ing other wonderful things for him, and when he wished 
 to leave the island he refused to let him go, and placed 
 soldiers all along the shore to prevent him from getting 
 to any ship. Then Daedalus said to himself, ' My art 
 has hitherto served the king, it shall now serve me.' 
 So he went into his workshop, and made a pair of large 
 wings for himself and a pair of small ones for his 
 little son Icarus, and every night when it was dark they 
 fastened their wings on to their shoulders with wax, and 
 practised flying like the birds; and they so<m became 
 <{iiite accustomed to using them. When they had 
 1 For more about the Labyrinth, aee p. lad. 
 
DAEDALUS AND ICARUS. 53 
 
 learnt to fly properly, they fastened on their wings early 
 one morning and set off to fly to the island of Sicily, 
 although that is a good hundred miles from the island 
 of Crete. On the shore stood the soldiers whom the 
 king had placed there to prevent them from leaving, 
 but they could not catch them, and the two flew away 
 together over the wide sea. At tirst Icarus was timid, 
 but when a good stretch of the way lay behind them 
 he became bolder, and began to think that flying was 
 very pleasant work. At mid-day, however, the sun 
 came out very hot, and Daedalus, who was flying on in 
 front to show the way, called out to his child to tell 
 him to beware of the sun and not go too near it. But 
 Icarus thought, ' The sun looks so kind, I am sure he 
 will do me no harm.' And he flew higher and higher, 
 for Daedalus was on in front and did not see him, until 
 the wax with which his wings were fastened began to 
 melt. He felt the strokes becoming more feeble, and 
 called to his father for help, but though Daedalus 
 turned quickly round it was too late, the boy could 
 no longer support himself in the air, and he fell into 
 the sea before his father's eyes. All the great skill of 
 Daedalus was of no avail now, for Icarus was killed by 
 the great fall, and he could do nothing to save him, 
 but was obliged to fly on to the end of his journey ail 
 alone. 
 
54 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 XVI. 
 
 EUROPA AND CADMUS. 
 
 IN the land of Phenicia which lies in Asia, there was 
 once a king who had a son named Cadmus and a 
 daughter named Europa, and he was both fond and 
 proud of his children, for Cadmus was brave, and Europa 
 was beautiful. One day Europa was by the sea in 
 a meadow full of lovely flowers, when there came a 
 stately bull, who walked round and round her. It was 
 Zeus, who had changed himself into a bull in order to 
 carry off the beautiful maiden to be his wife. At first 
 Europa was afraid of the bull, but he had such nice 
 soft eyes that she could not help being kind to him. 
 She stroked him and made friends with him, and then 
 she gathered seme flowers and twined them into a 
 wreath, and when the bull stretched himself on the 
 ground, she climbed on to his back and placed the beauti- 
 ful wreath round his horns. But he instantly sprang up, 
 and ran away with her so fast that she did not venture 
 to jump off, but could only hold on to his horns and 
 scream with all her might. The people in the field 
 heard her cries, and soon they saw the bull run into 
 the sea with her and swim away. They went and told 
 the old king, and he at once sent off a ship in pursuit, 
 but though it sailed about in all directions, it came 
 
EUROPA AND CADMUS. 55 
 
 back in the evening without having been able to find 
 any trace of Europa. The old king was very much 
 troubled and would neither eat nor drink, and on the 
 third day he called his son Cadmus and commanded 
 him to set out in search of his sister and not to turn 
 back until he had found her. 
 
 Cadmus chose companions for his journey, and they 
 launched a ship and sailed away. They passed through 
 many lands inquiring for the beautiful Europa aad the 
 bull, but nobody had seen them. At last they came 
 into the land of Greece, and when Cadmus again 
 inquired for his sister, the people told him that he had 
 better go to Delphi and ask the priestess of Apollo 
 about her. The city of Delphi was on Mount Parnassus, 
 the centre of the earth, and there was a temple of 
 Apollo there which was an Oracle or prophetic temple. 
 If anyone wished to know something past or future 
 which he could not find out in any other way, he went 
 to the temple of Apollo and asked the priestess, who 
 was called the Pythia, about it. There was a narrow 
 opening in the floor of the temple which had not been 
 made by man, and which went deep down into the 
 earth. A wonderful odour ascended from the crevice, 
 and a golden three-legged stool, called a Tripod, was 
 placed over the opening. When anyone came to ask a 
 question, the Pythia seated herself upon the Tripod and 
 became inspired by the odour, and the god Apollo 
 directed what she should say in answer, so that her 
 predictions were divine utterances. These predictions 
 were called Oracles. 
 
 Cadmus accordingly went to Delphi, and took with 
 him a beautiful golden cup as a present for the god, that 
 
56 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 he might answer him graciously. There were many 
 costly vessels of gold and silver and other similar 
 things in the temple, which had been given in this way 
 as presents. Cadmus asked the Pythia where Europa 
 had gone, and she answered that it was Zeus who in 
 the form of the bull had carried her away and had 
 hidden her from all men, and that Cadmus was no longer 
 to seek for her, but to follow the white cow and to 
 found a city in the place where she should lie down. 
 She. also told him that his father was dead and that a 
 stranger had taken possession of his kingdom. 
 
 Cadmus did not understand which was the cow he 
 was to follow, but he left the temple, and when he came 
 outside he saw a spotless white cow who looked at him 
 as if she had been waiting for him. She started off 
 along the road, and he followed her. They walked on 
 all day and all night, and in the morning they found 
 themselves on a beautiful hill with a fertile country all 
 round, and there the cow lay down. Cadmus desired 
 to sacrifice the cow to the gods, and he sent one of his 
 companions to some bushy ground near at hand where 
 he heard a spring bubbling, to draw some water for the 
 sacrifice. But the companion did not come back, so 
 Cadmus sent another, but he did not come back either. 
 Then he went himself, and found a hideous dragon 
 keeping watch by the spring, who had devoured his two 
 companions. The dragon started up with the intention 
 of devouring him also, but Cadmus drew a sharp sword, 
 and thrust it into the neck of the monster with such 
 force that a great stream of blood gushed out and he 
 died. Cadmus was still standing looking at the dragon 
 when the goddess Athene appeared to him and told 
 
EUROPA AND CADMUS. 57 
 
 him that he must take out the dragon's teeth and sow 
 them in the ground, and that from this strange seed 
 there would spring warriors who would help him to 
 build a city and would be his subjects. Then the 
 goddess disappeared, and Cadmus took out the teeth, of 
 which there were a great many, and put them into his 
 helmet; and as he turned away from the spring, he saw 
 a plough standing in the field with two bulls yoked to 
 it. Cadmus drove the plough up and down, and dropped 
 the teeth one by one into the furrows which it had 
 made. For a short time they remained just where he 
 had placed them, but presently they began to disturb 
 the soil by their movements and to rise above it by 
 degrees. First there appeared a row of brazen helmets, 
 and then a row of bearded faces underneath the helmets, 
 and then followed glittering coats of mail, and when 
 the warriors got their arms free, they were able to help 
 themselves completely out, and brushed off the dust 
 that was clinging to them. They were clothed in brass 
 from head to foot, and each held in his right hand a 
 spear, and in his left a shield. Cadmus was afraid of 
 the armed band, and thought of a plan for making them 
 quarrel with one another. He took up a number of 
 little stones and threw them at the newly-born warriors 
 from behind a bush, and as they could not see where 
 the stones came from, each of them thought that his 
 neighbour had struck him, and hit him back again, so 
 that there was soon a fierce battle raging among them, 
 and man after man was killed. When there were only 
 five left, Cadmus stepped forward and proclaimed peace, 
 and said, ' The gods have given you to me as my 
 bubjects ; let us build a city.' They agreed to do as 
 
58 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 he said, and built a city on the hill which they called 
 the Cadmea, after Cadmus their king, and by degrees 
 many people came to settle in it. The five warriors 
 who had sprung from the dragon's teeth were called 
 Sparti or Sown Men, and they were the next in power 
 to the king. The gods loved Cadmus, and they gave him 
 a beautiful wife called Harmonia, who was the daughter 
 of Ares, the god of war, and of Aphrodite, the goddess 
 of beauty. All the gods gave costly wedding gifts, and 
 when the marriage was celebrated in the Cadmea, the 
 guests, both gods and men, feasted together. 
 
 Zeus had carried Europa across the Mediterranean 
 Sea to the land which lies opposite to Asia, and all the 
 country on this side of the Mediterranean Sea has ever 
 since that time been called Europe. 
 
XVII. 
 
 THE BUILDING OF THEBES. 
 
 AFTER the death of Cadmus many more people came 
 to live in the Cadmea, and when there was no more 
 room on the hill, they established themselves in the 
 plain round it and built more and more houses, till 
 there came to be a great city to which they gave the 
 name of Thebes. The Cadmea then became the castle 
 or citadel of Thebes; the king's palace was inside it, 
 and it was fortified with very strong walls, so that it 
 the city were besieged by enemies, the inhabitants 
 could take shelter in the citadel and hurl darts and 
 javelins at their enemies from its walls. 
 
 There was once a king of Thebes named Amphion, 
 who could sing most beautifully, and also play upon 
 the lyre. When he sang, it was impossible for anyone 
 to resist stopping to listen, however great a hurry he 
 might be in, and even the very stones would detach 
 themselves from their places in order to come nearer 
 to him. Amphion knew this, and one day he said to 
 himself, ' Since I have such power over the stones, I 
 will make them eerve me.' So he sat down in the 
 middle of the city, and began to sing in a loud voice 
 which was echoed by the distant hills. Then there 
 was a sound of rumbling and scuffling, for every stone 
 
60 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 that heard the song, no matter how far off it was, came 
 rushing towards Amphion, and they heaped themselves 
 one upon the other till at last a great stone wall was 
 built up all round the city; and the Thebans took 
 hatchets and crowbars and broke open seven spaces in 
 it, where they erected seven great gates. 
 
61 
 
 XV11I. 
 
 S E M E L E. 
 
 CAJXMUS and Harmonia had two daughters, one of 
 whom was a very beautiful maiden named Semele. 
 Zeus loved Semele and made her his wife secretly, and 
 she was so happy that she wished for nothing else than 
 that the king of the gods should always continue to 
 love her as he did then. But Hera was very angry 
 about it, and she took the form of an old nurse to 
 whom Semele told all her secrets, and came one day into 
 the palace when the nurse had gone to the river to wash 
 clothes. She was the only person who knew that Zeus 
 was the husband of Semele, and Hera, who had taken 
 her form, pretended that she had come back in order 
 to give her some advice about it. She told her that 
 she ought to make trial of Zeus, and beg him to corne 
 to her, if it were only for once, in all the glory and 
 splendour with which he surrounded -himself when he 
 was with Hera, and that if he refused to do so, it 
 would prove that he was not really Zeus, but some 
 mortal who had deceived her. She said this in order 
 to make Semele suspicious and distrustful, and because 
 she wanted to bring about her destruction ; and when 
 she had finished talking she went quickly back to 
 Mount Olympus, and no one knew that she had been 
 in the Cadmea. 
 
62 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 Semele did not for a moment believe that her 
 husband was any other than Zeus, but she was dazzled 
 with the thought that she might persuade her lover 
 to come to her surrounded with the glory of the gods, 
 and so she took Hera's advice, and next time that Zeus 
 came to see her, she begged him to swear by the Styx 
 that he would grant her the request she was about to 
 make. Hera had advised her to make him swear by 
 the Styx, because that was the oath which the gods 
 could never break if they bound themselves by it. 
 Zeus swore without any misgiving, for he expected her 
 to wish that suddenly beautiful flowers should spring 
 up all round the Cadmea, or that he should fly with 
 her through the air, or perform some other such miracle ; 
 but when Semele begged that he would come to her 
 that evening exactly as if he were coming to Hera, he 
 regretted that he had sworn so rashly, and told her 
 that the fulfilment of such a wish as that, would cost 
 her her life. But Semele thought that he despised 
 her, and did not care to show himself to her in all his 
 godlike splendour, and she persisted in her request; 
 and as he had sworn by the Styx, Zeus was obliged to 
 submit to her foolish will. When the evening came, 
 a terrible rumbling sound was heard in the air, and it 
 thundered and lightened, and Zeus came down from 
 Mount Olympus in the chariot of the gods. He 
 entered the Cadmea, and Semele beheld his countenance 
 glowing with unspeakable beauty and majesty, but the 
 splendour and glory that surrounded him was a sight 
 which no mortal could bear, and she was struck dead 
 by that one look. 
 
63 
 
 XIX. 
 
 DIONYSUS. 
 
 DIONYSUS was the son of Zeus and of Semele, and 
 Hera hated him as she had hated his mother, and 
 w ould have killed him if she could ; so as soon as he 
 was born, Zeus commanded Hermes to take him away 
 secretiy to a king called Athamas, that Hera might not 
 know where he was. Athamas promised to take care 
 of him, and the queen, whose name was Ino, told every- 
 one that he was her own child, and brought him up 
 with her two little boys. But Hera found out where 
 the little Dionysus was, and she was so angry with 
 King Athamas for having consented to hide him from 
 her, that she punished him by making him quite mad. 
 She falsified his sight so that everything seemed to 
 him quite different from what it really was, and one 
 day when he was coming home from hunting and saw 
 Ino sitting on the grass in front of the house with her 
 two little boys by her side, he thought she was a doe 
 with two little fawns, and he took an arrow and shot 
 one of the children right through the heart, so that he 
 was killed instantly. Ino saw that her husband was 
 mad, and she immediately snatched up the other child 
 and fled away with it, but Athamas pursued her with 
 another arrow on his bow-string till they came to the 
 
04 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 
 
 sea, and then, as Tno could flee no farther, she rushed 
 into the sea with her little boy, and they were both 
 drowned. They were scarcely dead when Athamas 
 regained his right senses and knew what he had done, 
 and he was so grieved and shocked that he left his 
 country altogether, and wandered for a long time in 
 strange lands, till at last he settled down again, as you 
 will hear in another story. 1 
 
 Meanwhile Hera was looking everywhere for the 
 little Dionysus, but she could not find him, for she did 
 not know that a young heifer who was grazing in front of 
 the house was the form into which Zeus had changed 
 the child to hide him from her. In the night Hermes 
 came and took the heifer up into his arms, and it became 
 a child again. Then he took the boy a long, long 
 journey, almost to the end of the world, till at last he 
 reached a lonely region where seven nymphs lived by 
 a beautiful river far from the dwellings of men, and 
 he gave him into the charge of the nymphs, who pro- 
 mised to bring him up and take great care of him. 
 Hera was seated on Mount Olympus, the throne of the 
 gods, and she cast her eyes all round the world to see 
 what had become of Dionysus, but as she expected to 
 find him again in the charge of some king, she did 
 not think of looking for him in the country of the 
 nymphs. 
 
 When Dionysus grew up to be a young man, he 
 was very beautiful, and Zeus loved him so much that 
 he gifted him with the might of a god. Immediately 
 his face gained a new expression, and his eyes glowed 
 with a fire that is never seen in the eyes of men. 
 1 See page 1 50. 
 
DIONYSUS. 60 
 
 Dionysus thought he would like to give proof of his 
 new power by bestowing some precious gift upon men, 
 and he resolved that he would create out of water and 
 sunshine a sweet drink that should give them courage 
 and cheerfulness, and that a beautiful plant should be 
 the means of producing this drink. So he created the 
 Vine with its purple grapes, in which, ever since that 
 time, the sun has every year brewed the drink bestowed 
 upon men by the god Dionysus. 
 
 Dionysus did not wish to live in concealment any 
 longer, for Hera had no power to injure him now that 
 he had become a god, and he desired to be known and 
 honoured like the other gods. He determined there- 
 fore to travel through the whole world, and Zeus gave 
 him a train of men and women to follow and serve him 
 who were called Bacchantes, or followers of Bacchus, 
 which is another name for Dionysus. He set out on 
 his pleasure-journey, driving in a golden chariot drawn 
 bv two tame spotted panthers which he guided with a 
 golden rein, and round him danced the Bacchantes, 
 holding in their hands wands twined round with ivy, 
 and with ivy wreaths on their heads. Cups of tlie 
 most delicious wine were passed from mouth to mouth, 
 and the whole air was filled with the sounds of singing 
 and flute-playing. There was an old man named 
 Silenus, who had formerly lived with the nymphs, and 
 had been accustomed to play with Dionysus when he 
 was a child, and dance him on his knees. He now 
 joined in the procession, and he was so fond of the 
 wine that he was always intoxicated. His body became 
 bloated with drinking so much wine, so that he could 
 nut walk steadily, but was obliged to ride on an ass, and 
 
 F 
 
66 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 often in his drunken condition, he sate facing the 
 wrong way and holding the tail of the ass in his hands 
 as a bridle. 
 
 Wherever Dionysus went he caused the vine to 
 grow, and he was good to those who honoured him, 
 but he punished all who disobeyed him. One day, 
 while he was on his journey through the world, he 
 halted at mid-day in a cool wood near the sea, and 
 when the Bacchantes had given the thirsty panthers 
 some sweet wine to drink, the whole train of followers 
 lay down under the trees and went to sleep. Dionysus, 
 however, was filled with a desire to visit the island of 
 Naxos, which he loved above all other lands, and he 
 went down to the shore where there was just then a 
 ship sailing by, and asked the ehip-men if they would 
 carry him to Naxos ; and they said ' Yes,' and sailed up 
 to the land and took him in. They did not know who 
 he was, but supposed him to be a mortal youth, and 
 seeing that he was so beautiful, they made up their 
 minds to sell him for a slave, for they were not good 
 men, but thieves. Dionysus lay down in the ship and 
 went to sleep. When he awoke, they had already sailed 
 past the island, so he begged them to turn back and 
 set him on shore at Naxos, but they laughed and told 
 him they were going to sell him for a slave. Dionysus 
 had only wanted to make trial of them, and now the 
 ship suddenly stood still, and though they tried with 
 all their might to row on farther, it was as immovable 
 as if it had been fastened to the bottom of the sea 
 with a hundred chains. And vines and ivy-bushes 
 sprang up and covered the sides of the ship with green 
 foliage, and a spray of ivy twined itself round the mast 
 
DIONYSUS. G7 
 
 right up to the top, so that the ship looked like a beau- 
 tiful garden in the middle of the sea. But the sight 
 of it gave no pleasure to the ship-men ; their flesh 
 began to creep, and they were seized with an irresistible 
 desire to jump into the sea. And as they jumped they 
 were changed into dolphins, and for the rest of their 
 lives they swam about in the sea, thieving fishes as 
 they had been thieving men. Then Dionysus clapped 
 his hands, and the panther-drawn chariot came over 
 the sea to him followed by the Bacchantes, the sea 
 making a pathway for them so that they scarcely 
 wetted their feet. Dionysus got into his chariot and 
 guided it to Naxos, and the Bacchantes followed it, 
 skipping along on the crests of the waves. 
 
 After Dionysus had travelled over the whole world, 
 it was fitting that he should take up his abode on 
 Mount Olympus with the other gods, and Hera did 
 not make any difficulty about it. But before he did 
 so, he brought his mother Semele from out of the Lower 
 World, and Zeus made her immortal, so that she also 
 had a place among the gods, and Hera no longer bore 
 her any ill-will. 
 
 F 2 
 
68 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 XX. 
 
 MELAMPUS AND BIAS. 
 
 IN the city of Pylos there lived a man named Melam- 
 pus, who was very rich, and had a great deal of land 
 and many servants. One day, as the servants were 
 coming home from their work in the fields, they found 
 a nest of snakes in a hollow oak, and they drove out 
 the snakes and began to beat them to death with their 
 sticks and cudgels. Just then Melampus came by, and 
 when he saw what the servants were doing, he let them 
 kill the old snakes, but finding among them two young 
 ones less than a foot long, he took them up and carried 
 them home. The little snakes were now very well off, 
 for Melampus made them a bed of leaves and gave 
 them plenty of food to eat. They were not poisonous 
 snakes, but nice harmless little creatures, and when 
 they grew older they had a great wish to do Melampus 
 some service, as a return to him for having saved their 
 lives and taken such care of them. So one day, when 
 he was asleep, the snakes crept up to him, one on each 
 side, and licked his ears with their fine sharp little 
 tongues, and when he awoke he found he could under- 
 stand what the birds and insects said, and he was ever 
 afterwards able to discover things that were hidden from 
 other men, because the birds told him about them. 
 
MELAMPUS AND BIAS. 69 
 
 At this time there reigned over the city of Pylos a 
 king named Neleus, who had an only daughter called 
 Peru. She was so beautiful that no one who had once 
 seen her ever cared to look at any other woman, and 
 many princes came to Pylos to ask for her hand in 
 marriage, but King Neleus said thit whoever wished 
 to have her for his wife must first bring him the cattle 
 of Iphiclus, and that he would not part with her on 
 any other condition. These cattle were renowned for 
 their strength and beauty, and they were always spoken 
 of as the cattle of Iphiclus, although Iphiclus himself 
 had been dead a long time, and his son Phylacus now 
 owned them. They were guarded by a great fierce 
 dog with a terrific voice, and if anyone came to try 
 and steal them, he barked so loudly that all the ser- 
 vants of Phylacus came rushing out to seize the thief 
 and carry him off to prison. Nor could Phylacus be 
 induced to part with the cattle for any sum of money ; 
 so when the suitors heard that the king insisted upon 
 having the cattle of Iphiclus, they thought it was a 
 hopeless case and went away home again. 
 
 Now amongst those who came to sue for the hand 
 of the beautiful Pero, there was a man named Bias, the 
 brother of Melampus, who loved her so dearly and 
 wished so much to have her for his wife, that he lost 
 all his spirits and fell into deep despondency because 
 he could not think of any means of obtaining the 
 cattle. Melampus had a great affection for his bro- 
 ther and longed to help him in this difficulty, so he 
 asked the birds if there was any way by which he 
 could succeed in procuring the cattle for Bias. The 
 birds answered that if he would be willing to be seized 
 
70 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 by the servants and put into prison for a year, he would 
 be able to obtain the cattle at the end of that time. 
 Melarnpus was quite ready to do this for his brother, 
 and he set out at once, promising Bias that at the end 
 of the year he would return with the. beautiful herd. 
 When he came to the field where the cattle of Ipliiclus 
 were grazing, it happened to him just as the birds had 
 foretold, and he was taken prisoner by the servants 
 and thrust into a dark dungeon. He could never see 
 the sun there, but he was able to count the days, for 
 he could hear the birds singing, and when they began 
 to chirp in the morning, he knew that a new day must 
 have dawned upon the earth. At last, when there was 
 only one day wanting to make up the full year, he 
 hoard some wood-worms talking together in one of the 
 rafters of the house, and he listened to what they were 
 saying. One asked, ' Have you nearly finished the work ? ' 
 and the others answered, ' Before the sun goes down, the 
 beam will be eaten through and the house must fall.' 
 Then Melampus understood that the house was not safe, 
 and he called the gaoler and told him that they ought 
 both to leave it without delay, for that before the setting 
 of the sun it would fall. The gaoler was not inclined 
 to believe him, for the house appeared to be in perfect 
 condition, but Melampus would not leave otf warning 
 and entreating him, and at last he took him to another 
 prison. They had scarcely left the house when they 
 heard a great noise, and as they looked back it fell in 
 ruins. The gaoler was very much astonished that Me- 
 lampus should have known of this beforehand, and he 
 told King Phylacus about it. 
 
 The old king was at this time in great sorrow on 
 
MELAMPUS AND BIAS. 71 
 
 Account of his son, who was named Iphiclus after his 
 grandfather. He had been married for many years, 
 hut the gods gave him no children, and the old king 
 feared that after his death the kingdom would fall into 
 the hands of a stranger instead of being still governed 
 by one of his own race. He did not know why the 
 gods were angry with his son, and no one was able to 
 tell him. When therefore he heard from the gaoler 
 how Melampus had foretold the downfall of the prison, 
 he thought that he must be a wise man, and he asked 
 him whether he could find any means of freeing him 
 from his anxiety. Melarnpus answered that he would 
 try to do so if the king would promise him the beautiful 
 cattle as his reward, and Phylacus did not think this 
 t^oo great a price, but swore to give them to him. 
 Melampus then begged that the king's servants might 
 kill a cow and cut it in pieces, and that they would 
 take him to an open field, and leave him alone with 
 the flesh beside him. They did as he wished, and 
 when the servants had gone away, a number of birds of 
 all sizes came flocking towards the pieces of flesh. 
 Melampus, however, would not let them come too near, 
 but kept them off with a stick, and said, ' Whichever 
 of you can tell me why the gods are angry with Iphi- 
 clus the Younger, shall have the best piece of meat as 
 a reward.' Then an old raven, nearly a hundred years 
 old, began to croak and said, ' When Iphiclus was a 
 little boy, his father placed a sacrifice under a sacred 
 oak, but found himself obliged to return to the house 
 for something he had forgotten. Meanwhile the little 
 Iphiclus was left alone, and he took the sacrificial 
 knife and thrust it into the oak because he was fright- 
 
72 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 ened at the way it glittered. I was sitting on the tree 
 looking on when he did this. In the course of time, 
 however, the bark has quite grown over the knife, so 
 that it cannot now be seen.' Melampus gave the 
 raven a great piece of flesh, and he took it in his claws 
 and flew away with it, and Melampus said, 'Whichever 
 of you can tell me how this maybe expiated, shall have 
 the next best piece.' Then a vulture came forward 
 who was skilled in medicine, and a physician among 
 the birds, and who knew how to give counsel, and he 
 said, ' You must dig the knife out of the tree, and 
 when you have found it, scrape off the rust and pour it 
 into a bowl of wine. Let the king's son drink that, 
 and then the gods will send him an heir.' The vul- 
 ture received the second best piece, and Melampus 
 went away, leaving the birds to feast upon the re- 
 mainder of the flesh. He went back to the palace 
 and asked for an axe, with which he struck the oak, 
 and at the first stroke he discovered the knife. It was 
 quite red with rust, and he drew it out and ecraped off 
 the rust into a bowl of wine and told the king that his 
 son must drink some of this every morning for ten 
 days, and then the gods would be gracious to him. 
 Some time after this the wife of Iphiclus had a little 
 son, which was a great joy to the old king. 
 
 He did not fail to give Melampus the reward he had 
 promised, and Bias took the cattle to the palace of 
 Neleus and again asked to be allowed to marry the 
 beautiful Pero. The king made no further objection, 
 and the wedding was celebrated that very same day. 
 
 The god Apollo loved Melampus because he was a 
 
MELAMPUS AND EIAS. 73 
 
 good man, and lie gifted him with the art of knowing 
 the future by means of various signs, and of understand- 
 ing how to propitiate the wrath of the gods. .Many 
 people came to ask advice of him when they were in 
 trouble or difficulty, and among others, Proetus the king 
 of Argos, sent to beg for his help, for he was in great dis- 
 tress. This king had three daughters who were beaut i ful 
 and virtuous, but they refused to offer sacrifices to the 
 god Dionysus, and therefore Dionysus punished them 
 by taking away their reason, so that they became mad. 
 They ran about the city, dancing and screaming and 
 tearing their clothes, and if anyone tried to restrain them 
 they became wilder still, and foamed at the mouth, so that 
 no one could see them without feeling deeply grieved. 
 It was on account of this that Proetus sent to Melampus 
 to beg him to make his daughters well again. Melampus 
 agreed to do so if the king would promise him a third 
 of his dominions as a reward ; but when Proetus heard 
 of the condition, avarice prevailed over his love" for his 
 daughters, and he refused to part with any of his land. 
 But the evil became worse and worse, for all the women 
 in the country were seized with the same disease as the 
 princesses, and ran about the streets and fields, raging 
 as if they were intoxicated. Many had taken their 
 little children with them, thinking that they w^ere 
 young deer which they must sacrifice to Dionysus, 
 and it was a ghastly sight to see them murder their 
 own children, not knowing what they were doing. 
 The whole land was in such great trouble that the 
 king sent a messenger to tell Melampus that he 
 would give him the third part of his dominions if 
 he would put an end to the misery, but Melampus 
 
74 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 now said that he must also give his brother Bias a 
 third, or he would do nothing for him. The king 
 was very loth to give away so much fertile territory, 
 but he feared that he might at last be obliged to win 
 over Melampus at any price, and perhaps lose his whole 
 kingdom, so he promised to give him what he asked. 
 Then Melampus went to Argos and placed himself at 
 the head of all the young men in the city, whom he 
 had told beforehand what they were to do. They 
 marched out of the city in an orderly band, till they 
 met the raving women who had formed themselves 
 into a sort of wild army with the princesses at their 
 head. As soon as they saw the army of youths they 
 took flight, and the men pursued them, shouting as if 
 they were at war, till they reached the sea and could go 
 no farther. Then Melampus offered many sacrifices, 
 until the gods were propitiated and the women had 
 their reason restored. After this, they all returned to 
 the city. The eldest princess, who was the most 
 afflicted of all, had fallen down dead during the chase, 
 but the other two came back to the palace and lived 
 with their father as before, and from this time they 
 honoured Dionysus and offered sacrifices to him. 
 
 Melampus and Bias now became princes, and they 
 ruled over the land which King Proetus gave them 
 according to his promise. 
 
75 
 
 XXI. 
 
 TANTALUS. PELOPS. 
 
 IN the land of Phrygia, which lies in Asia Minor, there 
 was once a king named Tantalus, whom the gods 
 loaded with all manner of favours. They gave him 
 great wealth, so that he was richer than any other king, 
 and the)- treated him as a friend and came to his house 
 as guests, and sometimes they allowed him to ascend 
 to Mount Olympus in one of their chariots and to 
 drink nectar and eat ambrosia at their table. But 
 Tantalus was presumptuous, and turned the friendship 
 with which the gods honoured him to bad uses, for he 
 stole nectar and ambrosia and gave them to other men 
 to taste, and he also repeated things that he had heard 
 the gods speak of among themselves, about which he 
 ought to have kept silence. He even once invited the 
 gods to a banquet in order to try and deceive them, 
 and for this purpose he killed his beautiful young son 
 Pelops, and cut him in pieces and roasted the flesh ; and 
 when the gods sat down to the banquet he brought in 
 the flesh and laid it before them, thinking that they 
 would eat it without knowing what it was. The goddess 
 Demeter was at this time in great trouble because her 
 daughter Persephone had been stolen away from her, 
 and as she sat buried in sad thoughts, she eat a shoulder- 
 
76 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 piece without paying attention to what she was doing. 
 But the other gods did not eat any of the flesh, for 
 they knew directly what it was, and they were very 
 angry with Tantalus. Zeus commanded that Pelops 
 should come to life again, and he was even more 
 beautiful than before, but his right shoulder was 
 missing, for Demeter had eaten it. The goddess could 
 not replace it, but she took a piece of ivory and cut 
 out a shoulder, which she fitted into the right place, so 
 that it looked like the other limbs, only it was more 
 white and shining. 
 
 After this the gods would have nothing more to do 
 with Tantalus, and as they no longer blessed his fields 
 or flocks, his prosperity was now at an end, for the 
 fields produced miserable crops, and the flocks were 
 diminished by plagues and diseases, and also by the 
 ravages of wolves and lions. Tantalus became worse 
 and worse, and committed many other crimes, and 
 after his death the gods laid upon him a never-ending 
 punishment. He found himself standing in beautiful 
 clear water which reached up to his chin, and close 
 above his head there Lung branches of magnificent 
 fruit trees quite weighed down with the quantity of 
 fruit they bore, but whenever he tried to sip the water 
 it sank before him till there was nothing to be seen hut 
 the black earth, and whenever he tried to gather some 
 fruit the branches raised themselves into the air, so 
 that though he was parched with thirst and was 
 perpetually straining to quench it, if but for a moment, 
 he was never able to reach either the water or the 
 fruit. 1 
 
 1 From this story comes the English word ' to tantalize.' 
 
TANTALUS. PELOPS. 77 
 
 After the death of Tantalus, his son Pelops was king 
 of Phrygia. But there came another king, with an 
 army of soldiers, who fought against him and drove him 
 away, so that he was obliged to leave his country and 
 travel into strange lands. After some time he came to 
 the city of Elis, in Greece, where at that time, there 
 was a king called Oenomaus who had a lovely daughter 
 named Hippodarnia. A great many heroes desired to 
 marry her, and the king had sent to ask the Oracle 
 which of them he should choose for her husband, but 
 the answer that he received was that when his daughter 
 married, he himself would die. He at once determined 
 that his daughter should never marry ; and as he had 
 two horses that could run like the wind and there 
 were none in the whole country that could compare 
 with them in speed, he said that anyone who wished to 
 marry his daughter must compete with him in a chariot 
 race, and if he won the race he should have the maiden 
 for his wife, but if he foiled to do so he must die. 
 Hippodarnia was so beautiful that many heroes were 
 willing to risk their lives for the chance of winning her, 
 and agreed to the conditions. At some distance from 
 the city there stood an altar to Poseidon, which was the 
 goal, and on each occasion the princess drove with the 
 suitor for her hand. Oenomaus used to let them start 
 on in front whilst he remained behind to sacrifice a ram 
 to the gods, and when the sacrifice was offered, he 
 mounted the chariot with his lance in his hand, and 
 urged on the horses to their utmost speed. The race 
 never lasted long, for he very soon overtook the suitor 
 and pierced him through the back with his lance, so 
 that he fell down dead from the chariot. 
 
78 MYTHS OF HMLLAS. 
 
 Thirteen heroes had already lost their lives, and 
 Oenomaus thought that he had -found a very good way 
 of preventing his daughter from ever being married. But 
 Pelops heard of the beautiful Hippodamia, and though 
 he heard, too, of the cruel king who put all her suitors 
 to death, he resolved to set out for Elis and try his 
 chance of winning the maiden, for he was a true hero, 
 brave and fearless. It was a prize well worth trying 
 for, for whoever won it would not only have the 
 beautiful princess for his wife, but would also inherit 
 the kingdom, for Oenomaus had no other child. Pelops 
 came to Elis, and Oenomaus told him, as he had told 
 the others, that he must be prepared to race with him, 
 and fixed the race for the following day. The king had 
 outrun many swifter horses than those of Pelops, and 
 if the hero had not set to work cunningly he must 
 have lost his life, but he had thought of a plan by 
 which he might get the better of the king, if he could 
 secure the help of the man to whom was entrusted the 
 care of the horses and chariot of Oenomaus. He 
 watched until this man took the horses to bathe in the 
 river, and he followed him there to have an opportunity 
 of speaking to him privately and promised him a great 
 reward if, on the next day, he would leave out some 
 necessary part of the king's equipment, so that he 
 might be delayed in the race. Oenomaus was such a 
 cruel man that his servants had no affection for him, 
 and the man promised Pelops that he would help him 
 to win the race. 
 
 The next day, many people came to the open space 
 outside the city where the race was to be run. They 
 felt sorry for the hero, for his horses were far less 
 
TANTALUS. PELOPS. 7 9 
 
 strong and spirited than those of the king, which 
 pawed the ground with impatience, and snuffed the air 
 in their eagerness to set out. Oenomaus told his 
 daughter to get into the chariot with Pelops, and 
 when he had the beautiful maiden sitting by his side, 
 Pelops felt how happy he would be if he could obtain 
 her for his wife, and he urged on his horses with all his 
 might. Meanwhile Oenomaus took a sacrificial knife 
 and killed a ram, and then he laid a part of the flesh 
 in the flame of the fire that burnt on the altar, and 
 prayed to the gods to enable him to get the better of 
 Pelops and kill him. When the sacrifice was ended, he 
 mounted his chariot, with the reins in his left hand 
 and a sharp-pointed lance in his right hand, and the 
 moment he shook the reins, the horses started off at 
 their utmost speed, and the chariot could not be seen 
 for the dust that it raised. He came close to Pelops, 
 and raised his lance to smite him. But the unfaithful 
 servant had taken out the nails which prevent the 
 wheel from slipping off the axle, and just as Oenomaus 
 was overtaking the other chariot, the wheel rolled on 
 one side, and the chariot turned over. The king was 
 thrown out, and he fell upon a stone and was killed 
 instantly. 
 
 So Pelops was the victor, and the sentence of the 
 Oracle was fulfilled. As soon as the beautiful Hippo- 
 lamia had ended her mourning for her father, she was 
 married to Pelops, who became king of Elis and ruled 
 the country well and wisely. Long after his death the 
 Greeks still remembered him, and named the great 
 peninsula in which Elis lies, Peloponnesus, or the 
 Island of Pelops. 
 
80 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 XXII. 
 
 NIOBE. 
 
 NIOBE was the daughter of Tantalus, and the wife of 
 King Ampliion, who by means of his singing and 
 playing had built a wall round Thebes. 1 She and her 
 husband were rich and prosperous, but beyond all their 
 other treasures they prized their twelve noble and 
 beautiful children. There were six sons and six 
 daughters, and they were the pride of Niobe's heart. 
 She looked down upon all other women because they 
 were none of them so fortunate as herself, and once 
 she even dared to say that she was superior to the 
 goddess Leto, for that Leto had only two children, and 
 she had six times as many. AVhen Leto heard this 
 she was stung to the quick, and she went weeping to 
 her children and told them of it. These children were 
 the god Apollo and the goddess Artemis, and they 
 were very angry with Niobe for vexing their mother, 
 and resolved to punish her for her pride. 
 
 One day the sons of Niobe were in the courtyard 
 wrestling with each other, for they were skilled in 
 wrestling as becomes young heroes, and the mother and 
 
 1 See p. 50. 
 
NIOBK 81 
 
 sisters were standing by, watching them. All at once 
 one of the youths groaned, sank down, and died. He 
 had been hit by one of the arrows of Apollo, which 
 were invisible and deadly, killing instantly whoever 
 was hit by them. The mother, brothers arid sisters 
 gathered round the youth, unable to believe that he 
 was dead, when suddenly a maiden sank upon her 
 knees, heaved a sigh, and died also. She had been hit 
 by one of th^ arrows of Artemis, which were invisible 
 like those of Apollo. Son after son, and daughter after 
 daughter was killed by the unseen arrows, and Niobe 
 knew that this was a punishment for her pride. The 
 youth who was first struck down was not yet cold when 
 the only one of all her children left to Niobe was the 
 youngest daughter, whom she loved best of all. The 
 little girl had always found protection in her mothers 
 lap, and now, when the fear that she must die like her 
 brothers and sisters came over her, she ran to her mother 
 and clung to her knees for shelter. Niobe took her up 
 in her arms, and wrapping her veil round her as if it 
 could shield her from the unseen enemy, she looked up 
 to heaven and cried from her inmost soul, ' Spare 
 me but this one ! ' But at that moment she felt her 
 daughter convulsed in her arms, and the last of her 
 children was dead. 
 
 There was great distress throughout the city. King 
 Amphion tore his hair and threw himself on the earth 
 with frantic cries of grief, and the citizens wept and 
 lamented. But Niobe shed no tears, no word of sorrow 
 came out of her mouth, and she kept her eyes fixed on 
 the ground, still clasping her youngest daughter to her 
 
82 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 breast, while the other corpses lay around her. The 
 night came on and the others went into the house, but 
 Niobe remained standing in the starlight amongst her 
 dead children, and when the people came back in the 
 morning, she had turned to stone. 
 
XXIII. 
 
 MELEAGER AND ATALANTA. 
 
 KING OEXEUS lived in the city of Calydon with his wife 
 Althaea, and they had already several children when 
 another little FOU was born to them. When the child 
 was about seven davs old, his mother awoke one night 
 and saw a fire burning on the hearth, and by the fire 
 three women standing, who were taller and statelier 
 than any women she had ever seen before: they were 
 the three Fates, who are the goddesses that decide 
 whether the lives of men shall be brightened by hap- 
 piness or made heavy with misfortune. One of them 
 said, * 1 gift this child with bravery.' The second said, 
 4 1 bestow upon him a generous heart.' The third said, 
 'I grant him life until the day when this firebrand 
 shall be burnt to ashes.' Then they all disappeared, 
 and Althaea, to once got up and took the piece of stick 
 from the fire, and when she had put it out by pouring 
 water upon it, she stowed it away in the chest where 
 she kept her most precious treasures. The parents 
 named their child Meleager, and he grew up to be a 
 strong and noble youth, fond of the chase and of war. 
 
 After Meleager had become a man, it happened one 
 year that King Oeneus raised a number of altars of 
 green turf in the fields at harvest-time, and placed on 
 
 o 2 
 
8i MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 each altar some of the corn that was fhst cut, in order 
 to show his gratitude to the gods for having caused the 
 fruits of the earth to grow and ripen ; every god and every 
 goddess had an altar except Artemis the goddess of the 
 chase, who was forgotten. She was very angry with the 
 king on account of this, and sent a fierce wild boar to 
 destroy his land. This boar was much larger than any 
 other that had ever been seen, and he had two long 
 pointed tusks which made him very frightful to look 
 at. He roamed about the country, and wherever he 
 found a newly-sown field he tore up the ground and 
 laid it waste, and he ripped open the young trees with 
 his tusks, and broke in among the flocks, killing men 
 and cattle. He was so fierce and powerful that no 
 hunter had courage to attack him, and at last the evil 
 became so serious that the king sent messengers to a 
 number of heroes to ask them to come to Calydon, and 
 all set out together to hunt the boar. All who were 
 summoned promised to come, and at the appointed 
 time they assembled at Calydon. There came also a 
 maiden who was armed with a hunting-spear, and who 
 would not play with the king's daughters, but said she 
 wished to go to the hunt with the heroes. 
 
 The maiden's name was Atalanta, and she had a 
 strange history. She was the child of a king and queen 
 who had wished very much to have a little son, and had 
 begged the gods to send them one. Instead of this, 
 however, a girl was born to them, and the father was 
 so angry that he commanded his servants to take the 
 child to a mountain that was clothed with forests, and 
 leave it there to be devoured by wild beasts. For a 
 ni^-ht and a day the child lay in the forest, and it was 
 
MELEAGER AND ATALANTA. 85 
 
 nearly dead of starvation when a she-bear came by, wh'- 
 drooped her head sadly because her little cubs had 
 been taken from her by some hunters. The child was 
 frightened at the great black beast and began to cr\, 
 but the bear looked kindly at it, and when she saw 
 what bright eyes the baby had, she growled gently and 
 licked it with her warm tongue. Soon the child forgot 
 its fear, and when the bear put her full udder to 
 its mouth, it began to suck, for it was hungry and 
 thirsty ; and from that time the bear came again every 
 day and gave it food and played with it. After 
 some time had passed, it happened that some hunters 
 came up the mountain in pursuit of a deer, and one 
 of them in bending back a bush caught sight of the 
 beautiful little girl, who was lying on the grass playing 
 with flowers. He took her up and called to the other 
 hunters to come and look at her, and they were so de- 
 lighted at finding her that they let the deer escape. 
 One of them carried her home in his arms, and they 
 were as well satisfied as if they had had a most 
 successful hunt. The house where the hunters lived 
 was in the midst of the green- wood, and they made a, 
 soft bed for the child, and fed her with sweet milk. 
 At first she cried continually, for she missed her bear 
 sadly, but the hunters played with her and were so 
 kind to her that she soon became happy again. The 
 hunters named her Atalanta, and when she grew 
 bigger, they took her with them when they went out 
 hunting. Atalanta enjoyed roaming through the woods 
 and running after the wild animals more than anything 
 else, and she let the hunters have no peace till they 
 gave her a spear of her own. Her feet became swift and 
 
86 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 her arms strong, and she killed many animals and was 
 a very skilful huntress, but whenever a she-bear came 
 across her path she took gre.'t care to do her no harm. 
 She was taller and stronger than other maidens, and at 
 the same time very beautiful. When she heard of the 
 hunt that King Oeneus had proclaimed, she at once set 
 out for Calydon, expecting greatly to enjoy the dangerous 
 chase. 
 
 King Oeneus entertained the heroes for nine days, 
 and they amused themselves with feasts and all kinds 
 of games. The tenth day was fixed for the hunt, and 
 it was agreed that whoever should kill the boar was to 
 receive the skin and the head as the prize of honour. 
 Theiv were present, however, some brothers of Queen 
 Althaea who were ill-mannered and discourteous, and 
 who said that Atalanta should not go with them, for 
 that it would be a disgrace to them all their lives if 
 they went out hunt ing with a woman ; but Meleager 
 had conceived a great love for Atalanta., and would not 
 allow her to be excluded. So she set out with the 
 others for the forest where the boar had his lair. They 
 were attended by their servants, who roused the wild 
 beast by making a great clapping with their hands, 
 and drove him out into an open space in the middle of 
 the forest, while the heroes stood round among the 
 trees. At first he remained in the middle of the open 
 space tearing up th^ earth with his tusks, his eyes 
 burning like fire and his bristles standing up straight 
 from his back, and grunting so frightfully that the 
 heart of many a brave hero beat, and that not altogether 
 for joy. Bat when the heroes hurled their spears at 
 him, the boar rushed to where the first spear came 
 
MELEAGER AND ATALASTA. 87 
 
 from and ripped open the body of the hero with his 
 tusks, so that he was soon lying dead in a pool of his 
 own blood. After this he spied another hero, and with 
 him it fared no better than with the first. Then another 
 hero aimed at him, but he shot too high, and the spear 
 hit one of his friends and pierced him through ; so three 
 lives were already sacrificed, and yet the boar had not 
 lost a drop of blood. It was now the turn of Atalanta 
 to throw her spear, and she hit the wild boar in the 
 back causing the blood to gush out; then someone else 
 hit him in the eye, and at last the spear of Meleager 
 pierced his side at a vital spot and inflicted a mortal 
 wound. He could no longer stand up, and was obliged 
 to vent his fury on the innocent earth, and after rolling 
 about in great pain for a little while, he died. 
 
 The heroes cut off his head, and severed his skin 
 from his body and gave it to Meleager as the prize of 
 honour, because it was he who had given the wild boar 
 his death-wound. But Meleager said, ' Atalanta was 
 the first to hit the beast,' and he presented her with 
 the prize as a token of love and regard. The skin made 
 in truth a splendid mantle, reaching from the maiden's 
 shoulder right down to her feet, and as she stood in the 
 forest, radiant with beauty, with the skin thrown over 
 her left shoulder, and with the bleeding head in one 
 hand while in the other she held her hunting-spear, 
 she looked like the goddess Artemis returning from the 
 chase. But the brothers of Queen Althaea who had 
 wished to prevent Atalanta from going out hunting 
 with them, were greatly annoyed, and they spoke 
 rudely to her and snatched away the prize from her. 
 This made Meleager very angry, and a violent quarrel 
 
88 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 took place, in which Meleager drew his sword and slew 
 his uncles: he was quickly roused to anger, and they 
 had provoked him beyond his power of endurance, but 
 as soon as they were dead he felt very sorry for hi? 
 mother's sake, for he knew that she was very fond of 
 her brothers, unmannerly fellows though they were. 
 The servants made biers out of green branches and 
 laid the dead men upon them, and they all, both heroes 
 and servants, went back together into the city. 
 
 But a man who had taken the part of the two 
 brothers went on in front to the palace and told 
 the queen that her brothers had been murdered by 
 Meleager. Then the queen's sorrow passed all bounds, 
 and she wept and tore her hair. It was the custom at 
 that time, that if a man was murdered his relations 
 should avenge his death upon the murderer, as this 
 was considered a way of doing honour to his memory, 
 and in the first burst of her resentment she fetched 
 the piece of stick on which the life of Meleager de- 
 pended, and threw it into a fire that happened to be 
 burning on the hearth. The flames gradually consumed 
 it, and as the last spark went out, Meleager, who was 
 on his way home with the other heroes, fell down dead. 
 By the time the queen heard that her son was dead 
 however, her anger had already passed away, arid she 
 was filled with unspeakable remorse for having cut 
 short his life. She did not weep as she had done 
 before, but she felt that she could not bear to live any 
 longer, and she went into her bed-chamber and hanged 
 herself. When this was known, everyone was deeply 
 grieved; the old king would not leave his room, and 
 for a long time refused to eat or drink, and the heroes 
 
MELEAGER AND ATALANTA. 89 
 
 dispersed to their homes without caring to stay for the 
 hunting feast. 
 
 Atalaiita went back to her forest leaving the skin 
 of the boar behind her, for she would have had no 
 pleasure in keeping what would always have reminded 
 her of the death of Meleager. She roamed about the 
 forest as before from morning till night, and was never so 
 happy as when she was among the green trees. Now the 
 fame of her beauty had spread far and wide, and many 
 suitors came to ask her to marry them. But she did 
 not "wish to marry, and as her suitors would not leave 
 off pressing her, she said that anyone who liked might 
 race with her, and if he beat her he should be her hus- 
 band, but if she overtook him he must die. Many of 
 her lovers lost their lives in this manner, for though 
 Atalanta always gave a good start, she very soon over- 
 took her competitor and stabbed him in the back with 
 her hunting-spear. 
 
 After a time, however, a ma-n named Milanion re- 
 solved to try his chance, who was beloved by the god- 
 dess Aphrodite on account of his great beauty, and as 
 she was unwilling that he should lose his life like the 
 others, she gave him three golden apples and told 
 him how to make use of them. He hid them in the 
 folds of his dress, and as soon as he heard Atalanta 
 coming up behind him, he took out one of the apples 
 and threw it down on the ground where it glittered so 
 beautifully in the sunshine that Atalanta could not 
 resist stooping to pick it up. Milanion thus gained a 
 minute, and the next time he found that she was close 
 behind him he threw down the second apple, and again 
 Atalanta allowed him to escape while she stopped for 
 
90 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 it. A third time the same thing happened when they 
 were at a very short distance from the goal, and thus 
 Milunion reached it first and won the race, and Atalanta 
 became his wife and went home with him. And he was 
 such a noble hero that she never repented of having 
 allowed herself to be conquered by the golden apples. 
 
91 
 
 XXIV. 
 
 ADMETUS AND ALCESTIS. 
 
 APOLLO once displeased Zeus by acting against his 
 wishes, and the king of the gods said that for a punish- 
 ment he must serve a mortal for the space of a year, 
 and that the mortal must not know that he was a god, 
 but treat him just like any other slave. So Apollo 
 entered the service of the young king Admetus, who 
 made him the keeper of his flocks. Admetus was a 
 good master, and Apollo found himself well-treated, 
 and he repaid the kindness he received by making the 
 flocks prosper and increase till there were none like 
 them in the whole country. Admetus had never had 
 such a good herdsman, and he treated him even better 
 than his other servants. When the year had passed, 
 Apollo told him who he was, and said that if ever 
 Admetus was in need and prayed to him, lie would 
 come and help him. Then Apollo went back to Olym- 
 pus, and Admetus had another herdsman, but Apollo 
 still blessed the flocks, so that they continued to 
 prosper. 
 
 Time passed by and Admetus wished to marry, and 
 he travelled through the country seeking for the fairest 
 and noblest woman in the laud to be his wife. He 
 heard that no one could compare with Alcestis, the 
 
92 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 daughter of King Pelias, and he went to her father 
 and asked to be allowed to marry her. But the king 
 said that his daughter was not to be won so easily, and 
 that whoever wanted her for his wife must come and 
 sue for her in a chariot drawn by a lion and a wild 
 boar. Admetus was a brave hero and a skilled hunts- 
 man, but his heart sank when he heard this, for he 
 feared he should never be able to procure such a team 
 as this, and tame them for his service Then he re- 
 membered how Apollo had promised to help him in 
 the time of need, and he prated to him, and Apollo 
 came and asked what he wanted. When he had been 
 told what it was, he went into the forest with Admetus, 
 and gave chase to a lion whom he caught arid held fast 
 by the mane, although the lion roared horribly and 
 tried to snap at him with his great jaws. Presently 
 he spied a boar and pursued him also, making the 
 lion run by his side ; and when he had caught the boar, 
 he grasped him by the ear and dragged him along too, 
 so that he had the lion on one side of him and the 
 boar on the other. The wild animals looked at each 
 other angrily and tried to bite one another, but Apollo 
 would not let them do so. He brought them out of 
 the forest and harnessed them to a magnificent chariot, 
 and he had a goad w^ith which he pricked them when- 
 ever they tried to hurt one another, until at last they 
 were tame and obedient to the rein. Admetus how- 
 ever would not have been able to keep them under 
 control, so Apollo drove them himself, and thus Ad- 
 raetus arrived at the palace of King Pelias with the 
 god for his charioteer, and with the team that the king 
 had required, and a second time asked for his daughter's 
 
ADMETUS AND ALCI'^TIS. J3 
 
 hand in marriage. The king could no longer refuse, 
 and when he had promised that Admetus should have 
 the beautiful Alcestis for his wife, Apollo drove back 
 into the forest and released the two wild animals. 
 Soon afterwards the wedding was celebrated in the 
 palace with great magnificence, and Apollo was one of 
 the guests. As a wedding-present, he brought a pro- 
 mise from the goddesses of Fate, that if ever Admetus 
 were sick and in danger of death and one of his 
 nearest relations would consent to die instead of him, 
 the life thus offered would be accepted instead of the 
 life of Admetus, and he would become well again. 
 
 Admetus and Alcestis loved each other dearly, and 
 lived happily together for many years. But after some 
 time had passed, Admetus was smitten with a sore 
 sickness, and everyone said that he must die unless his 
 life could be saved according to the promise of Apollo. 
 The people thought that as his father and mother were 
 now very old and could not hope to live much longer 
 in any case, they would be willing to die instead of 
 Admetus ; but they loved life more than they loved 
 their son, and would not part with it until they were 
 obliged. Then the beautiful Alcestis went into her 
 chamber and prayed to the gods that they would 
 allow her to give up her life to save her husband, 
 and when she had ended her prayer, she lay down 
 on the bed and died. At the same moment Admetus 
 became suddenly well, and was able to stand up and 
 walk about. He did not know how it was that he 
 had been so quickly cured until he went into the 
 chamber of Alcestis, and saw her lying dead upon the 
 couch ; then he understood how it was, but lie felt that 
 
94: MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 he would much rather have died himself. All through 
 the palace there was loud lamentation, for all the house- 
 hold loved Alcestis dearly because she was so good and 
 kind to them. Admetus would not leave her couch, 
 but sat beside it holding her cold hand, which wan 
 ever wet with his tears. Night came on, and morning 
 dawned again, but he gave no heed to it, and the corpse 
 had already become quite cold when suddenly it began 
 to grow warm again, and presently Alcestis heaved a 
 deep sigh, opened her eyes, and was once more alive. 
 
 Never before had such a wonder taken place, and 
 this was how it came to pass. When Alcestis died, 
 her shade passed into the Lower World, and the Shadow- 
 Leader, who conducted the dead thither, told the queen 
 of the Lower World the reason of her death. So many 
 shadows came into their dominions who had had a sad 
 end, that the gods of the Lower World had at last ex- 
 hausted all their pity, and ceased to weep for them. 
 But when the queen heard how Alcestis had died in 
 the full bloom of her youth and beauty in order that 
 Admetus might live, she was deeply moved, and com- 
 manded the Shadow-Leader to take her back to the 
 Upper World and restore her to life. 
 
 So Alcestis awoke to life again, and she lived with 
 her husband in happiness and prosperity for many 
 years after this ; gods and men united to do them 
 honour, and when they had reached a good old age, 
 thev both died at the same time. 
 
XXV. 
 
 PERSEUS. 
 
 THERE was once a king of Argos called Acrisius, who 
 had an only daughter. Her name was Danae and she 
 was very beautiful, but the Oracle said that she would 
 have a son through whom Acrisius would lose his life. 
 This frightened Acrisius very much, and he had a large 
 brazen room made for Danae to live in under the earth, 
 where she had everything she wished for, but she was 
 never allowed to see the light of day, nor any man. 
 Her father thought he would thus be able to pre- 
 vent her from marrying secretly and having a son, and 
 for a time everything went on according to his wishes. 
 But Zeus, the king of the gods, loved Danae, and he 
 one day changed himself into a beautiful golden shower 
 of rain, whose shining drops fell down through the 
 brazen roof. Thus Zeus was married to Danae, and 
 not long afterwards she had a son. Acrisius was very 
 angry, and he had the mother and son shut up in a 
 wooden chest and cast into the sea. 
 
 The chest was tossed about on the waves, and floated 
 far away. On the third day it reached an island where 
 there happened to be a man on the shore fishing, who 
 was the brother of the king of the island. He drew 
 the chest to land and forced open the lid, and when he 
 
06 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 saw the lovely woman and her child inside it, he took 
 them, just as they were, into the house to show them to 
 the king his brother, who promised to protect them 
 and treat them kindly. Acrisius thought they had 
 perished in the sea, but they were safe on the island, 
 and Danae was quite happy in taking care of her son, 
 whom she named Perseus. In the course of time, 
 Perseus grew up to be a young man, and he was beauti- 
 ful and brave and strong. 
 
 The king of the island wanted to have Danae for 
 his wife, but she did not wish to marry him. Then 
 the king thought that if it were not for Perseus he 
 might compel her to do so, and he sought to find some 
 excuse for sending Perseus away on a far journey. 
 So one day he called his friends together, and Perseus 
 among the rest. He told them that he was going to 
 sue for a bride, and that he wished each of them to 
 bring him some present to offer to her father ; for it 
 was the custom in those days that anyone who wanted 
 to win a bride should give costly presents to the father 
 of the lady he wished to marry. They all agreed to do 
 as the king desired, and he asked most of his friends to 
 give him splendid horses, but from Perseus he demanded 
 a gift that would involve a difficult and dangerous 
 journey to a distant land. At the far end of the world 
 there lived three sisters called Gorgon s, who instantly 
 turned to stone everyone that looked at them ; the 
 only one of the three who was mortal was called 
 Medusa, and the king commanded Perseus to bring him 
 her head, hoping that he would perish in the attempt. 
 
 Perseus had no fear, and at once set out in quest 
 of the Gorgon's head. There were three nymphs who 
 

 PERSEUS. 97 
 
 had three precious things without which it would have 
 been useless for him to try and obtain it, but no one 
 knew where these nymphs lived except the three Grey 
 Sisters, who lived far away from any inhabited land, 
 and would never reveal the secret of where the nymphs 
 were to be found unless they were compelled to do so* 
 They were the sisters of the Gorgons, and had been 
 quite grey ever since their birth, and they had only 
 one tooth and one eye between them, which they used 
 in turns. Perseus went to the cavern where the Grey 
 Sisters lived, and watched till one of them took out the 
 eye and the tooth to pass them to her sister, when he 
 sprang forward and snatched them out of her hand, 
 and said that he would not give them back till they 
 told him where the nymphs lived. So they were 
 obliged to tell him, and then he gave them back their 
 eye and tooth, and went on to the nymphs who were 
 kind to him and gave him the three precious things. 
 These were, first, a pouch in which to place the head 
 of Medusa after he had cut it off; secondly, a pair of 
 sandals which enabled anyone who put them on to fly 
 through the air ; and, thirdly the helmet of Pluto, 
 which made whoever wore it invisible. The gcds loved 
 Perseus because he was so brave, and Hermes came 
 down to earth and gave him a sickle of very sharp steel 
 with which to cut off the head of the Gorgon. Perseus 
 put on the sandals, and taking the other things with 
 him, he flew to the great stream Oceanus which flows 
 round the world. There was a rocky island in the 
 middle of the stream covered with rank weeds and full 
 of serpents, and here the Gorgons lived in a cave. 
 When Perseus reached them it was about noonday, and 
 
 u 
 
98 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 they were asleep. They were larger than mortal 
 women, and had great teeth like tusks and brazen 
 hands and golden wings, and they had live snakes 
 twined among their hair, and everyone who looked at 
 them was turned to stone. Perseus heard them snoi- 
 ing, and he went into the cave on tip-toe so as not to 
 wake them. He was obliged to go backwards, for if he 
 had looked at them he would have been turned to stone ; 
 but he had a polished shield which he held up before 
 him as a mirror, and he could see them in the mirror 
 without being harmed. They had stretched them- 
 selves out in a row, and lay asleep leaning one against 
 the other ; Medusa was smaller than the others, and by 
 this he was able to recognise her. Her head was rest- 
 ing on a stone, and Perseus held up the shield before 
 her and cut through her neck with the sickle till 
 the head fell off, and then he took it up, put it into 
 the pouch without looking at it, and flew away. But 
 the bleeding trunk still palpitated, and the other two 
 Gorgon s awoke and saw it, and they darted out of the 
 cavern after Perseus, that they might seize him and 
 tear him to pieces with their iron claws. They flew 
 through the air looking for him, and they had sharp 
 eyes with which they could see to a great distance, but 
 they could not find Perseus because he had on the 
 helmet of Pluto which made him invisible, and were 
 obliged to return without him. Perseus was mean- 
 while on his way home with the dead head in his 
 pouch. 
 
 After some days he came to a country in Africa, 
 where there was a king whose name was Cepheus. The 
 queen was called Cassiopea, and she was very beautiful 
 
PERSEUS. yo 
 
 and very proud of her beauty, and every day she went 
 down to the sea that she might have the pleasure of 
 looking at her picture in the water. One day she said 
 that she was more beautiful than the sea-nymphs, and 
 the nymphs heard it and were so angry with her that 
 they begged Poseidon, the sea-god, to punish her for 
 her pride. Then Poseidon created a huge monster 
 which came up every day out of the sea and wasted 
 the land, devouring men and cattle, so that there was 
 great distress among the people. They asked the Oracle 
 what they should do, and the Oracle said that they must 
 give the king's daughter to the monster to devour, and 
 then he would not come again any more. The king's 
 daughter was called Andromeda, and she was beautiful 
 like her mother, but she was not vain of her beauty, 
 and the king and queen loved her very dearly. She 
 was their only child, and they cherished her as their 
 most precious treasure, and refused to give her up to 
 be food for the horrible monster. But at last they 
 were obliged to consent to this, and the day came when 
 Andromeda was to be taken to a rock in the sea and 
 bound fast with iron chains, so that she could not run 
 away when the monster came to devour her. The king 
 and queen wept bitterly, and many people followed 
 them to the shore, weeping also. 
 
 They had just reached the rock when Perseus also 
 approached it, and he took the helmet off his head so 
 that he could be seen, and asked why the beautiful 
 princess was to be chained to it. They told him all 
 about it, and he said that if they would promise to let 
 him have Andromeda for his wife, he would undertake 
 to kill the monster and deliver her. The king had 
 
 H 2 
 
100 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 already promised Andromeda in marriage to a brother 
 of his named Phineus, but though she was in such 
 great peril, Phineus did not trouble himself much about 
 it, and had no intention of risking his life for her. 
 Perseus, however, felt very differently; he longed to 
 have her for his wife, and the parents promised him 
 that if he slew the monster he should be their son-in- 
 law. Soon afterwards the monster appeared, rising up 
 from the bottom of the sea, and making great waves as 
 he swam along. Perseus waited till he came near the 
 shore, and then flew down and struck him a mighty 
 blow on the neck with his sword. The monster 
 snapped at him with his great jaws, but Perseus had 
 already flown up high above him, and before the mon- 
 ster could look round he had received another wound, 
 and he lashed his tail in fury till the water was quite 
 red with his blood, but he could not reach Perseus who 
 flew round him and struck him again and again, till at 
 last he bled to death. 
 
 Then there was great joy among the people : the 
 chains were taken off from Andromeda, and the king 
 and queen kissed her, feeling as if she had been raised 
 from the dead. They went back into the city, and 
 Perseus walked by the side of Andromeda who liked 
 well the appearance of the brave and noble hero. On 
 the seventh day the marriage took place, and they 
 offered sacrifices, and danced and sang and feasted. 
 Phineus however was not there, but in the middle of 
 the marriage feast he came into the hall of the palace 
 at the head of a large band of armed servants, and said 
 that he would kill Perseus and all who sided with him, 
 for that Andromeda had been promised to him, and 
 

 PERSEUS. 101 
 
 ought to be his wife. Then a struggle took place in 
 the hall, and Perseus slew several of the servants, but 
 they were twenty to one, and it was no fair fight. At 
 last Perseus cried out with a loud voice, 4 Let all who 
 are on my side turn away their faces,' and then he 
 thrust his hand into the pouch, drew forth the head 
 of Medusa, and held it out towards Phineus and his 
 servants, and in a moment they were all turned to 
 stone. 
 
 The king gave Perseus a beautiful ship, in which 
 he sailed with Andromeda to the island where his 
 mother was. He found her in sore distress, for the 
 king 1 of the island had tried to compel her to marry 
 him, and she had fled for refuge to the altar. Those 
 who took refuge at an altar were under the protection 
 of the gods as long as they remained there, and no one 
 dared to touch them ; but the king commanded that no 
 one should bring Danae anything to eat, and he placed 
 watchmen all round to see that his orders were obeyed, 
 for he thought that when she was absolutely starving 
 she would be compelled to leave the altar, and then he 
 would be able to seize her and make her his wife. But 
 at this moment Perseus arrived at the island in his 
 ship, and when he heard where his mother was, he 
 went to her, and she told him everything, which made 
 him very angry. The treacherous king heard that 
 Perseus had come back, and he was afraid, and sum- 
 moned his servants to go with him to the altar to kill 
 Perseus. Then Perseus again drew forth the head of 
 Medusa and turned them all to stone, and he gave the 
 kingdom to the king's brother, who had always been 
 kind to Danae. 
 
102 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 Danae had a great love for her father, although he 
 had thrust her away from him, and as Perseus also 
 wished very much to see his grandfather, they deter 
 mined to pay him a visit, and they sailed with An- 
 dromeda to Argos in the ship that Cepheus had given 
 them. But when the old Acrisius heard that his 
 daughter and her son were coming, he was afraid, 
 lor he remembered what the Oracle had said, and he 
 left the country, telling no one where he was going ; so 
 that when the ship reached Argos, Acrisius was not 
 there. And as it happened that a rich king had 
 lately died, and that games were to be celebrated in his 
 honour, Perseus thought he would go and take part in 
 these games, for anyone could go that liked, and those 
 who did best would receive prizes by which their 
 names would become known and honoured throughout 
 Greece. Acrisius also went to the games, for he wanted 
 to see what was going on, and he thought that there 
 he would surely be safe from his grandson. No one 
 knew who Perseus was, but he excelled all others and 
 won the best prizes. One of the things they did was to 
 try who could throw farthest a plate of stone called a 
 discus. Perseus was just going to take his turn at throw- 
 ing the discus, when it slipped out of his hand, and fly- 
 ing sideways, hit the old Acrisius on the head and killed 
 him. Thus it happened that Acrisius was running to 
 meet his fate at the very moment when he thought he 
 was escaping from it. Perseus was very sorrowful when 
 he heard that it was his grandfather, the king of Argos, 
 whom he had killed accidentally, and he had the corpse 
 brought to Argos and buried with great magnificence. 
 The kingdom of Argos was now his, but he could never 
 
PEKSEUS. 103 
 
 forget that he had killed his grandfather, and this made 
 the country so distasteful to him that he was glad to 
 exchange with another king who ruled over the cities 
 of Mycenae and Tiryns. 
 
 Perseus gave the three precious things by means of 
 which he had obtained the head of Medusa, to Hermes, 
 to be returned to the nyrnphs, and the Gorgon's head 
 he presented to the goddess Athene, who fastened it to 
 her shield. He lived honoured and esteemed to the 
 end of his days, and his wife Andromeda bore him 
 many beautiful children. 
 
104 MYTHS OF HELLAS.. 
 
 XXVi. 
 
 HERACLES. 
 
 1. The War ivith the Teleboae. 
 
 PERSEUS had been dead a long time, and his son 
 Electryon who succeeded him as king was already an 
 old man, when a dispute arose between him and a 
 nephew of his named Pterelaus. Pterelaus was king 
 of the Teleboae, who lived on several islands, and he 
 maintained that he had a better right to the cities of 
 Mycenae and Tiryns than Electryon, because he was 
 descended from the eldest son of Perseus ; and one day 
 he sent his sons, and many of the Teleboae with them, 
 in ships to Mycenae, and told them to say to Electryon 
 that he must be prepared to give up the kingdom to 
 him. Electryon was very angry, and sent the Tele- 
 boae away without paying any attention to their mes- 
 sage. They left the city, but on their way back to their 
 ships they came upon the king's droves of cattle which 
 were tended by his sons and servants, and they began 
 to fight with them, and the fight did not stop till all 
 the sons of Electryon were killed but one, and also 
 all the sons of Pterelaus except one, who had remained 
 behind with the ships and had taken no part in the 
 fight. The Teleboae had however got rather the best 
 
HERACLES. 105 
 
 of it, and those of them who were left drove the cattle 
 to their ships and sailed away. Some time afterwards 
 it happened that Electryon got back his cattle, for the 
 Teleboae had given them as a present to a king who 
 paid them to him for ransom ; but the cattle could not 
 make up for the loss of his sons for whom he grieved 
 bitterly, and he determined to be revenged on Ptere- 
 laus and told his servants to prepare to start with him 
 for the islands of the Teleboae. 
 
 There was at that time at Mycenae a young hero 
 named Amphitryon, who had come to ask for the hand 
 of Electryon's daughter Alcmene in marriage, and it 
 was arranged that he should have charge of the king- 
 dom during the absence of Electryon. But one day, 
 just before the king was to start on his expedition, it 
 happened that he was overlooking his flocks with 
 Amphitryon, when the young hero threw his stick at 
 a cow that was leaving the herd, and the stick bounded 
 back by accident from the cow's horns and hit the aged 
 Electryon on the head, so that he was killed instantly. 
 Amphitryon was obliged to leave the kingdom on ac- 
 count of this unintentional murder, and he went to 
 Thebes, where King Creon purged him from the stain 
 of blood by means of numerous sacrifices. During his 
 absence, however, a brother of Electryon, named 
 Sthenelus, contrived to gain possession of the kingdom 
 for him self, and to banish the two children of Electryon, 
 his daughter Alcmene, and the one son who had not been 
 killed by the Teleboae. They were obliged to give way 
 to Sthenelus, who was stronger than they, and came to 
 live in Thebes where Amphitryon was, but Alcmene 
 said that though she loved him she would never marry 
 
106 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 lain till he had avenged the murder of her brothers. 
 Amphitryon accordingly prepared to march against the 
 Teleboae, and sought to find brave heroes who would 
 consent to go with him. 
 
 He first of all asked KingCreon for his help, but Creou 
 was just then in great trouble at home, for a fox had 
 for some time taken up his abode in the fortress Cad- 
 mea, and had devoured numbers of people ; he was 
 under the protection of the gods, and it had been 
 decreed by the Fates that he should never be caught. 
 So the Thebans, finding that they could not get rid of 
 him, had made a truce with him by which they agreed 
 to give him a -boy every month to devour, and on this 
 condition he spared the rest of the people. Creon 
 therefore promised to go with Amphitryon if he would 
 first help him to deliver the country from the terrible 
 fox. Now Amphitryon had heard that there was a 
 wonderful dog in Athens which was also under the 
 protection of the gods, and that it had been decreed 
 that nothing that he pursued <;ould ever escape him ; so 
 he went to the hero who owned the dog, and promised 
 him a share of the spoil which he hoped to bring back 
 from the islands of the Teleboae if he would lend him the 
 dog for a time, and the hero agreed to do so. Amphi- 
 tryon took the dog back to Thebes and set out with 
 him in pursuit of the fox, and the dog ran after him as 
 fast as lightning. The Thebans thought that now one 
 or other of the prophecies must prove false ; either the 
 fox who was never to be caught would be overtaken, or 
 the dog who was never to pursue in vain would be 
 battled. But when the dog had got so close to the fox 
 that he was on the point of snapping at him, they both 
 
HERACLES. 107 
 
 remained motionless, and the Thebans saw that they 
 had been turned to stone. 
 
 Then Creon said that he was quite willing to ac- 
 company Amphitryon, and the hero of Athens agreed to 
 go also, and many other heroes, and they all embarked 
 for the islands of the Teleboae, but they could not con- 
 quer King Pterelaus, for he had many soldiers and knew 
 well the art of war. The daughter of Pterelaus, however, 
 had seen Amphitryon from the city walls and had con- 
 ceived a great love for him which made her secretly 
 sorry when the Teleboae conquered, and glad when one 
 day they were the losers ; and she resolved to betray 
 her father and her fellow-citizens into the hands of 
 Amphitryon, because she thought that if she helped 
 him to gain the victory, he would feel grateful to her 
 and would make her his wife. .Now Pterelaus was im- 
 mortal through the good- will of Poseidon, who had 
 given him a golden hair wirich he kept carefully hidden 
 away under his grey locks, for it had the power of 
 keeping him alive. Bat one day while he was asleep, 
 his daughter came in on tiptoe, sought for the golden 
 hair and pulled it out, and immediately his breath 
 stopped short, and Pterelaus was dead. 
 
 The Teleboae could no longer resist their enemies 
 now that they were deprived of the advice of their wise 
 king, and in a short time Amphitryon had gained pos- 
 session of the chief town and of all the islands, and had 
 avenged upon the Teleboae the slaughtej of the sons of 
 Electryon. The daughter of Pterelaus thought that 
 she would now be the w T ife of Amphitryon, but things 
 turned out very differently from her expectations, for 
 as soon as Amphitryon saw her, he drew his sword and 
 
108 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 stabbed her ; lie knew that she had killed her father, 
 but he did not know why she had done so. Then the 
 heroes carried the booty to their ships and sailed away 
 home. 
 
 2. The Birth and Youth of Heracles. 
 
 Alcmene was so very beautiful that Zeus, the king 
 of the gods, loved her, and when Amphitryon was far 
 away with the other heroes, Zeus took his form and 
 went to Alcmene. He acted and spoke just like 
 Amphitryon, and told her all about the battles and 
 how they had won the victory, and he even showed her 
 the helmets and shields of the Teleboae, for he had 
 made Hermes, the messenger of the gods, steal them 
 from the booty of Amphitryon. Alcmene had no sus- 
 picion that it was any other than her lover who had 
 come back after fulfilling her wishes with regard to the 
 Teleboae. and she promised to marry him that very 
 day ; and Zeus kissed her and became her husband. 
 Some time after this, Amphitryon returned to Thebes 
 and was very much astonished when Alcmene told him 
 that she had already been married to him. They could 
 not understand it, and asked the seer Tiresias what it 
 meant. He told them that it w r as Zeus in the form of 
 Amphitryon who had been with Alcmene, and the 
 Tbeban women thought it was a great honour for her 
 to have been married for a time to the king of the 
 gods. The wedding was now celebrated over again, 
 and all the heroes who had been to the war with the 
 Teleboae feasted with Amphitryon and Alcmene till far 
 into the night. Some time afterwards, Alcmene had 
 two children whom she named Heracles and Iphicles ; 
 
HERACLES. 109 
 
 one was the son of Zeus, and the other the son of Am- 
 phitryon. There was no difficulty in knowing which 
 was the child of the god, for Heracles was far bigger 
 than such young children usually are. Gods and men 
 took pleasure in the fine strong child, all but the god- 
 dess Hera, who hated him, and even before his birth 
 began to do all she could to injure him. Zeus had 
 decreed that the next child born of the race of Perseus 
 should rule over the cities of Mycenae and Tiryns, 
 thinking that this would be Heracles, for Alcmene was 
 the granddaughter of Perseus ; but Hera persuaded the 
 goddesses who arranged about the birth of children to 
 let a son of Sthenelus, Alcrnene's uncle, be born first. 
 His father named him Eurystheus, and as he had been 
 born before Heracles, he became king of the two cities of 
 Mycenae and Tiryns after the death of Sthenelus. 
 
 Heracles was about eight months old, when one 
 morning, just as it was beginning to grow light, Hera 
 sent two great snakes into the room where he was 
 sleeping, near the bed of Alcmene, in one of the shields 
 which Amphitryon had brought back from the country 
 of the Teleboae as part of the spoil. The snakes crept 
 into the shield and began to twine themselves round 
 the child. Just then Alcmene woke, and she jumped 
 up and ran to call the people of the house to kill the 
 snakes, though she was afraid it was even then too late, 
 and that the child must have already been crushed to 
 death by them. But when she came back with the 
 others, she saw Heracles sitting up in the shield and 
 holding one of the snakes in each hand ; he had seized 
 them each by the neck, and was squeezing them so 
 tight that their tongues were hanging out, and very 
 
110 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 soon they were dead. Then he threw them away and 
 went to sleep again; and the Thebans knew that a 
 mighty hero had been born in their city. 
 
 When Heracles grew older, he learned all the 
 things that heroes need to know, how to guide the 
 war-chariot, how to use the spear and bow, and how to 
 fight with the fist and the sword. He was taught all 
 this by the noblest heroes, and also by a Centaur named 
 Chiron, who, like all the Centaurs, had a curious form 
 - half of their body was that of a man, and the other 
 half that of a horse. Chiron had been specially gifted 
 with immortality, and he was very wise, and taught 
 Heracles many things, especially how to know the stars, 
 and how to heal wounds, and he told him stories of 
 the gods and of the old heroes. 
 
 Heracles could easily be distinguished from all other 
 men, for when he was eighteen years old he measured 
 eight feet in height, and he had marvellous strength, 
 and his eyes glittered like coals of fire. He had more- 
 over a generous nature, and was always ready to help 
 all true and good men. Amphitryon made him keeper 
 of his flocks which pastured on Mount Cithaeron, and 
 never before had such a lordly herdsman been seen. 
 It happened once that a lion took up his abode on the 
 mountain, and broke in among the flocks, and Heracles 
 thought to himself, < If I were to kill the lion, my flocks 
 would not only be able to feed in safety, but I should 
 also get a handsome skin to dress myself in.' So he 
 set out for the mountain-passes where the lion had his 
 lair, armed with nothing but a strong stick and a 
 knife. When he came to the lion's cave, the huge 
 beast sprang out upon him, but Heracles gave him a 
 
HERACLES. Ill 
 
 good blow on the nose which made him stagger back, 
 and when he had nearly beaten him to death with 
 his stick, he finally gave him a mortal blow with 
 the knife. Then he sat down quietly, and cut open the 
 body of the lion and took off the skin, which he put on 
 as a cloak as soon as it was dry. The jaws covered his 
 head like a helmet, while the rest of the skin fell from 
 his shoulders to his knees, and he twisted the fore-feet 
 into a knot over his chest in order to prevent the wind 
 from blowing it off. In this fashion he came down 
 from the mountain, and anyone who had seen him 
 from behind would have thought that a lion had grown 
 out of his shoulders. It never occurred to him, how- 
 ever, that he had done anything out of the way in 
 killing the lion. 
 
 Some time afterwards, there came along the road 
 some men who had been sent by Erginus, the king of 
 the powerful Minyae, to demand tribute from the 
 Thebaus. Ten years before this a Theban had thrown 
 a stone at the father of Erginus and hit him on the 
 head, so that he was carried home dying. Before he 
 expired he charged his son to avenge his blood, and 
 Erginus made war upon the Thebans and killed a 
 number of them. He had also made them give him a 
 hundred cows every year for the last nine years, and the 
 messengers were now on their way to fetch the tribute 
 for the tenth time. Heracles asked them who they were 
 and where they were going, and when he heard that 
 they were the messengers of the Minyae, his blood 
 boiled so that he grew quite red in the face, for it 
 angered him to think that the city of Thebes, to which 
 he himself belonged, should pay tribute to a foreign 
 
112 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 king. He told the messengers to return and never 
 come again, and when they refused to obey, he threw 
 them on the ground, notwithstanding their numbers, 
 and tied their hands behind their backs ; then he cut 
 off their ears and noses, and told them to take these to 
 the king for tribute. Thus outraged, the messengers 
 returned and entreated the king to avenge them, and 
 Erginus swore that he would not leave a man alive in 
 Thebes, nor one stone upon another. But Heracles 
 went to Thebes and called the citizens to arms, saying 
 that he would be their leader. The gods equipped him 
 right gloriously for the fight : Hermes gave him a sword, 
 Apollo a bow and arrows, Hephaestus trappings of pure 
 gold, and Athene a coat of mail. But a sword was too 
 light and delicate a weapon for the powerful hand of 
 Heracles, so he went out into the forest and tore up a 
 stout young oaktree, which he trimmed and used as 
 a club. When the battle began, Heracles looked, in 
 comparison with the Minyae, like a lion among a flock 
 of sheep. He killed King Erginus and put his army 
 to flight, and obliged the Minyae to give the Thebans 
 two hundred cows every year tor the future. King 
 Creon had a beautiful daughter named Megara, and he 
 gave her to Heracles for a wife out of gratitude to 
 him for having conquered the Minyae. 
 
 3. The Madness of Heracles, and his First Six Labours. 
 
 Heracles loved his wife very dearly, and the gods sent 
 them three beautiful children, all of whom were sons. 
 They lived a peaceful and happy life together, Heracles 
 went out hunting and killed wild beasts, and when he 
 
HERACLES. 1 1 3 
 
 came home he played with his children. But Hera still 
 hated him, and she one day afflicted him with such 
 terrible madness that in his delusion he seized his 
 children and threw them into the fire, so that they 
 perished miserably. When the madness left him he 
 could hardly endure life, so distressed was he at what he 
 had done, and he could not bear to remain in the place 
 where such a misfortune had happened to him. He 
 left Thebes and went, first of all, to a man who knew 
 how to purge him from the stain of blood ; then he be- 
 took himself to Delphi and asked the Pythia where he 
 must live in the future. The Pythia answered, ' Go to 
 Mycenae and serve King Eurystheus for twelve years ; 
 allow him to impose upon you twelve hard Labours, and 
 accomplish these to the best of your power.' Heracles 
 was well pleased with this sentence, and was quite willing 
 to perform the most difficult tasks, even such as would 
 be set him by a deadly enemy like Eurystheus who 
 hated and feared Heracles, thinking that he would some 
 day take away the kingdom from him because it had 
 belonged to his own grandfather Electryon. Heracles 
 went to Mycenae and said to Eurystheus that he would 
 serve him for the space of twelve years, and that during 
 fhat time he would accomplish any twelve tasks that 
 Eurystheus might choose to set him. The king was 
 very glad to hear this, and he at once commanded 
 Heracles to bring him the skin of the Nemean lion, 
 hoping that he would perish in trying to secure it. 
 
 The Nemean lion had his lair near the town of 
 Nemea, and his fame had spread far and wide. He had 
 never bled from a wound, for his skin was so thick that 
 no steel could pierce it. Heracles set out in pursuit tf 
 
 I 
 
114 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 the lion, and when he had found him, he shot at him 
 with, his bow and arrows, but they bounded off as if 
 from the hardest stone. Finding that the arrows were 
 of no use, Heracles then attacked him with his club, 
 but the lion did not care to fight with him and ran 
 away into the thickest part of the forest. Heracles 
 ran after him, and chased him from morning till night. 
 At last he came to a great cave and ran in there. 
 Heracles noticed that the cave had another mouth, and 
 he thought to himself, ' If I were to go in after him, 
 he would still be able to escape.' So he first of all 
 brought stones and blocked up one of the entrances, 
 while the lion, who had never run so far before in 
 one day, lay quietly in the dark inside, tired and 
 frightened, and then he went into the cave and 
 wrestled with him. The roaring of the lion echoed 
 horribly from the walls of the cave, but Heracles was 
 not frightened, and he wound his arm round the neck 
 of the beast and pressed him with all his might against 
 his own body until he died. Heracles could not take 
 off his skin for he had brought no knife with him, 
 so he hoisted the whole lion on to his shoulders, and 
 went back to Mycenae. When he threw the huge 
 beast on to the ground before Eurystheus, the king 
 turned pale for his bad conscience made him afraid, 
 and he thought, ' If he can strangle a lion like this, 
 he would certainly not find it difficult to make an end 
 of me.' So he at once sent him off to perform his 
 second Labour, which was to destroy the Lernean 
 Hydra, and during his absence he had an iron room 
 built under the earth that looked like a cage for wild 
 beasts, for it had a grating of iron bars. This was for 
 
HERACLES. 115 
 
 Eurystheus to get into when Heracles carne back, in 
 order that he might speak to him through the grating ? 
 so terribly afraid was he of the strong man. 
 
 Heracles set out in a war chariot, taking with him 
 his young cousin lolaus as his charioteer, and they 
 soon came to the marshy district near the town of 
 Lerne, where the Hydra lived. The Hydra was a huge 
 snake with one body and nine heads, the centre one of 
 which was immortal. She devoured any men or beasts 
 that came near her, and destroyed the fields of corn. 
 She had her den in a cavern close by a clear running 
 stream, and when Heracles and lolaus arrived at the 
 place, she was lying stretched out on the ground, for 
 she had just swallowed a few cows. She looked at the 
 heroes with all her staring eyes, but did not move, 
 because she was not hungry. However Heracles did 
 not care to wait, so he threw burning javelins at her, 
 which scorched her skin and made her furious with 
 pain. She crept out of the cavern and glided up a tall 
 oak tree, and all her nine heads shot down venom at 
 Heracles from above him. But Heracles was on the 
 alert ; he held his club in his right hand, and twined his 
 left arm round the Hydra just at the place where the 
 ninefold neck grew out of her body, and when she lashed 
 her tail about, he pressed her still more tightly against 
 himself, so that she would have been only too glad to 
 run away if she could. Now the Hydra had formed a 
 friendship with a great lobster, and he, seeing that 
 his friend was in danger, crept up to Heracles and 
 scratched his foot with his claws. But he got decidedly 
 the worst of it, for Heracles smote his shell with his 
 club and broke it into a thousand pieces, so that the 
 
 i 2 
 
U6 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 poor lobster died. Then Heracles heaved a mighty 
 blow on one of the Hydra's nine heads and struck it 
 off, but two new heads immediately sprang from the 
 bleeding neck, and every time he smote off a head, two 
 more sprang up to replace it. Heracles now saw that 
 he must set to work in a different manner, so he told 
 lolaus to set- the forest on fire, and to pass a piece of 
 burning wood over each neck as soon as he had cut off 
 the head. In this way all the roots from which the 
 heads grew were burnt away, and Heracles was thus able 
 to kill all the heads that were mortal. The last was 
 immortal, but he hewed it off also, and buried it, arid 
 rolled a huge stone on to the top of it. After this, there 
 came a rain which extinguished the burning forest. 
 The gall of the Hydra was the worst poison in the 
 world, so Heracles cut open the Hydra's body and 
 dipped his arrows into the gall, which made them 
 absolutely deadly : if a man were only scratched even, 
 by an arrow poisoned in this way, he must die. 
 
 Eurystheus was in his cage when Heracles came 
 back from his conflict with the Hydra, and he com- 
 manded him to catch the Ceryneian hind, and .bring 
 her alive to Mycenae. This hind was under the pro- 
 tection of Artemis the goddess of the chase, and was 
 very beautiful : her coat was milk-white, and her horns 
 were of the purest gold. She could run so fast that 
 the wind was quite out of breath when he tried to race 
 with her, and, after having run the whole day long, she 
 would skip about quite merrily without being in the 
 least tired. At the command of Eurystheus, Heracles 
 gave chase to her, and they took neither rest nor food, 
 nor did they need rain or sunshine, but ran on day and 
 
HERACLES. 1 \'i 
 
 right without stopping for a whole year. At last they 
 came to a river, and while the hind was hesitating 
 whether she should jump into it, Heracles quickly took 
 an unpoisoned arrow and shot at her. The purple-red 
 biood flowed out over her little white coat, and she 
 groaned with pain. She forgot to run away, and 
 Heracles was able to seize her. He had only wounded 
 her slightly with the arrow because he did not want to 
 do her any harm, and now he laid cooling herbs upon 
 the wound, and placing the hind on his shoulder, he 
 carried her to Mycenae, and as soon as Eurystheus had 
 seen her, he set her free again and let her run back 
 into the forest. 
 
 That was the third Labour of Heracles. For the 
 fourth, Eurystheus commanded him to catch the 
 Erymanl hian boar alive. This boar lived on Mount 
 Erymanthus, and no huntsman who had tried to kill 
 him had ever come back alive, for the boar had always 
 ripped open his body with his tusks. 
 
 On his way to Mount Erymanthus, Heracles came 
 to the country of the Centaurs. They were a savage, 
 unfriendly race, who had no regard for the duties of 
 hospitality ; but one of them, named Pholus, was better 
 than the others, and he gave Heracles shelter in his 
 cave. He made a fire and roasted a calf for his guest, 
 but he himself ate raw meat as he was accustomed to 
 do. Heracles enjoyed his meal very much for the long 
 journey had made him hungry, and as he was also 
 thirsty, he asked the Centaur for a draught of wine. 
 Pholus said, ' It is true that I have a great cask of wine 
 in my cave, but it belongs to all the Centaurs in common, 
 and if they knew that you had drunk an} r of it, they 
 
118 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 might kill you.' But Heracles said he was not afraid, 
 so Pholus rolled out the cask and drew some wine from 
 it. But the wine had such a strong odour that the 
 Centaurs smelt it, and they all came to the cavern with 
 clubs and spears to kill Heracles. At first he defended 
 himself with firebrands only, as he did not wish to do 
 more than drive them away, but finding that they would 
 not leave him alone, he seized his bow and shot at them 
 with the poisoned arrows, and everyone who was hit 
 fell down dead. When the others saw that, they took 
 to flight, but Heracles had by this time grown furious, 
 and vowing that he would not leave one of them alive, 
 he pursued them, and they could not escape from his 
 aiTows. In their distress they ran to the wise Centaur 
 Chiron who had been the teacher of Heracles, and em- 
 braced his knees, entreating him to ask Heracles to 
 have mercy on them. But Heracles would not stop 
 shooting, and only took care not to hit Chiron, and his 
 eye was so true that he could be sure of hitting nothing 
 that he did not aim at. But an arrow went right 
 through the arm of one of the Centaurs who had 
 embraced Chiron *s knees, and its point grazed his skin. 
 Heracles was very much distressed, he threw his bow 
 down on the ground, and ran to get herbs that heal 
 poisonous wounds. But no herb had any power to heal 
 the Hydra's poison, and Chiron suffered horrible tor- 
 ture, so that his immortality was a burden to him. 
 Then he prayed to Zeus to take away his immortality, 
 and Zeus heard him and allowed him to die. But 
 Heracles did not stay with him till his death, for he was 
 now more angry with the Centaurs than ever, and he 
 ran after them and overtook them. They would all 
 
HERACLES. 119 
 
 have perished if Poseidon had not had pity on them 
 and caused a wall of granite to spring up suddenly 
 out of the earth round the Centaurs to protect them 
 from him. Then Heracles was obliged to leave them, 
 and he turned back and went on his way with a heavy 
 heart, full of sad thoughts about Chiron. As soon as 
 he was out of sight, the wall sank back into the earth, 
 and the Centaurs were able to go home in peace. 
 
 When Heracles reached the foot of Mount Ery- 
 manthus he prepared a noose in which to catch the 
 wild boar, and soon afterwards he saw him sharpening 
 his tusks against an oak tree. Heracles raised a cry 
 which made the whole forest echo, and the strong boar 
 took to flight. It was winter, and the upper part of 
 the mountain was covered with deep snow. Heracles 
 chased the boar up the mountain till he had driven 
 him into a snow-field, through which the wild beast 
 plodded panting, till he was quite tired out and could 
 go no further, and then Heracles slipped the noose over 
 his neck and secured him. Then he tied his feet to- 
 gether and threw him, feet uppermost, over his left 
 shoulder, putting his arm round his neck to prevent him 
 from using his tusks, and in this manner he journeyed 
 back to Mycenae. Most men would not have thought 
 it very cheerful work to travel with such a companion, 
 but Heracles was not at all concerned; on the contrary, 
 it was the boar who was trembling. Heracles showed 
 the boar to Eurystheus through the grating, and then 
 killed him. 
 
 Heracles now set out to perform his fifth Labour, 
 and this time his task was to cleanse the stables of 
 Augeas in a single day. Augeas was a rich king of 
 
120 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 Elis, who had three thousand cattle. At night the 
 cattle always stood in a great court surrounded with 
 walls, close to the king's palace, and as it was quite ten 
 years since the servants had cleaned it out, there was 
 enough refuse in the court to build up a high mountain. 
 Heracles went to Augeas and asked if he would give 
 him the tenth part of his flocks if he thoroughly cleansed 
 his stables in a single day. The king looked upon this 
 as such an absolutely impossible feat that he would not 
 have minded promising his kingdom as a reward for it, 
 so he laughed and said, ' Set to work, we shall not 
 quarrel about the wages,' and he further promised dis- 
 tinctly to give Heracles what he asked, and this he did 
 in the presence of Phyleus, his eldest son, who happened 
 to be there. The next morning Heracles set to work, 
 but even his strong arms would have failed 'to accom- 
 plish the task if they had not been aided by his mother- 
 wit. He compelled a mighty torrent to wqfk for him, 
 but you would hardly guess how he did it. First he 
 opened great gates on two opposite sides of the court, 
 and then he went to the stream, and when he had 
 blocked up its regular course with great stones, he 
 conducted it to the court that required to be cleansed, 
 so that the water streamed in at one end and streamed 
 out at the other, carrying away all the dirt with it. 
 Before evening the stream had done its work and was 
 restored to its usual course. 
 
 But when Heracles demanded his reward, Augeas 
 denied that he had promised it. However he said that 
 he would summon a court of justice and would abide by 
 its decision, for he thought to himself, The only one 
 who heard me make the promise i, my son, and he 
 
HERACLES. 121 
 
 will not witness against me.' A number of wise old 
 men were accordingly summoned to the palace to be 
 judges, and Phyleus was called upon to witness. But 
 Phyleus cared more for justice than for his father's ad- 
 vantage, and he said that Augeas had promised the 
 tenth part of his flocks to Heracles as a reward for 
 cleansing the stables. Then Augeas grew furious, and 
 would not allow the judges to pronounce the sentence, 
 but banished both Heracles and Phyleus from the 
 country, threatening that if ever they were caught in 
 his kingdom they would forfeit their lives. Heracles 
 went away without his reward, but he promised himself 
 that when the twelve Labours were accomplished, he 
 would come back and punish the king for his faith- 
 lessness. 
 
 Again Heracles set out at the command of Eurys- 
 theus, and this time he had to drive away the . Stym- 
 phalian birds, this was his sixth Labour. Near the 
 city of Stymphalus, in the land of Arcadia, there was a 
 great lake, whose shores were covered with very dense 
 forests where countless birds had built their nests. 
 These birds were as large as cranes, and very thievish, 
 and there was such a number of them that if they had 
 all flown out at once and assembled above the water, it 
 would have been pitch-dark all over the great lake. 
 Heracles went to the edge of the lake and listened to 
 the noise that the birds made, but he could not get at 
 them, for they kept themselves hidden among the thick 
 boughs where no arrow could reach them. Heracles 
 could not think of any means of chasing them from 
 among the trees, and was almost in despair, when the 
 goddess Athene, who loved all good and brave men, 
 
122 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 came to his assistance. She gave him a great iron 
 rattle that Hephaestus had made, and when Heracles 
 shook it, it made such a fearful noise that all the birds 
 flew out screaming. Then Heracles shot arrow after 
 arrow among them ; a great many of them fell dead 
 into the lake, and the rest were so much frightened 
 that they flew far away and never came back again. 
 
 4. The Last Six Labours. 
 
 The seventh Labour that Eurystheus imposed upon 
 Heracles was to bring the Cretan bull to Mycenae. In 
 the island of Crete lived King Minos, who was very 
 wise, and who was allowed to hold intercourse with the 
 gods. One day, when the Cretans were on the sea- 
 shore offering sacrifices to Poseidon, the king prayed 
 that Poseidon would send him a bull out of the sea for 
 sacrifice, for he wanted to show the Cretans \vhat great 
 regard the gods had for him. Immediately there came, 
 borne to the shore upon the swelling waves, a most 
 beautiful bull, and Minos was so fascinated by its 
 beauty that he did not keep his word, but sacrificed 
 another bull and put the one that came out of the sea 
 among his flocks. Poseidon punished him by making 
 the bull mad ; he killed the herdsmen and escaped into 
 the forest, and did so much damage that the king re- 
 pented of having broken his word. When Heracles 
 came to him and said that he wanted to catch the bull, 
 Minos gladly supplied him with ropes and spears, for 
 he would not have minded paying a heavy price in order 
 to get the plague removed from the country. Heracles 
 went into the forest and soon found his way to the bull, 
 
HI RAGLES. 123 
 
 for he was guided to him by the bellowing he made. 
 When he came near, he threw a spear at him in order 
 to irritate him. The bull ran at him furiously, lower- 
 ing his horns to toss him into the air, but Heracles 
 waited quietly till he came up, and then he seized his 
 horns and held them fast, so that the bull could not raise 
 his head again. They went on for some time pulling at 
 each other, and the bull dragged Heracles about from 
 place to place, bellowing horribly all the time. He was 
 a huge powerful animal, but he could not get his horns 
 free, and only tired himself to no purpose. At last he 
 was quite exhausted, and Heracles made a halter out 
 of the rope he had brought with him and wound it 
 round his neck, and the bull followed him quite quietly. 
 The Cretans ran together to look at the strong man 
 leading the fierce bull, and were astonished to see the 
 bull walking so quietly by his side. Heracles got into his 
 ship and sailed back to Mycenae with the bull, and when 
 he had led him through the city, he let him go free. 
 You will hear more of him again by-and-by. 1 
 
 The eighth Labour of Heracles was that of procuring 
 the horses of Diomedes. Diomedes was a king of Thrace, 
 a savage and cruel man, who cared for nothing in the 
 world but his fierce horses which he fed upon human 
 flesh ; and every stranger that came into his country 
 was thrown to the horses. Heracles knew that he would 
 not be able to obtain the horses unless he first con- 
 quered the king and his people, and he therefore took 
 with him a number of brave heroes who were glad to 
 accompany him on this expedition. As soon as the ship 
 landed in Thrace, the heroes went to the stables, killed 
 1 For the rest of the story of the Cretan bull, see p. 184. 
 
12-i MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 the keeper, and brought away the horses ; one of them 
 was going to bite, but Heracles gave him such a sound 
 blow that he had something else to think of. They had 
 almost reached the shore, when they looked back and 
 saw King Diomedes coming after them followed by a 
 number of soldiers, so they tied up the horses and 
 turned round again. Then a fierce battle took place, 
 for the Thracians were a warlike people, but at last 
 they were all killed, and their king made prisoner. 
 Heracles said that he should die by the same death that 
 he had inflicted on others, and he loosed the horses of 
 Diomedes and gave him to them to devour. The king 
 cried out in an agony to his horses, ' Have I not been kind 
 to you and taken care of you ? ' But they had become 
 so fierce through eating human flesh that they did not 
 spare even their own master. One tore off his arm, 
 another bit him in the chest, and a third in the thigh, 
 and they soon tore him to pieces, so that he perished 
 miserably. Heracles then caught the horses again and 
 took them home, and when he had shown them to 
 Eurystheus, he drove them to the foot of Mount 
 Olympus where they were devoured by wild beasts. 
 
 King Eurystheus had a daughter, who was con- 
 tinually begging him to procure for her the girdle of 
 the Queen of the Amazons. This beautiful girdle was 
 world-famed ; it had been given to the queen by Ares, 
 the god of war, and she wore it as a mark of royalty. 
 Eurystheus knew that to secure the queen's girdle 
 would be a task of great danger and difficulty, and 
 therefore he told Heracles that this was to be his ninth 
 Labour. So Heracles again set sail with his companions, 
 and they journeyed for many days till they came to the 
 
HERACLES. 12") 
 
 country of the Amazons, who lived in Asia, near the 
 river Thermodon. There were no men amongst them. 
 f but they were all women, and very remarkable women, 
 too. They liked war better than anything else, and 
 were so well skilled in riding and in shooting with the 
 bow that no army was feared so much as the army of 
 the Amazons. When Heracles reached their country, 
 they happened to be in a meadow near the sea practising 
 with their weapons of war, all but the queen, who was 
 sitting on the shore looking out over the sea, with her 
 girdle glittering in the sunshine. When she saw the 
 ship coining, she wondered who could be the strangers 
 that ventured into her country, and most of all she 
 marvelled at the sight of Heracles who was standing 
 in the fore-part of the ship, dressed in his lion's skin 
 and grasping his club. She. asked him who he was and 
 what he wanted, and he answered, ' I am Heracles, the son 
 of Zeus, and I am performing hard labours in the service 
 of Eurystheus; he has sent me here to fetch your girdle 
 and take it back to Mycenae.' When the queen heard 
 that it was Heracles, whose deeds were spoken of all over 
 the world, she said that she would make him a present 
 of the girdle, and came towards the ship to greet him, 
 holding out her hand. But Hera would not allow 
 Heracles to carry off the girdle without a struggle, 
 and taking the form of an Amazon, she went to the 
 meadow where the others were, and called out to them, 
 ' A stranger is going to rob our queen.' They all rushed 
 down to the shore and began to shoot at the strangers, 
 killing many a brave man ; but when Heracles saw 
 that they treated him and his followers as enemies, he 
 thought that the queen had meant to act treachous'ly, 
 
126 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 and he slew her, and shot at the Amazons with his 
 arrows, and killed so many of them that they were soon 
 obliged to fly. He took the girdle from off the dead 
 queen and laid her corpse on the shore, and after the 
 ship had sailed away, the Amazons came and buried 
 her. 
 
 Some days after this, the heroes landed at the city 
 of Troy, where they found all the people very sorrow- 
 ful because an innocent maiden was to suffer death on 
 account of the crime of her father Laomedon, the king 
 of Troy. The gods Poseidon and Apollo, in order to 
 try Laomedon, had entered into an engagement with 
 him, by which they undertook to build a wall round the 
 city that could never be destroyed. The wall was soon 
 finished, but Laomedon, who was very miserly and who 
 did not know that he had to deal with gods instead of 
 men, refused to give the reward that had been agreed 
 upon. Both the gods punished him for this. Apollo 
 sent a pestilence into the land which destroyed both 
 men and cattle, and Poseidon created a monster who 
 came up every day out of the sea, and laid waste the 
 fields devouring every living thing that he met with. 
 Even after the pestilence had ceased, the monster still 
 came every day, and took his fill of blood. The Trojans 
 asked the Oracle how they could get rid of him, and the 
 Oracle answered that the king's young daughter Hesione 
 must be given him to eat. The Trojans were very 
 fond of the beautiful maiden, but as they were all in 
 danger of perishing, they demanded of Laomedon that 
 he should give up his daughter as a victim. The king 
 shed many tears, but at last he consented, and when the 
 heroes landed, Hesione had just been brought to the 
 
HERACLES. 127 
 
 shore, and chained to a rock at the spot where the 
 monster was accustomed to leave the sea. Heracles 
 heard from the Trojans how it had all happened, and 
 he went to the king and said that if he would give him 
 the two horses he had received from Zeus, he woull 
 slay the monster. These horses had been given to 
 Laomedon by Zeus to make up for the loss of his son 
 Ganymede, a most beautiful boy, whom Zeus had caused 
 his sacred eagle to steal away and carry off to Mount 
 Olympus, where Granymede lived from that time with 
 the gods, gifted with immortality and eternal youth. 
 When Heracles demanded these horses as his reward 
 for rescuing Hesione, Laomedon did not hesitate to 
 promise them, though they were the most beautiful 
 horses in all the world, for he felt willing to part with 
 anything he possessed in order to save his daughter. 
 Then Heracles placed himself by the side of Hesione 
 with a naked sword in his hand, and when the horrible 
 monster came out of the sea, opening his huge jaws to 
 devour the maiden, Heracles jumped down his throat and 
 wriggled himself down into his body, and then he cut 
 away all his entrails, so that the monster rolled about 
 on the ground in pain, howling horribly. When Heracles 
 thought he was dead, he crept up again out of the body 
 and washed himself clean in the sea. The king was 
 very glad that his daughter was saved, but avarice 
 again took possession of him and prevented him from 
 keeping his promise to Heracles. He tried to deceive 
 him with fair speeches, but Heracles understood per- 
 fectly well that he was a faithless man, and he told him 
 that he would return and punish him. 
 
 Heracles sailed back to Mycenae, and gave the girdle 
 
128 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 of the Queen of the Amazons to Eurystheus. The 
 king 1 gave it to his daughter who was very much 
 pleased with it, and at the same time he told Heracles 
 that for his tenth Labour he was to fetch the cattle 
 of Geryon. Wonderful stories had been brought by 
 sailors of an island in the stream Oceanus, near the 
 setting sun, where there lived a king named Geryon 
 who possessed the strength of three men, for he had 
 three bodies, six arms, and six legs. The sailors also 
 told of the king's wonderful reddish-brown cattle which 
 formed the chief part of his riches, and how no one 
 dared to rob his flocks, because they were guarded day 
 and night by a dog with two heads, who barked until 
 he had roused a strong herdsman by whom the robber 
 was killed without much loss of time. 
 
 Heracles set out to look for the island, and went on 
 and on towards the West till he came to countries where 
 the people were quite savage and barbarous. By-and- 
 by he reached the extreme end of Europe where 
 Africa is only separated from it by a narrow channel, 
 and as he wished to leave some token to show how far 
 he had journeyed, he broke off two huge rocks and set 
 them up in the sea, and ever since that time, the sailors 
 who pass through these two mountains of rock look up at 
 them and say, ' Those are the Pillars of Heracles.' At last 
 he came to the end of the land, and as he stood on the 
 shore wondering how he should manage to reach the 
 island of Geryon, the sun, which is much hotter in those 
 parts than it is here, smote upon his head. This 
 annoyed him very much, and as he was in the habit of 
 paving back anyone who did him an injury, he now 
 took his bow and arrows and shot at the sun-god- But 
 
HEKACLLS. 129 
 
 instead of being angry with, him, Helios the sun- god 
 admired him for his boldness in being so ready to 
 fight even with gods, and he came down and gave him 
 the golden shell in which he travels from West to East 
 in the evening after sunset. It was an exceedingly 
 large shell, and Heracles sailed over the sea in it till 
 he came to the island of Geryon. The beautiful herd 
 was in a meadow where the' grass stood so high that 
 it reached far above their knees. When Heracles came 
 to the herd, the great dog started up, barking out of 
 his two heads, but Heracles quickly put an end to that, 
 for he gave him such a blow with his club that his 
 backbone was broken through. The herdsman had 
 however already awoke, and he came running down, 
 intending to kill the robber as he had killed many 
 a one before, but this time he himself met with his 
 death by a blow from the list of Heracles, who then 
 drove off the cattle towards the sea. But someone 
 told King Geryon that his cattle were being stolen, 
 and he ran after the robber in a great rage, throwing 
 big stones at him and screaming with all his might. 
 Heracles waited till he came up, and then they wrestled 
 together. Geryon wound his six arms round him 
 hoping to throw him, but they both fell at the same 
 time, and Geryon was the undermost. Heracles set 
 one knee on his body, but as he leaned over to reach a, 
 stone to kill him with, Geryon managed to spring up 
 and tried to run away. Heracles, however, shot three 
 arrows through his three hearts, and he fell down dead. 
 Then Heracles went off with the herd, and when he 
 had brought them safely to the mainland he returned 
 the shell to the sun-god, thanking him heartily for his 
 
 K 
 
130 MYTIJrf OF HOLLAS. 
 
 help. He had to Lake the cattle through many lands 
 before they finally arrived in Greece, and on his way 
 lie came to the part of Italy where Rome was after- 
 wards built. It happened to be the hot noontide, and 
 Heracles lay down under the shade of a tree and let the 
 herd graze. Now it chanced that in a cave under the 
 Mount Aventinus there lived the giant Cacus, who was 
 very hideous to look at, and who could cook his food in 
 his own mouth, for fire and flames spouted out of it 
 whenever he liked. Cacus was a great robber, and 
 when he saw the beautiful cattle he set his mind on 
 having some of them, but Heracles looked so strong 
 that he did not dare to take them by force, so he waited 
 till he was asleep, and then he came out of his cave 
 and pulled several of the cows backwards into it by 
 their tails, so that the footprints in the sand looked 
 like those of cows that had been driven out of the cave 
 to pasture. When it became cooler, Heracles awoke 
 and counted his cattle ; there were too few of them, but 
 he could not find any traces of the direction in which 
 they had gone, and was obliged to pass on without 
 them. But just as they were going over Mount 
 Aventinus one of the bulls chanced to bellow, and those 
 in the cave of Cacus answered, because they wanted to 
 go on with the others. Heracles immediately knew 
 what had become of his cattle, and hastened down to 
 the cave. The giant had shoved a huge fragment of 
 rock in front of the entrance, but Heracles in his 
 anger was even stronger than usual, and he threw 
 down the rock with a noise that made the whole moun- 
 tain tremble. Cacus was afraid of him, and sat cower- 
 ing in a corner of the cave, spouting out smoke and 
 
HERACLES. 131 
 
 flames to prevent him from coming near. But Heracles 
 did not inind the flames, and he seized Cacus by the 
 neck and strangled him; then he dragged him out to 
 the light, and wondered to see how ugly he was. The 
 stolen cattle came out of the cave of their own accord 
 and joined the others, and Heracles drove them on 
 further. 
 
 Some time after this, when he had nearly reached 
 Mycenae and was travelling along the sea-shore, Hera 
 sent a great gnat that flew about among the cattle 
 humming and buzzing and stinging first one and then 
 another, till they became quite unmanageable and ran 
 away in different directions. Several jumped into the 
 sea, and Heracles jumped in after them and brought 
 back all that he could reach, pulling in some by their 
 horns and driving others in front of him, but the greater 
 number of them swam out into the open sea and 
 perished. Then he set to work to collect those that 
 had escaped into the forest, and tired himself till night- 
 fall with running after them, which gave Hera great 
 pleasure. All that he could recover he brought to 
 Mycenae, and Eurystheus sacrificed them to Hera. 
 
 Heracles had now only two more Labours to accom- 
 plish, and Eurystheus pondered night and day as to 
 what would be the most difficult and dangerous task 
 he could set him. At last he told him that for his 
 eleventh Labour he was to fetch three apples from the 
 Garden of the Hesperides, although no mortal knew 
 where the Garden was. When Zeus and Hera were 
 married, the Earth had caused an apple tree to spring 
 up, which she gave them as her present, and which was 
 covered with apples of pure gold. Hera planted the tree 
 
 K 2 
 
132 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 on an island in Oceanus which had never been trodden 
 by the foot of any mortal, and in course of time a 
 whole garden grew from it, in which all the trees bore 
 golden apples. The garden was tended by three nymphs 
 called the Singing Hesperides, and it was guarded by a 
 dragon. Heracles never allowed himself to be discour- 
 aged, however hard his task might lie, but always set 
 about it in good spirits, confident of success, and he 
 now went about asking everyone where the Hesperides 
 lived. One day he came to a river, and some nymphs 
 who were sitting on the bank asked him where he was 
 going. He said, ' King Eurystheus has sent me to 
 fetch him three apples from the Garden of the 
 Hesperides, but I do not know where the Garden is.' 
 One of the nymphs said, 'We do not know either, but 
 ISereus, the old sea-god, can tell you, for he knows 
 everything, both in earth and heaven.' Then they told 
 Heracles where to find Nereus, and what to do in order 
 to oblige him to answer his questions. Nereus lived in 
 the sea, but about mid-day he came up on to the land 
 and lay down in a grotto to sleep. When he was 
 asleep, Heracles came and seized him by the arms, and 
 Nereus, waking up, found himself a prisoner. He 
 changed himself first into a wolf, and then into a lion, 
 and lastly into a dragon, hoping that Heracles would 
 be frightened and let go, but the nymphs had prepared 
 him for these tricks, and instead of loosening his hold 
 on the sea-god, he on the contrary held him tighter 
 and tighter, till at last Nereus had to give in, and ask 
 him what he wanted. When he heard what it was, he 
 gave Heracles an exact description of where the Hespe- 
 rides lived, and how to get there ; it was a very long 
 
HERACLES. 133 
 
 way off, even farther than to the island of King Geryon, 
 but Heracles would not be disheartened, and at once 
 began his journey. 
 
 On the way he came to Libya, where there reigned 
 a king named Antaeus who would not allow any 
 stranger to pass through his land without wrestling 
 with him ; and hitherto he had overcome and killed them 
 all, for he was a son of the Earth, and his mother gave 
 him new strength every time he touched her. Heracles 
 wrestled with Antaeus and threw him on to the ground 
 three times, but each time the king sprang up again 
 stronger than before. Then Heracles perceived that the 
 Earth gave him strength, and he raised him up in the 
 air so that he did not touch the earth at all, and 
 squeezed him against his own body till he died. 
 
 After this he continued his journey till he came to 
 Egypt, where King Busiris lived, who every year sacri- 
 ficed a stranger to the gods. Some time before this, 
 the land had been unfruitful for nine years, so that 
 many people died of hunger, and a soothsayer in a dis- 
 tant island who heard of this and hoped to earn a good 
 reward without much trouble, went to Egypt and told 
 the king that he knew by his art that the only way in 
 which he could be reconciled to the gods was by sacri- 
 ficing a stranger to them every year. But instead 
 of giving him the reward he looked for, the king 
 offered him up as the first sacrifice, and after this he 
 seized a stranger every year for the same purpose. 
 When Heracles entered the country, the king's servants 
 happened to be on the look-out for a stranger, for the 
 time of the yearly sacrifice had come round, and finding 
 Heracles asleep by the wayside, they bound him with 
 
134 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 many strong cords and brought him before the king. 
 Heracles acted as if he had no choice but to submit to this 
 treatment, but when the priest came with the sacrificial 
 knife in his hand to give him the death-blow, he burst 
 asunder the cords, and snatching the knife from the 
 priest, stabbed the king whom nobody interfered to 
 save, for lie was a cruel man and greatly dreaded by his 
 subjects. After this, the Egyptians offered no more 
 human sacrifices, and yet their land remained fruitful, 
 for the soothsayer who had commanded the sacrifice 
 was a false prophet. 
 
 Heracles passed on through other lands till he came 
 to the extreme end of the world where the giant Atlas 
 lived, who had had an irksome task imposed upon 
 him by the gods. He had to support the vault of 
 heaven with his head and hands, and if he had 
 neglected his duty even for a moment, the heaven 
 would have fallen and crushed the earth to atoms. 
 Heracles told Atlas of the errand on which he had been 
 sent, and Atlas, who was only too glad to have an 
 opportunity of resting his shoulders and stretching his 
 legs, said that he would go and fetch the apples, if 
 Heracles would meanwhile take his place in supporting 
 the heaven. So Atlas went to the Garden, and the 
 nymphs gave him the apples because he was their 
 uncle, so that it was not long before he returned with 
 them. But he found freedom so much more agreeable 
 than the fulfilment of his task, that when he eame back 
 he said to Heracles, C I have supported the heaven 
 quite long enough, and now you must take your turn. 
 Heracles thought to himself, c If my wits fail me now, 
 there will be no help for me.' so he pretended to agree, 
 
HERACLES. 135 
 
 and said, ' Very well, but just let me first put my lion's 
 skin over my head to keep the heaven from pressing so 
 heavily upon it.' Then Atlas laid down the apples 
 upon the ground and took up his burden again, think- 
 ing it was just for a minute, but Heracles took up the 
 golden apples and went away and left him, and Atlas has 
 ever since been obliged to support the heaven because he 
 let himself be duped in this way. Heracles returned 
 to Mycenae and showed Eurystheus the golden apples, 
 which glittered so brightly that when the sun shone 
 one could hardly bear to look at them ; then he gave 
 them to the goddess Athene, who took them back to 
 the Garden of the Hesperides, for Hera would have been 
 angry if she had kept them. 
 
 Eurystheus decreed that the twelfth and last Labour 
 of Heracles should be to fetch the hideous dog Cerberus 
 from the Lower World. There was a chain of bare, 
 rugged mountains, in the centre of which was a yawn- 
 ing chasm stretching down far below the earth, and 
 anyone who had the courage to go down it, came at 
 last to the Lower World, where the shades of the dead 
 go when they leave the earth. The gate of the Land of 
 Shades was guarded by the great dog Cerberus, who 
 stood there as watchman, and let everyone go in, but no 
 one pass out again. His appearance was truly fright- 
 ful, for he had three heads glistening all over with 
 serpents which grew there instead of hair, and his tail 
 was also an angry serpent with sharp teeth. As 
 Heracles went down the chasm, he made up his mind 
 that he would not try and steal the dog, but would tell 
 Pluto that Eurystheus had commanded him to fetch him, 
 and beg that he might be allowed to take him away. At 
 
136 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 last he reached the Land of Shades, where there is 
 neither day nor night, but always grey twilight, and he 
 saw many thousand shades flitting about like moths in 
 the dusk. They slipped aw,iy as soon as he came near 
 them, but their flight could not be heard but only seen, 
 for their forms were without substance. They were 
 also without any power of thinking, but Heracles knew 
 that they could gain both speech and consciousness by 
 drinking blood, and as the flock of Pluto was grazing 
 near, he seized a cow with the intention of killing it ; 
 but before he could do so, the herdsman ran after him 
 in a rage and struck him. Heracles let go the cow, and 
 turning to the herdsman, he rained blows upon him with 
 his fists until he screamed with all his might for help. 
 Queen Persephone heard his cries, and coming out of 
 her palace, she begged Heracles to leave off beating the 
 herdsman, which he did for her sake. Then she asked 
 him why li. had corne into the Lower World, and when 
 he told her, she took him to her husband, King Pluto, 
 who said he would allow him to take the dog to the 
 Upper World on condition that he captured him without 
 the help of any weapons. Heracles put on a shield 
 that Pluto gave him and went back to the gate, where 
 Cerberus greeted him with a growl, showing all his 
 great teeth. However Heracles did not mind that, 
 but grasping the part of his neck which belonged to 
 the middle head, he pinched it tightly with his power- 
 ful fingers. The serpents bit him in the arm and the 
 leg, causing him great pain, but instead of letting go 
 the head he only pinched it the harder, so that at last 
 the dog was forced to give in, and he led him up the 
 path without any further difficulty. When they came 
 
HERACLES. 137 
 
 to the daylight however, Cerberus moaned, and would 
 not have gone any farther if Heracles had not com- 
 pelled him, being the stronger of the two, for the light 
 of the sun struck him just between the eyes, and hurt 
 him so much that foam dropped from his mouth ; and 
 wherever a drop of it fell on the ground, there sprang 
 up a plant called Nightshade, which still grows, and is a 
 deadly poison. When Heracles had taken the dog to 
 Mycenae and shown him to Eurystheus, he brought 
 him to the mouth of the chasm, and released him. 
 Then Cerberus rushed back with great bounds into his 
 beloved darkness, and Heracles heard him barking joy- 
 fully, long after he w r as out of sight. 
 
 5. The Murder of Iphitus, and the Vengeances of 
 Heracles. 
 
 Heracles had now served Eurystheus for twelve 
 years, and had performed twelve great La hours for him, 
 the hardest that have ever been accomplished by any 
 man. During this time Megara had died, and Heracles 
 now wished to take another wife. He heard that 
 in Oechalia there was a beautiful maiden named lole, 
 the daughter of Eurytus, the king of the island of 
 Kubcea, but that Eurytus had proclaimed that no one 
 should marry her who could not shoot with the bow 
 better than himself and his sons. They were the best 
 archers in the w T hole country, and although many 
 suitors came to Oechalia, yet when they saw how well 
 Eurytus could shoot, they all thought it was useless 
 even to string their bows, and went away home again 
 in despair. Heracles resolved that he also would go 
 
1 38 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 and sue for lole, and he went out into the open field 
 with Eurytus and his sons, in order to contend with 
 them for the prize. All showed marvellous skill in 
 shooting, but the arrow of Heracles pierced the breast 
 of a w T ild dove so far off that the others could scarcely 
 see it till it was brought down, and they were obliged 
 to confess that he had beaten them. But Eurytus 
 taunted him and said, ' Would you have me give you 
 my daughter for your wife ? When the gods send you 
 children you throw them into the fire.' Heracles was 
 enraged with Eurytus for mocking at his misfortune, 
 and he went away vowing that he would one day be 
 revenged upon him. 
 
 Some time after this, a robber stole twelve of the 
 finest cattle that Eurytus possessed, and he sent his 
 son Iphitus to look for them. Iphitus went to several 
 places in search of them, and finally came to Tiryns 
 where Heracles was. When Heracles saw Iphitus he 
 was reminded of the way in which his father had in- 
 sulted him, and it made him so angry that he struck 
 the boy dead, though afterwards when he became 
 calmer he would gladly have recalled the deed. He 
 went to Neleus, the king of Pylos, and begged him to 
 purge him from the stain of blood, but Neleus, who 
 was a friend of Eurytus, refused to do so, but on 
 the contrary banished him from the country, blam- 
 ing him for what he had done. Heracles found 
 another wise man who consented to purify him, but 
 the gods were, notwithstanding this, still angry with 
 him on account of the murder of Iphitus, and as a 
 punishment, they visited him with a sore sickness, of 
 which he could neither get well nor die, and which 
 
HEKACLES. 139 
 
 caused him terrible suffering. Heracles went to the 
 Oracle at Delphi and asked the Pythia what he could 
 do to have the sickness taken aw T ay from him, but 
 Apollo, who inspired the Pythia as to what she should 
 Fay, would not give any answer. Then Heracles got 
 into a great rage, and he tore up from the ground the 
 sacred Tripod on which the priestess sat, and carried it 
 u way on his back. Apollo saw the theft, and he came 
 down from heaven and demanded the Tripod back 
 again. No other would have dared to meet his 
 angry look, but Heracles was not in the least afraid, 
 and he refused to give it up. They were just going 
 to fight about it, and had already taken their places 
 for the struggle, when a thunderbolt fell upon the 
 ground between them. They knew that this was a 
 warning from their father Zeus, and they agreed to lay 
 aside their ill-feeling and make peace; Heracles gave 
 back the Tripod, and Apollo pronounced the Oracle. 
 It was that Heracles must serve as a slave for the space 
 of three years and give the money for which he was sold 
 to Eurytus, and that then his illness would be at an end. 
 So Heracles allowed himself to be sold as a slave by 
 Hermes, the messenger of the gods, and he was bought 
 by the beautiful Omphale, queen of Lydia. Eurytus 
 refused to take the money, but the gods decided that 
 it was the same as if he had done so, and Heracles was 
 freed from his sickness. Omphale made use of her 
 strong slave for all kinds of service, both in freeing the 
 land from wild beasts, and in punishing wicked robbers, 
 so that the Lydians lived in peace and safety ; and 
 Heracles loved the beautiful Omphale with all his heart, 
 ani was ready to do anything in the world in order to 
 
140 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 please her. She was very proud of being able to com- 
 mand the mighty hero as if he were a little child, 
 and in order to show the people how obedient he was 
 to her, she made him sit among her maidens in women's 
 clothes spinning at the distaff, whilst she dressed her- 
 self up in the lion's skin, as if she were the man arid he 
 the woman, and Heracles allowed her to do just as she 
 would with him because of the great love he bore her. 
 
 When the three years were ended, Heracles left 
 the palace of Ornphale, and went through the cities of 
 Greece asking if any heroes would set out with him for 
 Troy, for he meant to carry out his threat of punishing 
 King Laomedon for his faithlessness. So many heroes 
 came that they filled six large ships, and they sailed to 
 Troy and besieged the city. They set up ladders with 
 which to climb over the walls, and pressed on not- 
 withstanding the stones and javelins that the Trojans 
 threw down upon them, but they would never have 
 succeeded in entering the city without the help of 
 Heracles. When the city was taken, Heracles passed 
 a sentence of death upon the king and his sons, and 
 shot them all together, only sparing the youngest 
 whose name was Podarces, because he was too young to 
 have had any part in the treachery of his father. 
 Heracles gave the beautiful Hesione to the hero 
 Telamon who had been the first to scale the wall, 
 and as she wept very much at leaving Troy, he told 
 her that she might take one of the prisoners with her. 
 She did not take long to consider who it should be, but 
 immediately held out her hand to her little brother 
 .Podarces. Then Heracles said that she must buy him, 
 so she took off her veil, which was the only one she had. 
 
1IEUACLLS. 141 
 
 and threw it down fur the purcnase-money ; and from 
 that time her brother was called Priam, which means 
 Bought. He came to Greece with his sister Hesione, 
 but when he grew up to be a man he returned to Troy 
 and became king of the country. 
 
 When Augeas and the others who had wronged 
 Heracles heard of the punishment that had overtaken 
 Laomedon, they were afraid, and assembled all their 
 warriors to protect them, for Heracles had announced 
 his intention of inarching against them as soon as he 
 returned to Greece. But Hera, who still hated him, 
 tried to destroy him on his way home. She commanded 
 the god of Slumber to send Zeus into a deep sleep, 
 and while he lay unconscious, she raised a tremendous 
 storm on the sea through w r hich Heracles was sailing. 
 All his companions were very much frightened, but 
 Heracles was not in the least disturbed, and before the 
 waves could make a wreck of the ship, Zeus awoke, 
 and seeing his son in danger, calmed the sea so that it 
 became quite smooth and the fishes came up again 
 from the bottom to play. Zeus knew that it was Hera 
 who had raised the storm, and he punished her for it. 
 He tied her hands together with a golden chain, and 
 attached a heavy weight to each of her feet, and then 
 he suspended her in the clouds, where she was obliged 
 to hang all day long in great pain, with the winds and 
 storms for her only companions. 
 
 Heracles was none the worse for the storm, and as 
 soon as he had landed in Greece with the other heroes, 
 he led them against Elis, the city of King Augeas, and 
 conquered it. Augeas would now have gladly parted 
 with his whole herd if that would have saved his life, 
 
142 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 but Heracles killed him and all his sons except Phylens, 
 the one who had refused to bear false witness against 
 him and had been banished by his father in con- 
 sequence. He gave the country into the hands of 
 Fhyleus, and then he led his followers from Elis to 
 Pylos, where he punished King Neleus for having re - 
 fused to purge him from the stain of blood. Of the 
 whole race of the king, the only one who remained 
 alive after the visit of Heracles was a little boy named 
 Nestor, whom his father Neleus had sent to be brought 
 up in a neighbouring country, and who grew up to be a 
 brave and wise hero. 
 
 6. The Marriage of Heracles with Deianira, and 
 his Death. 
 
 There was still one man left whom Heracles desired 
 to punish, and this was Eurytus. But he deferred his 
 revenge for a time, in order to undertake a pleasanter 
 expedition to the court of King Oeneus, of Calydon, 
 whose beautiful daughter Deianira he wished to marry. 
 Deianira was a maiden who delighted in driving horses 
 that had never been broken in, and who knew how to use 
 the lance and the bow. She had another distinguished 
 lover, the river-god Acheloiis, and as neither he nor 
 Heracles would give way to the other, they determined 
 to fight it out, and agreed that whichever conquered 
 should have the bride. Acheloiis came out of his stream 
 in the form of a bull, and Heracles had a hard struggle 
 with him, for his opponent had the strength of a bull, 
 and at the same time the wisdom of a god. Acheloiis 
 ran at him intending to gore him with his horns, and 
 if Heracles had not been on his guard, he would have 
 
HEKACLES. 143 
 
 been pierced through. For a long time the struggle, 
 lasted, each trying to overpower the other, by strength 
 or by craft, and when the river-god laid his fore-feet 
 upon the shoulders of Heracles who was clothed in his 
 lion's skin, and pressed his strong chest against him in 
 the hope of throwing him, it looked as if a lion and a 
 bull had embraced each other. But at last Heracles 
 laid hold of one of the horns of Acheloiis and tore at it 
 with all his might till he succeeded in breaking it off, 
 and then the bull bellowed horribly, and ran back, 
 bleeding, into the river. 
 
 So Heracles remained the victor, and Oeneus gave 
 him Deianira to be his wife, and she was glad to have 
 such a noble hero for her husband. Heracles wanted 
 to keep the horn as a trophy, but Acheloiis gave him 
 instead of it the wonderful horn of the goat Amalthea 
 wrio had been the nurse of Zeus. 1 This horn had been 
 blessed by Zeus, and anyone who held it in his hand 
 might wish for anything he liked to eat or drink, and 
 immediately it was there. For this reason it was called 
 the Horn of Plenty, because it produced all kinds of 
 food in abundance. 
 
 Heracles lived many years in Calydon with Deianira, 
 not spending his time slothfully, but fighting against 
 all the robbers and wicked men in the neighbourhood. 
 But one day it happened that the boy who held the wash - 
 ing-basin and poured water over his hands before meals, 
 was careless and showered the water all over hirn. 
 Heracles gave him what he intended to be a little 
 box on the eais, but a blow from him came with such 
 violence that the boy immediately fell down dead. 
 1 See page 3. 
 
144 MY ills OF HELLAS. 
 
 Heracles was very much grieved, and he determined 
 to leave the city of Calydon, and set out with Deianira 
 for Trachis where an old friend of his lived. On the 
 way they came to a broad river over which there was no 
 bridge, but the Centaur Nessus used to carry travellers 
 across on his horse's back for a trifling payment. 
 Heracles entrusted Deianira to him, and said that he 
 himself would follow without help. The Centaur, how- 
 ever, was so greatly charmed with the beauty of Deianira, 
 that as he swam with her across the stream he made 
 up his mind that he would carry her off. So when he 
 had reached the other side, instead of letting her jump 
 off his back, he held her fast and ran away with her. 
 Deianira stretched out her arms to Heracles who was 
 still on the farther bank, and screamed for help. Then 
 Heracles took his bow and shot a poisoned arrow into 
 the shoulder of the Centaur, and he fell down and was 
 obliged to let go his hold of Deianira. Nessus felt 
 that the poison would soon kill him, and he longed to 
 revenge himself on Heracles by doing him some injury. 
 So he said to Deianira, ' Take a cloth and dip it in my 
 blood, and do not let Heracles see it ; but if ever you 
 are afraid that he loves another woman better than you, 
 sprinkle the blood over his clothing, and he will be un- 
 able to leave you. You must take care, however, not 
 to touch it yourself.' The blood had been poisoned by 
 the arrow of Heracles, and anyone whose skin was even 
 touched by it must die, but Deianira did not know 
 this ; she thought the Centaur was speaking in good 
 faith and determined to follow his advice, for she loved 
 Heracles with all her heart, and desired above all things 
 that he should always love her as much in return. 
 
HERACLES. 145 
 
 Nessus died soon after he had spoken to Deianira, 
 and Heracles continued his journey with her. When 
 they came to Trachis which is not far from Euboea, 
 he remembered the vengeance that he had purposed 
 to execute upon Eurytus, and assembling all his com- 
 panions, he set sail for his island, Eurytus armed his 
 sons and all his men of war, and met him outside the 
 walls of Oechalia. Then a battle was fought in which 
 many wounds were given and received, and Heracles 
 slew Eurytus and his sons, which, when the others saw, 
 they gave up all hope and betook themselves to flight. 
 Heracles entered the city with his companions and 
 gave them leave to take any plunder they chose, for all- 
 the people surrendered themselves and their possessions 
 to him, only asking that their lives might be spared. 
 
 Heracles now desired to offer a solemn sacrifice to 
 Zeus as a token of his gratitude for the victory, and he 
 sent the herald Lichas to procure from Deianira a 
 festal robe suitable for the occasion. Deianira wa& 
 greatly afraid that Heracles might forsake her for the 
 beautiful lole whom he had formerly wished to marry, 
 and remembering what the Centaur had told her to do 
 if ever she had any special reason for desiring that 
 Heracles should be true to her, she took the cloth 
 which had been soaked in his blood, and smeared all 
 the inner side of the robe with it. Lichas took the 
 robe to Heracles, and he put it on. But when the 
 blood had become warmed by the heat of his bod}*, it 
 burst out into flames and burnt Heracles so terribly 
 that in his agony he seized Lichas by the feet and 
 flung him three times against the rocks, till his face 
 was so battered that none of the features could be dis- 
 
 L 
 
146 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 tinguished. Then he tried to tear off the dress, bnt it 
 clung so closely to his skin that pieces of his flesh came 
 off with it. He suffered unspeakable tortures, which 
 made him cry out with the pain and roll on the ground 
 in agony, and then he moaned so piteously that the 
 very stones might have felt for him, but no one dared 
 to go near him. For a short time the pain made him 
 quite mad ; then he controlled himself with a mighty 
 effort and resolved what he would do. He got into a 
 ship that was going to Greece, and when he arrived 
 there he ascended Mount Oeta, accompanied by some 
 of his friends ; the poison still caused him terrible suf- 
 fering, but he was able to bear it in silence now. On 
 the top of Mount Oeta he built a huge funeral pile and 
 mounted to the top of it ; then he asked his friends to 
 set fire to it, but none of them would do so, they only 
 stood round weeping. Presently however a herdsman 
 came along the road, and Heracles called out to him, 
 and said that he would give him his bow and arrows if 
 he would set fire to the funeral pile. The herdsman 
 consented to do so for the sake of the beautiful bow, 
 and he brought a burning torch with which he set the 
 wood alight. The wind fanned the flames and they 
 mounted higher and higher, but before they reached 
 Heracles himself, a sound of thunder and lightning was 
 heard, and a cloud came down which covered the 
 funeral pile and in which he was carried up to the top 
 of Mount Olympus. The gods gifted him with im- 
 mortality as a recompense for his noble deeds, and 
 they said that he should henceforth be as one of them- 
 selves. Even Hera did not grudge him this reward, 
 for her hatred had at last been conquered by his grand 
 
HERACLES. 147 
 
 and godlike Labours, and when Heracles appeared 
 among the Immortals in the form of a god, she led 
 her daughter, the goddess Hebe, towards him, and said 
 that he should have her for his wife. Poor Deianira 
 was already in the Lower World, for when she heard of 
 the evil that had been wrought by the robe, she went 
 into her bed-chamber and hanged herself. 
 
 Heracles was honoured on the earth as a god, and 
 men built temples to him, and kept his great deeds in 
 constant remembrance. 
 
 L2 
 
148 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 XXVII. 
 
 THE QUEST OF THE ARGONAUTS. 
 
 1. The Golden Fleece. 
 
 THERE was once a king in the land of Greece called 
 Athamas, and he had a wife and two children, whose 
 names were Phrixus and Helle. But the king loved 
 another woman better than his wife, and he thrust 
 away his wife and made the other woman queen. The 
 children had now a step-mother, who at first was very 
 kind to them, but afterwards when she had children of 
 her own it was a different thing, and Phrixus and Helle 
 had a bad time of it. Their own mother remained in 
 the city living on a dole that she received from the king, 
 but she was not allowed to enter the palace ; sometimes, 
 however, she used to come secretly after dark, and then 
 she kissed the children and gave them little presents, 
 which made them very happy. The step-mother was 
 always trying to find some means of getting rid of the 
 children, and at last she thought of a plan which she 
 hoped would be successful. When the time for sowing 
 the corn came round, she ordered all the women in the 
 country to roast the seed secretly, so that though the 
 corn was sown as usual it did not spring up, for the 
 seeds were dead because they had been cooked. Then 
 there was great distress all over the country, and the 
 
THE QUEST 0* JfHE ARGONAUTS. 149 
 
 king sent messengers to Delphi to ask the Oracle how 
 the land could be made fruitful again. But the wicked 
 queen took the messengers aside and bribed them by 
 the promise of a great reward to deceive the king. 
 They did not go to Delphi at all, but hid themselves 
 outside the city until there would have been time to go 
 and come back again, and then they sprinkled their 
 clothes with dust as if they had taken a long journey, 
 and went to the king and took him the message that 
 the queen had put into their mouths, which was that 
 he must sacrifice his son Phrixus to the gods, or else 
 the fields would never be fruitful again. The king was 
 very unwilling to do this, but the people pressed him 
 until he consented to the sacrifice, for they were afraid 
 they would all die of hunger. 
 
 The true mother was very sad, and she wept all day 
 and all night because her son was going to be killed. 
 And the gods had pity on her, and sent Hermes, the 
 messenger, to take her a rain covered all over with 
 golden wool that shone like the beautiful sun, and tell 
 her that the ram should carry away her children to a 
 place of safety. Then the mother was comforted, and 
 after dark she fetched the children from the palace by 
 stealth and placed them both on the ram's back. 
 Phrixus sat in front and held on fast by the horns, and 
 Helle was behind with her arms round her brother. 
 When they had taken leave of their mother, 'the Golden 
 Ram set out on his journey ; first he flew up as high as 
 the clouds, and then he trotted along the path of the 
 birds, mid-way between heaven and earth, and it 
 seemed to the children, as they looked down, as if the 
 houses and trees were all running away from them. 
 
150 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 They journeyed on all night in the bright star-light, and 
 when the sun rose they were already far from home, 
 and found themselves above the sea which lies between 
 Europe and Asia. Helle wanted to take a last look at 
 the beautiful land of Greece and turned round that she 
 might see it better, but in her eagerness she let go of her 
 brother and fell far down into the sea, and even before 
 she touched the water she was dead from the effect of 
 the great fall. Phrixus was very, very sorry, and he 
 shed so many tears that the fishermen below thought it 
 was beginning to rain. Ever since that time the 
 Greeks have called that sea the Hellespont, which 
 means the sea of Helle. 
 
 The Golden Ram flew on and on till he had passed 
 over the Black Sea and reached the city of Colchis, 
 which was a very long way from the kingdom of Atha- 
 mas. Phrixus sacrificed the ram to the gods, and he 
 presented its golden fleece to Aeetes the king of the 
 country, who hung it on a tree in a forest near the city 
 and placed beside it a powerful dragon that never went 
 to sleep. Phrixus was kindly treated by the king ; he 
 lived in his palace and sat at his table, and when he 
 grew up, Aeetes gave him his daughter for a wife. 
 
 After this, a great misfortune befell King Athamas 
 and the wicked step-mother. He had incurred the 
 anger of Hera, 1 and she afflicted him with madness. 
 One day as he was returning from hunting, he saw his 
 two young children playing in front of the palace, but 
 they seemed to him to be two young deer, and he took 
 his bow and shot the eldest boy right through the 
 heart. He was just going to shoot the other child, but 
 1 See page 63. 
 
THE QUEST OF THE ARGONAUTS. 151 
 
 the mother, who was close by, saw that the king was 
 mad, and she took it up in her arms and ran away as 
 fast as she could. Athamas pursued her with his arrow 
 on the string, until the queen finding that she coulo 
 not escape, threw herself into the sea with her child, 
 and they were both drowned. Athamas was overcome 
 with grief when his reason returned to him, and he left 
 the kingdom and went to the Oracle to ask what he 
 should do. The answer he received was that he was 
 to settle in a land where he would be the guest of wild 
 beasts. Athamas did not know how this could be, but 
 after wandering about for a long time he came to an 
 almost uninhabited country, where he one day saw two 
 or three wolves devouring a sheep which they had 
 killed. When Athamas came near them they ran 
 away, and as he had eaten nothing for several days 
 and was almost starving, he cut off a piece of the raw 
 sheep and eat it hastily, and then it occurred to him 
 that he had eaten the wolves' dinner, and was therefore 
 their guest. So he wandered no longer, but settled 
 down in that place, and when others came to live in 
 the same neighbourhood, Athamas became their king, 
 and ruled over them until his death some years later. 
 
 2. The Journey to Colchis. 
 
 Some time had passed away and Phrixus was 
 already dead, when it happened that the king of lolcus, 
 in Greece, whose name was Pelias, sent one day to the 
 Oracle at Delphi to ask what would befall him in the 
 future, and the Oracle in reply told him to beware of 
 the One-sandalled man : the Greeks did not wear shoes 
 
152 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 like ours, but sandals, which were soles of leather, tied 
 on co the feet with straps. Many years passed by, 
 and the king never saw a man with only one sandal 
 on, and had almost forgotten the warning of the 
 Oracle. But one day when he was going to offer a 
 great sacrifice to Poseidon, he invited all his friends to 
 the banquet, and amongst others, Jason his brother's 
 son, who lived at some little distance from the city. 
 On his way to lolcus, Jason had to pass through a 
 brook which had become swollen by heavy rain, and 
 one of his sandals got loose in the water and remained 
 sticking in the marshy soil. He could not get it again 
 because the water was too deep, and was obliged to 
 walk half bare-foot into the city. As soon as Pelias 
 saw him, he was put in mind of the Oracle, and he said 
 to him, ' What should you do to get rid of a man if you 
 had been told that he was likely to kill you.' Jason 
 laughed and answered, ' I should send him to fetch 
 the Golden Fleece.' For it was a dangerous journey 
 to Colchis, and the powerful King Aee'tes would have 
 parted with one of his eyes rather than with the Golden 
 Fleece, so there was every chance that anyone who 
 ventured on such an undertaking as that, would perish. 
 Then Pelias said, ' The Oracle has warned me to beware 
 of you ; choose your companions and set out in search 
 of it.' 
 
 Jason was a brave and fearless hero, and was quite 
 ready for the expedition. He sent messengers to 
 summon all the noblest heroes to come with him, and 
 fifty were found willing to undertake the journey, be- 
 sides the strong Heracles, who also said that he would go 
 with them. There was a man in lolcus, named Argus, 
 
THE QUEST OF THE ARGONAUTS. 153 
 
 who was skilled in shipbuilding, and he fashioned for 
 them a great vessel with places for fifty rowers. The 
 goddess Athene sent a beam for it, made of sacred oak, 
 which could speak, and it was inserted in the front part 
 of the ship. She was a noble vessel, and all w r ho saw 
 her were filled with wonder and delight. They called 
 her the Argo, after the name of the builder, and the 
 heroes who sailed in her were called Argonauts. When 
 she was ready they pushed her out to sea, and each man 
 took his oar in his hand. Besides the rowers there was 
 a hero who sat at the helm, and Jason the leader, who 
 had no special place assigned to him in the ship. 
 Many people came down to the shore to watch them 
 sail away, and wish them a prosperous journey. The 
 ship went as fast as a bird can fly, the helmsman steered, 
 the rowers rowed, and the Sacred Beam warned the 
 heroes of the rocks below the water, so that they might 
 steer the ship clear of them. 
 
 After sailing for some days, they came to the 
 beautiful island of Lemnos, and as they were tired of 
 rowing and wanted to rest, they went on shore. There 
 was not a single man in the island, only women. Some 
 time before this, the men had purposed to thrust away 
 their wives and take others, and so the women had 
 killed them all, not even excepting the old men and 
 boys, and they determined to be a nation of women 
 only, like the Amazons. The only man left alive in the 
 whole island was the father of the Queen, Hypsipele, 
 whom she loved very dearly and resolved to save at any 
 cost. There was a secret room in the palace in which 
 she hid him, and every day she took him food by 
 stealth, for if the other women had discovered what 
 
154 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 she had done they would perhaps have killed her. 1 The 
 Argonauts were very much astonished at seeing women 
 do all the things that are usually undertaken by men, 
 such as ploughing fields, felling trees in the wood, and 
 practising with weapons of war. The heroes asked where 
 the men were, and they told them why they had killed 
 them. They did not however refuse to receive the 
 strange heroes, but entertained them hospitably, and 
 the Argonauts enjoyed themselves very much on the 
 island. Many of them found it much more agreeable 
 than sitting at their oars in the ship, but after some 
 time had passed, Jason called them together, and they 
 went back to the Argo and continued their journey. 
 They did not stop again till they had reached the 
 country of the Doliones, and then they knew that they 
 had left Europe behind them. 
 
 The Doliones always kept watchmen near the sea to 
 give notice of any ships that were coming, for there 
 were a great many pirates cruising about that sea who 
 fell upon honest folk and robbed them, and the Doliones 
 had lately suffered much at their hands. When the 
 Argo came near their land, a number of the Doliones 
 assembled on the shore and asked the heroes what they 
 wanted. Jason said, ' We are going to Colchis to fetch 
 the Golden Fleece, and we should like to rest here.' 
 On hearing this the Doliones received them kindly, and 
 their king came down to the shore and sent for several 
 cattle and great skins of wine to be brought. Fires 
 were lighted, the cattle were killed and roasted, and the 
 Doliones feasted till the evening with the heroes, who 
 then sailed away. But a great storm came on, and it 
 was so dark that they could not even see the mast of 
 1 For what afterwards happened to Hypsipele, see pages 216-17 
 
THE QUEST OF THE AEGONAUTS. 155 
 
 the ship. They were unable to make head against the 
 high waves, so they pulled in the oars arid let the ship 
 dance to the whistling of the wind, but in this way 
 they lost their reckoning, and no longer knew either 
 the direction from which they had come, or that in 
 which they desired to go. At last the storm subsided, 
 and they made for some land which they could just 
 distinguish not far from where they werej but when 
 they tried to land, the inhabitants came with weapons 
 to drive them away, for they thought they were pirates. 
 The Argonauts killed many enemies, but when the day 
 dawned they discovered that they were the Doliones, 
 neither party had recognised the other in the darkness. 
 Then there was great weeping for the dead, especially 
 for the king who had entertained the heroes so royally 
 the day before, and had been slain by them in the 
 night. The Argonauts remained three days longer in 
 that country and celebrated magnificent games in 
 honour of the king, running races, wrestling with one 
 another, and measuring their skill in shooting with the 
 bow and in throwing the lance, and whoever did the 
 best obtained the prize. 
 
 Then for the second time they sailed away from 
 the land of the Doliones. They were now not far from 
 the Black Sea, and were coasting along by the country 
 of Mysia, when it happened that some of the oars 
 broke, and they had to stop and go into a forest to get 
 some new ones. Heracles went far into the forest to 
 look for the best trees, taking with him a boy named 
 Hylas who served him and whom he loved as his own 
 son. Heracles was thirsty after his work, and he told 
 the boy to go to the nearest stream and draw him some 
 
156 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 water in a pitcher. Hylas found a clear transparent 
 pool fringed with lovely flowers, and stooped down to 
 draw the water, but the nymphs to whom it belonged 
 saw him and were so struck by his great beauty, for he 
 was tJi/3 most beautiful boy in all Greece, that they 
 came up from the bottom to draw him down into the 
 pool ; and they seized him, one by the hand and another 
 by the foot, and said, ' Come down to our house, 
 beautiful boy, and we will play with you.' Hylas did 
 not want to go, and he screamed and struggled with all 
 his might, but the nymphs were stronger than he, and 
 dragged him down. When Heracles heard his cry, he 
 thought the boy must have been carried off by robbers, 
 so he took his oar and ran down to the brook, and not 
 finding him there, he rushed frantically through the 
 forest in search of him, saying that be would not go 
 back to the ship without Hylas. Meanwhile evening 
 had come on, the other heroes had all returned to the 
 ship, and they sailed away, unmindful of Heracles. 
 The next morning they saw indeed that he was not 
 there, but they could not sail all the way back again, 
 and they trusted that they would be able to bring 
 home the Golden Fleece without him. So Heracles 
 returned to Greece, where he accomplished his twelve 
 great Labours. 
 
 Some days afterwards the heroes landed again, and 
 this time it was in a country where the king compelled 
 every stranger who came into his dominions to measure 
 his strength with him in boxing, and he was so 
 practised a boxer that he had overcome and killed all 
 who had contended with him. When he heard that a 
 ship with many heroes in it had come to his land, he said 
 
THE QUEST OF THE ARGONAUTS. 157 
 
 that if there was any brave man among them, he was 
 prepared to fight with him. Now there were two 
 heroes on board the Argo named Castor and Pollux, 
 who were twin brothers. Castor was skilled in managing 
 untamed horses, and Pollux excelled in boxing. Pollux 
 resolved to punish the haughty king, so he accepted his 
 offer of boxing with him and very soon dealt him a 
 fatal blow. A great many of his followers had come to 
 watch the fight, expecting to see their king fell the 
 stranger to the ground, and when they saw that he was 
 dead, they tried to kill Pollux in order to avenge him ; 
 but the Argonauts seized their weapons, and soon a 
 number of their enemies were dead and the rest had 
 taken to flight. 
 
 Farther on, the Argonauts came to a country where 
 there lived a seer named Phineus, who would gladly 
 however have parted with his power of reading the 
 future if that would have delivered him from his 
 misery. He had once revealed the future contrary to 
 the will of the gods, and as a punishment they made 
 him blind, and prevented him from having any/thing to 
 eat. Whenever a meal was spread before him, there 
 came from heaven two monstrous beings with faces and 
 bodies like maidens, but whose feet and wings were 
 those of ravens. They were called Harpies, and their 
 names were Storm-foot and Swift-wing. They snatched 
 away the best part of the food and gobbled it up, and 
 what they left smelt so badly that Phineus could not 
 eat it for loathing. The old man was wasted away with 
 hunger, and there was nothing left of him but skin and 
 bones. The Argonauts begged him to give them good 
 advice about their journey, and he promised to do so if 
 
158 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 they would rid him of the Harpies. It happened that 
 among them were two sons of Boreas, the god of the 
 north wind; they had wings on their shoulders and could 
 fly like birds, but it had been decreed by fate that if ever 
 they failed to catch what they set out in pursuit of, they 
 must die immediately. They were quite willing to 
 attack the Harpies, and next time they came to snatch 
 away the food from Phineus, the heroes drew their 
 swords, spread their wings, and set out in chase of them. 
 The Harpies flew backwards and forwards in all directions 
 over both sea and land, but at last Storm-foot was 
 obliged to give in, and her pursuer was just going to 
 seize her when her wings failed altogether, and she 
 fell down into a river below, where she was drowned. 
 Swift-wing was still able to flutter a little, but presently 
 she also gave in, and fell among some soft grass. Her 
 pursuer came after her and pierced her through with 
 his sword, and then the heroes returned, the sword of 
 one of them being still wet with the blood of Swift-wing. 
 From that time Phineus could eat his meals in peace 
 which was a great comfort to him. He told the Argo- 
 nauts that they would soon come to two wonderful rocks, 
 and instructed them what to do when they reached 
 them, and he said that if they passed these in safety 
 they would arrive at Colchis without further danger. 
 
 After rowing for half a day, the heroes came to the 
 rocks of which Phineus had told them, and never in 
 their lives had they seen anything so wonderful. They 
 were two huge rocks, not fastened to the bottom of the 
 sea, but sailing about separately, and every now and 
 then they clashed together and great waves broke over 
 thenij and there was a noise as if the rocks were going 
 
THE QUEST OF THE ARGONAUTS. 159 
 
 to break in pieces, but as they were made of the hardest 
 stone, they remained quite sound. They darted about 
 so quickly, and clashed against each other so constantly,, 
 that no ship had ever been able to pass them ; every 
 vessel that had attempted it had been crushed to atoms, 
 with every soul on board. But the Argo was very swift, 
 being rowed by fifty heroes, and Phineus had told them 
 to send out a dove in front of them, and that if the 
 dove passed through the rocks safely, they also might 
 venture ; but if it were crushed, they would have to 
 turn back, for the speed of the Argo was just equal to 
 that of a dove. So when the rocks separated from one 
 another, they sent out the dove, and it arrived happily 
 at the other side, with only a few of its tail-feathers 
 torn out. Next time the rocks opened a pathway, they 
 also steered through them, rowing with all their might. 
 The ship shot through like an arrow, and just the same 
 thing happened to the Argo as to the dove, for the de- 
 coration of the hinder-part of the vessel was torn off, 
 just as the bird's feathers had been. And when the 
 heroes looked back, they saw the rocks standing still : 
 they had played their game for the last time, for it had 
 been decreed by fate that if ever they allowed a ship to 
 pass them, they would become rooted to the ground. 
 So that ever since that time, ships have been able to 
 sail past these rocks, as fast or as slowly as they please. 
 
 3. The Fight for the Golden Fleece. 
 
 Some days after this, the heroes reached Colchis. 
 Many people came together to look at them, for never 
 before had a ship reached their country from Greece, 
 
160 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 and besides this, the Argo was a noble vessel, unlike 
 anything the Colchians had ever seen, and she had a 
 number of brave heroes on board. The Argonauts had 
 fastened ropes to the ship with great stones at the end, 
 and these they threw into the sea to serve as anchors. 
 Then Jason said that some one must take him to the 
 king, and a number of people accompanied him as far as 
 the palace. Jason was a noble-looking man, and for a 
 mantle he wore the skin of a spotted panther that he 
 had killed himself. When he saw king Aeetes, he said 
 that he had come from the home of Phrixus, and that 
 King Pelias had sent him to fetch the Golden Fleece. 
 Now Aeetes prized the Golden Fleece moie than all his 
 other treasures, and had no intention of parting with it ; 
 but as he was a crafty man, he said that he would give 
 it to Jason if he would be willing to give a proof of his 
 real desire for it, by ploughing a piece of land with two 
 wild bulls and sowing it with dragon's teeth. The 
 king thought that if Jason ventured to undertake this 
 he would certainly perish, for the bulls had brazen feet, 
 and out of their mouths issued a stream of fire which 
 burnt up everything that came near them; besides this, 
 he knew that when the dragon's teeth were sown, armed 
 men would rise up from them and kill Jason, so that 
 even if he succeeded in managing the wild bulls, it 
 would not be of much avail. Bat Aeetes did not tell 
 Jason all this ; and though Jason felt sure that the task 
 which the king assigned to him would be no easy one, 
 he accepted it without hesitation and agreed to meet 
 him the next day in a field near the city in order to 
 accomplish it. When Jason went back to the ship, the 
 heroes asked him what the king had said, and he told 
 
THE QUEST OF THE ARGONAUTS. 161 
 
 them. Then as night was coming on r they lay down 
 on the shore, wrapped themselves up in their cloaks, and 
 went to sleep. 
 
 King Aeetes had a daughter called Medea who was 
 a powerful enchantress, and knew the properties of all 
 kinds of herbs and how to make use of them for good 
 or evil. She used to go to the mountains at night 
 when the moon was shining to pluck herbs, and pre- 
 pared all manner of magic drinks from them ; she also 
 understood other kinds of witchcraft. When she saw 
 Jason standing in her father's palace, she thought he 
 looked like a true hero, and she felt a great love for 
 him and longed to help him. So in the night she left 
 the palace and came to the shore where the heroes were 
 asleep. She at once recognised Jason and awoke him, 
 and he rubbed his eyes in astonishment at seeing the 
 maiden standing beside him in the moonlight, tall and 
 beautiful, with her long white veil thrown back. She 
 said to him, 'My father, the king, intends to kill you, but 
 if you will swear to be my friend, I will help you.' She 
 told him all about the bulls and the dragon's teeth, and 
 said that it would not be possible for him to overcome them 
 without her help. The beautiful princess pleased Jason 
 well, and he promised that if he obtained the Golden 
 Fleece through her assistance, he would take her home 
 Avith him to be his wife. Then Medea gave him a box 
 containing ointment which protected any one who used 
 it from being burnt by fire or wounded by steel for the 
 space of one whole day. She told him to anoint his 
 shield his spear and his body with it the next morning, 
 and then the bulls and the armed men would not be 
 able to do him any harm ; she also taught him a trick 
 
 M 
 
162 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 which she said he would find useful as a means of 
 defence against the armed men. When they had 
 talked for some time longer, Medea wrapped her veil 
 round her and went home ; the people in the palace 
 were not surprised, for they thought she had been 
 wandering about on the mountain as usual, collecting 
 herbs. 
 
 At day-break the king betook himself to the field 
 with all his courtiers and many other people, and 
 Medea went also, attended by her women. Near the 
 field was a sacred forest in which the two bulls were 
 feeding; and in this same forest hung the Golden Fleece, 
 from which bright rays of light might be seen stream- 
 ing as the trees were swayed backwards and forwards 
 by the wind. The plough was standing ready in the 
 field, and one of the king's servants held in his hand a 
 helmet which contained the dragon's teeth. Soon 
 afterwards Jason arrived with the Argonauts looking 
 in such good spirits that the king and his followers 
 were astonished, for they did not know about the oint- 
 ment that had made him proof against fire and steel, 
 the Argonauts knew about it, however, for Jason had 
 told them. The king commanded Jason to fetch the 
 bulls, and he went into the forest and soon found them. 
 They came towards him bellowing loudly, with the 
 bright fire streaming from their mouths and nostrils, 
 meaning to kick him to death with their hoofs. But 
 their fiery breath had no effect on Jason, and their 
 brazen hoofs could not do him any harm. He seized 
 them by the horns and dragged them along, and he 
 was so strong that although they struggled with all 
 their might and tried to pull first to the right and 
 
THE QUEST OF THE ARGONAUTS. 
 
 then to the left, they were obliged to follow him. It 
 was a strange sight to see him coming out of the forest 
 with the fire streaming over his face and body, and the 
 bulls kicking him with their brazen hoofs, yet notwith- 
 standing this, whole and unscathed. He dragged the 
 bulls to the plough and laid the yoke upon their necks, 
 then he drove them through the field making furrows 
 as he went along, and when they were stubborn and 
 refused to go on, he pricked them with a goad that he 
 had in his hand. He went up and down three times, 
 until the king said it was enough, and then he un- 
 harnessed the bulls and let them go back into the 
 forest. The king was very much astonished at his 
 having performed the first part of his task so success- 
 fully, but when he gave him the helmet with the 
 dragon's teeth in it, he felt sure that the armed men 
 would at all events make an end of him. Jason walked 
 up and down the furrows, and every here and there he 
 threw in a tooth and stamped down a clod over it with 
 his foot. When he had finished he looked round, the 
 armed men were already rising out of the ground, and 
 in a little while the whole fifty had sprung up ; they 
 were completely covered with brazen armour, and had 
 very angry faces. Then Jason remembered the trick 
 that Medea had taught him, and he took up stones 
 from the ground and threw them among the band of 
 warriors without letting the king see what he was doing. 
 Every time one of the armed men felt a stone strike 
 him, he began to fight with his neighbour because he 
 thought it was he who had thrown it. So in a short 
 time there was a fierce battle raging amongst the 
 armed men, and Jason found his task an easy one : he 
 
164 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 took his shield and spear, and killed the warriors in the 
 confusion, till at last they all lay dead on the ground, 
 and the earth was quite red with their blood. 
 
 All the people were full of admiration of the brave 
 hero, and when Jason took off his helmet and wiped his 
 forehead, they thronged round him, praising his great 
 achievement. But the king was angry, and went away 
 with his courtiers without speaking a word to Jason. 
 He was still determined not to part with the Golden 
 Fleece, and made up his mind to kill the hero who had 
 come to ask for it. AVhen he reached the palace, he 
 chose out the strongest of his soldiers and told them 
 that he would himself lead them to the shore early the 
 next morning while the Argonauts were still asleep, 
 and that they would kill the heroes and burn the ship. 
 Aee'tes expected to take the Argonauts by surprise, bub 
 .Medea went again that evening to Jason and told him 
 what her father intended. She also said that she 
 would get the Golden Fleece for him, and that they must 
 flee away that night. So they went together into the 
 forest in which the Fleece hung ; high up among the 
 branches shone the golden light, and at the foot of the 
 tree was the dragon that never slept. Jason waited at 
 a little distance while Medea went alone to the dragon, 
 for she was accustomed to take him his food every day, 
 and he knew her and allowed her to stroke him. 
 M : 3dea spoke kindly to the dragon, and gave him some 
 bread that she had brought with her. But the bread 
 had been soaked in a sweet juice which throws every 
 one who tastes it into the deepest sleep, so when the 
 dragon had swallowed it, his eyes closed for the first 
 time in his life and he fell asleep and snored so loudly 
 
THE QUEST OF THE ARGONAUTS. 165 
 
 that all the birds in the wood awoke and flew away. 
 Then Jason came forward and climbed up the tali oak 
 and fetched down the Fleece, and when he had done 
 this, they went back to the shore. Jason had thrown 
 the Fleece over his arm, and the Argonauts, who were 
 on the look-out for him, could see him coming towards 
 them with his shining prize while he was still a long 
 way off, and they pulled up the great stones which had 
 been used as anchors, and made everything ready for 
 their departure. But Medea went back once more to 
 her father's palace, and creeping quietly upstairs, she 
 took her little brother Absyrtus gently out of his bed, 
 and then set out on her flight. She took him with 
 her, not because she loved her brother, but because she 
 thought he might be found useful in case her father 
 should pursue them. You will soon hear what 
 happened to him. 
 
 4. The Journey Home. 
 
 When they were all in the ship, the heroes pushed 
 off and sailed away. As it was midnight the helmsman 
 had to steer by the stars, but he knew how to guide 
 v,he ship towards the setting sun which was the direc- 
 tion in which Greece lay, and by daybreak they were 
 already far from the land. King Aee'tes came down to 
 the shore with his followers, who took with them 
 weapons to fight with, and also torches for burning the 
 ship. But when they reached it, they stood rubbing 
 their eyes, for they could see neither the ship nor the 
 heroes, and when they looked towards the forest, there 
 was the dragon in a deep sleep, and the Golden Fleece 
 
166 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 was gone. Soon the king heard that Medea had fled 
 and had taken with her the little Absyrtus, and then 
 he knew who it was that had helped the Argonauts, and 
 he was more angry than he had ever been in his life. 
 He made his men get ready the swiftest ship the} had, 
 and promised to reward them nobly if they succeeded 
 in overtaking the Argo. 
 
 They rowed with all their might, and towards even- 
 ing they came in sight of the Argo. Medea knew that 
 all on board would be killed if they fell into the hands 
 of her father, and when his ship had almost overtaken 
 the Argo, she took a long knife and stabbed her brother 
 Absyrtus to death, and cut him in pieces before the 
 eyes of Aeetes and flung the pieces into the sea. The 
 king who had been so angry, now tore his hair for 
 grief; he no longer cared about the Golden Fleece, and 
 his only desire was to obtain the corpse of his son in 
 order to bury it, for at that time it was believed that 
 those whose bodies were not buried had no rest in the 
 Lower World, and the king would not for the world have 
 let his child's body be eaten by the fishes. He com- 
 manded his men to stop and look for the pieces, and 
 by the time they had collected them all, the Argo was 
 far out of sight, and they were obliged to turn back. 
 The king grieved bitterly for his dead son, and when he 
 came home he buried him with great magnificence. 
 When that was done, the wish nearest his heart was to 
 catch the Argo, and he manned three ships with sailors, 
 and told them to go in search of her and never to 
 return till they had found her. They sailed about in 
 all directions, but could not find a trace of the ship 
 anywhere, so as they were afraid to go back to the king 
 
THE QUEST OF THE ARGONAUTS. 167 
 
 without her, they moored on a strange island, where 
 they settled down and built houses and remained for 
 the rest of their lives. Aeetes was meanwhile spending 
 all his days in watching for their return. 
 
 A violent storm now overtook the Argo. The sea 
 was stirred up and refused to carry peacefully on her 
 bosom the ship in which the sister had murdered her 
 brother, and the waves rose as high as mountains, so 
 that those who were on board the ship had to hold on 
 to the sides and mast in order to avoid falling into the 
 sea. At last the Sacred Beam which was planted in 
 the fore part of the vessel, spoke, and said that the 
 storm would not cease, nor would they have any pro- 
 sperity in their voyage, until Medea and Jason had been 
 purged from the stain of blood, and that they had better 
 go to the enchantress Circe and beg her to do this for 
 them. So they sailed to the island where Circe lived, 
 and Medea and Jason left the others in the ship and 
 went ashore to the palace of the enchantress and 
 placed themselves on the hearth, which was the place 
 sacred to those who came to sue for help. Circe asked 
 what their request was, and Medea told her all that had 
 happened and begged her to atone for their crimes. 
 At first she refused to do this, for King Aeetes was her 
 brother, and it was her nephew that they had murdered ; 
 but at last she was persuaded, and purified them with 
 sacrifices and baths. When this had been done, they 
 went back to the ship and continued their voyage, and 
 they had now such lovely weather that the fishes came 
 up from the bottom of the sea and played merrily in 
 the sunshine. 
 
 After some time the Argonauts came to the wicked 
 
168 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 Sirens, who were treacherous nymphs that lived in the 
 sea. Their faces were marvellously beautiful, and they 
 sang so enchantingly that every one who heard them 
 was bewitched and could not help going to them. 
 But under the water they had great ugly claws instead 
 of hands, and their bodies ended in a hideous fish-tail. 
 They clutched those who came to them with their 
 claws and ate them up, and all the reef where they 
 lived was strewn with the bones of the men they had 
 eaten. But even those who knew how cruel and 
 treacherous they were, could no longer believe it when 
 they heard them sing, and could never resist jumping 
 into the sea and swimming towards them. When the 
 Sirens saw the ship approaching, full of noble heroes, 
 they thought they were going to have a grand feast 
 and began to sing their sweetest songs. They would 
 have enticed even the Argonauts, and all the witchcraft 
 of Medea would have been powerless to save them, if 
 there had not been a hero on board, named Orpheus, 
 who was famous all over Greece for his singing and 
 playing, and who had such marvellous power over the 
 hearts of men that no one who heard him could refrain 
 from weeping, however cruel and hard he might be. So 
 the moment the Sirens began, Orpheus took his lyre and 
 sang in opposition to them, and he sang so gloriously 
 that the heroes listened to him rather than to the Sirens, 
 and the dolphins, who are very fond of music, came and 
 followed the ship till the song was ended. 
 
 The Argonauts next came to the Wandering Rocks, 
 which swam about in the sea and were shrouded in 
 thick smoke, through which flames of fire could be seen 
 coming out of crevices in their sides. It seemed as if 
 
THE QUEST OF THE AEGONAUTS. 
 
 it were a sort of amusement to them to give chase to 
 ships and destroy them, and when they had dashed 
 them to pieces, there was the fire ready at hand to 
 burn them up. No ship had ever yet reached home in 
 safety after passing them. But the goddess Hera was 
 unwilling to see the brave heroes on board the Argo 
 perish miserably, so she commanded the nymphs who 
 lived at the bottom of the sea to protect tht; vessel; 
 these were not wicked nymphs like the Shens, but 
 kind and friendly to brave heroes. A great splashing 
 was heard in the water, and ever so many nymphs 
 came up from the bottom of the sea, each one more 
 beautiful than the last. They swam round the ship, 
 and when one of the rocks came towards her from the 
 right, meaning to crush her, they pushed her away to 
 the left, and when a rock came from the left, they 
 pushed the ship to the right, and they did it so fast 
 that the rocks could not overtake her. This amused 
 them very much, and they laughed out merrily when- 
 ever the rocks shot past them. Soon the Argonauts 
 were again out in the open sea, and they thanked 
 the nymphs many times for their help. Then the 
 nymphs went back to their homes at the bottom of the 
 sea. 
 
 After rowing for a long time, the heroes came to 
 the island of Crete. They would have liked to go on 
 shore, but there was an iron watchman who refused to 
 allow any one to land without the king's express per- 
 mission. His name was Talos, and he had been made 
 out of iron by the black smith -god Hephaestus, who 
 gave him to Minos the king of Crete. Minos used 
 him as a watchman, and made him run round the 
 
170 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 whole isiand three times every day and drive awaj any 
 strangers who might approach it. He was all iron, ex- 
 cepting a single vein that ran from his head right 
 down to his feet, and was fastened underneath with 
 iron nails which held in the life blood that ran through 
 the vein and kept him alive. When Talos saw the 
 ship full of heroes coming, he stood still and threw great 
 stones at her. It would have been of no use for the 
 Argonauts to shoot spears and arrows at him in return, 
 for he could not be wounded ; so Medea called out to 
 him over the water, ' Talos, if you will be kind to us 
 and let us land, I will show you how you may become 
 immortal.' Talos was pleased at this, and he began to 
 make friendly grimaces, and shouted back his answer 
 in a voice that came out of his iron body like the 
 sound of a great trumpet. He said, < First tell me how 
 I may become immortal, and then I will let you land.' 
 But Medea answered him deceitfully, and she called 
 back, < Draw out the nail that is in your foot, and all 
 that is mortal in you will flow out/ Talos believed 
 her, and he sat down on the shore and drew out the 
 nail with some difficulty, for it had been well ham- 
 mered in. Then the red blood flowed out, and Talos 
 was glad, for he thought it was his mortality which was 
 leaving him ; but he became weaker and weaker, and 
 when the last drop of blood had flowed out of his body, 
 he was dead, and there was nothing left but a cold 
 lump of iron. The Argonauts could now sail to the 
 land without hindrance, and they clambered down out 
 of the ship and hunted some wild animals, which they 
 cooked and made a feast of, on the shore. 
 
 The Argonauts sailed from Crete to Greece without 
 
THE QUEST OE THE ARGONAUTS. 171 
 
 stopping, for the gods gave them favourable winds, and 
 when at last they came in sight of the Grecian coast, 
 they all rejoiced greatly at seeing their beloved country 
 again. They landed at that part of it which is called 
 the Isthmus, and is the road between the peninsula 
 of Peloponnesus and the rest of Greece, and there they 
 drew the Argo up on to the shore. The brave ship had 
 been beaten against many a rock, and had been so long 
 in deep water that she was covered with green slime. 
 The Argonauts said that she should never be used for 
 any other journey, and they dedicated her to the sea- 
 god Poseidon as a thank-offering to him for having 
 brought them home in safety. She remained for a 
 very long time standing on the Isthmus, and every one 
 who went by, looked at her and thought of the many 
 dangers and difficulties that the Argonauts had passed 
 through. At last however, the Sacred Beam died, and 
 soon afterwards the Argo herself fell to pieces, for the 
 boards of which she was made had become quite rotten. 
 
 5. Medea's Revenge. 
 
 When the heroes arrived in Greece, they separated 
 and returned to their own homes, and Jason and Medea 
 went to lolcus where king Pelias lived. Pelias had 
 thought that it would be quite impossible for Jason ever 
 to return, because of all the dangers he would meet with 
 ingoing to fetch the Golden Fleece, and he had killed his 
 brother, Jason's father, for fear he should in some way 
 avenge the death of his son, so that when the young 
 hero walked into the palace with the Golden Fleece 
 hanging over his arm, the king turned red and pale by 
 
172 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 turns. Jason did not know as yet of the injury that 
 Pelias had done him ; but when he went to his father's 
 house he found it empty, and the people told him that 
 his father had been killed by order of the king. Jason 
 was very sad at hearing this, and could no longer take 
 any pleasure in the thought of all the great deeds he 
 had done ; but Medea told him not to grieve, for she 
 would avenge the wrong he had suffered. She thought, 
 too, that if Pelias were dead, Jason would be the king 
 of lolcus and she the queen, and she advised Jason to 
 dissemble, and behave as if he had forgiven the king, 
 whilst she herself went every day to the palace and 
 made friends with his daughters. One day she told 
 them that if they had spirit enough to venture on it, 
 they could make their old father young again, though 
 his hair was already white and his face was covered 
 with wrinkles. The princesses would not believe Medea, 
 but she said she would prove it, and she took an old 
 ram and slew him, and cut him up into several pieces, 
 and laid the pieces in a great caldron of boiling water, 
 and when she had poured a magic juice over them, a 
 3 T oung lamb jumped out of the caldron, and no trace of 
 the ram could be seen. Then the girls believed Medea, 
 and begged her to give them the magic juice with 
 which to make their old father young again ; but Medea 
 gave them instead, a liquid, which looked just like it, 
 but which had no power whatever. The king's daugh- 
 ters did not delay a single day, but the next time their 
 father was asleep, they went to him and killed him, and 
 one struck off his head, while the others cut the rest of 
 his body into pieces. They had a huge caldron stand- 
 ing ready on the fire, into which they threw the pieces, 
 
THE QUEST OF THE ARGONAUTS. 173 
 
 and then they poured over them the liquid tli.it Medea 
 had given them, expecting to see their father come out 
 a young man. But Pelias was dead, and dead he 
 remained. The princesses watched the caldron for a 
 long time, but at last they were obliged to give up all 
 hope, and then they broke out into bitter wailing and 
 rushed about the streets with dishevelled hair, crying 
 out that Medea had deceived them and made them 
 kill their father without knowing what they were 
 doing. The people had not cared for Pelias because 
 he had been a cruel and severe man, but they would 
 not sanction the treachery by which he had come to his 
 end, and instead of choosing Jason for their new king, 
 they chose the son of Pelias, so that things turned out 
 very differently from Medea's expectations, and she and 
 Jason had to leave the country. 
 
 They went to the city of Corinth, where King Creon 
 ruled. He received them with open arms, for he had 
 heard of Jason's brave deeds and was glad that he had 
 come to live in his country, and he gave him a beautiful 
 house with meadows and vineyards and orchards ail 
 round it. Jason and Medea lived there in peace for 
 ten years, and the gods sent them two children whom 
 Medea loved dearly ; they were the first human beings 
 she had ever really cared for. But the king had a 
 daughter named Glauce, who was only a child when 
 Jason first went to Corinth but had now grown up to 
 be a very beautiful maiden, and Creon was anxious that 
 she should marry a noble hero, for she was his only 
 child, and her husband would be king of Corinth after 
 his death and would inherit all his riches. And as 
 Jason pleased him well, he said to him that if he would 
 
174 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 get rid of Medea, lie would give him his daughter 
 Glauce for his wife. Jason no longer cared for Medea 
 as he had once done, because she was of a gloomy, dis- 
 contented nature, and he thought that if he were rich, 
 he could make up to her for the wrong he would do her 
 by taking another wife. So he told the king that he 
 would agree to his proposal, and he said to Medea that 
 he would give her a great deal of gold and silver, and 
 the most beautiful dresses that could be made, and that 
 she should never want for anything, but live just as if 
 she were the richest queen in the world. He also told 
 her that he was making this new marriage for the sake 
 of his children, in order that they might have a king 
 for their father. Medea was very angry about it in 
 her heart, but she pretended to agree, and when the 
 day came on which the marriage was to be celebrated, 
 she gave Jason a magnificent robe and begged him to 
 take it to Glauce as a present from herself. Jason took 
 it without any suspicion, and Glauce was very much 
 pleased with it and went into her bedchamber to put 
 it on for the wedding. But the robe had been dipped in 
 a poisonous juice, and as soon as it became warm it 
 burst out into flames. Glauce could not tear it off, and 
 she screamed for help; her father and Jason came 
 running to try and put out the fire, but nothing they 
 could do was of any use, and Glauce perished miserably. 
 Creon threw himself upon the dead body of his daugh- 
 ter and tore his hair and wept bitterly, but Jason drew 
 his sword and rushed home to kill Medea. But as he 
 came near the house, he looked up at the sky and saw 
 a chariot drawn by two winged dragons, in which Medea 
 was driving away. Medea had purposed to kill her two 
 
THE QUEST OF THE ARGONAUTS. 175 
 
 children before she went, because of the pain which she 
 knew this would cause Jason ; but when she had taken 
 up the dagger, the children, who did not know what was 
 in her mind, stood looking at her with their pretty blue 
 eyes, and she had not the heart to carry out her inten- 
 tion, but caught them up in her arms and covered them 
 with kisses, and then fled away in the enchanted 
 chariot. 
 
176 MYTHS 0^ HELLAS. 
 
 XXVIII. 
 
 THESEUS 
 
 THERE was a great and famous city in Greece called 
 Athens, about which, when it was first built, there arose 
 a strife between the sea-god Poseidon and the wise 
 goddess Athene, as to which of them should be its pro- 
 tector, for the Greek cities were each under the special 
 care and guardianship of some god or goddess. As 
 they could not agree about it, the other gods said that 
 they must each bring a present to the city, and that it 
 should belong to whichever of them gave it the best 
 present. The gods assembled one day in the fortress, 
 which had been built on a hill in the middle of the 
 city. 1 Poseidon struck the ground with his trident 
 and out sprang a noble animal which was the first 
 horse that had ever been seen, and the gods admired 
 the beautiful creature very much. Then it was the 
 turn of Athene, and she brought forth the olive tree, 
 which bears the olives from which oil is made, and ex- 
 plained how the fruit could be made use of. After this 
 the gods gave their judgment, and they said : ' This 
 is such a stony land that the citizens would find the 
 noble horse of little service, for the horse cannot go well 
 
 1 This fortress was afterwards called the Acropolis of Athens. 
 
THESEUS. 177 
 
 over uneven ground, but the olive-tree would flourish, 
 and would be useful to the citizens in many ways.' So 
 the city was placed under the guardianship of Athene 
 and was named after her, and the citizens planted olive- 
 trees all over the country and found in these their chief 
 wealth. They took great care of the tree in the fortress 
 from which all the others had sprung, and it outlived 
 its children and its grandchildren. But after many 
 years had passed, the country was invaded by some 
 enemies who laid waste all the beautiful houses and 
 temples and even burnt the sacred olive-tree itself 
 down to the roots. On the next day, however, when 
 all round it there was nothing to be seen but smoking 
 ruins, behold ! a new olive-tree had sprung from the 
 ashes of the old one, which grew, and became in time a 
 large tree. 
 
 The cit} r of Athens was at one time ruled over by a 
 king named Aegeus, who had a wife but no children. 
 This was a great sorrow to him, but his brother Pallas 
 was very glad of it, for he had fifty sons, and he thought 
 that if Aegeus died without children his sons would 
 inherit the kingdom. After a time however the wife 
 of Aegeus died, and soon afterwards he went to stay 
 with a king who lived in the city of Troezen, which 
 was several days' journey from Athens ; there he 
 was secretly married to the king's beautiful daughter 
 Aethra, and his great wish was fulfilled, for Aethra 
 had a young son. Aegeus would not however take 
 him back to Athens with him, for he feared that his 
 brother's sons, the wild Pallantidae, would try to kill 
 him. So he resolved to leave the child to be brought up 
 by his mother in Troezen, and before he set out on 
 
 H 
 
178 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 his journey home he buried his sword and his sandals 
 underneath a huge stone, and told Aethra that when 
 the child was strong enough to heave up the stone 
 and take the sword and sandals from under it, he must 
 leave her and come to him at Athens. After this he 
 went back to his kingdom without telling any one 
 that the gods had given him a son. Aethra loved 
 her son very dearly ; she named him Theseus, and 
 brought him up with great care, and he grew hand- 
 some and strong, and delighted above everything in 
 listening to his mother whilst she told him stories 
 about all the old heroes, and especially about the 
 strong Heracles, who had killed so many monsters and 
 driven away all the robbers out of the land. Theseus 
 did not know who his father was, but when he had 
 become a young man and the down was beginning 
 to grow upon his chin, Aethra thought he would be 
 strong enough to lift the stone, and she took him 
 to the place where it lay, and told him that under- 
 neath it were the sword and sandals of his father 
 who was Aegeus, the king of Athens. Without much 
 difficulty Theseus heaved up the huge stone, though 
 it had become deeply embedded in the earth ; and then 
 Aethra told him that his father was still alive, and 
 that he was to take the sword and sandals and go to 
 him at Athens ; and Theseus rejoiced at hearing this, 
 and prepared to set off at once. It was a very danger- 
 ous journey from Troezen to Athens for there were 
 many robbers on the way, and the old king wanted to 
 give Theseus a ship, so that he might go by sea with 
 much less risk. His mother also was anxious that he 
 should take the easier journey, but Theseus was a brave 
 
THESEUS. 179 
 
 hero, and instead of being afraid of the robbers, he was 
 only eager to meet with them. So they were obliged 
 to let him have his own way, and comforted themselves 
 by praying to the gods to protect him. 
 
 Theseus accordingly set out on his journey, and he 
 had not long left Troezen when he came to a savage 
 robber who lurked by the roadside, and who was called 
 the Club-carrier. He had a very ugly face, and was 
 lame, but very strong; and he used to lie on the grass 
 among the trees, and whenever a traveller passed by, he 
 sprang out and struck him down with a heavy iron club 
 which he wielded quite easily, and then he robbed him 
 of his goods. When Theseus came along the road, the 
 robber sprang out to kill him ; but Theseus avoided the 
 blow, so that the heavy club struck the earth beside 
 him, and then he wrestled with the robber. He at 
 last succeeded in wrenching the club out of his hand, 
 and then he battered his head with it, so that the Club- 
 carrier died by the same weapon with which he had 
 killed others. This was the first heroic deed that 
 Theseus had performed, and he took the iron club away 
 with him to serve both for a weapon and a trophy. 
 
 Soon afterwards he came to a fir-wood, where there 
 lived a robber called the Fir-bender. He was tall and 
 strong, with long bristly hair, and he looked very fierce 
 and wild. It was his delight to seize travellers and 
 torture them cruelly : he used to bend two flexible fir- 
 trees down to the ground, and tie each of the traveller's 
 feet to one of these trees, and then he let them spring 
 apart, and broke out into a hideous laugh when he saw 
 the body torn in two and one half hanging to each of 
 the trees. Theseus knew that the robber lived in the 
 
 x 2 
 
180 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 forest, and he went straight to his house. The Fir- 
 bender came out to seize him, but Theseus wrestled 
 with him and threw him. He resolved to punish him 
 with the torture that he had himself devised, and he 
 bent down two young fir-trees and tore the robber's body 
 in two, though he screamed horribly and entreated 
 Theseus to spare him. The Fir-bender had a daughter 
 called Perigune who lived with him in the forest. She 
 was not at all like her father, but was, on the contrary, 
 gentle and good, and she used to tend the plants and 
 flowers that grew near their house. When she saw that 
 Theseus had killed her father, she was afraid and thought 
 he would kill her too, so she hid herself among some 
 large-leaved plants, and said to them, just as if they 
 could understand her, that if they would shelter her 
 she would never pluck any of them again. Theseus 
 looked everywhere for her, but he could not see her on 
 account of the thick leaves. He guessed that she must 
 have hidden herself, and so he called out to her not to 
 be afraid, for he would not do her any harm. His voice 
 sounded so kind that she was encouraged to come out, 
 and they sat and talked together, and Perigune gave 
 him some food, after which Theseus took leave of 
 her and went away. The girl never plucked any flowers 
 from the plants among which she had hidden herself, 
 nor from any others of the same kind, and when she 
 became the wife of a hero she taught her children that 
 they must never do so either, and they in turn brought 
 up their children in the same way, so that no one wljo 
 was of the race of the robber ever injured any plants of 
 that kind. 
 
 Theseus had heard that there was a fierce she-boar 
 
THESEUS. 181 
 
 in the neighbourhood that did a great deal of damage, 
 and he resolved that he would rid the people of her. 
 He came upon her footprints in the grass, and followed 
 them till he had tracked her to her den. She started 
 up to kill him with her tusks, and a fierce struggle 
 followed, in which Theseus handled his club valiantly, 
 and at last hit the boar a mighty blow on the head 
 which cracked her skull and made an end of her. Then 
 Theseus wiped the dew from his forehead and continued 
 his journey. His road now lay along a rocky path above 
 the sea, and he presently came to a rock which was the 
 abode of the robber Sciron. He was a strong, powerful 
 man, who amused himself in a very horrible manner. 
 He used to sit on a rock above the sea, blocking up the 
 road so that no one could pass, and he compelled every 
 traveller who came that way to wash his feet, and while 
 they were doing this he kicked them over the cliff, so 
 that they fell down into the sea where there lurked a 
 great tortoise ready to eat them up. Theseus treated 
 the robber just as he had treated others ; he was the 
 stronger of the two, and he compelled Sciron to do as 
 he told him, and wash his feet, and then he kicked him 
 over the cliff, and the tortoise seized him by the neck 
 and gobbled him up. 
 
 That same evening Theseus reached the house of 
 the wicked Stretcher, whose custom it was to sit before 
 his door and invite travellers to lodge with him for the 
 night. He always fed them sumptuously, but at bed-time 
 he brought out two bedsteads, a big one and a little one, 
 and he took the short people to the big bedstead and 
 killed them by stretching out their limbs till they were as 
 long as the couch, (for which reason he was called the 
 
I 2 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 Stretcher) and the tall people he laid upon the little 
 bedstead and lopped off as much of their limbs as 
 extended beyond it, and then he left them to bleed to 
 death. Theseus behaved as if he did not know about 
 the robber's wicked practices : he ate and drank and 
 carried on a cheerful conversation, but when the robber 
 led him into the sleeping-chamber, Theseus seized him 
 round the body, threw him on to the short bedstead, 
 and then drew his sword and hewed off his legs above 
 the knees ; then two great streams of blood gushed 
 forth, and the robber died. Theseus dragged the body 
 out into the open air where it was devoured by wolves, 
 vultures, and ravens, but he himself lay down to rest in 
 the house and slept till the morning, and when the day 
 dawned, he went on his way. The Stretcher was the 
 last robber he met with, and ever after this journey 
 of his, travellers could go from Troezen to Greece 
 without fear of being robbed and killed, and as they 
 journeyed they thought of the young hero Theseus to 
 Avhom they owed their safety. 
 
 Theseus soon afterwards arrived in Athens. He 
 first of all bathed himself in a stream near the city, for 
 he was covered with dust and blood, and when he was 
 cleansed, he entered the town and was conducted to his 
 father's palace. He went in saying that he was a 
 stranger, and begged the king to show him hospitality. 
 Aegeus was now old, and he was very sorrowful, for he 
 thought that his son must be dead and that the wicked 
 Pallantidae would succeed to the kingdom. The witch 
 Medea was with him, for he had received her when she 
 fled from Corinth in her chariot drawn by dragons. 1 
 1 See page 175. 
 
THESEUS. 18S 
 
 She was wise and crafty in speech, and she had succeeded 
 in gaming so great an influence over the king that he 
 asked her advice in all things, and followed it. No one 
 knew who Theseus was except Medea, but she knew, 
 for she could find out any secret by means of her rnagic 
 arts. She was not at all pleased that Theseus had come 
 to Athens, for she feared that the king would set greater 
 store by his son than by her, and that her power would 
 now be at an end. So she told Aegeus that the stranger 
 was a kinsman of the Pallantidae, and that he had come 
 for the purpose of killing him. The poor old king be- 
 lieved what she told him and was seized with fear, and 
 he asked her what he had better do to save his life. 
 Medea answered that she would mix some poison with 
 the wine that Theseus was to drink, and Aegeus gave 
 her leave to do so. But while they were at dinner, it 
 happened that Theseus wanted to cut off a piece of 
 roasted meat, and he drew his sword to cut it, for 
 the Greeks had not at that time learnt the use of 
 knives and forks. Then Aegeus recognised the sword, 
 and he sprang up and dashed the goblet from the table ; 
 the poisoned wine flowed all over the floor, but Aegeus 
 paid no attention to it, for he had flung his arms round 
 Theseus, and was embracing him and crj ing out, ' My 
 son, my son.' Both the father and son rejoiced greatly 
 at thus finding each other, and they had many things 
 to ask and to tell, and when Theseus related how he 
 had destroyed the robbers, the joy of the old king was 
 doubled at finding that his son was so brave a hero. 
 Meanwhile he gave no thought to the wicked Medea 
 who had intended to poison Theseus, and she went out 
 and called her dragon-car. It came rushing through 
 
184 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 the air towards her, and she got into it and flew away, 
 and has never been seen again. 
 
 The old king was quite happy now, and he sent a 
 herald to proclaim all through the city that Theseus 
 was his son and the heir to his kingdom. No one 
 grudged him his happiness except the wicked Pallas 
 and his sons, who till now had been the chief men in 
 the city. They were rich and had a great many ser- 
 vants, and they assembled them all in a little wood near 
 the city, intending to leave some of them there in 
 ambush, and to lead the others towards the city and 
 shout to Theseus to come out and fight them. They 
 thought that he would come out against them with a 
 few men only, and that after the battle had begun, they 
 would be joined by the servants left in the wood which 
 would make the odds very unequal ; and they hoped that 
 they would thus be able to kill Theseus, and then go 
 on into the city and murder the old king. But after 
 they had made all their preparations, one of the ser- 
 vants went to Aegeus and revealed the treachery they 
 were planning. Then Theseus went out towards the 
 wood, followed by a number of the citizens, and slew 
 the men who were in ambush there, and when the rest 
 heard that, they were afraid, and fled from the country. 
 
 Theseus was anxious to perform some heroic deed 
 which would benefit the Athenians and make them 
 love and honour him. There was at that time a fierce 
 bull in the country who killed men and cattle, and who 
 was called the Bull of Marathon, because he lived near 
 Marathon, which is close to Athens. It was the same 
 beast that had formerly been called the Cretan Bull, and 
 had been brought by Heracles from Crete, at the com- 
 
THESEUS. 185 
 
 maud of Eurystheus, as his seventh Labour. 1 Ever since 
 that time the savage bull had been at large in Greece, 
 doing much damage. Theseus went out against him 
 without either sword or club, for he wished to overcome 
 the bull by his own hero-strength alone, and bring him 
 alive to Athens ; some of the citizens went with him, 
 but only to* look on at a distance. When Theseus came 
 in sight of the bull, he stood still, and the bull rushed 
 at him, bellowing and lowering his head to run his 
 horns into him and toss him up high into the air, as he 
 had tossed many a one before. But Theseus seized 
 him by the horns and dragged him aside, and then a 
 mighty wrestling took place, the eyes of the young hero 
 glowed like fire, and the veins of his arms were swollen 
 high with the effort he had to make. When they had 
 wrestled for some time, the bull grew tired and tried to 
 get free, but Theseus held him fast and dragged him 
 into the city, and all the Athenians came out to meet 
 him, and they praised him and said that he was like 
 Heracles. Theseus then took the bull to the temple of 
 Apollo to sacrifice him to the god. He cut off the 
 hairs from the animal's forehead, as the custom was, 
 and laid them in the flame of the fire that was burning 
 on the altar and prayed to Apollo, and then he took 
 up the sacrificial axe, and felled the great bull to the 
 ground with a single blow. The sacrifice was then 
 performed in the usual manner, and it was the most 
 splendid animal that had ever been offered to any god. 
 The Athenians were proud of their strong young prince, 
 and they loved and honoured him. 
 
 Not long after this, the time came round when the 
 1 See page 122. 
 
186 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 Athenians were obliged to send their tribute to the 
 king of Crete ; it was, indeed, a shameful tribute, 
 seven youths and seven maidens, who were sent to 
 perish there miserably. Minos> the king of Crete, 
 had had a son named Androgeus, who had once hap- 
 pened to come to Athens just when there was a feast 
 going on, and sports in which all the young men vied 
 with one another in feats of skill and strength; and he 
 had taken part in the sports, and had excelled all others 
 and won the prize of honour. But the Athenians were 
 very angry at his having beaten them, and they lay in 
 wait for him as he was on his way home, and fell upon 
 him and killed him. When his father, King Minos, 
 heard of this, he swore that the Athenians should suffer 
 for it, and he prepared his ships and sailed with a 
 mighty army to fight against Athens. The gods took 
 the part ol Minos and sent a pestilence among the 
 Athenians ; they also dried up their rivers and spoiled 
 their harvests, so that there was great distress through- 
 out the country. At last the Athenians were obliged 
 to sue for peace, and Minos granted it on condition 
 that every nine years they should give him a tribute of 
 seven youths and seven maidens. There was a wonderful 
 house in Crete where the youths and maidens who were 
 sent as tribute met with a miserable death. The house 
 was called the Labyrinth, and it was as large as a town, 
 and had countless courts and galleries. Those who 
 entered it without being familiar with its passages could 
 never find their way out again, and they hurried from 
 one to another of the numberless rooms looking for the 
 entrance door, but all in vain, they only became more 
 and more hopelessly lost in the bewildering house, and 
 
THESEUS. 187 
 
 at last a monster who lived there, came and ate them 
 up. He was called the Minotaur, and he had the form 
 of a man, excepting his head, which was that of a bull, 
 and he had a bull's voice. 
 
 When the time for paying the tribute came round, 
 all the youths and maidens of Athens had to assemble 
 in the market-place. Then two brazen vessels were 
 brought out, and they put a number of balls into each 
 of them ; into one vessel they put as many balls as 
 there were youths in the city, and into the other as 
 many balls as there were maidens ; seven of the balls 
 in each vessel were black, and all the rest were white. 
 All the youths and maidens in turn had to put their 
 hand into one of the vessels and draw out a ball with- 
 out looking, and those who drew the black balls had to 
 go on board the ship that was waiting to take them to 
 Crete. For this sorrowful journey the ship always had 
 black sails instead of white ones. 
 
 For the third time the Athenians were now 
 obliged to pay the tribute of seven youths and seven 
 maidens to the king of Crete. When Theseus heard 
 about it, he begged his father to let him sail with 
 them, for he hoped that he would be able to kill the 
 monster and deliver the Athenians. The king was 
 afraid that Theseus would never come back, notwith- 
 standing the great deeds he had already performed, and 
 he refused at first to give his consent; but Theseus said 
 that it would be a disgrace to him if he did not go, and he 
 persisted in his request till his father granted it. When 
 the others had been chosen by lot, they all went on 
 board the ship which was ready to sail, and Aegeus and 
 many others went down to the shore to take leave of 
 
188 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 them. All were heart-broken at the parting except- 
 ing Theseus, but he was in very good spirits, for he 
 hoped this would be the last time that such a journey 
 would have .to be made. The old king gave him a 
 white sail which he begged him to hoist if he came 
 back in safety, saying, ' If you are alive when the ship 
 returns, let me know it by this signal ; but if on the 
 contrary you have perished, the black sail will tell me 
 the sad news as soon as the ship comes in sight.' 
 Theseus promised to do as his father wished, and then 
 he went on board the vessel and gave the signal to the 
 sailors, who plied their oars and pushed off from 
 the land. And Aegeus returned home and prayed to 
 the gods to bring his son back to him in safety. 
 
 After some time the voyage came to an end, and 
 the ship with the black sails arrived in Crete. Minos 
 sent his soldiers to conduct the youths and maidens to 
 a dungeon where they were to remain till the next day, 
 and as they passed through the streets many people 
 crowded to look at them, lamenting that the young 
 lives should be sacrificed. The procession went past 
 the palace gate where King Minos was standing with 
 his daughter Ariadne, who was a very beautiful girl. 
 When Ariadne saw Theseus she could not help gazing 
 at him, for she thought he looked more like a true hero 
 than any one she had ever seen, though many heroes 
 came to her father's court. She could not bear to think 
 that he must perish, and all night long, when every one 
 else was asleep, she lay awake on her couch thinking 
 how she could save him. In the morning she watched 
 for an opportunity and went to the prison, where she 
 had no difficulty in getting in because she was the 
 
THESEUS. 189 
 
 king's daughter. She called Theseus apart, and told him 
 that she loved him and longed to save him, and she 
 gave him a ball of thread and said that he must secretly 
 fasten one end of it to the entrance of the Labyrinth 
 and unravel it as he went along, so that he might be 
 able to find his way out again. She also gave him a 
 sharp sword which she had taken from her father's 
 armoury, that he might be armed for his struggle 
 with the Minotaur. Theseus thanked the beautiful 
 Ariadne, and told her that he was the son of the king 
 of Athens, and that if he escaped in safety from the 
 Labyrinth he would take her home with him to be his 
 wife. She willingly consented to this, and then left 
 the prison, and soon afterwards the guards came to 
 take the prisoners to the Labyrinth ; they did not see 
 the sword and the ball of thread which Ariadne had 
 given to Theseus, for he had hidden them in his robe. 
 When they reached the Labyrinth they led the prisoners 
 a long way into it and then left them, thinking that 
 they would never find their way out again, for they 
 did not notice that Theseus had unfastened his ball 
 at the entrance and let the thread pass through his 
 fingers as he went along. When the guards had turned 
 back, the youths and maidens thought they would have 
 to wander about hopelessly until the Minotaur came 
 and devoured them, but Theseus spoke to them en- 
 couragingly, and said that by the help of the gods he 
 would slay the monster and bring them out of their 
 trouble. About mid-day they heard the monster bel- 
 lowing in the distance ; he was still some way from 
 them, but he scented human blood, and as he came 
 nearer his bellowing grew louder and louder. The 
 
190 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 others crowded together in a corner, each wanting to 
 be the last to meet him, but Theseus stood forward in 
 the middle of the room with his naked sword raised, 
 waiting for his approach. He was as tall again as a 
 man, and he had powerful fists and a huge mouth, and 
 on his head were two great horns. He stretched out 
 his arm to seize Theseus and opened his mouth to bite 
 off his head, but Theseus sprang behind him and hewed 
 off one of his legs at the knee joint, and then the huge 
 giant fell down and bellowed until the walls shook with 
 the noise he made. Theseus measured with his eye to 
 see where his ,heart must be, and taking careful aim, 
 he stabbed him through the back at that place. A 
 great stream of blood gushed out, and the monster lay 
 on the ground groaning and moaning and beating about 
 wildly with his arms ; he did not hit any one, however, 
 and before long he was dead. The youths and maidens 
 all came round Theseus, and they fell down and kissed 
 his feet and hands. They waited till it was dark, and 
 then set out to leave the Labyrinth, Theseus going in 
 front and winding up the ball of thread as he went. 
 They passed through room after room and court after 
 court, till at last they reached the door, where they 
 found Ariadne waiting for them ; she had stolen away 
 from the palace, and was full of joy when she saw them 
 arrive. Then they all went together to the ship, which at 
 once put out to sea, and by daybreak they were already 
 far away. King Minos thought his daughter must have 
 been carried off by robbers, for it never occurred to him 
 that she could have sailed away with the prisoners whom 
 he believed to have been devoured by the Minotaur, 
 and he searched for her all over the island. When he 
 
THESEUS. 191 
 
 heard, some time afterwards, what had really happened, 
 he was so amazed at the bravery of Theseus that he 
 never again ventured to demand the tribute from the 
 Athenians. 
 
 When Theseus and his companions had sailed for 
 some days, they came to the island of Naxos, and as it 
 was evening, they went ashore to sleep. Naxos was the 
 favourite country of Dionysus, the wine-god ; he often 
 used to stay in the island, and he caused the finest 
 vines to grow there. Theseus and his companions slept 
 on the shore, and towards morning, Dionysus appeared 
 to Theseus in a dream and said to him, ' Rise up and 
 return home at once with your friends, but leave Ariadne 
 behind you, for T myself have chosen her to be my 
 wife.' Theseus awoke very sorrowful at having to leave 
 the beautiful Ariadne, but he knew that he must do as 
 the god commanded, and he roused his companions and 
 told them his dream, and then they went softly down 
 to the ship and sailed away, leaving Ariadne asleep on 
 the island. When it was bright daylight, Ariadne 
 awoke and found herself alone. She sprang up and ran 
 down to the shore, and seeing the ship some way out 
 at sea, she thought they had forgotten her, and waved 
 her veil as a signal for them to come back. The ship's 
 crew saw her, but they sailed on all the same, and then 
 Ariadne sat down on the shore and wept bitterly, for 
 she thought that Theseus had abandoned her because 
 he did not love her, and that she was left to perish in 
 misery and distress. As she sat thus weeping, -with her 
 beautiful head resting on her hand, and with her mind 
 full of sad thoughts, she heard a sound of flute-playing 
 on the island, which came nearer and nearer, and a 
 
192 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 crowd of men and women appeared before her in a 
 strange procession. The foremost was a marvellously 
 beautiful youth, who had a crown of vine-leaves on his 
 head, and drove in a golden chariot drawn by two 
 spotted panthers. The youth was Dionysus, and he 
 went up to Ariadne and said, 'Do not be afraid ; I am 
 the god who created the vine, and I love you, and am 
 going to make you my wife.' The marriage was cele- 
 brated that very day, and all the woods and valleys in 
 the island resounded with sweet music ; the Bacchantes 
 danced and sang, and the old Silenus who had taken care 
 of Dionysus in his childhood l was intoxicated the whole 
 day long by way of doing honour to his master. Ariadne 
 was now the wife of the god Dionysus, and she became 
 immortal, and was gifted with perpetual youth. 
 
 The ship that carried away Theseus soon reached 
 Athens, but Theseus was so absorbed in thoughts 
 of Ariadne that he forgot to hoist the white sails 
 which were to announce his safe return. The aged 
 Aegeus had passed many long hours since his son had 
 left him in sitting on a high rock from which he could 
 see far over the sea. At last he spied a sail coming 
 towards him, but when it approached a little nearer, he 
 saw that it was a black one. Then he thought that the 
 ship was returning without Theseus, and he threw him- 
 self over into the sea because he could not bear to live 
 any longer. Some of the people who were on the shore 
 saw what he had done, and they at once got into a boat 
 and sailed to the place where he had disappeared, 
 hoping to save him ; but they were too late, for when 
 they found him he was already dead. They laid the 
 ' See page 65. 
 
THESEUS. 193 
 
 corpse on a bier, and were standing sadly round it 
 when the ship came sailing in. The youths on board 
 raised a shout of joy at reaching their home again, but 
 the others beckoned to them to be silent, and pointed 
 to the corpse. When Theseus knew that his father 
 had killed himself at the sight of the black sail, he was 
 very much distressed, and he threw himself upon the 
 corpse shedding bitter tears. In the evening the 
 Athenians carried the bier to the palace, and the next 
 day they raised a funeral pyre, and when they had burnt 
 the body, they placed the ashes in a costly urn. Theseus 
 sorrowed long for his father, and bitterly regretted that 
 he had not remembered the white sail at the right time. 
 Theseus was now king, and he ruled over the city of 
 Athens for a great number of years, and performed 
 many brave deeds. The Athenians had never before 
 had such a noble hero for their king, and they lived in 
 peace and safety, for their enemies feared Theseus and 
 did not dare to attack them. It happened once, that in 
 sailing along the coast of Asia, Theseus arrived at the 
 country of the Amazons, a nation of warlike women, l 
 one of whom was standing on the shore when Theseus 
 landed. She was so beautiful that he determined to 
 carry her off to be his wife, but the Amazons never 
 welcomed strangers, and when Theseus went up to her 
 she raised her lance, intending to pierce him with it. 
 Theseus however was not afraid, and putting his arms 
 round the maiden, he carried her off to the ship and 
 his comrades rowed away as fast as they could. The 
 other Amazons came running down to the shore when 
 they heard the cries of their sister, but they could not 
 1 See page 125. 
 O 
 
MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 overtake the ship. The Amazon that Theseus had 
 carried off was named Hippolyta. At first she was very 
 angry with him, but soon she came to love him with all 
 her heart and had no wish to go home again. When 
 they reached Athens, Hippolyta became the wife of 
 Theseus, and the gods sent them a little son whom 
 they named Hippolytus. Hippolyta was now queen 
 of Athens ; but the Amazons had made up their 
 minds to deliver their sister and punish the stranger 
 who had run away with her, and they took ship 
 and sailed to Greece. It was a strange sight to see 
 women with helmets on their heads and shields at their 
 sides, managing the vessels ; and when they came to 
 Greece every one was afraid of them. They did not 
 know who it was that had carried off their sister, so 
 they made inquiries ; and when they found it was 
 Theseus, they set out for Athens, and as soon as they 
 entered his dominions they began to lay waste the corn- 
 fields and kill both men and women. Some of the 
 people escaped, however, and hastened to the city to 
 warn the king that the Amazons were marching towards 
 it, and he armed his people and led them out to the 
 fight. Then a fierce battle took place, and many of the 
 Athenians were killed. Queen Hippolyta stood on the 
 wall of the city watching the battle, full of anxiety lest 
 Theseus should be killed by the Amazons, and she longed 
 so much to help him that at last she armed herself with a 
 spear and shield, and went out to take part in the fray. 
 The Amazons thought at first that she had come to 
 join them, but when they found out what was the real 
 state of the case they became furious. They were now 
 more angry with her than with Theseus, and they 
 hurled their lances at her till oue of them hit her in 
 
THESEUS. 195 
 
 the breast, and she sank down and died. Theseus was 
 standing by her, and when he saw that she was dead, 
 he was seized with uncontrollable fury, and he struck 
 down one after another of the Amazons until they 
 were all killed. It was a great victory, and the first 
 that any one had ever gained over the Amazons, but 
 Theseus could take no pleasure in it because of the loss 
 of Hippolyta. 
 
 There was a nation in Greece called the Lapithae, 
 whose king, Pirithoiis, was a brave and noble hero. He 
 had heard so much about Theseus that he resolved to 
 try whether he was as much of a hero as every one said. 
 So he entered his country and stole some cattle arid 
 carried them away. When Theseus heard of it, he set 
 out in pursuit of Pirithoiis, who took no pains to escape 
 from him, but rather the contrary, for he had stolen the 
 cattle, not for the sake of having them, but because 
 he wanted to see what Theseus would be like when he 
 was angry. When Theseus overtook him, Pirithoiis 
 marvelled at his strength and beauty and at the fire of 
 his eyes which were glowing with impatience for the 
 fight, and Theseus on his part was so delighted with 
 the brave and manly appearance of Pirithoiis that he 
 quite forgot that he had been angry with him. 
 Pirithoiis went up to him holding out his hand, and 
 said, ' I will atone for the theft I have committed ; you 
 may impose upon me whatever punishment you will.' 
 Theseus gave him his hand in return, and said that he 
 would impose no punishment, but would rather make 
 a sacred friendship with him. They promised each 
 other that they would be as brothers, and would always 
 be ready to stand by one another, and called upon i 
 
 o 2 
 
196 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 to witness their oaths and bless their friendship, and 
 then they returned, each to his own country. 
 
 Some time after this, Pirithoiis invited a number of 
 guests to celebrate his marriage with a beautiful 
 princess, and the most honoured of all the guests was 
 Theseus. All the great men among the Lapithae were 
 at the wedding, and also the savage Centaurs, who had 
 the lower part of their bodies formed like the bodies of 
 horses. But when the fierce Centaurs became intoxi- 
 cated, they tried to run away with the bride of Pirithoiis 
 and the other women, and the marriage feast ended in 
 a bloody fight. The vessels that had been used at the 
 feast served for arms, and they threw goblets, dishes, 
 and drinking cups at one another. The Centaurs were 
 stronger than the Lapithae, and would certainly have 
 gained the victory if the Lapithae had not had the help 
 of Theseus, who had brought his iron club with him 
 and struck down the Centaurs with it, till the dead 
 bodies of those whom he had killed lay upon the 
 ground in heaps and the few that remained took to 
 flight. Then peace was restored, though not before a 
 great number of the Lapithae had perished, and Theseus 
 returned home, glad that he had been able to give this 
 proof of his friendship for Pirithoiis. 
 
 Theseus was always ready to help those who were 
 in the right, and as his fame spread far and wide, every 
 one who was oppressed came to Athens and stood before 
 the Altar of Pity which had been raised in the centre 
 of the market-place. Then Theseus inquired into his 
 case, and if he found that he had been wronged, he 
 took care to see that justice was done. This gained for 
 him the hatred of the wicked oppressors, but all those 
 who cared for justice honoured and loved him. 
 
THESEUS. 197 
 
 Theseus had reigned for a long time, and his son 
 Hippolytus had grown up to be a man, when he resolved 
 to marry again, and asked Minos the king of Crete to 
 let him have his daughter Phaedra, the sister of Ariadne, 
 for his wife. Minos had long before this forgiven 
 Theseus for having killed the Minotaur and carried off 
 Ariadne, and he willingly consented to give him his 
 younger daughter in marriage. Phaedra was many 
 years younger than Theseus and had been quite a child 
 when he was in Crete, but she now became queen of 
 Athens, and Theseus loved her dearly and did all he 
 could to please her. His son, who had been named 
 Hippolytus after his mother, did not live at Athens, 
 but in Troezen with his grandmother who had brought 
 him up since the death of Hippolyta. He was noble 
 and virtuous, and he loved the chase and all manly 
 pursuits, and honoured, above all other gods and 
 goddesses, the huntress-goddess Artemis. Hippolytus 
 came one day to Athens on a visit, and when Phaedra 
 saw him, she was so dazzled by his youth and beauty 
 that she began to love him passionately, and after his 
 return she used to spend many hours every day sitting 
 on the city walls and looking towards Troezen. She 
 used to take her old nurse there with her, and talk to 
 her about Hippolytus, and tell her how willingly she 
 would give up honour and riches for his sake. The next 
 time Hippolytus came to Athens she had a secret con- 
 versation with him, and begged him to flee away and 
 take her with him to be his wife. But Hippolytus was 
 angry with her for plotting such treachery against his 
 father, and he was so shocked at what she had said that 
 he mounted his chariot and drove his spirited horses 
 
198 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 back towards Troezen. Phaedra now hated him for 
 having spurned her, and she thought of a plan by which 
 she might revenge herself upon him. She went to 
 Theseus and told him with many tears that Hippolytus 
 had proposed to her to run away with him and become 
 his wife, and Theseus believed what she told him, and 
 he was very, very angry, and said that Hippolytus 
 should atone for it with his life. 
 
 Theseus was loved by the gods, and especially by 
 Poseidon the sea-god, who had once promised him that 
 if ever he prayed to him in any time of trouble, he 
 would certainly grant his request, whatever it might 
 be. Many years had passed away since then, and 
 Theseus had never had so great a desire for anything as 
 to think of asking the sea-god for it ; but now that 
 Phaedra accused his son of this great crime, he en- 
 treated Poseidon to fulfil his dearest wish and cause 
 Hippolytus to die immediately. At that moment, 
 Hippolytus who was driving along the sea-shore, saw 
 the waves suddenly part asunder and a hideous monster 
 come out of them, who roared horribly. The frightful 
 appearance of the monster and the noise he made, 
 rendered the horses quite unmanageable, and Hippo- 
 lytus could not hold them in. They ran away with the 
 chariot, dragging it over stones and rocks, till at last it 
 was upset, and Hippolytus was thrown out and trampled 
 to death. The people found his body and brought it 
 to Athens, and Theseus knew that Poseidon had granted 
 his prayer. But when Phaedra saw the corpse, she was so 
 grieved and sick at heart that she went into her sleep- 
 ing chamber and hanged herself, and then the old nurse 
 told the king the whole truth. When Theseus knew 
 
THESEUS. 199 
 
 that his innocent son had perished because of his 
 virtue, he was quite overcome with grief, and threw 
 himself upon the corpse, kissing it and weeping 
 passionately, and for many days he shut himself up 
 alone in his palace and refused either to eat or drink. 
 
 Theseus thought that the best way of regaining his 
 spirits would be to undertake some new exploit which 
 would give a fresh turn to his thoughts. The wife of 
 Pirithoiis was also dead, and the two heroes determined 
 to set out together to seek for two beautiful women 
 whom they might carry off to become their wives. 
 They had heard that Tyndareus, the king of Sparta, had 
 a lovely daughter named Helena, and they set out for 
 Sparta, and reached it just at the time of the festival 
 pf Artemis. The maidens of the city kept the festival 
 by dancing round the altar of the goddess, and Helena 
 was among them, and was distinguished from all the 
 others by her marvellous beauty. The two heroes 
 rushed in among the maidens and seized Helena, and 
 when they had carried her off to a place of safety, they 
 cast lots for her, to see whose wife she should be. The 
 lot fell to Theseus, and he took her to his mother 
 Aethra and begged her to take care of the maiden 
 until he should return for her, for he wanted to go and 
 help his friend also to carry off a wife by force. They 
 were so bold as to resolve that they would descend into 
 the Land of Shades and steal away the queen of the 
 Lower World, although this was in undertaking so daring 
 that nothing like it had ever before been attempted by 
 any hero. They passed through the chasm which was 
 the entrance to the Lower World, and went down far 
 below the earth till at last they reached the Land of 
 
200 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 Shades. They were now very tired, and as they ex- 
 pected to have a hard struggle before they could get 
 possession of the queen, they thought they would rest 
 a little first, and sat down on a stone which they saw 
 near them. But when they wanted to get up again, 
 they found that they had stuck fast to the stone and 
 could not move. The king of the Lower World, who 
 knew for what purpose they had dared to come into his 
 dominions, had prevented their getting up again, and he 
 punished them by obliging them to sit there for ever. 
 
 So the two heroes were kept prisoners in the Lower 
 World ; and meanwhile, the brothers of Helena, whose 
 names were Castor and Pollux, set out to free their 
 sister. Their mother was the beautiful Leda, wife of 
 King Tyndareus, who was sitting one day by the 
 river bank when a snow-white swan came sailing by. 
 Leda was charmed with his beauty and called him to 
 come to her, and the swan came on shore and embraced 
 her. It was not a real swan however, but Zeus, who 
 loved the beautiful Leda, and had come to her in this 
 form. Some time after this, Leda had four children ; 
 there were two large eggs, and out of each egg there 
 came a little boy and a little girl. Two of them were 
 the children of Zeus, and their names were Pollux 
 and Helena ; the other two were called Castor and Cly- 
 taemnestra. When they grew up, the two brothers, 
 Castor and Pollux, became glorious heroes. No one 
 understood so well how to tame wild horses as Castor, 
 and no one was so skilled in wrestling as Pollux. 1 They 
 were also kind and gentle, and loved one another so 
 dearly that they shared everything, and they performed 
 1 See page 157. 
 
THESEUS. 201 
 
 many heroic deeds together, and won great fame. But 
 in the course of time, Castor died and passed into the 
 Lower World, where he became an unthinking shade. 
 Pollux did not die, for it was decreed that as he was a 
 son of Zeus he should become immortal and live among 
 the gods. But his immortality was a burden to him, 
 for he could not bear to live without his brother, and 
 he begged his father Zeus to grant them both the same 
 fate, so that they might either be both in Olympus or 
 both in the Lower World. Zeus was pleased at their love 
 for one another, and he said that they should both be 
 in Olympus one day and both be in the Lower World 
 on the alternate day, and thus they should always 
 remain together. The two brothers were named the 
 Dioscuri, or the children of Zeus, and two bright stars 
 which stand close to one another in the sky are named 
 after them. 
 
 At the time however when Theseus carried off 
 Helena, the brothers were still alive and in the first 
 bloom of their youth. They set out with their com- 
 panions for Athens, thinking that Theseus must have 
 taken their sister to his capital; but when they 
 reached it they were told that he had gone away on 
 an adventurous enterprise, and the Athenians took a 
 solemn oath that the maiden was not within their walls. 
 The brothers asked where she was hidden, and one of 
 the citizens who knew, told them; then they went 
 away without doing any harm to any one, and marched 
 to Troezen, where they compelled Aethra to let them 
 take their beautiful sister home with them. 
 
 Theseus and Pirithoiis sat upon the stone for many 
 years, until the time came when Heracles was com- 
 
202 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 manded by Eurystheus to descend into the Lower World 
 and fetch up the three-headed dog Cerberus. 1 When 
 the captive heroes saw him, they called to him and told 
 him of their trouble, and begged him to help them. 
 Then Heracles seized the hand of Theseus with such 
 a mighty grasp that the stone was compelled to leave 
 go and allow him to get up. He next seized hold of 
 Pirithous, but at that moment the earth quaked, and 
 fearful sounds were heard, which signified that the gods 
 would not grant freedom to Pirithous, but doomed him 
 to sit upon the stone for ever, because he had presumed 
 to desire the queen of the Lower World for his wife. 
 
 So Theseus was obliged to leave his friend in the 
 Land of Shades, and he took leave of him and returned 
 to the Upper World ; but in the meanwhile his hair had 
 turned grey, and his appearance had become very much 
 altered. Now while he was a prisoner in the Lower 
 World, a mischief-making person had been telling the 
 people that their king spent all his time in going abou f . 
 on daring expeditions, and was of no use to his subjects ; 
 so when Theseus came back to Athens, he found that 
 the people had no longer any affection or esteem for 
 him. He would not live amongst those who did not 
 make him welcome, and he left his country and got 
 into a ship and sailed to the island of Scyros. Part of 
 the island belonged to a king named Lycomedes, but 
 the rest of it belonged to Theseus, and he had resolved 
 to spend the remaining days of his life there, so he 
 \\ent to the king and told him so. The king was by 
 no means pleased, for he was a cowardly man and he 
 thought that Theseus would not leave him in peaceful 
 1 See page 135. 
 
THESEUS. 203 
 
 possession of his share, but would make himself king of 
 the whole island. He pretended, however, to welcome 
 Theseus, and said that he would take him to a moun- 
 tain where he would have a view of the whole country. 
 They both climbed up the mountain, which had a steep 
 precipice on one side of it, and when Theseus was pre- 
 occupied in looking at the country, Lycomedes got 
 behind him and pushed him over the cliff. Theueus died 
 from the great fall, and thus the strong hero lost his life 
 at the hands of one cowardly man. They found his body 
 lying at the foot of the precipice with the bones broken, 
 and they buried him in the island. 
 
 Many years passed away, and the age of the heroes 
 and the sons of the gods had quite gone by, when the 
 Athenians sent one day to the Oracle at Delphi to 
 inquire of the Pythia about the future. The Pythia 
 told them that they had bettei fetch the bones of 
 Theseus from Scyros and keep them in their city, 
 because these bones would prove a great blessing to 
 them. They did not fail to attend to this direction, 
 and sent ships manned with a large number of 
 Athenians to the island of Scyros, to seek for the 
 bones of Theseus and bring them home. But no one 
 could tell them where the grave of the hero was, for 
 during that long time it had been forgotten. They 
 went all over the island seeking for it, and at last it 
 was revealed to them by a sign from heaven : a mighty 
 eagle swooped down on to a hill and pecked the ground 
 many times with his beak, then he soared up again and 
 disappeared among the clouds. The Athenians dug 
 into the hill and found a coffin containing bones much 
 larger than the bones of the men of that time, and 
 
204 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 there was also a sword and spear in the same coffin. 
 They knew by the sign that had been given them from 
 heaven that these were the bones of Theseus, and they 
 carried the coffin to their finest ship and sailed home 
 with it. The ship was beautifully adorned with garlands 
 and streamers, and when it reached Athens the citizens 
 put on their best clothes and came out to meet it, sing- 
 ing and playing on the flute, just as if it were Theseus 
 himself who was returning to his country. They buried 
 his bones in the middle of the city, and consecrated the 
 spot as a Kefuge or place of safety : if, for example, a 
 slave were pursued by his master and he could succeed 
 in reaching the tomb of Theseus, the master had no 
 longer any right to touch him. In this manner the 
 Athenians honoured the memory of Theseus, who during 
 his lifetime had always been so ready to take the part 
 of the weak against the strong They also came in 
 time to look upon him as a god, and offered sacrifices 
 to him. 
 
205 
 
 XXIX. 
 
 OEDITUS. 
 
 THERE was once a king of Thebes called Lai'us, and he 
 had a wife whose name was Jocasta. There was also a 
 soothsayer in Thebes, who said that if the queen had 
 a son it would be a great misfortune, for that when he 
 grew up, he would kill his father and marry his mother. 
 Some time afterwards the queen had a little son, a 
 strong child with bright merry eyes; but Lai'us de- 
 termined to kill it in order to prevent the prediction 
 of the soothsayer from coming true, and he told one of 
 his servants to take the little child to a mountain called 
 Cithaeron, which was covered with forests, and leave it 
 there to be devoured by wild beasts ; but before he sent 
 it away, the king tied a string tightly round its ankles, 
 which made the little feet swell. The servant did as 
 he was told, and left the child lying in the forest. But 
 it happened that the cattle of Polybus, the king of 
 Corinth, were at that time pasturing on the mountain, 
 and one of the herdsmen who was in charge of them, 
 chanced, in searching for a cow that had gone astray, 
 to go through the forest and to pass by the spot where 
 the child of King Laius had been left to perish. He 
 was sorry for the poor little thing, and he took it up 
 and untied the string round its feet, and laid cooling 
 
206 MYTHS OF! HELL AS. 
 
 herbs upon the sore places. King Polybus and his wife 
 had no child, though they wished very much for one, 
 and the herdsman, who knew this, thought that they 
 might like to have the little stranger to bring up as 
 their own son. He took the beautiful little boy to 
 Corinth and showed him to the king and queen, who 
 were very much pleased, and they said they would keep 
 him for their own, and told the herdsman not to let 
 any one know that he had found him in the forest. So 
 Laius thought that his child had been devoured by 
 wild beasts, while the Corinthians thought that the gods 
 had granted the wish of their queen and had sent her 
 a child, and nobody, not even the king and queen 
 themselves, knew that he was the son of Lai'us and 
 Jocasta. The child's feet were still swollen when he 
 was brought to Corinth, so they called him Oedipus, 
 which means Swollen-Foot. 
 
 Oedipus grew up to be brave and strong, and the king 
 and queen, who were very fond of him, treated him just 
 as if they were his real parents and never told him 
 that he had not been born in Corinth. When he was 
 a young man, he went one day to Delphi to ask the 
 Oracle what would happen to him, and the priestess 
 answered, 'You will kill your father and marry your 
 mother.' Oedipus shuddered, and resolved to leave 
 Corinth at once that he might never fulfil such a 
 horrible prediction. He ordered his chariot, and let his 
 horses take whichever road they pleased, for he did not 
 care where he went, so long as it was away from Corinth. 
 By-and-by he came to a strange country, and found 
 himself in a narrow lane where there was not even 
 room for two chariots to pass one another, and whilst 
 
OEDIPUS. 207 
 
 he was still in this narrow lane, he met a king who was 
 coming in his chariot from the opposite direction. The 
 king commanded Oedipus to stand aside and let him 
 pass in such a haughty manner that Oedipus refused to 
 obey him, and after they had exchanged some angry 
 words, they seized their arms, and Oedipus before long 
 struck the king a deadly blow. The king was Lai'us, 
 the father of Oedipus, and thus a part of the Oracle was 
 already fulfilled ; but Oedipus did not know this, and he 
 did not feel at all sorry for having killed the stranger, 
 as it was he who had begun the quarrel. He went on 
 through Greece and accomplished many brave deeds, 
 and after some time he came to the neighbourhood of 
 Thebes, where he heard a strange story indeed. 
 
 On the mountain near Thebes, there was a monster 
 called the Sphinx, who could speak. She devoured 
 both men and cattle, and no one had been able to over- 
 come her. She asked every one who came near her a 
 riddle which she had learnt from the Muses, who are 
 the goddesses of song, and she devoured every one who 
 could not answer it ; but it had been decreed by fate 
 that if any one should ever succeed in guessing it, she 
 would be obliged to throw herself down from the moun- 
 tain and die. Many people had already tried to do so, 
 but they had all failed and had been devoured by the 
 Sphinx in consequence, so that no one else would 
 attempt it, and there was no end to the misery in the 
 land. The Thebans met together to consider what 
 could be done, and they agreed that if any one would 
 answer the riddle and deliver the city from the monster, 
 he should, as a reward, be made king of Thebes, and 
 bave Jocasta for his wife. King Lai'us had been found 
 
208 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 dead in the narrow lane some time before, but it war 
 not known who had killed him. 
 
 When Oedipus heard that the Thebans had agreed 
 to give the kingdom to any one who would deliver them 
 from the Sphinx, he said to himself, ' I dare not return 
 to my father's country, and I will therefore seek to win 
 a kingdom for myself,' for he still thought that his father 
 was the king of Corinth. So he set out for the moun- 
 tain where the Sphinx lived. She was like a gigantic 
 lioness, with a woman's head, and powerful wings grow- 
 ing out of her shoulders, and all round her lay the bones 
 of the men whom she had devoured. It was a horrible 
 sight, but Oedipus was not afraid, and he desired her 
 to tell him the riddle. Then she began to sing, ' There 
 is a creature of wondrous kind ; at first it goes on four 
 legs, then on two, and at last it uses three. There is 
 none like it among all those that walk on the earth, or 
 swim in the water, or fly in the air.' Oedipus put his 
 hand to his forehead and thought for a while. Then it 
 came into his mind that as a little child, man crawls 
 about on four legs, and that in his old age he uses a 
 stick, which is just like a third leg, and he said, ' The 
 wonderful creature is man.' As soon as the words had 
 passed his lips, the Sphinx threw herself from the 
 mountain, and fell down dead into the valley below. 
 The Thebans, who were watching from the city, saw 
 what happened, and they came out to meet Oedipus 
 with shouts of joy. They hailed him as their king and 
 led him into the palace, and on the same day he was 
 married to Queen Jocasta. Thus he became the hus- 
 band of his mother, and the whole of the prophecy was 
 fulfilled. But he did not know this, and was very happy. 
 
OEDIPUS. 209 
 
 He lived in great riches, and to all seeming, in great 
 honour, so that there was no one who did not look upon 
 him as a very fortunate man. 
 
 Many years had passed away, when there came a 
 messenger to Thebes to tell Oedipus that King Polybua 
 was dead, and to beg him to return to Corinth and be 
 king of the city. But Oedipus would not return there 
 on account of the Oracle, for though King Polybus, 
 whom he believed to be his father, was dead, the queen 
 was still alive, and he feared that some madness might 
 come over him and make him desire to marry his 
 mother. He told this to the messenger, who, as it 
 happened, was the old herdsman who had found Oedipus 
 in the forest when he was a child ; and he, thinking to 
 do the king a great service, told him in return that he 
 was not the son of Polybus, but a strange child who 
 had been found on Mount Cithaeron with his feet tied 
 together by a string. As soon as Jocasta heard this, 
 she knew that Oedipus must be her son, and when he 
 began to inquire about his father, he found that he. 
 must have been the king whom he had killed in the 
 narrow lane. All his prosperity and all his happiness 
 had now left him at a single blow, and there was not 
 a man in Thebes who did not consider himself better 
 off than the king. He was so wretched that he put 
 out his own eyes because he could not bear to face the 
 contemptuous looks of the Thebans ; and as for Jocasta, 
 she went into her bedchamber and hanged herself. 
 
 The Greeks believed that the presence of any one 
 who had committed a great crime, even though he had 
 done so unintentionally, made them unholy and brought 
 misfortune upon them, and on account of this, the 
 
 p 
 
210 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 Thebans resolved to banish Oedipus from their city. He 
 had two sons who w r ere strong youths and might have 
 protected their father if they had chosen, but they 
 would not interfere, because they wanted to rule over 
 the city themselves. The blind king was led out 
 of the city, but when he came to the gate he turned 
 round and prayed to the gods to punish his sons. He 
 would have been left quite alone to stumble over every 
 stone that lay in his path, if it had not been for one of 
 his daughters, who resolved to share his misery, and who 
 left the beautiful palace in order to take care of her 
 unhappy father in his distress. She was hJs eldest 
 daughter, and her name was Antigone. She and 
 Oedipus wandered from place to place, living on the 
 food that kind people threw to them, and their couch at 
 night was often beneath the blue sky with a hard stone 
 for their pillow, for the people were afraid to allow the 
 blind king to come into their houses, because of the 
 crimes that he had committed. Antigone suffered from 
 hunger and cold, and her feet were torn and bleeding 
 from the thorns, but she did not think much about 
 that, it was the misery of her father that pierced her 
 heart. 
 
 After they had wandered for many years, they came 
 -at last to Athens where Theseus, who was always willing 
 to help those who were in trouble was then king. In 
 the middle of the city was the Altar of Pity which he 
 had erected, 1 and Oedipus seated himself on one of the 
 steps of the altar as a sign that he sought for help. 
 Then Theseus came and asked who he was, and when 
 he heard his name, instead of turning away from him 
 1 See page 196. 
 
OEDIPUS. 211 
 
 with a shudder as every one else did, he took him by 
 the hand and led him into the palace, where he lived 
 with Antigone during the rest of his life. Before long, 
 however, Oedipus died, and his body was solemnly 
 burnt by the Athenians, for the Oracle said that they 
 must take great care of his ashes, which would prove a 
 blessing to the city. 
 
212 MYTHS OF HiLLLAS. 
 
 XXX. 
 
 THE SEVEN AGAINST THEBES. 
 
 THE sons of Oedipus were twins, and their names 
 were Eteocles and Polynices. When their father was 
 banished from Thebes they succeeded to the kingdom, 
 and agreed that they would each reign in turn for one 
 year. Eteocles had his turn first ; but he found it so 
 pleasant to be king that when the year came to an end 
 he refused to give up the sovereignty and drove his 
 brother from the city. Polynices was now an exile ; but 
 he determined that he would take no rest till he had 
 found some friends who would promise to help him to 
 revenge himself upon his brother. He set out for Argos, 
 where King Adrastus lived, and arrived there after dark 
 one evening. In the darkness he happened to jostle 
 against another hero who was also going into the palace, 
 and from angry words they soon came to blows, and 
 drew their swords to fight one another. King Adrastus 
 heard the clash of arms from within the palace, and he 
 took a torch and went out to see what was the matter. 
 He commanded the heroes to stop fighting, and asked 
 them what they wanted. Then Polynices explained 
 how he had been driven away from his country by his 
 brother, and how he hcped that the king would help 
 
THE SEVEN AGAINST THEBES. 
 
 him to claim his rights. The other hero, whose name 
 was Tydeus, had been driven from his country on 
 account of a murder that he had committed uninten- 
 tionally, and he had come to request the king to help 
 him to return home again. Whilst the heroes were 
 speaking, the king saw by the light of the torch the 
 shining brazen figures upon their shields. The Greek 
 heroes used to wear various kinds of devices on their 
 shields by which they could be recognised, such as ser- 
 pents, griffins, eagles, and so forth. Now, on the shield 
 of Polynices there was a lion, and on that of Tydeus a 
 boar's head, and when Adrastus saw these, he remem- 
 bered that once when he had asked the Oracle to whom 
 he should give his two daughters in marriage, the Oracle 
 had replied, ' To a lion and a wild boar.' Adrastus had 
 not understood the answer at the time, but he now per- 
 ceived that it must have referred to the two heroes, and 
 he therefore received them kindly, and said that he 
 would give them his daughters in marriage, and restore 
 them to their homes. The wedding soon took place, 
 and Tydeus was married to the elder daughter, and 
 Polynices to the younger. 
 
 The king said that he would first help Polynices, 
 and he assembled his soldiers, and summoned several 
 brave heroes to march with them. Three heroes, 
 Capaneus, Hippomedon, and Parthenopaeus, promised 
 to do so, which made six with the king and his two 
 sons-in-law. There was another hero in Argos, named 
 Amphiaraus, who was very wise and could foretell the 
 future, and the king did not like going to war unless he 
 went too, for he was not only brave and fearless, but he 
 always gave good counsel. But when Adrastus summoned 
 
214 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 him to march against Thebes, he said he would not go, 
 for he knew that they would not conquer the city, but 
 would all perish excepting Adrastus, who would return 
 alone. Amphiaraus knew this because he could see into 
 the future, but the others did not believe what he said 
 and thought he was afraid of going to the war, and 
 Capaneus, who was a very headstrong man, said, ' If the 
 gods themselves should declare against the expedition, 
 I am resolved to conquer the city in spite of them.' 
 Even Adrastus did not believe that the war would end 
 unhappily, and he said so to Amphiaraus, and pressed 
 him to accompany them. At last it was agreed that 
 Eriphyle, the wife of Amphiaraus, who was also the 
 sister of Adrastus, should decide the matter. There 
 had once been a bitter quarrel between Amphiaraus and 
 Adrastus which had led to their taking arms against 
 each other, and when peace was restored, they had 
 agreed that if ever any dispute should again arise 
 between them, Eriphyle should decide about it, and 
 that whatever she determined should be done. So 
 now Eriphyle had to decide about the going to war. 
 Amphiaraus foresaw that Polynices would try to bribe 
 her and he warned her to take no present from him, 
 and she promised to obey. But Polynices came to her 
 secretly with a beautiful necklace and veil, and said 
 that he would give them to her if she would decide 
 that Amphiaraus should go to the war. These were no 
 ordinary ornaments, but had been given by the god 
 Hephaestus to Cadmus and Harmonia when they cele- 
 brated their marriage in the Cadmea, 1 and had been 
 handed clown from father to son in the royal family of 
 1 See page 58. 
 
THE SEVEN AGAINST THEBES. 215 
 
 Thebes, till they had been worn, last of all, by Queeu 
 Jocasta. When Eriphyle saw the glittering necklace 
 and the snow-white veil, she could not overcome her 
 desire to possess them, and although she knew quite 
 well that if she counselled war it would cost her husband 
 his life, she promised to do so ; and when the heroes 
 came together to hear her decision, she said, * Amphiaraus 
 shall go to the war.' Amphiaraus knew that she must have 
 been bribed by Polynices, but he did not dare to make 
 any further difficulty, and accordingly prepared to set 
 out ; but before he left the city he called aside his two 
 sons, who were still young boys, and told them that 
 when they were grown up they were to kill their 
 mother because she had decided upon his death. 
 
 There were thus seven princes who set out to march 
 against Thebes, and they were accompanied by a goodly 
 band of soldiers, and all except Amphiaraus were merry 
 and in good spirits, for they did not know that they 
 were marching to their death. It was a long journey 
 to Thebes, and they had to travel for several days before 
 they came in sight of it. One day, as they were 
 approaching the city of Nemea, they had to pass 
 through a forest where they met a woman carrying a 
 young child in her arms. The woman was a servant of 
 King Lycurgus, who ruled over the city of Nemea, and 
 it was his child that she was taking care of. Her name 
 was Hypsipele, and her home was in the island of 
 Lemnos, where she had once been a queen herself. 1 
 The women of Lemnos had killed all the men in the 
 island and formed a kingdom composed entirely of 
 women, and they had made a law that any woman who 
 1 See page 153. 
 
216 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 should spare even her husband or son and not kill him, 
 should be severely punished. But Hypsipele loved her 
 old father too dearly not to be willing to brave the 
 punishment, and she kept him alive secretly, and used 
 to take him food and talk to him when the others were 
 asleep. This went on for a great many years, but at last 
 the other women found it out, and then they killed the 
 old father, and sold the queen as a slave to some pirates 
 who happened to be sailing past the island at the time. 
 The pirates sold her again in Nemea, and this was how 
 she came to be the slave of King Lycurgus, and the 
 nurse of his child. The heroes were very thirsty, for 
 it was just then mid-day, and they asked Hypsipele 
 if she knew of a spring where they could quench their 
 thirst. She told them that farther down in the valley 
 there was a spring of beautiful clear water, and said 
 that she would show them the way to it. The child 
 was frightened at their shining armour and clanging 
 weapons, so she left it playing on the grass, and went 
 alone with the men. They soon reached the spring and 
 quenched their thirst, and then they returned to the 
 place where they had left the child. But the child was 
 gone, and on a tree close by, there sat a great ugly 
 serpent who had eaten him up. The serpent was soon 
 punished for his wickedness, for one of the heroes 
 pierced him through and through with his lance and 
 killed him, but Hypsipele wept and sobbed, for she felt 
 sure that King Lycurg-us would kill her. The heroes 
 were very sorry for her, and they went with her to 
 Nemea in the hope that they might be able to save her 
 from being punished. King Lycurgus thought at first 
 that they were enemies who were cominor to attack the 
 
THE SEVEN AGAINST THEBES. 217 
 
 city, but Adrastus explained why they had come, and 
 begged him not to be angry with Hypsipele, as it was 
 really they who were the cause of the child's death. 
 Lycurgus was very sorrowful at hearing about it, so the 
 heroes tried to comfort him, and said that they would 
 honour his child as no child had ever been honoured 
 before, by celebrating magnificent funeral games over 
 its tomb. They took the child out of the snake's body 
 and burnt it on a pyre, and then they put the ashes into 
 a beautiful urn and buried them and heaped up a mound 
 over them. After this they held games near the mound, 
 and vied with each other in all kinds of sports such as 
 heroes take pleasure in. Such games as these were at 
 that time only celebrated in memory of rich and famous 
 kings, and Lycurgus thanked the heroes for honouring 
 his child in this manner. From that time games were 
 celebrated every third year at Nemea, which were called 
 the Nemean G-ames, and were famed far and wide. 
 Numbers of people came to them from all countries, 
 and whoever did best in any trial of skill received a 
 crown as a prize. 
 
 When the funeral festivities were at an end, the 
 heroes took leave of Lycurgus, who promised that for 
 their sake he would not do any harm to Hypsipele. 
 Amphiaraus warned them once again that they had 
 better return home, and said that the death of the child 
 was a bad omen. But when the gods meant to let 
 misfortune overtake people, they blinded their eyes and 
 prevented them from listening to any warning or good 
 counsel, and thus the heroes rejected the advice of 
 Amphiaraus, and continued their march. After some 
 days they came to a mountain from which they could 
 
218 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 see Thebes in the distance, and there they halted and 
 held a council, at which it was resolved that before they 
 began the war, Tydeus should go to Thebes and tell 
 Eteocles that he had better give up the kingdom to his 
 brother peaceably, for if he did not, the Argives would 
 take possession of the city by force. Tydeus set out for 
 Thebes, and finding the Theban heroes at a banquet, he 
 delivered his message to them there. Eteocles answered 
 that he hated his brother and would rather die than 
 share the kingdom with him, and that he was not 
 afraid of the Argives, but was quite ready to fight them. 
 On hearing this, Tydeus prepared to return to the camp, 
 but as Eteocles asked him to stay and feast with him, 
 he accepted the invitation, and they talked together in 
 a friendly manner as host and guest, although they 
 were just going to meet one another in deadly conflict. 
 In those days when heroes met they always took the 
 opportunity of vying with one another in feats of 
 strength, and so when the banquet was over, Tydeus 
 challenged the Theban s to wrestle with him. First 
 one presented himself, and then another, but Tydeus 
 was stronger than any of them, and overcame them all. 
 The Thebans were ashamed of themselves and furious 
 with Tydeus, and they placed an ambush of fifty 
 youths in a copse not far from the city, who rushed out 
 and fell upon him as he was returning home. It was 
 an unequal struggle, but Tydeus killed them all except 
 one, who fled back into the city and told the Thebans 
 what had become of the others, and then they wondered 
 still more at the extraordinary strength of Tydeus. 
 
 When the princes understood that Eteocles would 
 not give up the kingdom peaceably, they led their army 
 
THE SEVEN AGAINST THEBES. 219 
 
 against the city in order to get possession of it by force. 
 The gates were fastened with strong bars, and on the 
 walls stood the Thebans in arms, prepared to beat off 
 the enemy. There were seven gates in the walls of 
 the city, and Adrastus allotted one gate to each of the 
 princes to attack with his band of followers. The 
 Thebans, on their side, had also placed the seven gates 
 under the special charge of their seven most valiant 
 heroes, each of whom had a band of men to fight under 
 him. Then a fierce battle took place, the Argives 
 tried to scale the walls by means of ladders, and hurled 
 javelins and arrows at their enemies, while the Thebans 
 rolled great stones to the top of the walls, and just 
 when there were a number of Argives upon one of the 
 ladders and they were hoping that in another moment 
 they would have gained possession of the wall, the 
 Thebans let fall a huge stone, which broke the ladder 
 and crushed to death all those who were upon it. 
 Capaneus was the most impetuous of all the Argives, 
 and wherever he fought the Thebans gave way before 
 him. He set up a ladder against the wall and had 
 climbed almost to the top of it, when, thinking that 
 the city was already in his hands, he looked up at the 
 sky and cried out in a mocking tone, 4 The strength of 
 heroes is mightier than the will of the gods.' But as 
 the presumptuous hero raised his foot to place it upon 
 the wall, there came a flash of lightning which destroyed 
 him in a moment, and the Thebans, who were inspired 
 by this with fresh courage, drove back the band of 
 soldiers that he had been leading. All day long the 
 Argives fought against the city, but at last the sun went 
 down, and they were obliged to give over for the time. 
 
220 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 The next day Eteocles ascended a tower, and took 
 with him a herald whom he caused to make a proclama- 
 tion to the Argives in the following words : ' Ye heroes 
 of Argos, Eteocles offers to fight alone with Polynices, 
 on the understanding that whichever of them gets the 
 better of the other shall be king of Thebes.' Polynices 
 on his part was also eager to fight with his brother, and 
 readily accepted the challenge to single combat. Then 
 the Thebans came and encamped outside the city to 
 watch the fight ; and the Argives in the plain beyond 
 planted their spears in the ground by their side, thinking 
 they would have no more use for them. Between the two 
 armies was a field, where the brothers were to engage 
 in the deadly struggle. As each of them took his shield 
 and sword from his friends, he eyed the other angrily, 
 longing to begin the fight, and as soon as they were 
 armed they both rushed at one another, each of them 
 so intent on killing his brother that he forgot to cover 
 himself with his shield. And thus, at the same moment, 
 each of the brothers ran his spear through the body of 
 his opponent, and they both sank down dead. But this 
 did not end the quarrel, for the two armies rose up, 
 each desirous of avenging the death of its champion 
 npon the enemy, and a fierce battle took place. Zeus 
 gave the victory to the Thebans, and all the Argives, 
 heroes and followers alike, were slain : and thus the 
 prophecy of Amphiaraus was fulfilled. As for the seer 
 himself, he was standing in his war-chariot, urging on his 
 horses that he might not be overtaken by the enemy, 
 when a Theban hero pursued him hotly and gained 
 steadily upon him till he had almost come up with 
 him. But Zeus, who loved Amphiaraus, hurled a 
 
THE SEVEN AGAINST THEBES. 221 
 
 thunder-bolt which clove the ground asunder in front 
 of him, and he sank far down into the earth. It closed 
 over him before the eyes of his pursuer who was thus 
 unable to reach him, and Zeus granted him immor- 
 tality and took him to live among the gods on Mount 
 Olyrnpus. All the rest of the Argives had by this time 
 perished, excepting only Adrastus. He had a horse, 
 named Arion, who was of divine origin and was swifter 
 than any other horse in the world, so when the king 
 took to flight, the Thebans could not overtake him, 
 and he returned alone to Argos, as Amphiaraus had 
 foretold. 
 
 A brother of Jocasta's, whose name was Creon, now 
 became king of Thebes, and he commanded that the 
 fallen Thebans should be buried with great honour, 
 but that Polynices and the Argives should be left un- 
 buried on the field of battle, to be food foi dogs and 
 vultures. The Greeks believed that those whose bodies 
 were not buried found no rest in the Lower World, and 
 they never offered such an insult as this to the memory 
 of any but their most deadly enemies. A herald went 
 through the city, proclaiming to the Thebans that 
 if any one dared to give burial to Polynices or any of 
 the Argives, he would have to answer for it with his 
 life. Every one was afraid to disobey excepting one, 
 and that one was a woman, Antigone, the sister of 
 Polynices. She had been very angry with her brothers 
 for casting oft' their father Oedipus in his time of need, 
 but now that they were dead, she wept for them and 
 could not bear that either of them should be dis- 
 honoured. So in the night she went to the field where 
 the corpses lay, and sought for that of her brother. It 
 
222 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 was disfigured with dust and blood, but she recognised 
 it, and she covered it over with loose sand and poured 
 out the libations for the dead which consisted of wine, 
 milk, and honey, over the mound. When a corpse had 
 been covered over in this manner and had received the 
 due libations for the dead, the gods accepted it as if it 
 had been properly buried, so that everything that was 
 necessary had now been done for the corpse of Poly- 
 nices. But Creon had set watchmen round the field to 
 catch any one who should come to disobey his orders, 
 and just as Antigone had finished her work, the watch- 
 men seized her and took her as a prisoner to Creon, 
 although they were loth to do this, for every one loved 
 the noble maiden. The king was very angry when he 
 heard what she had done, but nevertheless, if she would 
 have consented to admit that she had done wrong in 
 disobeying his orders and to beg for mercy, he would 
 have been willing to spare her life. But she scorned 
 to save her life by such means, and instead of begging 
 for forgiveness, she spoke out boldly, and said : f Higher 
 than thy commands do I esteem those laws which set 
 before us that which is noble and right.' Then the 
 king was still more angry with her for not being 
 afraid of him, and he condemned her to a cruel death. 
 There was a cave outside the city, and the king com- 
 manded that she should be shut up there and left to 
 die of hunger. Her friends accompanied her as far as 
 the cave, weeping bitterly, but Antigone herself shed 
 no tears. A pitcher of water and a little bread had 
 been placed in the cave, and when Antigone had taken 
 leave of her friends, she went inside, and the workmen 
 piled up stones against the mouth of the cave and 
 
THE SEVEN AGAINST THEBES. 223 
 
 walled her in. Thus the noble Antigone died ; but she 
 did not wait for the lingering death of starvation, 
 instead of that she made her veil into a noose and 
 hanged herself. 
 
 King Adrastus heard with grief and anger that 
 Creon had refused to allow the Argives to be buried, 
 but as all the heroes of Argos had died in the war and 
 there were none but young boys left in the city, he 
 was unable to raise an army in order to compel him to 
 do so. So he went to Athens with a twig in his hand 
 (which it was the custom for those who wanted help to 
 carry) and seated himself on the steps of the Altar of 
 Pity. 1 Theseus came and asked what he wanted, and 
 Adrastus told him of his misfortune and begged him 
 to procure an honourable burial for the Argives. When 
 Theseus heard about it all, he was very sorry for him, 
 and he marched to Thebes at the head of a band of 
 heroes, and said that unless Creon at once counter- 
 manded his wicked orders, he would destroy the city. 
 Creon was afraid of Theseus, so he granted all that he 
 required, and the heroes were buried with due honours. 
 
 1 See page 196. 
 
MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 XXXT. 
 
 THE EPIGONI. 
 
 KING ADRASTUS never ceased to grieve over his heroes 
 who had been slain by the Thebans, and when ten years 
 had gone by, and the boys who were then quite young 
 had grown up to be men, he assembled them and pro- 
 posed to them to march against Thebes in order to 
 avenge their fathers. They were quite ready to do 
 this, for they were true heroes, with strong arms and 
 brave hearts. Each of the seven heroes who had 
 accompanied Adrastus on the former expedition had 
 left a son, and these young men were called the Epi- 
 goni, or ' Those who come after.' They chose a strong 
 band of followers from among the youths of Argos, and 
 when they were all armed in readiness for the war, they 
 sent to the Oracle at Delphi to ask whom they should 
 take for their leader, for Adrastus was now too old and 
 grey to head them himself. The Oracle said that they 
 had better choose the son of Amphiaraus, who was 
 named Alcmaeon, and who was wise and brave. Adras- 
 tus was full of joy at seeing the army of young men 
 set out on its march, and trusted that the gods would 
 give them the victory. The Epigoni took the same 
 road by which their fathers had gone ten year? before, 
 
THE EPIGONI. 225 
 
 but instead of meeting with bad omens on the way, 
 everything was now most prosperous. 
 
 Creon was by this time dead, and the son of Eteocles, 
 whose name was Laodamas, was king of Thebes. When 
 he heard that the Epigoni were coming to avenge their 
 fathers, he armed the citizens and marched out to meet 
 them, and a battle took place in front of the city gates, 
 in the very same field where the heroes who accom- 
 panied Adrastus had fallen. The Epigoni thought of 
 their fathers and fought the more bravely, and though 
 the Thebans held their ground steadily at first, their 
 courage gave way after their king, Laodamas, had been 
 slain by Alcmaeon, and they fled back into the city. 
 The Epigoni encamped before Thebes, saying that they 
 would not raise the siege until they had conquered it, 
 and the Thebans meanwhile held counsel as to how 
 they might best save themselves from their vengeance. 
 Among them was the blind seer, Tiresias, who had long 
 ago foretold to Laius that if a child were born to him, 
 he would sin against both his father and mother. He 
 was now very old, with hair as white as snow, and he 
 had lived through all the prosperity and all the calami- 
 ties of the Thebans, and was greatly honoured by them, 
 so they went to him to ask his advice as to what they 
 had better do. He said that they could only hope to 
 save their lives by artifice, and told them how to set to 
 work. According to his directions they sent a herald 
 the next day to the Epigoni, to announce that the 
 Thebans were willing to make some atonement for the 
 slaughter of their fathers. The Epigoni did not suspect 
 any trick, and began to negotiate with the herald as to 
 what form the atonement should take, without per- 
 
 Q 
 
226 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 ceiving what was going on in the city. But meanwhile 
 the Thebans were pouring out of it on the further side 
 and taking with them whatever they regarded as the 
 most precious of their possessions, and they suc- 
 ceeded in carrying off, not only their children, but 
 also a good deal of treasure. When the Epigoni had 
 announced what they would demand as an atonement, 
 the herald returned to the city ; but he only entered it 
 by one gate in order to pass out on the further side by 
 the gate through which the Thebans had fled, and he 
 was not long in overtaking them. Tiresias had accom- 
 panied the Thebans, led by a boy ; on the way he asked 
 for something to drink, and the boy took him to a cool 
 spring, but as soon as he had tasted the water he 
 sank down and died. The Thebans buried him by the 
 roadside, and then they marched on till they came to 
 a strange land, where they built another city. 
 
 Meanwhile a day went by, and then another, and 
 still the Epigoni waited for the herald to return. But 
 when two days had passed without any further sign of 
 him, and no one appeared upon the city walls, neither 
 was there any smoke to be seen rising from the houses, 
 they began to suspect that the Thebans had fled. 
 They climbed over the walls without any resistance 
 and entered the city, but they found no one there. 
 There was, however, a great deal of treasure in the 
 houses, for the Thebans had not been able to carry 
 everything away with them, and the heroes took an 
 enormous booty. They chose out the best things and 
 sent them to Delphi as a present to Apollo, and the 
 remainder they divided among themselves. They made 
 Thersander, the son of Polynices, king of Thebes, and 
 
THE EPIGONI. 227 
 
 proclaimed that those among the Argives who chose 
 to remain in Thebes instead of returning home with 
 Aicmaeon might settle there and have portions of the 
 land assigned to them for their own. Many people 
 from the neighbourhood came also into the city with 
 their wives and children, so that before long all the 
 houses were once more inhabited. Aicmaeon led back 
 the remainder of the Argives to their own homes, for 
 the Epigoni had now avenged their fathers, and had 
 won for themselves glory and renown. 
 
 Aicmaeon now remembered the oath that he had 
 once sworn to his father, before he set out with the 
 other princes to march against Thebes. Amphiaraus 
 had then made both his sons swear that they would 
 avenge him upon Eriphyle for having allowed herself 
 to be bribed by the veil and necklace to give her voice 
 in favour of what she knew would cost him his life. 1 
 But it was a hard task for Aicmaeon, for Eriphyle was 
 his mother. He did not know what to do, so he went 
 to Delphi and asked the Oracle whether he should keep 
 his promise to his father or not. The Oracle said yes, 
 that he must do this ; and so he returned home and 
 killed his mother. When Eriphyle was dying, she 
 cursed every country that should shelter her murderer, 
 and the curse of the dying mother had such power that 
 everything must needs carry it into effect. Aicmaeon 
 became mad, and wandered about from one country to 
 another till he came to a king named Phegeus, who 
 knew how to purify murderers, and who had compassion 
 on him and purged him from the stain of blood. Then 
 the madness left him, and he was able to rest once 
 
 1 Seep. 215. 
 Q 2 
 
228 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 more. Phegeus gave him his daughter in marriage, 
 and said that he should live in his country and have 
 an honourable position there. Alcmaeon was very glad 
 of this, and he presented the veil and necklace to 
 his wife who was very much pleased with them. In 
 the spring however, the seed did not come up, which 
 caused a dearth throughout the land, and this was 
 owing to the curse of Eriphyle. The king consulted a 
 seer about it, and he said that the land would not bear 
 fruit so long as Alcmaeon remained in the kingdom. 
 
 So Alcmaeon had to take leave of his wife and quit 
 the country, and he set out not knowing whither to go. 
 He went to Delphi and asked the Pythia if there was 
 any land that could receive him without suffering for it ; 
 and she answered that he must go to the river-god Ache- 
 loiis and ask him to help him, for that no one else could 
 do so. Alcmaeon therefore went to the river and called 
 to Acheloiis, who came up out of the water and asked 
 what he wanted. Alcmaeon told him of his distress and 
 begged for his help, and the river-god took pity on him 
 and made his stream bring down sand and silt from the 
 heights above, until a new and fruitful country was 
 formed by the side of the river ; and as it had not been 
 in existence when Eriphyle cursed the land that should 
 give her son rest, Alcmaeon was able to remain there, 
 and he ploughed and sowed seed, and the earth brought 
 forth fruit. Acheloiis had a very beautiful daughter, 
 and Alcmaeon became so much attached to her, that 
 he was unfaithful to his wife, and married the daughter 
 of the river-god. Several years passed by in peace and 
 prosperity ; the gods sent them two sons, and Alcmaeon 
 had no thought of ever leaving his place of shelter. 
 
THE EPIGONI. 229 
 
 Hat the daughter of Acheloiis had heard of the beautiful 
 veil and necklace, and she never ceased to beg her hus- 
 band to go and fetch them for her, till at last he was 
 obliged to yield, and set out for the country of King 
 Phegeus. He did not tell Phegeus the truth how- 
 ever, but said that he was still obliged to wander about, 
 and could only obtain rest by taking the veil and neck- 
 lace to Delphi and dedicating them to Apollo. The 
 daughter of Phegeus did not doubt his sincerity, and 
 readily parted with the precious ornaments for the sake 
 of her husband whom she loved dearly. But before 
 Alcmaeon had reached home again, King Phegeus 
 heard that he had been unfaithful and had married 
 the daughter of Acheloiis, and he was very angry, and 
 commanded his sons to go after him and kill him. They 
 were wild headstrong youths who delighted in deeds of 
 blood, and they overtook Alcmaeon and killed him and 
 took away both the treasures. Then they returned home, 
 thinking that their sister would rejoice at the vengeance 
 that had overtaken her husband ; but though he had 
 married another woman, she was very sorry for his death 
 and was angry with her brothers for having killed him. 
 The daughter of Acheloiis waited long for Alcmaeon 
 to return home ; but a good while afterwards, a stranger 
 who happened to be passing that way told her that he 
 had been put to death by the sons of Phegeus. Then 
 it was her greatest wish to avenge his death, and she 
 begged Zeus that her two sons might at once become 
 grown-up men. In that same night the children grew 
 up to be men, and their mother provided them with 
 weapons, and told them that their father had been 
 murdered by the sons of Phegeus, and that they were 
 
230 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 to avenge him. They set off for the country of Phegeus, 
 but on their way they stopped to rest at the house of a 
 prince where it happened that the sons of Phegeus 
 were also staying, for they too were on a journey, and 
 .hey had with them the veil and the necklace. The 
 young men did not know each other, but as they were 
 talking together at the feast, the sons of Phegeus 
 brought out the precious ornaments and showed them 
 to the others who thus recognised the murderers of 
 their father, and they drew their swords and killed 
 them. Then they returned home to their mother with 
 the precious treasures. But the wise river-god said 
 that they were no real treasures, for they brought mis- 
 fortune to whoever possessed them ; and he made his 
 grandsons carry them to Delphi, and present them as 
 an offering to the god Apollo. 
 
231 
 
 XXXIL 
 
 EROS AND PSYCHE. 
 
 THERE lived once a king and queen who had three 
 daughters. The youngest of them was named Psyche, 
 and she was so wonderfully beautiful that when she 
 went through the streets, the people threw flowers before 
 her and kissed their hands to her, as they used to do 
 to the statues of the gods. The only one who did not 
 delight in her was the goddess Aphrodite. She was 
 accustomed to drive through the city in a chariot 
 drawn by doves, and every time she did so it vexed her 
 afresh to see that the townspeople neglected her worship 
 in order to pay homage to the lovely Psyche, as if it 
 were she and not Aphrodite who was the goddess of 
 beauty. And she called her son Eros, who was the god 
 of love, and commanded him to cause the princess whom 
 she hated to set her love upon the most unworthy of all 
 mortals. 
 
 Not long afterwards the old king asked the Oracle 
 to whom he should give his daughter Pyche in marriage, 
 and the answer he received was that she must be dressed 
 as a bride and led to the top of a rocky cliff that stood 
 up high above the city, and that then all her friends 
 must say good-bye to her for ever, and leave her ther^ 
 alone to be taken to the house of the husband ap- 
 
232 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 pointed for her. And that if he refused to obey the 
 Oracle, grievous misfortune would befall him and all his 
 household. The king and queen were greatly dis- 
 tressed at this sentence, and the whole land mourned 
 with them, for why should the Oracle speak so mysteri- 
 ously if it did not mean that the appointed husband 
 tvas some horrible monster ? But they weie obliged 
 to obey, lest some worse misfortune should overtake 
 them. Psyche was dressed as a bride and led to the 
 rock, in a procession of the citizens. The flutes and 
 other musical instruments gave forth joyous sounds ; but 
 louder still was heard the sound of mourning and 
 lamentation. The grey-haired father and mother wept 
 bitterly as they kissed their child for the last time, and 
 then the wedding torches were put out, and the pro- 
 cession wound sadly and silently back to the city. 
 
 Psyche meanwhile was left alone upon the desolate 
 rock ; but very soon a Wind-god came, who seized her in 
 his arms and flew through the air with her, till at last 
 he put her down in a valley on the further side of the 
 hill. Psyche hid her face in her hands at first that she 
 might not see the horrible things she expected to find 
 all round her ; but when she did venture timidly to open 
 her eyes, she could scarcely believe what she saw. She 
 found herself seated in a meadow full of flowers, with 
 a clear stream running through it, and a wood near by, 
 in front of which there stood a most beautiful palace ; 
 its roof was supported by pillars of pure gold, and 
 its walls were covered with sculptures wrought in 
 silver. Full of astonishment, Psyche rose and went 
 towards the palace. As she approached it, she noticed 
 that the air was filled with a delicious scent, and when 
 
EKOS AND PSYCHE. 233 
 
 she entered the palace, she met with some new splendour 
 at every step. The rooms were furnished with great 
 magnificence, and were filled with beautiful ornaments 
 of gold and silver. Then there fell upon her ear the 
 sweet voice of a nymph, which said, ' We are at your 
 service, and prepared to carry out your wishes, what- 
 ever they may be.' Psyche thought she would like to 
 refresh herself with some cool water, and in a moment a 
 beautiful bath was drawn forward by unseen hands and 
 placed before her. After she had bathed and anointed 
 herself, she went into the next room where she found 
 a table spread with a tempting meal, and all the while 
 she was eating, sounds of sweet music were heard and 
 songs were sung by unseen nymphs. When Psyche 
 had finished, she felt in need of rest, and she lay 
 down on a couch and went to sleep. Meanwhile it 
 became quite dark, and by-and-by she was awakened 
 by a gentle movement, and a sweet voice said to her, 
 * I am thy husband, and this house is thine and mine, 
 all its splendours are for thy pleasure, but never seek 
 to see my face, for then I should be obliged to leave 
 thee for ever.' The husband remained with her until 
 the day was about to dawn, and then he vanished. 
 
 The next day, and each following day, everything 
 happened as before : the unseen nymphs waited on 
 Psyche and shortened the hours by singing and playing 
 to her, and with the darkness came the husband who 
 remained in the palace until morning. 
 
 The heart of Psyche was divided between joy and 
 sorrow. Her kind husband and the wonders and delights 
 of the palace filled her with joy, but tears often came 
 to her eyes in thinking of her parents and her play- 
 
234 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 fellows. Once when she was looking towards the 
 high rock from which she had been brought by the 
 Wind-god, she saw her two sisters there, and she was 
 filled with so great a longing to see them again that 
 when next her husband came to her, she begged him 
 to send for them. For a moment he hesitated, but 
 then he promised to do as she wished, and told her 
 also that she might give them anything she liked 
 out of the treasures of the palace to take away with 
 them as presents ; ' but,' he added, 4 take care not to 
 let them delude you into making any attempt to see 
 my face.' Psyche promised without any misgiving, for 
 she felt herself perfectly free from curiosity. 
 
 On the following day when the two sisters again 
 appeared on the rock, the Wind-god took them up on 
 his shoulders and carried them into the beautiful 
 valley. Psyche received them with many embraces, 
 and asked them endless questions about her parents 
 and play-fellows. Then she led them into the palace 
 and desired the music to sound, whilst she showed 
 them all the beautiful things. They were dumb with 
 amazement, and stood looking at one another; and 
 then Psyche asked them to choose whatever they 
 liked best to take away with them, for they were 
 quite welcome to it. But the two sisters had wicked, 
 envious dispositions, and were not pleased that Psyche 
 should be so much better off than they were. They 
 asked who was her husband, and when she told them 
 that he was kind and good, but that she had never 
 seen him and that she was forbidden ever to seek to do 
 so, they made a sign one to the other, and one of them 
 pretended to cry, and said, ' Ah, dear sister, it must 
 
EROS AND PSYCHE. 235 
 
 ihen be true what the people say. They say that every 
 evening a hideous monster is seen to creep into this 
 valley, a horrible serpent with bloody jaws.' And the 
 other sister pretended to weep also, and she said, ' When 
 he gets to the palace he takes the form of a man ; but 
 no doubt his countenance bears the traces of his cruel 
 nature, and that is the reason why he will not let you 
 look at him. Alas ! only too soon shall we have to 
 deplore your miserable death.' 
 
 Psyche was herself so entirely free from falseness 
 that she had no suspicion of the treachery of her sisters. 
 She was horror-struck at what they said, and though at 
 first she refused to believe that the gentle voice she had 
 so often heard could come from the jaws of a monster, 
 yet they so persisted in tormenting her with their crafty 
 speeches, that at last she ended by believing them, and 
 was only anxious to escape from the dreadful creature. 
 When the eldest sister saw this, she said to her, ' There 
 is just one means of saving your life. You must summon 
 up your courage, and to-night, when the monster is 
 asleep, take your lamp in your hand and a sharp knife, 
 and go to his couch and pierce him through the heart 
 with the knife.' She said this because she thought that 
 if Psyche disobeyed her husband by looking at him 
 when he was asleep, all her happiness would be at an 
 end. The two sisters gave Psyche no peace till she had 
 made up her mind to do as they said. Then they took 
 as many of the treasures of the palace as they could 
 carry, and Psyche called to the Wind-god to come and 
 take them away again. 
 
 When it was dark, her husband came as usual ; but 
 she was afraid of him, and could hardly find a word to 
 
236 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 say in answer to his friendly greeting. And at mid- 
 night, when he was fast asleep, she lit a lamp, and taking 
 a knife in her hand, went to his couch with the inten- 
 tion of killing him. The light fell upon the couch, 
 and there she saw, no monster, but Eros himself, the 
 winged god of love, radiant with beauty. The knife 
 fell from her hand, and she felt that she could never be 
 weary of gazing at his glorious form. But as she bent 
 over him she forgot to take care that the lamp in her 
 hand was held straight, and a drop of hot oil was spilt, 
 which fell upon his shoulder and awoke him. He 
 opened his eyes and saw Psyche bending over him 
 with the lamp in her hand. He looked at her very 
 sorrowfully, and said, 4 Thou hast mistrusted me and 
 transgressed my command ; my dwelling is no longer 
 here. I am Eros, as thou hast discovered. My mother 
 Aphrodite is angry with thee, and she commanded me 
 to cause thee to love the most unworthy of men. But 
 when I saw thee, I was myself filled with love for thee, 
 and determined to hide thee from my mother that thou 
 mightest be my wife. Only in the deepest secrecy have 
 I dared to act against her will. And now thou hast dis- 
 obeyed my command, and I must leave thee for ever.' 
 When he had said this, he took up his bow and quiver 
 which stood by the side of the couch, and flew away. 
 
 Psyche was filled with the bitterest remorse, and 
 desired to live no longer. When the day dawned, she 
 went to the river and threw herself into it. But the 
 river-god was unwilling to kill anything so beautiful, 
 and he carried her on the top of his waters to the 
 farther shore, and set her down there. The birds were 
 chirping in the trees, and the morning sun looked down 
 
EROS AND PSYCHE. 237 
 
 BO pleasantly on the river and the meadows that a ray 
 of hope sprang up in her heart, and she thought, 6 How 
 if I could succeed in winning him back ? They say 
 that he is the kindest of all the gods. I will go all over 
 the world seeking him.' So she set out, and took no 
 heed of the roughness of the way or of the thorns 
 that pierced her feet, and wandered into all corners of 
 the world, hoping to find some trace of him. 
 
 After she had wandered for a long time, she came 
 to the palace of Aphrodite, and she said to herself, 
 'The goddess is indeed angry with me, but is her 
 anger mightier than my grief? I will enter her 
 service, and it may be that I shall succeed in gaining 
 her good will.' So she went into the palace, and 
 offered herself as servant to the goddess. Now 
 Aphrodite knew that instead of doing Psyche any injury, 
 Eros had secretly married her, for a sea-gull that had 
 made its nest for a time in the valley had told her 
 about it. She felt therefore a grim joy when the 
 unhappy girl put herself into her power, and in a 
 haughty tone she said to her, * If your mind is set on 
 being beloved by a god, you will have to accomplish 
 hard tasks, and it will be the worse for you if you fail 
 to perform them.' Then she set her the first task. She 
 piled up in front of the palace a great heap of seeds, 
 wheat, beans, poppies, and peas, all mixed together, 
 and saying, ' Before night comes all the seeds must be 
 sorted,' she went away. Psyche could not have done it 
 in ten days. She sat down by the heap, buried her face 
 in her hands, and wept bitterly. But there lived close 
 by a great nation of ants, and one of them saw the 
 beautiful girl crying, and was sorry for her, and called 
 
238 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 the others to come and help her. Then there came an 
 endless array of ants, who set to work and soon sorted 
 the seeds, though some of them were so large that it 
 took four, eight, or even ten ants to roll a single seed 
 to its place, and when Psyche looked up, the work was 
 done and the ants were marching away again. She 
 kissed her hands to them, and thanked them prettily 
 for their kindness. When Aphrodite came home in the 
 evening and saw the seeds laid out in order, she could 
 find no fault with her industrious servant, but she gave 
 her a look that was far from friendly, for she would 
 much rather have had some excuse for blaming her. 
 
 The next morning she said to Psyche, ' There is a 
 copse near by, where there graze some sheep with golden 
 fleeces. Goand fetch me three tufts of their wool.' Psyche 
 pet out, and went slowly along the river-side towards the 
 wood. On the bank stood some reeds which rustled in 
 the morning breeze, and the rustling turned into words 
 like these, ' Take care what you do, for the golden- 
 fleeced sheep are fierce animals, and their bite is 
 poisonous. Wait till mid-day, and then go into the 
 copse and look at the bushes.' So said the reeds, and 
 then they rustled again as before. Psyche thanked them, 
 and sat down by the side of the river until the 
 shadows were at their shortest. Then she knew it was 
 mid-day, and she went into the copse and found the 
 sheep all lying asleep. She trod gently so as not to wake 
 them, and looked at the bushes which were covered 
 with tufts of golden wool, for the sheep had rubbed 
 themselves against the bushes and left part of their 
 fleeces sticking to the thorns. Psyche took the three 
 best tufts and left the copse. When she came back 
 
EROS AND PSYCHE. 239 
 
 and gave them to her mistress, Aphrodite was sur- 
 prised, for she had expected that Psyche would be 
 bitten to death by the fierce sheep. She said to her 
 with an angry look, ' You have not yet finished your 
 day's work. Take your pitcher and ascend that hill. 
 At the top of it there is some black water. Fetch me 
 some.' 
 
 Psyche started off obediently with her pitcher. 
 When she reached the hill, she saw before her a steep 
 path leading up to the spring, but near it were two 
 dreadful dragons who looked as if they would not let 
 any one pass them alive. The water fell into a dark 
 ravine by the side of the path, and flowed deep down 
 into the Lower World. It bubbled angrily in the 
 hollow, and called out to PsycLe, ' What do you want 
 here? Go away, arjd be quick about it, or your 
 life is not worth much.' Psyche put down her pitcher 
 and stood still, weeping bitterly. But she had not been 
 there long when there appeared a great eagle, which 
 circled round her several times and then seized the 
 handle of her pitcher in his beak and flew off with it 
 to the spring. The dragons howled, and raised them- 
 selves as high as they could in the air that they might 
 be the better able to shoot out flames at him from their 
 mouths, but their fiery breath was powerless to scorch 
 him. He came back with the filled pitcher which he 
 set down beside Psyche, and then he spread his wings 
 again and had soon disappeared among the clouds. 
 Psyche cast a grateful glance after him, took up her 
 pitcher, and set out joyfully on her way home. When 
 Aphrodite saw her returning, she felt sure that she had 
 come with an empty pitcher, for she knew that if she 
 
240 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 had attempted to pass the dragons they would have 
 killed her, and she thought that she would now be able 
 to imprison her in a damp dungeon and keep her with- 
 out sufficient food or sunshine. But when she looked 
 Anto the vessel, she saw that it was full of the black 
 water which Psyche had been desired to fetch. She 
 was very angry, and poured it out upon the ground, for 
 it was of no use to her, and began to ponder what task 
 she could impose upon Psyche which would bring about 
 her death without .fail. 
 
 The next morning Psyche was summoned to the 
 presence of her harsh mistress, who said to her, ' Take 
 this golden casket to the Queen of the Lower World, 
 and ask her to send me some of the Salve of Beauty.* 
 Psyche left the palace, but she made up her mind that 
 she would kill herself at once rather than attempt to 
 take the message, for she shuddered at the horrors of 
 the Lower World, and moreover she could not hope 
 that if she once entered its gates she would ever be 
 allowed to come out again. She ascended a high tower 
 which was grey with old age, meaning to throw herself 
 down from it ; but as she stood on the top, the stones 
 began to utter sounds, and the aged tower said, ' Do 
 not despair, I will give you good counsel. Go to Mount 
 Taenarus, and there you will find a dark chasm that 
 lea is down to the Lower World. The ferry- man who 
 will row you across the river Acheron demands passage 
 money ; put two copper coins between your teeth, and 
 hold out your mouth to him, so that he may take his 
 fare for himself. At the gate of the Land of Shades 
 there stands the hideous dog Cerberus. For him take 
 a honey-cake in each of your hands, and throw him one 
 
PJROS AND PSYCHE. 241 
 
 when you go in at the gate, and the other when you 
 come out again. And beware of letting either of the 
 cakes out of your hand, for then you would find your- 
 self imprisoned for ever in the Lower World. Perse- 
 phone will fill the casket for you. Do not let anything 
 induce you to open it.' Then the tower ceased speak- 
 ing, and Psyche resolved to summon her courage and 
 undertake the dreadful journey. She put two copper 
 coins between her teeth, and taking a honey-cake in 
 each hand, she went along the dark road until she 
 reached the gloomy twilight of the Lower World. 
 Presently she met a lame man, who was driving a lame, 
 heavily-laden ass. He was holding up the burden 
 which was falling from off the ass, and he called out to 
 Psyche in a piteous voice, begging her to pick up a 
 piece of rope from the ground for him that he might 
 tie the burden on with it. The tender-hearted Psyche 
 found it difficult to refuse, but she could not have done 
 what he wanted without neglecting the warning of the 
 tower on no account to let go of her honey-cakes ; so 
 she passed on without answering, and immediately the 
 man and the ass vanished. Psyche next came to the 
 river Acheron, and the surly ferryman Charon rowed 
 her over it in his boat after he had taken one of the 
 copper coins from her mouth. Close to the boat there 
 swam an old man whose appearance was most pitiful, 
 his strength was evidently failing him, and he seemed 
 about to sink. He stretched out one of his thin arms 
 towards Psyche, and begged her with beseeching 
 gestures to hold out her hand to him. But Psycue 
 rememoered the warning, and immediately the old 
 man disappeared. When they reached the further 
 
 R 
 
242 MYTHS OF HELLAS. 
 
 shore, there sat three old women by the road-sidt> 
 spinning, who called out to her in a pleasant voice and 
 asked her to cut their thread for them. They were nice, 
 kind-looking old women, but Psyche remembered the 
 warning, and immediately they disappeared as the 
 others had done. 
 
 After this, Psyche soon arrived at the gate of the 
 Land of Shades, in front of which stood the three- 
 headed dog Cerberus. She threw him a cake, and he 
 let her go by. Then she saw flitting about her on all 
 sides, pale, silent shades, and she was seized with horror, 
 but she overcame it, and went on bravely to the palace 
 of Queen Persephone and delivered her message, 
 Persephone filled the box and gave it back to her. The 
 fierce dog let her pass out when she gave him the 
 second honey-cake, Charon took the second coin out 
 of her mouth and rowed her back across the river, and 
 at last she found herself in the sunshine once more. 
 She was very tired and sat down on a stone to rest a 
 little, and she thought to herself, c I have gone through 
 the horrors of the Lower World, and have fulfilled the 
 command of the cruel goddess. But will she give me 
 any thanks for it ? ' For some time she sat buried in 
 sad thoughts ; then she said, c How if I were to open 
 the casket and test the power of the wonderful salve ? 
 Perhaps it would give me such beauty that Eros would 
 come back to me.' Quickly she lifted the cover, but 
 there came out of the casket a cloud of stupefying 
 vapour which threw her into a deep sleep. Before 
 Psyche entered the Lower World, Aphrodite had sent a 
 messenger to the Queen to beg her, instead of filling 
 the casket with the Salve of Beauty, to put into it a 
 
EROS AND PSYCHE. 243 
 
 narcotic vapour, for she thought that even if Psyche 
 surmounted all the other difficulties in her path, she 
 might at last be conquered by the temptation of curiosity 
 and open the casket. 
 
 But Eros was not far off. He had seen how Psyche 
 had gone through so many dangers and horrors for love 
 of him, and now he came and wiped away the magic 
 vapour which had settled on her face, and shut it up 
 again in the casket. Then he soared up to Olympus, 
 the abode of the gods, and entreated Zeus to gift 
 Psyche with immortality, and allow him to be married to 
 her. Zeus granted his request, and sent down Hermes, 
 the messenger, to raise Psyche from the earth and 
 bring her into the assembly of the gods. Before them 
 all, Zeus held out to her a shell filled with nectar, 
 the drink of the gods, and said to her, ' Drink immor- 
 tality.' Even Aphrodite kissed her and blessed the 
 marriage, for her anger had been overcome by Psyche's 
 faithful love. The marriage was celebrated with great 
 joyfulness, Apollo and the Muses sang, the Graces 
 danced, and the whole vault of heaven resounded with 
 the mirth of the wedding guests. 
 
 The envious sisters were already dead. After they 
 had plunged Psyche into misery, they each hoped to 
 become the bride of the unknown husband, and each in 
 turn went to the rock and threw herself from it, expect- 
 ing the Wind-god to carry her into the valley as he had 
 done before, but instead of that, they both fell down 
 among sharp stones and perished miserably. Thus did 
 they come to a bad end ; but Psyche was enthroned as 
 a goddess beside her Love, in the unending joy of the 
 blessed Immortals. 
 
 R 2 
 
INDEX. 
 
 ABS 
 
 ABSYRTUS. Son of Aeetes 
 king of Colchis. Is taken 
 on board the Argo by his sister 
 Medea, 165. Is killed by Medea 
 in order to delay Aeetes in his 
 rursuit of the Argonauts, 166. 
 
 A( he/o /in. A river-god. Fights 
 with Heracles for Deianira, and 
 is conquered by him, 142 and 
 143. Helps Alcmaeon in his 
 distress and gives him his daugh- 
 ter in mnrriHge, 228. 
 
 Acheron. One of the rivers of the 
 Lower World. Psyche is rowed 
 across it by Charon, 241. 
 
 Acrisius. King of Argos. Builds 
 a brazen room for his (laughter 
 Danae. and afterwards shuts her 
 up with her child in a chest and 
 turns them adrift, 9o. Is acci- 
 dentally killed by his grandson 
 Perseus, 102. 
 
 Act aeon. Is turned into a stag as 
 a punishment for looking at, the 
 goddess Artemis when bathing, 
 24 and 25. 
 
 Ad met us. Is helped by Apollo to 
 win the hand of Alces-tis, 91 to 
 93. Is restored to life through 
 the sacrifice of Alcestis, 93 and 
 94. 
 
 Adrastus. King of Argos. Re- 
 ceives Polynices when banished 
 by Eteocles, 212 and 213. 
 
 AET 
 
 Marches with him against 
 Thebes, 213 to 221. Escapes 
 through the speed of his horse 
 Arion, 221. Begs Theseus to 
 procure an honourable burial 
 for the Argives, 223. Sends the 
 Epigoni to avenge their fathers, 
 224. 
 
 Aeetes. King of Colchis. Re- 
 ceives Phrixus when brought to 
 his country by the Golden Ram, 
 150. Promises to let Jason 
 have the Golden Fleece on cer- 
 tain conditions, 160. Plots to 
 kill him, 164 and 165. Pursues 
 Jason and Medea, but turns back 
 to bury his son Absyrtus, 166. 
 
 Acgeus. King of Athens. Mar- 
 ries Aethra and becomes the 
 father of Theseus, 177- Re- 
 ceives Theseus at Athens. 182 
 and 183. Parts unwillingly 
 with Theseus that he may go to 
 Crete to slay the Minotaur, 187 
 and 188. Kills himself at si^ht 
 of the black sail which he be- 
 lieves to be the announcement 
 of his son's death, 192. 
 
 Aegyptus. Brother of Danaus 
 and king of a part of Africa, 34. 
 
 Aethra. Marries Aegeus and be- 
 comes the mother of Theseus 
 177. Keeps her son at Tree/en 
 til! he is grown up, and then 
 
246 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 AFR 
 
 sends him to his father at Athens, 
 177 to 179. Takes charge of 
 Helena for a time, till she is res- 
 cued by her brothers, 199 am!201. 
 
 Africa. lo is kindly received in 
 Africa by the king of Egypt, 32 
 and 33. Danaus, her descendant, 
 leaves the country for Argos, 34. 
 The inhabitants are burnt black 
 by Phaethon, 41. Cassiopea, 
 wife of Cepheus, king of a part 
 of Africa, is punished by Po- 
 seidon for her pride, 98 and 99. 
 Perseus arrives and delivers 
 Andromeda from the monster, 
 99 and 100. 
 
 Alcestis. Daughter of King Pelias, 
 91. Is sued for by Admetus, 92 
 and 93. Dies in order that her 
 husband may live, 93. Is re- 
 stored to life by Persephone, 94. 
 
 Alcmaeon. Son of Amphiaraus. 
 Leads the Epigoni against 
 Thebes, 224 to 226. Returns 
 home and kills his mother in 
 obedience to the command of 
 his father, 227- Goes to King 
 Phegeus to be purified, and mar- 
 ries his daughter, 227 ; but is 
 obliged to leave the country, 
 228. Asks the help of Acheloiis, 
 who has pity on him and forms 
 an island on which he can live, 
 228. Marries the daughter of 
 Acheloiis, 228. Is killed by the 
 brothers of his former wife, 229. 
 
 Alcmene. Daughter ? Electryon. 
 Is driven away from Mycenae 
 after her father's death by her 
 uncle Sthenelus, and takes refuge 
 in Thebes, 105. Induces Am- 
 phitryon to make war upon the 
 Teleboae, 105 and 1<>6. Is 
 married to Zeus during his 
 absence, but afterwards marries 
 Amphitryon. 108. Becomes the 
 mother of Heracles and Iphirles, 
 108. Finds Heracles attacked 
 by serpents, 109. 
 
 AMP 
 
 Altar / Pity. Erected by The- 
 seus in the market-place of 
 Athens, 196. Oedipus goes 
 there to sue for help, 210. Also 
 Adrastus, 223. 
 
 Althaea. Wife of Oeneus king of 
 Calydon, and mother of Mele- 
 ager, whose death she hastens 
 by burning the brand o-i which 
 his life depends, 83 and 88. 
 
 Amalthea. The goat thatnourished 
 Zeus, 3. Her horn is converted 
 into the Horn of Plenty, 5 ; 
 and becomes the property of 
 Heracles, 143 
 
 Amazons. A nation of women- 
 soldiers. Heracles is sent by 
 Eurystheus to fetch the girdle 
 of the Queen of the Amazons, 
 124 to 126. The women of 
 Lemnos try to imitate them, 153. 
 Theseus cai-ries off Hippolyta to 
 be his wife, 193; and is in 
 consequence attacked by the 
 Amazons, 194. He wins the 
 first victory ever gained over 
 them, 195. 
 
 Awphiaratis. A seer, brother-in- 
 law of Adrastus king of Argos, 
 213. Advises against the ex- 
 pedition to Thebes, 214 and 
 217; but is over-ruled by his 
 wife Eriphyle, 214 and 215. 
 Zeus interposes to prevent his 
 being killed in thd battle, and 
 takes him to dwell among the 
 gods. 220 and 221. 
 
 Amphlnn. King of Thebes, and 
 husband of Niobe, 59 and 80. 
 Builds a wall round the city by 
 singing to the stones, 59 and 
 60. Grieves for his children 
 slain by Apollo and Artemis, 
 81. 
 
 Amphitryon. Comes to Mycenne 
 to sue for the hand of Alcmene. 
 and accidentally kills her father, 
 Electryon, 105. Takes refuge 
 with Creon, king of 
 
INDEX. 
 
 247 
 
 AND 
 
 105 ; and delivers the city from 
 a destroying Fox, 106. Makes 
 war upon the TeJeboae at the 
 desire of Alcmene, 105 to 108- 
 Marries Alcmene, 108. 
 
 Androgeus. Son of Minos king of 
 Crete. Goes to Athens to take 
 part in some games, and is killed 
 by the Athenians on bis way 
 home, 186. 
 
 Andromeda. Daughter of Cepheus 
 and Cassiopea, 98. Is delivered 
 by Perseus from the monster 
 who was to have devoured her, 
 99. Is married to him, 100. 
 
 Autaeiis. King of Libya. Com- 
 pels Heracles to wrestle w>th 
 him, 133. His mother the 
 Earth gives him new strength 
 each time he touches her, but 
 Heracles raises him in his arms, 
 and strangles him to death, 133. 
 
 Antigone. Daughter of Oedipus, 
 210. Chooses to share her 
 father's fate when he is banished 
 from Thebes, and accompanies 
 him through all hi* wanderings, 
 2 10 aii' I 2 1 1. Buries her brother 
 Polyniees notwithstanding the 
 pronibition of Creon, and is im- 
 mured for having dared to dis- 
 obey h m, 221 to 223. 
 
 Aphrudlt.c. Goddt ss of beauty, 231 . 
 Gives her daughter IJarmonia 
 to be the wife of Cadmus, 58. 
 Gives Milanion three golden 
 apples that lie may conquer 
 Atalanta in the race, 89. Is 
 angry with Psyche, 231; and 
 treats her cruelly. 237 to 243; 
 but is afterwards reconciled to 
 her marriage with Eros, 243. 
 
 Apollo. Son of Zeus and Leto, 
 and brotl'.er of Artemis, 23. 
 Disputes with Idas lor Mar- 
 pessa, 21. Gifts Melumpus 
 with the power of knowing the 
 future, 72. Punishes the pride 
 of Niobe, 80 and 81. Become* for 
 
 ARG 
 
 a time the slave of Admetus, 91. 
 Helps Admetus to win Alcestis, 
 92 and 93. Helps to arm 
 Heracles for his fight with th*> 
 Minyae, 112. Rei'uses to prt- 
 nounce the oracle demanded by 
 Heracles, 139. 131 esses the mar- 
 riage of i^ros and Psyche, 243. 
 Theseus sacrifices the Cretan 
 Bull to Apollo, 185. For the 
 Temple of Apollo at Delphi see 
 page 55, also Delphi. 
 
 Arcadia. Heracles drives the 
 Stympbalian birds out of the 
 country, 121 and 122. 
 
 Ares. The god of war. Is made 
 prisoner by Otusand EphiHltes, 
 28. Gives his daughter H*r- 
 monia to be the wife of Cadmus, 
 58. Gives a beautiful girdle to 
 the Queen of the Amazons, 124. 
 
 Argo. The vessel in which Jason 
 and his friends sail to fetch the 
 Golden Fleece, 153. She is de- 
 dicated to Poseidon, 171. 
 
 Argonauts. The heroes who sailed 
 in the Argo. For their adven- 
 tures, see pages 153 to 171. 
 
 Argos. The home of To, 31. Her 
 descendant Danaus finds a re- 
 fuge in Argos when obliged to 
 flee from Egypt, and becomes 
 king, 34 and 35. Lynceus suc- 
 ceeds him, 37. Melampus is 
 sent for to Argos to deliver the 
 daughters of King Proetus from 
 their mania, 73 and 74. Danaii 
 is driven away from Argos by 
 her father, King Acrisius, 95. 
 Perseus becomes king ot Argos, 
 but exchanges it for the cities 
 of Mycenae nd Tiryns, 03. 
 Polyniees comes to Ar_o* to ask 
 for help, 212. King Adrastus 
 leadstheArgivesagaiustThebes, . 
 213 to 223. Their de'eat is after- 
 wards avenged by the Epigoni, 
 224 to 227 
 
 Argus. (1) The hundred-eyed 
 
248 
 
 ART 
 
 watchman placed by Hera in 
 charge of lo, 31. (2) The 
 builder of the Argo,l52 and 1.33. 
 
 Ariadne. Daughter of Minos, 
 king of Crete. Helps Theseus 
 to overcome the Minotaur, and 
 flees away with him, 188 to 
 190. At Naxos, Theseus is com- 
 manded to abandon her, 191 ; 
 and she become* the wife of the 
 god Dion vans, 192. 
 
 .irioit. A horse of divine origin. 
 Carries Adra&tus back to Argos 
 after his defeat before Thebes, 
 221. 
 
 Anemis. Goddess of the chase, 
 24. Daughter of Zeus and Leto, 
 and sister of Apullo, 23. Pun- 
 ishes Acraeon for looking at her 
 when bathing, 25. Causes the 
 death of Ottis and Ephialtes, 
 28. Punishes Niobe for her 
 pride, 80 and 81. Semis a wild- 
 boar to lay waste the country 
 round Calydon, 84. Festival of 
 Artemis celebrated at Sparta, 
 199. 
 
 Asia. The home of Europa and 
 Cadmus, 54. The country of 
 the Amazons lies in Asia, 125 
 and 193. Phrixus is brought to 
 the city of Colchis in Asia by 
 the Golden Ram, 150. 
 
 Atalauta. Is exposed in a forest 
 and brought up by hunters, 84 
 to 86. Takes part in the Caly- 
 donian boar-iiunt, 86 to 89. 
 Allows herself to be conquered 
 by the golden apples in the race 
 with Milanion. 89 and 90. 
 
 Athamas, King. Father of Phrixus 
 and Helle, 148. Dionysus is 
 placed under his charge* by 
 Zeus, 63. Hera is angry at 
 this and punishes Athamas by 
 making him mad, 63 and 150 
 He kills his wife and children 
 in his madness, and is con- 
 demned to wander about till 
 
 A XL 
 
 he becomes the guest of wild 
 beasts, 150 and 151. 
 
 Athene. Daughter of Zeus, and 
 goddess of wisdom. Buries one 
 of the Giants beneath the island 
 of Sicily, 6. Teaches Bellerophon 
 how to control the winged hor^o 
 Pegasus, 49. Directs Cadmus 
 to sow i he dragon's teeth and 
 build a city with the help of the 
 warriors who should spring from 
 them, 56 and 57. Receives from 
 Perseus the Gorgon's head and 
 fastens it to her shield, 103. 
 Helps to arm Heracles for hi.s 
 fiffht with the Minyae, 112. 
 Helps Heracles to drive away 
 the Stymphalian birds, 121 ami 
 122. Returns the apples procured 
 by Heracles from the Garden of 
 the Hesperides, 135. Sends a 
 Sacred Beam for the Artjo. 153. 
 Claims the guardianship of the 
 city of Athens, 176 and 177. 
 
 Athens. Is named after Athene, 
 176 and 177. Amphitryon goes 
 there to fetch the dog who could 
 not be baffled of his prey, 106. 
 The city is ruled over by Aegeus, 
 177. Theseus arrives at Athens 
 182 ; delivers the land from the 
 Bull of Marathon, 184 and 185 ; 
 and from the tribute imposed 
 by Minos, 185 to 19i ; succeeds 
 his father as king of Athens, 
 193 ; defeats the Amazons, 195 ; 
 sets up an Altar of Pity in the 
 market-place, 196. Hippolvtus 
 comes to stay at Athens, 1 97 and 
 198. Oedipus finds a refuge 
 there, 210. Adrastus comes to 
 sue for help, 223. The bones of 
 Theseus are brought to Athens, 
 203 and 204. 
 
 Atlas. Is compelled to support the 
 viulr of heaven, 1 34. Fetches 
 the golden apples from the 
 Garden of the Hesperides fur 
 Heracles, 134 and 135. 
 
INDEX. 
 
 249 
 
 ATTG 
 
 Augcas. King of Elis. Has his 
 stables cleansed by Heracles in 
 a single clay, 119 and 120. Re- 
 fuses to give the reward agreed 
 upon, 120 and 121. Is punished 
 by Heracles for his treachery, 
 141 and 142. 
 
 Aventlnus, Mt. A mountain in 
 Italy over which Heracles is 
 driving the cattle of Geryon 
 when they are stolen by the 
 Giant Caeus, 130. 
 
 BACCHANTES. Followers of 
 Dionysus or Bacchus, 65 to 
 67. 
 
 Beam, The Sacred. A beam with 
 the power of speech, sent by 
 Athene to be inserted in the 
 Argo, 153. It reproves Jason 
 and Medea for their crime, 167. 
 Dies of old age, 171. 
 
 Bollerophon. Sou of Glaucus, and 
 grandson of Sisyphus, kings of 
 Corinth. 45. Kills his brother 
 unintentionally, and goes to 
 King Proetus to be purged from 
 the stain of blood, 45. Is sent 
 by Proetus to lobates king of 
 Lycia, 46. Slays the Chimaera 
 by the help of the winged horse 
 Pegasus, 47 to 50. Marries the 
 king's daughter and settles in 
 the country, 51. 
 
 Bias. Brother of Mel am pus. Ob- 
 tains the hand of Pero, daughter 
 of king Neleus, through the 
 kindness of his brother, 69 to 
 72. Obtains also a third part 
 of the dominions of Proetus, king 
 of Argos, 73 and 74. 
 
 Black Sea. Crossed by Phrixus 
 when carried by the Golden 
 Kara to Colchis, 150. Pa>sed 
 through by the Argonauts on 
 their way to Colchis, 155. 
 
 Boreas. The god of the North 
 W.nd, 158. 
 
 Bull of Crete or of Marathon, 
 Sent by Poseidon to Minos f.r 
 sacrifice, 122. Taken to My- 
 cenae by Heracles,! 23. Captured 
 by Theseus and sacrificed to 
 Apollo, 184 and 185. 
 
 Busiris. A king of Egypt who 
 sacrificed a stranger every ye ir 
 to the gods. Is killed by'He-a- 
 cles, 133 and 134. 
 
 QACUS. A giant living on 
 Mt. Aventinus. Steals the 
 cattle of Heracles and is killed 
 by him, 130 and 131. 
 
 Cadmea. The fortress of Thebes. 
 Named after Cadmus, 58. Hera 
 enters and gives bud advice to 
 Semele, 61. It is visited by a 
 devastating Fox, whom Am- 
 phitryon overcomes with the 
 help of the Athenian Dog, 106. 
 
 Cadmus. Sets tff in search of his 
 sister Enropa, 53. Is directed 
 to found a city, 56. Sows 
 dragon's teeth, from which 
 spring warriors who help him 
 to build the Cadmea, 57 and 
 58. Marries Harmonia, 58. Is 
 the father of Semele, 61. 
 
 Calydon. The country of Oeneus 
 and the scene of the great 
 boar-hunt in which Meleager 
 and Atalanta take part, 83-89. 
 Heracles goes there to sue for 
 Deianira, 142, and spends some 
 years there, 143. 
 
 Capaneus. One of the Seven He- 
 roes who march against Thebes, 
 213 and 214. Is killed by light- 
 ning, 219. 
 
 Cassiopea. Wife of Cepheus and 
 mother of Andromeda. Punished 
 by Poseidon for her pride, 98 and 
 99. 
 
 Castor. Son of Tyndareus and 
 Leda, and twin -brother of Pol- 
 lux. 200. Takes part in the 
 expedition of the Argonauts. 
 
250 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 CAtr 
 
 157. Rescues his sister Helena, 
 201. Shares the fate of his 
 brother Pollux after death as 
 well as through life, 201. 
 
 Caucasus, Mt. Prometheus is 
 chained there, 12. 
 
 Centaurs. Monstrous creatures, 
 halt' men, half horses. Quarrel 
 with Heracles, 117 to 119. 
 Fight with the Lapithae, who 
 overcome ihem with the help 
 of Theseus, 196. (See also 
 Chiron, Kessu*, and Pholus.} 
 
 Cepheus. King of a part of 
 Africa. Husband of Cassiopea 
 and father of Andromeda, 9 9 and 
 100. 
 
 Cerberus. A three-headed dog 
 who stood as watchman at the 
 gate of the land of Shndes. 
 Heracles is sent to fetch him to 
 the Upper World, 135. He 
 allows Psyche to pass him, 242, 
 
 Ceryneian Hind. A hind under 
 the protection of Artemis, cap- 
 tured by Heracles as his third 
 Labour, 11G and 117 
 
 Chaos. The state of the universe 
 before the creation of the heaven 
 and the earth, 1. 
 
 Charon. The ferryman who con- 
 ducted mortals to the Lower 
 World. Bows Psyche across the 
 river Acheron, 241. 
 
 Chimaera. A monster half-lion, 
 half-goat, with a serpent's tail, 
 47. Killed by Bellerophon, 
 48 to 50- 
 
 Chiron. The wisest and best of 
 the Centaurs. L structs Hera- 
 cles, 100. Is killed !>y him un- 
 intentionally, 118 and 119. 
 
 Circe. An enchantress, sister of 
 KingAeetes. Purges Jason and 
 Medea from the blood of Absyr- 
 tus, 167. 
 
 Cithaeron, Mt. Heracles pas- 
 tures the flocks of Amphitryon 
 on this mountain, and elays the 
 
 ORE 
 
 lion whose skin he afterwards 
 wears, 110 and 111. Oedipug 
 is h-ft there to perish by his 
 parents, 205. 
 
 Club-carrier. One of the robbers 
 killed by Theseus on his jour- 
 ney to Athens, 179. 
 
 Clytfiemnetstra. Daughter of Tyn- 
 dareus and Leda. 200. 
 
 Colchis. The city of King Aee'tes. 
 Phrixus is brought there by the 
 Golden Rum, 150. The Argo- 
 nauts reach Colchis, 159. 
 
 Corinth. The country of Sisy- 
 phus, 43. Bellerophon is ob- 
 liged to leave Corinth on ac- 
 count of the nmr.ler of his 
 brother, 45. Jason and Medea 
 settle there, 173. Oedipus is 
 brought there and adopted by 
 King Polybus, 205 anil 206. 
 
 Crcon (1). King of Corinth. Re 
 ceives Jason and Medea, and 
 offers his daughter Ghiiu-e to 
 Jason for a wife, 173 and 174. 
 (2). King of Thebes Purges 
 Amphitryon from the blood of 
 KU'Ctryon, 105. Accompanies 
 him on his expedition against 
 the Teleboae, 106 & 107. Gives 
 his daughter Megara to Heracles 
 fora wife, 112. (3). Brother 
 Jocasta. Becomes King of 
 Thebes, 221 . Refuses burial to 
 the Argives and condemns Anti- 
 gone to denth for disobeying 
 his orders, 221 to 223. Is com- 
 pelled l>y Theseus to rescind 
 them, 223. 
 
 Cnte. Zeus is hidden in this 
 island from his father when a 
 child, 3. Daedalus makes the 
 Labyrinth for Kirg Minos, 52. 
 Daedalus escapes from Crete 
 Avith his son Icarus, 52 and 53. 
 Heracles is sent by Eurystheus 
 to fetch the Cretan bull to My- 
 cenae, 122 and 123. The Argo- 
 nauts laud after having caused 
 
INDEX. 
 
 251 
 
 CRO 
 
 Talos to kill himself, 169 and 
 J70. Theseus goes to Crete as 
 part of the tribute given by 
 the Athenians, kills the Mino- 
 taur and escapes with Ariadue, 
 . 187 to 190. 
 
 Cronus. Son of Uranus and 
 Gala. Det lirones his father 
 and succeeds him as king of 
 the gods, 2. Marries Rhea, 2. 
 Is dispossessed by his son Zeus, 
 'A and 4. 
 
 J^AEDALUS. An artist em- 
 
 ployed by Minos king of 
 
 Crete. Builds the Labyrinth, 
 
 52. Escapes with his sonlcarus, 
 
 52 and 53. 
 
 Danae. Daughter of Acn'sius, 
 king of Argos. Is married to 
 Zeus, and becomes the mother 
 of Perseus, 95 and 96. Js shut 
 tip in a chest by her father and 
 cast adrift, 95. Is allowed to 
 take refuge on an isl"d, 96. Is 
 delivered by Perseus from the 
 king. 101. 
 
 Danaides. The daughters of Da- 
 naus. They bail to Argos with 
 their father, 34. Kill their 
 husbands at his command, 35 
 and 36 Are condemned to un- 
 ending punishment in the 
 Lower World, 37 and 38. 
 
 Dtt'iaus. A descendant of lo. 
 Flees from his home in Africa 
 with his daughters, and settles 
 in Argos, 34. Becomes king of 
 Argos, 35. Commands hisdaugh- 
 ters to kill their husbands, and 
 wishes to punish Hypermnestra 
 for failing to obey him, 36 a nd 37- 
 
 Deiaiiira. Daughter of Oeneus 
 king of Calydon. Is wooed by 
 both Heracles and the river- 
 god Acheloiis, who agree to 
 tight for her, 142. Marries 
 Heracles, 143. Receives from 
 the Centaur Nessus a cloth dip- 
 
 DIO 
 
 ped in his blood, 144. Smears 
 with this cloth the robe of He- 
 racles, and thus causes his death, 
 145 and 146. Hangs herself in 
 despair, 147. 
 
 DC os. A Hotting island. Leto 
 trikes refuge on it, and Poseidon 
 causes four pillars to spring up 
 and hold it fast, 23. Apollo 
 and Artemis are born there, 23. 
 The island is honoured by the 
 Greeks, 24. 
 
 Delphi. A city of Greece in which 
 there was an oracl" of Apollo, 55. 
 (See Oracle.} Heracles carries 
 off the sacred Tripod. 139. The 
 Epigoni present to Apollo the 
 best of the spoil taken from 
 Thebes, 226. Acheloiis advises 
 his grand-children to offer the 
 veil and necklace of Hannoni* 
 to Apollo at Delphi, 230. 
 
 Dimeter. Daughter of Cronus, 4. 
 Seeks for her daughter Perse- 
 phone, 16 to 18. Creates corn 
 and teaches Triptolemus how to 
 cultivate it, 18 arid 19. E;its by 
 mistake the shoulder of Pelops, 
 75 and 76. 
 
 Deucalion. Son of Prometheus. 
 Saves himself and his wife 
 Pyrrha in a wo 'den chest at the 
 tune of tho great Flool, 13 and 
 14. They re-peoplo the earth 
 by throwing stones behind them 
 which become men and womt n, 
 15. 
 
 Diomedes. A king of Thrace who 
 fed his horses on human flesh. 
 Heracles is sent by Emys.,heu.s 
 to fetch the horsos to M. cenc; 
 heconquers the kingand throws 
 him to be enten by his own 
 horses, 123 and 124. 
 
 Dionysus. Son of Zeus and Se- 
 mele. Js placed under the 
 chnrge of Athniha*, 63 ; then 
 under that of some nymphs, 04. 
 Is gifted by Zeus with divine 
 
252 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 DTO 
 
 power, 64 and 65. Creates the 
 Vine, 65. Sets out upon a tri- 
 umphal journey round the world, 
 65. Punishes the sailors who 
 refuse to t'iko him to Naxos, 66 
 and 67. Punishes the daugh- 
 ters of Proetus who refuse to 
 honour him, 73. Is received 
 into the abode of the gods, 67. 
 Marries Ariadne, 192. 
 
 Dioscuri. The brothers Castor 
 and Pollux, 201 
 
 Doliones. A people in whose 
 country the Argonauts land on 
 their way to Colchis, 154 and 155. 
 
 JfARTFf, The. Gives a golden 
 
 ^ apple-tree to Hera on her 
 
 marriage with Zeus, 131. Gives 
 
 her &on Antaeus new strength 
 
 every time he touches her, 133. 
 
 Egypt. Io is kindly received by 
 the king, and becomes his wife, 
 32 and 33. Danaus leaves Egypt 
 for Argos, 34. Heracles kills 
 King Bfisiris, 133 and 134. 
 
 Electryon. Son and successor of 
 Perseus. His right is disputed 
 by Pterelaus king of the Tele- 
 boae, 104. He prepares to make 
 an expedition against the Tele- 
 boae, but is killed accidentally 
 by Amphitryon, 105. 
 
 EUs. A country of Greece. Ruled 
 over by Salmoneus, 42. Pelops 
 goes to Elis to sue for Hippo- 
 damia, conquers her father in 
 the chariot-race, and becomes 
 king, 77 to 79. Heracles cleanses 
 the stables of Auge;is, king of 
 Elis, 119 and 120. HP marches 
 against Elis to punish Augeas 
 for his faithlessness, and trans- 
 fers the kingdom to Phyleus, 
 141 and 142. 
 
 Evd'/mion. A son of Zeus. Asks 
 that he may sleep for ever, 29. 
 Is beloved by the god .ess Selene, 
 30. 
 
 EUB 
 
 Ephialte*. Brother of Otus, and 
 son of Poseidon, 27. The bru- 
 thers fight against the gods, and 
 make Ares prisoner, 28. They 
 are killed through a device of 
 the goddess Artemis, 28. 
 
 Epiqoni. The sons of the Seven 
 Heroes defeated before Thebes. 
 They march against Thebes to 
 avenge the death of their fathers, 
 and take possession of the city, 
 224 to '227. 
 
 Epimetheus. Brother of Prome- 
 theus, 0. Zeus sends Pandora 
 to be his wife, 10 and 11. 
 
 Erylnus. King of the Minyae. 
 Demands tribute from the The- 
 bans, 111. Is attacked and 
 conquered by Heracles, 1 1 2. 
 
 Eriphyle. Wife of Amphiaraus 
 and sister of Adrastus, 214. 
 Decides that Amphiaraus shall 
 march against Thebes, 215. Is 
 killed by her son Alcmaeon, 2'?7. 
 
 Eros. The god of Love son of 
 Aphrodite, 231. Is commanded 
 by his mother to do Psyche an 
 injury, but instead of that, 
 marries her secretly, 231 to 236. 
 Is obliged to leave her. 236. 
 Obtains the gift of immortality 
 for Psyche, and the sanction of 
 the gods to his marriage with 
 her, 243. 
 
 Eri/manthus, Mt. The home of 
 the boar captured by Heracles 
 as his Fourth Labour, 117 to 
 
 no. 
 
 Eteodes. Son of Oedipus and .To- 
 casta. Banishes his brother 
 Pol ynices from Thebes, 212. De- 
 fies the summons of the Argives 
 to surrender the kingdom, 218. 
 Challenges Polynices to a single 
 combat, in which each brother 
 kills the other, 220. 
 
 Euboca. Tlie country of Eurytus. 
 Heracles goes there to sue for 
 lole, 137. Heracles conquers 
 
IJSDEX. 
 
 253 
 
 EUR 
 
 the city and kills Eir-ytus and 
 his sons, 145. 
 
 Europe. Sister of Cadmus. Is 
 carried off by Zeus in the form 
 of a bull, 54 and 58. 
 
 Europe. The country to which 
 Europa was carried by the bull, 
 aud which was called after her, 
 58. Heracles reaches the ex- 
 treme limit of Europe, 128. 
 Phrixus and Helle are carried 
 away from it into Asia by the 
 Gold en 1 Earn, 150. 
 
 Eiirystheus. Son of Sthei^ns. 
 Becomes king of Mycenae and 
 Tiryns, 109. Is served for 
 twelve years by Heracles who 
 performs twelve Labours at his 
 command, 113 to 137. 
 
 Eurytus. King of Euboea. Ee- 
 fuses to give his daughter lole 
 in marriage to Heracles and 
 taunts him with his former mad- 
 ness, 137. He and his sons are 
 killed by Heracles, 145. 
 
 Evenus. Father of Marpessa. Ee- 
 fuses to let his daughter marry 
 Idas, 20. Pursues Idas and Mar- 
 pessa, and being unable to over- 
 take them, drowns himself, 21. 
 
 TpATRS. Three goddesses who 
 determine the course of 
 men's lives. They are present 
 at the birth of Meleager, 83. 
 They promise that Admetus 
 shall recover if one of his 
 relatives will die for him, 93. 
 They decree that the Theban 
 Fox shall never be caught, and 
 that the Athenian Dog shall 
 never pursue in vain, ] 06. 
 
 Ftr-bend^r. One of the robbers 
 killed by Theseus on his jour- 
 ney to Athens, 170 and 180. 
 
 Flood. Zeus destroys the whole 
 race of men by a great Flood, 
 excepting Deucalion and Pyrrha, 
 13 to lo. 
 
 GOL 
 
 QAEA. Wife of Uranus and 
 goddess of the eaith, J. 
 Helps her son Cronus to de- 
 throne his father, 2. Plans the 
 overthrow of Cronus, 3. Cre- 
 ates Giants to fight against the 
 gods, 5; also a monster named 
 Typhoeus, 6. Interferes to pre- 
 vent Phaethon from burning up 
 the earth, 41. 
 
 Ganymede. Son of Laomedon 
 king of Troy. Is carried off't-> 
 Olympus by the sacred eagle of 
 Zeus, 127. 
 
 Garden of the Hesperides. A 
 garden in Oceanus where Hera 
 planted the golden apple-tree, 
 given her by the Earth at her 
 marriage with Zeus. Heracles 
 is sent by Etirystheus to fetch 
 three gclden apples from it, 131 
 to 135. 
 
 Geryon. A three-headed king in 
 the far West, possessor of a 
 beautiful herd of red-brown 
 cattle. He loses his lite in 
 defending them against Hera- 
 cles, 128 and 129. 
 
 Giants. Huge monsters created 
 by Gaea to fight against the 
 gods. They are defeated in a 
 great battle, and buried beneath 
 volcanic mountains, 6. 
 
 Glance. Daughter of Creon king 
 of Corinth. Is offered 10 Jasou 
 as a bride, 173 and 174 Her 
 death is caused by Medea, 
 174. 
 
 Glaucus. Son of Sisyphus, and 
 father of Bellerophon, 45. 
 
 Golden Age. The time when men 
 were first created, and lived 
 long and happy lives, 8. 
 
 Golden, Fleece. The fleece of the 
 ram who carried Phrixus to 
 Colchis. It is hung up on a 
 tree in a forest near Colchis, 
 150. Jason is sent to fetch it, 
 152. He cuiTUS it oft' fiora 
 
254 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 GOR 
 
 the forest, 165 ; and brings it 
 safely to lolcus, 171. 
 
 Gorf/ons. Three sisters with iron 
 claws and golden wings and 
 live serpents instead of hair, 
 who turned to stone everyone 
 that looked at them, 96 and 98. 
 Person* cuts off the head of Me- 
 dusa, the youngest Gorgon, 98. 
 
 Graces. Three beautiful daugh- 
 ters of Zens. They dance 
 at the wedding of Eros and 
 Psyche, 243. 
 
 Grey Sisters. Sisters of the Gor- 
 gons \\ho had only one eye and 
 one tooth between them. Per- 
 seus goes to their cave and 
 obliges them to tell him where 
 to find the nymphs who can 
 heJp him obtain the head of 
 Medusa, 97. 
 
 TJARMONIA. Daughter of 
 Ares and Aphrodite. Is 
 married to Cadmus, 58. Is pre- 
 sented by Hephaestus with a 
 beautiful veil and necklace, 211 
 
 Harpie*. Creaturrs wit h the bo- 
 ' dies of maidens and the feet and 
 wings of ravens. They torment 
 Phineus until.they are killed by 
 the Argonauts, 167 and 158. 
 
 Hebe. A goddess, daughter of 
 Hera. Is given by her in mar- 
 riage to Herficles, 147. 
 
 Helena. Daughter of Zeus and 
 Loda, 200. Is carried off by 
 Theseus and Pirithoiis, 1C 9. 
 Is rescued by her brothers, Cas- 
 tor and Pollux. 201. 
 
 Helios. The sun -god. Tells 
 Dfmeter that Plu'o has carried 
 off her daughter, 17. Unwill- 
 ingly grants the request of his 
 son Phaethon to be allowed to j 
 drive the chariot of the sun, 39 
 to 41. Lends Heracles his golden 
 shell that he may sail in it to 
 the island of Geryou, 129. 
 
 HER 
 
 HeUe. Daughter of King Atha- 
 mas and sister of Phrixus. 
 Is carried away, with her 
 brother, bv the Golden Earn, 
 but, falls off his back into the 
 sea and is drowned, 148 to 
 150. 
 
 Hellespont. The sea which lies 
 between Europe and Asia. Called 
 after Helle, 150. 
 
 Hephaestus. Fashions Pandora out 
 of clay, 10. Binds Prometheus 
 to a rock on Mt. Caucasus, 1 2. 
 Helps to arm Heracles for his 
 fight with the Minyae, 112. 
 Makes the rattle which Hera- 
 cles uses to drive away the 
 Sfymphalian birds, 122. Makes 
 an iron watchman for Minos 
 king of Crete, 169. Presents a 
 beautiful veil and necklace to 
 Cadmus and Harmonia, 214 
 
 Hera. Daughter of Cronus, 4. 
 Becomes the wife of Zeus and 
 queen of the gods, 4. Is pre- 
 sented by the Earth at her 
 marriage with a golden apple- 
 tree, 131. Persecutes Leto, 23 ; 
 arid lo, 31 to 33. Gives trea- 
 cherous advice to Semele, 61. 
 Punishes Athamas for receiving 
 Dionysus, 63 and 150. Is re- 
 conciled to Dionysus and Semele, 
 67. Causes Eurystheus to be 
 born before Heracles and thus 
 become heir to the cities of 
 Mycenae and Tiryr s, 109. 
 Sends serpents to kill Heracles 
 when a child, 109. Affiicts him 
 with madness, 113. Tb.kes the 
 form of an Amazon acd leads 
 an attack upon Heracles, 125. 
 Sends a great gnat to torment 
 his cattle, 131. Raises a storm 
 to destroy him, 141 ; and is 
 punished for this by Zeus, 141. 
 Is reconciled to Heracles and 
 welcomes him among the gods, 
 147. Protects the Argon* uts 
 
INDEX. 
 
 255 
 
 II RE 
 
 in their passage through the 
 
 "Wandering Rocks, 169. 
 
 Heracles. Son of Zeus and Alc- 
 
 mene, 108 and 109. Strands 
 
 two serpents sent by Hera to kill 
 
 him in his sleep, 109. Is taught 
 
 by the Centaur Chiron, 110. 
 
 Kills a lion on Mt. Cithaeron 
 
 and dresses himself in the skin, 
 
 110 and 111. Conquers the 
 
 Minyae and kills their king, 
 
 rginuB, 11 1 and 112. Marries 
 
 Megara, 112. Becomes mad, 
 
 and throws his children into the 
 
 lire, 113. Leaves Thebes in 
 
 consequence, and enters the 
 
 service of Eurystheus for whom 
 
 he performs trvwlre Labours : 
 
 1st Labour. Killing the Ne- 
 
 mean Lion, 1 13 and 1 14. 
 
 2nd Labour. Killing the Ler- 
 
 nean Hydra, 114 to 116. 
 
 3rd Labour. Capturing the 
 
 Ceryneiau Hind, 116 and 
 
 117. 
 
 4th Laliour. Bringing the 
 Erymanthian Boar to 
 Mycenae, 117 and 119. 
 5ih Labour. Cleansing the 
 stables of Augeas in a 
 single day, 119 to 121. 
 6th Labour. Driving away 
 the Stymphalian Birds, 
 
 121 and 122. 
 
 7th Labour. Bringing the 
 Cretan Bull to Mycenae, 
 
 122 and 123. 
 
 8th Labour. Bringing to My- 
 cenae the fierce horses of 
 Diomedes, 123 and 124. 
 9th Labour. Obtaining the 
 girdle of the Queen of 
 the Amazons, 124 to 126. 
 
 10th Labour. Fetchingthe cat- 
 tle of G-eryon, l28to!31. 
 
 Ufch Labour. Procuring three 
 golden apples from the 
 Garden of the Hespe- 
 rides, 131 to 135. 
 
 HER 
 
 12th Labour. Fetching the 
 three-headed dog Cerbe- 
 rus from the Lower 
 World, 135 to 137. 
 Heracles delivers Prometheus* 
 from the eagle, 12. Fights 
 with the Centaurs and causes 
 the death of Chiron uninten 
 tionally, 117 to 119. Delivers 
 Hesione from the monster, 126 
 and 127. Punishes Laomedon 
 her father for breaking his word 
 to him, 140. Kills the giant 
 Cacus for stealing his cattle, 
 130 and 131. Wrestles w th 
 Nereus the sea - g'>d, 132. 
 Wrestles with Antaeus, son of 
 the Earth, and squeezes him to 
 death, 133. Kills Busiris who 
 had been accustomed to sacrifice 
 a stranger every year to the 
 gods, 133 and" 134. Visits 
 Atlas, and takes his plnce for a 
 time in supporting the heaven, 
 134 and 13;"). Goes to Oechalia 
 to sue for lole daughter of King 
 Kurytus, and is taunted by her 
 father with his former madness, 
 137 and 138. Punishes Eury- 
 tus for this, 145. Kills Iphitus, 
 son of Eurytus, 138. Is smitten 
 with sickness, and when ho 
 asks the Oracle what he shall 
 do, is refused an answer, 139. 
 Quarrels with Apollo about tliis 
 and carries off the s-icred Tri- 
 pud, 139. Enters the service 
 of Omphale queen of Lydii, 
 with whom he remains fort hive 
 years, 139 and 140. Punished 
 Augeas for his faithlessness, 141 
 and 142. Goes to Calydon to 
 sue for Deianira, and wins her 
 in a contest with the river-god 
 Acheloiis, 142 and 143. Mar- 
 ries Deianira and lives with 
 her for some time in Calydon, 
 143. Accidentally kills his 
 servant-boy and has to leave, and 
 
256 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 TIER 
 
 go to Trachin to be purified, 113 
 and 144. Is about to celebrate 
 his victory over Eurytus when 
 he receives from Deianira a 
 robe poisoned with the blood of 
 the Centaur Nessus, -which 
 causes him such terrible suffer- 
 ing that he rt-solves to die, 145 
 and 146. Ascends Mt. Oeta 
 and builds a funeral pile which 
 he causes to be st t alight, 146. 
 But before the flames reach him, 
 he is carried up to Mt. Olympus 
 and enthroned among the gods, 
 146 and 147. The goddess Hebe 
 is given to him for a wifs, 147. 
 
 Hermes. The Messenger of the 
 gods. Takes Pandora to Epi- 
 metheus, 10. Is sent to tell 
 Deucalion and Pyrrha that 
 they may make any request they 
 like, 14. Helps Ares to escape 
 from captivity, 28. Kills the 
 watchman Argus, and rescues 
 lo, 31 and 32. Takes Dionysus 
 to King Athamus, 63 ; and 
 afterwards to be brought up by 
 some nymphs, 64. Gives Perseus 
 a sickle with which to cut off 
 the head of Medusa, 97. Re- 
 turns to the nymphs the three 
 Precious Things they had lent 
 to Perseus, 103. Steals part of 
 the booty of Amphitryon for 
 Zeus, 108. Helps to arm 
 Heracles for his fight with the 
 Minyae, 112. .Brings the 
 Golden Rum to carry away 
 Phrixus and Helle, 149. Brings 
 Psyche into the assembly of the 
 gods, 243. 
 
 Ilcslone. Daughter of Laomedon 
 king of Troy. Is rescued by 
 Heracles from the monster, 126. 
 Is given to the hero Telamon 
 after the conquest of Troy, and 
 allowed to take her little brofher 
 Podarces or Priam with her, 
 140 and HI. 
 
 Hespcrides. Three nymphs who 
 tended the garden of golden 
 apple-trees, 132. (See Garden 
 or Hespcrides.) 
 
 Hivtia. Daughter of Cronus, 4. 
 
 Hippudamia. Daughter of Oena- 
 maus king of tlis. Her father 
 compels all her suitors to com- 
 pete with him in a chariot-race, 
 77. Pelops wins, and marries 
 Hippodamia, 78 and 79. 
 
 Hippolyta. An Amazon carried 
 off bv Theseus to be his wile, 
 193 and 194. She is killed, 
 fighting for him against her 
 country-women, 195. 
 
 Hippolytus. Son of Theseus and 
 Hippo'yta, 194. Js beloved by 
 Phaedra, Avile of Theseus, 197. 
 She causes his death, 198. 
 
 Hippomcdon. One of the Seven 
 Heroes who march against 
 Thebes. 213. 
 
 Horn of Plenty. The horn of the 
 goat Amalthea, converted by 
 Zeus into a miraculous horn, 5. 
 Is given to Heracles in exchange 
 for the horn of Acheloiis, 143. 
 
 Hundred-armed. Monsters, child- 
 ren of Uranus and Gaea, 1. Are 
 thrust into Tartarus, 2 and 3. 
 Are released by Zeus and help 
 him to fight against the old 
 gods, 4. 
 
 Hydra. A monster killed by 
 Heracles, 114 to 116. Heracles 
 poisons his arrows with the 
 Hydra's gall, 116; and uses 
 them in shooting at the Centaurs, 
 118; and 144. 
 
 Hylas. The most beautiful boy in 
 Greece. Is dragged down into 
 a forest pool by the nymphs who 
 live there, and never seen again, 
 165 and 156. 
 
 Hypsipile. Queen of Lemnos. 
 Saves the life of her father 
 when all the other men in the 
 island are killed, 153 and 154. 
 
INDEX. 
 
 257 
 
 ICA 
 
 Is banished in consequence, and 
 becomes nurse to the child of 
 Lycurgus king of Neruea, 215 to 
 217. 
 
 TCAKUS. Son of Daedalus. 
 Flies away from Crete with 
 his father, but falls into the sea 
 and is drowned, 52 and 53. 
 
 Idas. Carries off Marpessa in a 
 winged chariot, 20. Is preferred 
 by her to the god Apollo, 21 
 and 22. 
 
 Ino. Wife of Athamas, and step- 
 mother of Phrixus and Helle, 
 63 and 148. Tries to get 
 Phrixus put to death, 148 and 
 149. Is killed in trying to 
 < j scnpe from her husband in his 
 madness, 63 and 150. 
 
 To. Daughter of a king of Argos. 
 Is beloved by Zeus, and changed 
 by him into a white cow to save 
 her from Hera, 31. Hera gets 
 possession of the cow and puts 
 her under the charge of the 
 watchman Argus, 31. She is 
 rescued by Hermes, 31 and 32. 
 Hera however continues to tor- 
 ment her till she is protected by 
 the king of Egypt who marries 
 her, 32 and 33. 
 
 lobatcs. King of Lycia. Receives 
 Bellerophon kindly, 47 ; but at 
 the request of Proetus, sends 
 him on dangerous missions in 
 the hope of his being killed, 47 
 to 50 ; until, finding that he is 
 under the protection of the gods, 
 he begs him to settle in the 
 country and gives him his daugh- 
 ter in marriage, 51. 
 
 lolavs. A cousin of Heracles. 
 Accompanies him on his expedi- 
 tion to destroy the Lernean 
 Hydra, 115 and 116. 
 
 lolcus. The city of King Pelias, 
 151. Jason sets out from lolcus 
 in quest of the Golden Fleece, 
 
 JAS 
 
 152 and 153. Returns with the 
 Fleece, 171. Is obliged to leave 
 the city, 173. 
 
 lole. Daughter of Eurytus king of 
 Oechalia. Is sought i n marriage 
 by Heracles, but refused to him 
 by her father, 137 and 138. 
 
 Iphicles. Son of Amphitryon and 
 Alcmene, and half-brother of 
 Heracles, 108 and 109. 
 
 Iphiclus. (1) The owner of a 
 famous herd of cattle demanded 
 by Neleus king of Pylos in re- 
 turn for the hand of his daughter 
 Pero, 69. (2) Grandson of the 
 above. Melampus instructs him 
 how to propitiate the gods and 
 obtain an heir, 71 and 72. 
 
 Iphitus. Son of Eurytus, king of 
 Oechalia. Is killed by Heracles 
 in a fit of anger, 138. 
 
 Isthmus. The neck of land which 
 connects the peninsula of Pelo- 
 ponnesus with the rest of Greece. 
 The Argonauts land there on 
 their return from Colchis, 171. 
 
 Italy. Heracles passes through 
 the country when driving home 
 the cattle of Geryon to Mycenae, 
 130. 
 
 JASON. Nephew of Pelias, 
 king of lolcus, by whom he 
 is sent to fetch the Golden 
 Fleece, 152. Reaches Colchis, 
 159; and accomplishes the tasks 
 demanded by Aeetes, 1 60 to 1 64. 
 Obtains possession of the Fleece 
 by the help of Medea, and es- 
 capes with her, 165. Is purified 
 by Circe from the blood of Ab- 
 syrtus, 167. Arrives at lolcus 
 and shows Pelias the Golden 
 Fleece, 171. Goes to Corinth, 
 where King Creon offers him 
 Glance for his wife, 173. Pre- 
 sents her with a marriage-robe 
 which, unknown to him, has 
 been poisoned by Medea, 174. 
 
258 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 JOC 
 
 Sees Medea drive away in her 
 dragon -car, 175. 
 
 Jocasta. Wife of Lai'us king of 
 Thebes, and mother of Oedipus, 
 205. Marries Oedipus, not 
 knowing who he is, 207 and 
 208. When it is discovered, she 
 hangs herself in her despair and 
 grief, 209. 
 
 LABYRINTH. A wonderful 
 
 house made for Minos king 
 of Crete by the artist Daedalus, 
 52 and 186. Theseus enters it 
 and kills the Minotaur, 189 and 
 190. 
 
 Ld'zus. King of Thebes and hus- 
 band of Jocasta. Exposes his son 
 Oedipus on Mt. Cithaeron, 
 205. Is killed by his son un- 
 knowingly, 206 and 207. 
 Land of Shades. See Lower 
 
 World. 
 
 Laodamas. Son of Eteocles. Suc- 
 ceeds his father as king of 
 Thebes, and is killed in fighting 
 against the Epigoni, 225. 
 Laomedon. King of Troy, and 
 father of Ganymede, Hesioue 
 and Priam. Tries to cheat the 
 gods Apollo and Poseidon, and 
 is punished by them, 126. Re- 
 ceives from Zeus two horses of 
 the gods to console him for the 
 loss of Ganymede, 127. Pro- 
 mises the horses to Heracles if 
 he will deliver Hesione from the 
 monster, but fails to keep his 
 word, 126 and 127. Is punished 
 by Heracles for his faithlessness, 
 140. 
 
 Lapithae. The sxibjects of Piri- 
 thoiis the friend of Theseus, 195. 
 They conquer the Centaurs with 
 the help of Theseus, 196. 
 Leda. Wife of Tyndareus king of 
 Sparta. Marries Zeus in the 
 form of a swan, and becomes 
 the mother of Pollux and Helena, , 
 
 LTC 
 
 as well as of Castor and Cly- 
 taemnestra, 200. 
 
 Lemnos. An island inhabited by 
 women only. The Argonauts 
 rest there on their way to Col- 
 chis, 153 and 154. 
 
 Lerne. The city near which was 
 the abode of the Lernean 
 Hydra destroyed by Heracles, 
 115. 
 
 Leto. Marries Zeus, and becomes 
 the mother of Apollo and Arte- 
 mis, 23 and 24. Begs her chil- 
 dren to punish Niobe, 80. 
 
 Libya. The country of Antaeus. 
 Heracles wrestles with him, 133. 
 
 Lichas. A herald. Brings to 
 Heracles the robe poisoned by 
 Deianira which causes him such 
 agony that he beats Lichas to 
 death against the rocks, 145 
 and 146. 
 
 Lower World. Pluto is made 
 king of the Lower World, 5. 
 Persephone is carried off to it 
 by Pluto, 16 to 18. The Dana- 
 ides are condemned to never- 
 ending punishment, 37 and 38. 
 Tantalus is condemned to a 
 similar punishment, 76. Al- 
 cestis is allowed to return from 
 the Lower World, 94. Heracles 
 goes there to fetch Cerberus, 
 135 to 137. Theseus and Piri- 
 thoiis descend with the in- 
 tention of carrying off Per- 
 sephone, 199 to 202. Castor 
 and Pollux spend alternate days 
 in Olympus and in the Lower 
 World, 201. The helmet of 
 Pluto is lent to Perseus, 97. 
 Lycia. The country of King 
 lobates. Bellerophon slays the 
 Chimaera, and afterwards settles 
 in the country, 47 to 51. 
 Lycomedes. King of part of the 
 island of Scyros, 202. Kills 
 Theseus by treachery, 203. 
 Lycitrgus. King of N emea. The 
 
INDEX. 
 
 259 
 
 LTD 
 
 HITS 
 
 Nemean games are instituted in 
 memory of his child by the 
 heroes marching through his 
 country on their way to Thebes, 
 215 to 217. 
 
 Lydia. The country of Queen 
 Omphale, whom Heracles serves 
 as a slave for three years, 139 
 and 140. 
 
 Lynceus. Son of Aegyptus. Is 
 saved from death by his wife 
 Hypermnestra, 36. Succeeds 
 Danaus as king of Argos, 37. 
 
 JMTARPE88A Daughter of 
 Erenus. Runs away with 
 Idas, 20. Prefers him to the 
 god Apollo, 21 and 22. 
 
 Medea. Daughter of Aeetes king 
 of Colchis. Helps Jason to win 
 the Golden Fleece, and escapes 
 with him, 161 to 165. Kills 
 her brother Absyrtus, 166. Is 
 purged by Circe from the stain 
 of blood, 167. Deceives Talos 
 and makes him destroy himself, 
 169 and 170. Deludes the 
 daughters of Pelias into killing 
 their father, 172 and 173. 
 Sends a poisoned robe to Glauce, 
 174. Flees away from Corinth 
 in her dragon-car, 175. Is at 
 the court of Aegeus at Athens 
 when Theseus arrives, 183. Her 
 plan for poisoning him fails, and 
 she flees away in her winged car, 
 183 and 184. 
 
 Mediterranean. The sea which one 
 of the Giants is in the act of 
 crossing when buried by Athene 
 under the island of Sicily, 6. 
 Europa is carried across it by 
 ZPUS, 58. 
 
 Medusa. One of the three Gor- 
 gons. Is killed by Perseus, 96 
 to 98. Her head turns his 
 enemies to stone, 101. 
 
 Msgara. Daughter of Cm>n, king 
 
 of Thebes. Becomes the wife 
 of Heracles, 112. Dies, 137. 
 
 Melampus. Loams the language 
 of birds and insects, 68 ; and the 
 art of knowing the future, 72. 
 Obtains the cattle of Iphichis 
 for his brother Bias, 69 to 72. 
 Restores the reason -of the 
 daughters of Proetus, 73 and 74. 
 
 Meleager. Son of Oeneus and 
 Althaea, king and queen of 
 Calydon. Takes part in the 
 great boar-hunt which Atalanta 
 also attends, and dies in con- 
 sequence of a quarrel with his 
 uncles, 83 to 88. 
 
 Milanian. Wins the race with 
 Atalanta by the help of three 
 golden apples which he drops 
 at intervals, 89 and 90. 
 
 Miiios. King of Crete. Father of 
 Ariadne and Phaedra. Refuses 
 to lot Daedalus leave his country, 
 52. Is sent a bull for sacrifice 
 by Poseidon, but fails to kill it, 
 122. Receives Heracles who de- 
 livers him from the mad bull, ! 22 
 and 123. Is furnished by Heph- 
 aestus with an iron watchman, 
 169. Demands from the Athe- 
 nians a tribute of seven youths 
 and seven maidens, 186. Hears 
 that Theseus has slain the Mi- 
 notaur and carried offhis daugh- 
 ter Ariadne, 190 and 191. Gives 
 his daughter Phaedra in mar- 
 riage to Theseus, 197. 
 
 Minotaur. A monster, half man, 
 half bull, who lived in the 
 Labyrinth of Crete, 187. Is 
 killed by Theseus, 189 and 19<. 
 
 Minyae. The subjects of King 
 Erginus. They are conquered 
 by Heracles and obliged to pay 
 tribute to the Thebans, 112. 
 
 Moors. Name given to the people 
 of Africa, burnt black by 
 Phaethon, 41. 
 
 Muses. Nine beautiful goddesses 
 
260 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 MTC 
 
 of poetry, art and science. They 
 teach a riddle to the Sphinx, 207. 
 They sing at the marriage of 
 Eros and Psyche, 243. 
 Mycenae. A city of Greece. 
 Perseus exchanges his kingdom 
 of Argos for the cities of 
 Mycenae and Tiryns, 103. The 
 right of his son Electryon to 
 succeed is disputed by Pterelaus, 
 
 104. Amphitryon comes to 
 Mycenae to sue for Alcmene, 
 but is obliged to leave on ac- 
 count of the unintentional 
 murder of Electryon, 105. 
 Sthenelus drives away Alc- 
 mene and seizes the kingdom, 
 
 105. His son Eurystheus suc- 
 ceeds him as king, 1<$. He- 
 racles goes to Mycenae and 
 serves Eurystheus for twelve 
 years, 118. 
 
 Mt/xia. A country of Asia Minor. 
 The Argonauts land on their 
 way to Colchis, and leave He- 
 racles and Hylas behind when 
 they sail away, 155 and 156. 
 
 ~JAXOS. An island, the favour- 
 ite land of the god Dionysus, 
 66 and 67. He finds Ariadne on 
 the island and marries her, 191 
 and J92. 
 
 Ae/ew*. King of Pylos. De- 
 mands the cattle of Iphiclus in 
 return for the hand of his 
 daughter Pero, 69. Gives her 
 in marriage to Bias, 72. Re- 
 fuses to purge Heracles from 
 the murder of Iphitus, 138. 
 Heracl< s marches against him 
 and kills him and all his family, 
 142. 
 
 Nemea. A city of Greece. He- 
 racles goes there to kill the 
 Nemean lion, 113. The Nemean 
 Games are instituted in memory 
 of the child of King Lycurgus, 
 815 to 217. 
 
 OED 
 
 Nereus. A sea-god. Is com- 
 pelled by Heracles to tell him 
 how to obtain the golden apples 
 from the Garden of the Hesper- 
 ides, 132. 
 
 Fesstts. A Centaur. Carries 
 Deianira across the river and 
 tries to run away with her, but 
 is shot by Heracles with a 
 poisoned arrow, 144. 
 
 Nestor. Son of Neleus king of 
 Pvlos. The only member of the 
 family of Neleus left alive after 
 the revenge of Heracles, 142. 
 
 Niobe. Daughter of Tantalus, 
 and wife of Amphion king of 
 Thebes. Boasts of her supe- 
 riority to the goddess Leto, and 
 is punished by having all her 
 children taken from her at once, 
 80 to 83. 
 
 QCEANUS. The great stream 
 that flows right round the 
 world. The horses of Helios 
 bathe in it every evening, 39. 
 The Gorgons live on an island 
 in Oceanus, 97. On an island in 
 Ocean us lives the three-head- d 
 king Geryon, whose cattle He- 
 racles is sent to fetch, 128. The 
 golden apple-tree from which 
 the Garden of the Hesperides 
 grows, is planted by Hera in 
 Oceanus, 131 and 132. 
 
 OecJialia. The capital of Eurytus 
 king of Euboea. The city is 
 destroyed b_y Heracles, 145. 
 
 Oedipus. Son of La'ius and 
 Jocasta, kir>g and queen of 
 Thebes. Is exposed by his pa- 
 rents on Mt Cithaeron because 
 of the prediction that he shall 
 kill his father and marry his 
 mother, 205. Is found by a 
 herdsman and taken to Polybus 
 king of Corinth who adopts 
 him, 206. Kills his father not 
 knowing who he is, 207. Goes to 
 
INDEX. 
 
 261 
 
 OEN 
 
 Thebes where he delivers the 
 country from the Sphinx, and is 
 rewarded with the kingdom and 
 the hand of Jocasta, 207 and 
 208. Puts out his eyes in de- 
 spair, on discovering his parent- 
 age, 209. Is banished from 
 Thebes, and finds a refuge at 
 Athens, where he dies, 210 and 
 211. 
 
 Oeneus. King of Calydon, and 
 father of Meleager and Deia- 
 nira. Inaugurates the great 
 Calydonian boar-hunt, 83 to 88. 
 Eeceives Heracles, who comes 
 to sue for Deianira, 142. 
 
 Oenomdus. King of Elis. Makes 
 all the suitors of his daughter 
 Hippodamia, vie with him in a 
 chariot -race, and is killed in 
 racing with Pelops, 77 to 79. 
 
 Oeta, Mt. Heracles ascends the 
 mountain and builds his funeral 
 pile upon it, 146. 
 
 Olympus, Mt. The abode of the 
 gods, 2. The Giants try to 
 climb up into it, 5 and 6. De- 
 meter comes down from it to 
 the earth, 16 and 17. Hera 
 drives Leto from it, 23 ; but 
 afterwards receives her back 
 again, 24. Hera descends from 
 it to give bad advice to Semele, 
 61. Zeus descends and shows 
 himself to JSemele in god-like 
 splendour, 62. Dionysus and 
 Semele are received among the 
 gods, 67. Tantalus is allowed 
 sometimes to ascend to Mt. 
 Olympus, 75. Ganymede is 
 brought to Mt. Olympus by the 
 sacred eagle of Zeus, 127. 
 Heracles is enthroned as a god, 
 147. Psyche is received among 
 the Immortals, 243. Heracles 
 drives the hor&es of Diomedes 
 to the fo t of Mt. Olympus, 1 24. 
 
 Omphale. Queen of Lydia. He- 
 racles sells himself to her as a 
 
 PAN 
 
 slave for three years, 139 ana 
 140. 
 
 One-eyed, The. Monstrous children 
 of Uranus and Gaea, 1. Are 
 thrust into Tartarus, 2 and 3. 
 Are released by Zeus, and forge 
 weapons for him, '4. 
 
 Oracle. A temple of Apollo at 
 Delphi, where the god vouch- 
 safed prophetic answers (also 
 called Oracles) to those who 
 came to enquire concerning the 
 future. Answers are given to 
 Cadmus, 56; Oenomaus. 77; 
 Acrisius, 95 ; the parents of 
 Andromeda, 99; Heracles. 113 
 and 139 ; the Trojans, 126 ; Pe- 
 lias, 151 ; the Athenians, 203 ; 
 Oedipus, 206; Adrastus, 213: 
 Alcmaeon, 227 ; the parents of 
 Psyche, 231. 
 
 Orpheus. Delivers the Argonauts 
 from the Sirens by overpower- 
 ing their song, 168. 
 
 Ossa, Mt. The Giants propose 
 to set up this mountain on the 
 top of Mt. Pelion, and so 
 climb up to Olympus, 6. 
 
 Othrys, Mt. The mountain 
 from which the old gods fight 
 with the younger ones, 4. 
 
 Otus. Son of Poseidon and brother 
 of Ephialtes, 27- He nd his 
 brother fight against the gods 
 and make Ares prisoner, 28. 
 They are killed through a device 
 of Artemis, 28. 
 
 PALLANTIDAE. Sons of Pai- 
 
 las, the brother of Aegeus, 
 177. They lay a plot to kill 
 their Uncle and Theseus, 184. 
 
 Pallas. Brother of Aegeus king 
 of Athens, 177. 
 
 Pandora. Is fashioned by Heph 
 aestus out of clay, and endowed 
 with gifts by all the gods, 10. 
 Is sent to be the wife of Epi- 
 metheus, anil takes with her, 
 
262 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 PAR 
 
 as her dowry, a casket full of 
 Diseases and Cares, 10 and 11. 
 
 Parnassus. A mountain sacred to 
 the gods. Zeus proves it to be 
 the centre of the earth, 14. The 
 chest in which Deucalion and 
 Pyrrha have been preserved 
 during the Flood, strands there, 
 14. The sacred Oracle of Apollo 
 is located in Delphi, a city on 
 Mt. Parnassus, 55. 
 
 Parthenopacus. One of the Seven 
 Heroes "who marched against 
 Thebes, 213. 
 
 Pegasus. A beautiful winged 
 horse. Bellerophon becomes 
 his master, is taught by the 
 goddess Athene how to control 
 him, and by his help overcomes 
 the Chimaera, 48 to 50. 
 
 Pelias. King of lolcus, 151; and 
 father of Alcestis, 92. Gives 
 his daughter in marriage to 
 Admetug, 92 and 93. Sends 
 Jason to fetch the Golden Fleece, 
 152. Kills the father of Jason 
 during his absence, 171. Is put 
 to death by his own daughters, 
 through the treachery of Medea, 
 172 and 173. 
 
 Pelion, Mt. The Giants propose 
 to climb up from this mountain 
 to Olympus, 6. 
 
 Peloponnesus. A peninsula of 
 Greece, named after Pelops, 79. 
 
 Pdops. Is killed by his father, 
 and served up to the gods at a 
 banquet, 75 ; but is brought to life 
 again by Zeus, 76. Is dispos- 
 sessed of his kingdom ofPhrygia, 
 77. Travels to Elis, and through 
 craft conquers Oenomaus in the 
 chariot-race, 77 to 79. Marries 
 Hippodamia, and becomes king 
 of Elis, 79. 
 
 Perigune. Daughter of the Fir- 
 bender, one of the robbers slain 
 by Theseus on his way to 
 Athens, 180. 
 
 PHE 
 
 Pero. Daughter of Neleus, king 
 of Pylos, 69. Becomes the wife 
 of Bias, 72. 
 
 Persephone. Daughter of Deme- 
 ter. Is carried off by Pluto to 
 be queen of the Lower World, 
 16 to 18. Sends back Alcestis 
 to live again for a time in the 
 Upper World, 94. Receives 
 Heracles when he visits the 
 Lower World, 136. Gives 
 Psyche the casket for which she 
 has been sent by Aphrodite, 
 2 ' 2 
 
 Perseus. Son of Zeus and Danae, 
 95 and 96. Is sent by the king 
 of the island where his mother 
 has taken refuge, to fetch the 
 head of Medusa, 96 to 98. Res- 
 cues Andromeda from the mon- 
 ster, and is married to her, 99 to 
 101. Returns with the head of 
 Medusa, and rescues his mother 
 from the king, who wants to 
 marry her, 101. Kills his 
 grandfather unintentionally, and 
 succeeds to the kingdom of 
 Argos, 102; but exchanges it 
 for the cities of Mycenae and 
 Tiryns, 103. 
 
 Phaedra. Daughter of Minos king 
 of Crete. Is married to Theseus, 
 197. Loves Hippolytus an I 
 asks him to marry her, 197. 
 Causes his death when he re- 
 fuses, and then hangs herself in 
 despair, 198. 
 
 Phaef/wn. Son of Helios, 39. 
 Obtains leave from his father to 
 drive the chariot of the sun for 
 a single day, 40. Falls from it, 
 and is killed by a thunderbolt, 
 41. 
 
 Pheffeils. Purges Alcmaeon from 
 the stain of blood, and gives him 
 his daughter in marri-ao-e, 227. 
 Sends his sons to kill Alcmaeon 
 on account of hia faithlessness, 
 229. 
 
INDEX. 
 
 263 
 
 PHE 
 
 Phenicia. The home of Europa 
 and Cadmus, 54. 
 
 Phincus. (1) Brother of Cepheus. 
 Disputes the right of Perseus to 
 marry Andromeda, and is turned 
 to stone, 100 and 101. (2) A 
 seer whom the Argonauts de- 
 liver from the Harpies, 157 and 
 158. 
 
 Pholus. One of the Centaurs. En- 
 tertains Heracles in his cave, 
 117 and 118. 
 
 Phrixus. Son of King Athamas, 
 and brother of Helle. His step- 
 mother lays a plot to kill him, 
 hut he is rescued by a Golden 
 Ram and carried away to Colchis, 
 where he marries the daughter 
 of King Aeetes, 148 to 150. 
 
 Phrygia. The country of Tanta- 
 lus, 75. His son Pel ops is driven 
 away from his kingdom, 77. 
 
 Phylacus. Inherits the cattle of 
 his father Iphiclns, 69. Agrees 
 to give them to Melampus if he 
 will teach him how his son may 
 propitiate the gods and obtain 
 an heir, 70 to 72. 
 
 Phyleus. Son of Augeas king of 
 Elis. Refuses to bear false 
 witness against Heracles, and is 
 banished by his father, 120 and 
 121. Heracles restores him, 
 and makes him king, 142. 
 
 Pillars of Heracles. Two moun- 
 tains of rock set up by Heracles 
 in the sea between Europe and 
 Africa, 128. 
 
 Plrithous. King of the Lapithae. 
 Forms a friendship with 
 Theseus, 195; who helps him 
 to defeat the Centaurs, 196. 
 Pirithoiis is compelled to sit for 
 ever on an iron seat in the 
 Lower World. 200 and 202 
 
 Pluto, Son of Cronus, 4 Is made 
 king of the Lower World, 3. 
 Carries off Persephone. 16 to 
 18. Allows Sisyphus to return 
 
 POS 
 
 to the earth for a single day, 44. 
 Allows Heracles to take Cer- 
 berus to the Upper World on 
 condition that he captures him 
 without weapons, 136. 
 
 Podarces. Son of Laomedon king 
 of Troy. Is rescued by his 
 sister Hesione when the town 
 is sacked by Heracles, 140. 
 Receives the name of Priam, 
 141. 
 
 Pollux. Son of Zeus and Leda, 
 and brother of Castor, 200 and 
 201. Rescues his sister Helena, 
 201. Takes part in the expe- 
 dition of the Argonauts, 157. 
 Petitions Zeus that he and his 
 brother Castor may be allowed 
 to share the same fate, 201. 
 
 Polylms. King of Corinth, 205. 
 Adopts Oedipus, 206. 
 
 Polymces. Son of Oedipus and 
 Jocasta. Is banished from 
 Thebes by his brother Eteocles, 
 and takes refuge with Adrastus 
 king of Argos, 212 and 213. 
 Induces Adrastus to march an 
 army against Thebes, 213. 
 Accepts his brother's challenge 
 to single combat, in which he 
 gives and receives- a mortal 
 blow, 220. 
 
 Poseidon. Son of Cronus, 4. The 
 sea is made subject to him, 4 
 and 5. Gives Idas a winged 
 chariut in which to carry off 
 Marpessa, 20. Becomes the 
 father of Otus and Ephialtes, 
 27. Punishes Cassiopea for 
 being vain of her beauty, 99. 
 Gives Pterelaus a golden hair 
 which preserves him from 
 death, 107. Sends Minos a bull 
 for sacrifice, and punishes him 
 for keeping it back, 122. 
 Punishes Laomedon for his 
 faithlessness, 126. The Argo is 
 dedicated to Poseidon, 171. 
 Poseidon disputes with Athene 
 
264 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 PRI 
 
 the guardianship of Athens, 
 176. At the request of Theseus, 
 he creates the monster that 
 destroys Hippolytus, 198. 
 
 Priam. See Podarces. 
 
 Proetus. KingofArgos. Cleanses 
 Bellerophon from the murder of 
 his brother, 45 ; but thinking 
 he has done him an injury, sends 
 him to lobates, whom he desires 
 to kill him, 46. Sends to beg 
 Melampus to restore his daugh- 
 ters to their right minds, 73 and 
 74. 
 
 Prometheus. Brings down fire to 
 the earth against the will of 
 Zeus, 9 and 10. Is chained, as 
 a punishment, to Mt. Cauca- 
 sus where an eagle preys upon 
 his liver, 12. Is delivered by 
 Heracles, 12. Warns his son 
 Deucalion of the great Flood 
 about to take place, 13. 
 
 Psyche. Is hated by Aphrodite 
 on account of her beauty, 231. 
 Is carried away by the Wind- 
 god, and secretly married to 
 Eros, 232 and 233. She dis- 
 obeys his command that she 
 shall never seek to see him, and 
 he is obliged to leave her, 236. 
 psyche enters the service of 
 Aphrodite, who requires her to 
 accomplish hard tasks, 237 to 
 242. Zeus gifts Psyche with 
 immortality, and sanctions her 
 marriage with Eros, 243. 
 
 Ptereldus. Grandson of Perseus 
 and king of the Teleboae. Dis- 
 putes the right of Electryon to 
 the cities of Mycenae and 
 Tiryns, 104. Amphitryon leads 
 an expedition against him, and 
 conquers him through the treach- 
 ery of his daughter, 106 and 107. 
 
 Ptjlos. The home of Melampus, 
 68 ; also of King Neleus and 
 his daughter Pero, 69. Heracles 
 conquers the city, 142. 
 
 Pyrrha. Wife of Deucalion, who 
 is saved with him in a wooden 
 chest at the time of the great 
 Flood, 13 to 15. 
 
 Pythia. The Priestess of Apollo, 
 through whom the prophetic 
 answers vouchsafed by the god 
 were transmitted, 55. Answers 
 are given by her to Cadmus, 
 56; to Heracles, 113; to the 
 Athenians, 203 ; to Oedipus, 
 206. An answer is refused to 
 Heracles, 139. 
 
 ftHEA. Wife of Cronus, 2. 
 
 Saves her son Zeus from 
 
 being devoured by his father, 3. 
 
 Pome. Heracles passes the spot 
 where Kome was afterwards 
 built, in bringing the cattle of 
 G-eryon to Mycenae, 130. 
 
 CALMONEU8. King of Elis. 
 Tries to imitate Zeus, and is 
 destroyed by a thunderbolt, 42 
 and 43. 
 
 Sciron. One of the robbers killed 
 by Theseus on his journey to 
 Athens, 181. 
 
 Scyros. The island where Theseus 
 proposed to spend the last days 
 of his life, 202. He is trea- 
 cherously killed there by Lyco- 
 medes, 203. The Athenians 
 fetch his bones from the island, 
 203 and 204. 
 
 Selene. Goddess of the moon. 
 Loves Endymion, 30. 
 
 Semele. Daughter of Cadmus and 
 Harmonia. Is secretly married 
 to Zeus, 61. Prevails on him 
 to come to her clothed in the 
 glory of the gods, and dies at 
 the sight, 61 and 62. Is gifted 
 by Zeus with immortality. 67. 
 
 Shadow-leader. The conductor of 
 dead souls to the Lower World. 
 He takes Alcestis thither, 94. 
 
265 
 
 sic 
 
 Sicily. The goddess Athene 
 buries one of the Giants beneath 
 the island, 6. Persephone is 
 carried off from it by the god 
 Pluto, 16. Daedalus flies to it 
 from the island of Crete, 53. 
 
 Silemis. Plays with Dionysus 
 when a child, 64. Follows him 
 in h'S journey through the 
 world, 65 and 66 ; and helps to 
 celebrate his marriage with 
 Ariadne, 192. 
 
 Sirens. Treacherous sea-nymphs, 
 who attract sailors by their 
 magic singing and then tear 
 them to pieces. The Argonauts 
 escape them through listening 
 to the song of Orpheus, 168. 
 
 Sisyphus. King of Corinth. Tries 
 to cheat gods as well as men, 
 and is tormented in the Lower 
 World with an unending 
 punishment, 43 and 44. 
 
 Sparta. The country of King 
 Tyndareus, husband of Leda. 
 Theseus and Pirithoiis go there 
 and carry off Helena, 199. 
 
 Sparti. The warriors who sprang 
 from the dragon's teeth sown 
 by Cadmus, 58. 
 
 Sphinx. A monster with the head 
 of a woman and the body of a 
 lioness. iShe propounds a riddle 
 and devours everyone who fails 
 to answer it, 207 and 208. Oedi- 
 pus guesses tho riddle, and the 
 Sphinx dies, 208. 
 
 Sthenelus. Brother of Electryon. 
 Drives his niece Alcmene and 
 her brother from Mycenae, and 
 seizes the kingdom, 105. Be- 
 comes the father of Eurystheus, 
 109. 
 
 Storm-foot. One of the Harpies 
 from whom the Argonauts de- 
 liver Phineus, 167 and 158. 
 
 Stretcher, The. One of the robbers 
 killed by Theseus on his way to 
 Athens, 181 and 182. 
 
 Stymphalus. A city in Arcadia. 
 Heracles drives away the birds 
 that infest the Stymphalian 
 lake, 121 and 122. 
 
 Styx. A river of the Lower World, 
 by which the gods swore an in- 
 violable oath, 40 ; 62. 
 
 Swift-wing. One of the Harpies 
 from whom Phineus is delivered 
 by the Argonauts, 157 and 158. 
 
 Syria. lo travels to Syria to find 
 her child, 33. 
 
 fTAENARUS, MT. Psyche is 
 directed to go there to find an 
 entrance to the Lower World, 
 240. 
 
 Talos. An iron watchman, made 
 by Hephaestus tor Minos king of 
 Crete. Medea deludes him into 
 killing himself, 169 and 170. 
 
 Tantalus. King of Phrygia, 65 ; 
 and father of Niobe, 80. Kills his 
 son Pelops and offers the flesh 
 to the gods at a banquet, 75. Is 
 condemned in the Lower World 
 to an unending punishment, 76. 
 
 Tartarus. A dark pit below the 
 earth into which the hundred- 
 armed and one-eyed monsters 
 are banished by Uranus, 2. 
 They are released by Zeus, and 
 the old gods whom he has 
 defeated, take their place, 4. Ty- 
 phoeus is thrust into Tartarus, 7. 
 
 Telamon. Receives the beautiful 
 Hesione as a reward for having 
 been the first to scale the walls 
 of Troy, 140. 
 
 Teleboae. The subjects of King 
 Pterelaus. They are sent on an 
 embassy to Electryon, and a 
 quarrel takes place, 104. Am- 
 phitryon marches against them 
 at the desire of Alcmene, and 
 conquers their land, 105 to 107. 
 
 Thebes. Built by the descendants 
 of Cadmus, 59. A wall is built 
 round it by means of the song 
 
266 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 THE 
 
 of Amphion,59and60. Alcmene 
 takes shelter there when driven 
 by Sthenelus from Mycenae, 1 05. 
 Amphitryon delivers the city 
 from the destroying Fox, 106. 
 Heracles is born in Thebes, 108 
 and 1 10. He delivers the land 
 from the tribute imposed by the 
 Minyae, 111 and 112; but leaves 
 the city after his madness, 113. 
 Lai'us and Jocasta are king and 
 queen of Thebes, and Oedipus is 
 born there, 205. Oedipus de- 
 livers the land from the Sphinx, 
 and becomes king, 207 and 208 ; 
 but on the discovery of his pa- 
 rentage, he is banished, 209 and 
 210. His sons Eteocles and Poly- 
 nices succeed him, but Polynices 
 is banished by his brother, 212. 
 Polynices goes to Argos, 212 ; 
 and persuades Adrastus to lead 
 an army against Thebes, 213. 
 The Argives are defeated before 
 Thebes, 218 to 220. Creon king 
 of Thebes refuses burial to the 
 Argives, and immxires Antigone 
 for disobeying his orders, 221 to 
 '2.23. The Epigoni march against 
 Thebes, 224 and 225. The The- 
 bans decide to abandon the city, 
 225 and 226. The Epigoni and 
 others re-people it, 226 and 227. 
 
 Thcrmodon. A river in Asia, near 
 which was the country of the 
 Amazons, 125. 
 
 Tkersander. Son of Polynices. 
 Made king of Thebes by the 
 Epigoni, on their taking posses- 
 sion of the city, 226. 
 
 Theseus. Son of Aegeus king of 
 Athens. Is brought up at 
 Troezen by his mother Aethra, 
 177 and 178. Is tent by her to 
 the court of his father at Athens, 
 179. Or: his way there, he kills 
 many robbers, the Club-car- 
 rier, 179; the Fir-bender, 179 and 
 ISO ; Sciron, 181 ; the Stretcher, 
 
 TIR 
 
 181 and 182. Eeaches Athens, 
 182; and is recognised by Ae- 
 geus, 183. Medea's attempt to 
 poison him fails, 183. The 
 Pallantidae are foiled in their 
 plan to murder him, 184. 
 Theseus captures the Bull of 
 Marathon, 184 and 185. Goes 
 to Crete as part of the tribute 
 of seven youths and seven 
 maidens, kills the Minotaur, 
 and escapes with Ariadne, 187 
 to 190. Is compelled to leave 
 Ariadne at Naxos, 191. Forgets 
 to hoist the white sn.il, and thus 
 causes the death of his futher, 
 192 and 193. Carries off Hip- 
 polyta to be his wife, 193. 
 Conquers the Amazons, 194 and 
 195. Makes a friendship with 
 Pirithoiis, and helps him to 
 defeat the Centaurs, 1 95 and 1 96. 
 Erects an Altar of Pity in the 
 marker-place of Athens, 19(3. 
 Marries Phaedra, 197. Prays 
 for the death of Hippolytus, 198 
 Joins Pirithoiis in carrying off 
 the beautiful Helena, 199 ; and 
 descends with him to the Lower 
 World to try and get possession 
 of Persephone, 199. Finds him- 
 self unable to leave a stone on 
 which he had sat, down for a 
 moment, 200 ; but after many 
 years is released by Heracles, 
 201 and 202. On his return to 
 Athens, finds himself forgotten, 
 and retires to Scyros, 202. Is 
 there killed treacherously by Ly- 
 comedes,203.His bones are trans- 
 ferred to Athens, 203 and 2C4. 
 
 'ITirace. The country of Diomedes, 
 whose fierce horses Heracles 
 goes to fetch, at the command 
 of Eurystheus, 123. 
 
 Ttrevas. A blind seer of Thebes. 
 Explains the visit of Zeus to 
 Alcmene, 108. Foretells the 
 fate of Oedipus. 205 ; and 225. 
 
INDEX. 
 
 267 
 
 TIB 
 
 Advises the Thebans to abandon 
 the city, 225. Goes with them, 
 and dies during the flight, 226. 
 
 Tiryns. Perseus exchanges his 
 kingdom cf Argos for the cities 
 of Mycenae and Tiryns, 103. 
 The right of his son Electryon 
 to succeed is disputed by Ptere- 
 lans, 104. Sthenelus takes pos- 
 session of the kingdom, 1 05. He 
 is succeeded by Eurystheus, 
 109. 
 
 Titans, Titanides. Children of 
 Uranus and Gaea, 2. The father 
 of Prometheus was a Titan, 9. 
 
 Trachis. A city of Greece. He- 
 racles leaves Calydon for Tra- 
 chis, 144 ; and goes from Trachis 
 to Euboea, 145. 
 
 Tripod. A three-legged stool on 
 which the Priestess of Apollo 
 pat when uttering her divine 
 predictions, 55. Heracles car- 
 ries off the sacred Tripod from 
 Delphi, 139. 
 
 Triptolemus. Is taught by De- 
 meter how to sow corn and cul- 
 tivate the land, 19. 
 
 Troezen. The home of Aethra, wife 
 of King Aegeus, 177. Theseus 
 is brought up by her at Troezen, 
 177 and 178. Helena is placed 
 there under her care for a time, 
 but is rescued by her brothers, 
 199 and 201. 
 
 Troy. The country of King Lao- 
 medon, father of Ganymede. 
 Apollo and Poseidon build a 
 wall round Troy, and punish 
 Laomedon for withholding the 
 reward he has promised, 126. 
 Heracles lands at Troy, and res- 
 cues Hesione from the monster, 
 126 and 127. Returns to pun- 
 ish Laomedon for his faithless- 
 ness, and conquers the city, 140. 
 
 Ti/dnls. Is driven from his coun- 
 try on account oi' an uninten- 
 tional murder, and goes for re- 
 
 ZETT 
 
 fuge to Adrastus king of Argos. 
 212 and 213. Takes part in the 
 expedition against Thebes, 213. 
 Bears a message to Eteocles, 
 and distinguishes himself by 
 feats of strength, 218. Is 
 killed before Thebes, with all 
 the other heroes, 220. 
 
 Tyndarrus. King of Sparta, 199 ; 
 and husband of Leda, 200. 
 
 Typliot-Us. A monster created by 
 Gaea to fight against the gods, 
 6. Is conquered by Zeus, and 
 flung into Tartarus, 7. 
 
 TTRANUS. God of the sky, 1. 
 Is killed by his son Cronus, 2. 
 
 WANDERING BOCKS. The 
 Argonauts pass through 
 
 them in safetv by the help of 
 
 Hera, 168 and 169. 
 Wind-god. Carries Psyche into 
 
 the beautiful valley, 232. 
 
 Brings her two sisters to see 
 
 her, 234 ; and takes them home 
 
 again, 235. 
 
 yEUS. Son of Cronus and Rhea. 
 Is hidden in the island of 
 Crete and nourished by the goat 
 Amalthea, 3. Makes war^gainst 
 his father and thrusts him into 
 Tartarus, 4. Marries Hera, 4. 
 Conquers the Giants, 6 ; and 
 Typhoeus, 7. Sends Pandora to 
 bring Disease and Care into the 
 world, 10 and 11. Punishes 
 Prometheus for bringing down 
 fire to the earth, 12. Destroys 
 the world by a Flood, 13 and 
 14 ; and allows Deucalion and 
 Pyrrha to re- people it, 14 and 
 15. Stops the fight about to 
 take place between Apollo and 
 Idas, 21. Marries Let.o and 
 becomes the father of Apollo 
 and Artemis, 23. Becomes the 
 father of Endymion whom he 
 
268 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 ZET7 
 
 gifts with perpetual sleep, 29. 
 Hurls athunderbolt at Phaethon 
 to prevent him from destroying 
 the earth, 41. Carries off Europa 
 in the form of a bull, 64 and 58. 
 Marries Semele, and at her wish 
 goes to her surrounded with the 
 glory of the gods, 62. Ixuises 
 her from the Lower World to 
 Olympus, 67. Conceals his son 
 Dionysus from Hera, 63 ; and 
 gifts him with divine power, 
 64 and 65. Imposes a punish- 
 ment upon Apollo, 81. Marries 
 Dunae in the form of a golden 
 shower, and becomes the father 
 of Perseus, 95 and 96. Marries 
 Alcmene,and becomes the father 
 
 ZEU 
 
 of Heracles, 108 and 109. De- 
 crees that the next child boru 
 of the race of Perseus shall rule 
 over the cities of Mycenae anil 
 Tiryns, 109. Sends his sacred 
 eagle to steal away Ganymede, 
 127. Interposes between He- 
 racles and Apollo, 139. Punishes 
 Hera for trying to destroy Hera- 
 cles, 141. Marries Letla in the 
 form of a swan, and becomes the 
 father of Pollux and Helena, 
 200. Grants the wish of Pol- 
 lux to share the fate of his 
 brother Castor, 201. Causes 
 the two sons of Alcmaeon to 
 grow up to manhood in a single 
 night, 229. 
 
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 4. CATALOGUE OF SCIENTIFIC 
 
 WORKS. 
 
 5. CATALOGUE OF MEDICAL AND 
 
 SURGICAL WORKS. 
 
 CATALOGUE OF SCHOOL BOOKS 
 AND EDUCATIONAL WORKS. 
 
 CATALOGUE OF BOOKS FOR ELE- 
 
 TEACHERS. 
 
 8. CATALOGUE OF THEOLOGICAL 
 
 WORKS BY DIVINES AND MEM- 
 BERS OF THE CHURCH OF 
 ENGLAND. 
 
 9. CATALOGUE OF WORKS OF 
 
 GENERAL LITERATURE. 
 
 ABBEY (Rev. C. J.) and OVERTOET (Rev. J. H.).-THE ENGLISH 
 CHURCH IN THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY. Cr. 8vo. js. 6d. 
 
 ABBOTT (Evelyn). A HISTORY OF GREECE. In Two Parts. 
 
 Part I. From the Earliest Times to the Ionian Revolt. Cr. 8vo. los. 6d. 
 Part II. Vol. I. 500-445 B.C. [/ the Press.'} Vol. II. [fn Preparation.] 
 
 HELLENICA. A Collection of Essays on Greek Poetry, Philosophy, 
 
 History, and Religion. Edited by EVELYN ABB >TT. 8vo. i6s. 
 
 ACLAND (A. H. Dyke) and RANSOME (Cyril).-A HANDBOOK 
 IN OUTLINE OF THE POLITICAL HISTORY OF ENGLAND TO 
 1890. Chronologically Arranged. Crown 8vo. 6s. 
 
 ACTON (Eliza). MODERN COOKERY. With 150 Woodcuts. Fcp. 8vo. 
 4J. 6d. 
 
2 A CATALOGUE OF BOOKS IN GENERAL LITERATURE 
 
 A. K. H. B. THE ESSAYS AND CONTRIBUTIONS OF. Crown 8vo. 
 .' 6d. each. 
 
 Autumn Holidays of a Country Parson. 
 Changed Aspects of Unchanged 
 
 Truths. 
 
 Commonplace Philosopher. 
 Counsel and Comfort from a City 
 
 Pulpit. 
 
 Critical Essays of a Country Parson. 
 East Coast Days and Memories. 
 Graver Thoughts of a Country Parson. 
 
 Three Series. 
 Landscapes, Churches, and Moralities. 
 
 Leisure Hours in Town. 
 
 Lessons of Middle Age. 
 
 Our Little Life. Two Series. 
 
 Our Homely Comedy and Tragedy. 
 
 Present Day Thoughts. 
 
 Recreations of a Country Parson. 
 
 Three Series. 
 Seaside Musings. 
 Sunday Afternoons in the Parish 
 
 Church of a Scottish University 
 
 City. 
 
 ' To Meet the Day ' through the Christian Year ; being a Text of Scrip- 
 ture, with an Original Meditation and a Short Selection in Verse for Every 
 Day. Crown 8vo. 4^. 6d. 
 
 AMERICAN WHIST, Illustrated : containing the Laws and Principles of the 
 Game, the Analysis of the New Play. By G. W. P. Fcp. 8vo. 6s. 6d. 
 
 AMOS (Sheldon). A PRIMER OF THE ENGLISH CONSTITUTION 
 AND GOVERNMENT. Crown 8vo. 6s. 
 
 ANNUAL REGISTER (The). A Review of Public Events at Home and Abroad, 
 
 for the year 1890. 8vo. i8s. 
 %* Volumes of the 'Annual Register' for the years 1863-1889 can still be had. 
 
 ANSTEY (F.). THE BLACK POODLE, and other Stories. Crown 8vo. 
 2s. boards. ; 2s. 6d. cloth. 
 
 - VOCES POPULI. Reprinted from Punch. First Series, with 20 Illus- 
 trations by J. BERNARD PARTRIDGE. Fcp. 410. 5^. 
 
 ARISTOTLE The Works of. 
 
 THE POLITICS, G. Bekker's Greek Text of Books I. III. IV. (VII.), 
 
 with an English Translation by W. E. BOLLAND, and short Introductory 
 Essays by ANDREW LANG. Crown 8vo. 75. 6d. 
 
 THE POLITICS, Introductory Essays. By ANDREW LANG. (From 
 
 1 rt J T 1_ i T_i:^* _ t \ /~* - S -I 
 
 Bolland and Lang's ' Politics '. ) Crown 8vo. 2s. 6d. 
 
 THE ETHICS, Greek Text, illustrated with Essays and Notes. By Sir 
 
 ALEXANDER GRANT, Bart. 2 vols. 8vo. 
 
 THE NICOMACHEAN ETHICS, newly translated into English. By 
 ROBERT WILLIAMS. Crown 8vo. 75. 6d. 
 
 ARMSTRONG (G. F. Savage-). POEMS : Lyrical and Dramatic. Fcp. 
 8vo. 6.?. 
 
 BY THE SAME AUTHOR. Fcp. 8vo. 
 
 King Saul. $ 
 
 King David. 55. 
 
 King Solomon. 6s. 
 
 Ugone ; a Tragedy. 6s. 
 
 A Garland from Greece. Poems. 
 
 Stories of Wicklow. Poems, gs. 
 
 Mephistopheles in Broadcloth ; a Sa- 
 tire. 4s. 
 
 The Life and Letters of Edmond J. 
 Armstrong, js. 6d. 
 
 ARMSTRONG (E. J.).- POETICAL WORKS. Fcp. 8vo. 
 ESSAYS AND SKETCHES. Fcp. 8vo. y. 
 
PUBLISHED BY MESSRS. LONGMANS, GREEN, & CO. 3 
 
 ARNOLD (Sir Edwin). THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD, or the Great 
 
 Consummation. A Poem. Crown 8vo. js. 6d. net. 
 
 ARNOLD (Dr. T.). INTRODUCTORY LECTURES ON MODERN 
 HISTORY. 8vo. 7s. 6d. 
 
 - SERMONS PREACHED MOSTLY IN THE CHAPEL OF RUGBY 
 SCHOOL. 6 vols. crown 8vo. 30^., or separately, $s. each. 
 
 - MISCELLANEOUS WORKS. 8vo. js. 6d. 
 
 ASHLEY ( J. W.). ENGLISH ECONOMIC HISTORY AND THEORY. 
 
 Part I. The Middle Ages. Crown 8vo. y. 
 
 ATELIER (The) du Lys ; or, An Art Student in the Reign of Terror. By 
 the Author of ' Mademoiselle Mori '. Crown 8vo. 2s. 6d. 
 
 BY THE SAME AUTHOR. Crown 2s. 6d. each. 
 
 MADEMOISELLE MORI. A CHILD OF THE REVOLU- 
 
 THAT CHILD. TION. 
 
 UNDER A CLOUD. HESTER'S VENTURE. 
 
 THE FIDDLER OF LUGAU. IN THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 BACON. COMPLETE WORKS. Edited by R. L. ELLIS, J. SPEDDING, 
 
 and D. D. HEATH. 7 vols. 8vo. ^3 13^-. 6d. 
 LETTERS AND LIFE, INCLUDING ALL HIS OCCASIONAL 
 
 WORKS. Edited by J. SPEDDING. 7 vols. 8vo. ^4 4*. 
 THE ESSAYS ; with Annotations. By Archbishop WHATELY. 8vo. 
 
 ioj. 6d. 
 
 THE ESSAYS ; with Introduction, Notes, and Index. By E. A. ABBOTT. 
 
 2 vols. Fcp. 8vo. 6s. Text and Index only. Fcp. 8vo. 2s. 6d. 
 
 BADMINTON" LIBRARY (The), edited by the DUKE OF BEAUFORT, 
 assisted by ALFRED E. T. WATSON. 
 
 HUNTING. By the DUKE OF BEAUFORT, and MOWBRAY MORRIS. With 
 53 Illustrations. Crown 8vo. IDS. 6d. 
 
 FISHING. By H. CHOLMONDELEY-PENNELL. 
 
 Vol. I. Salmon, Trout, and Grayling. 158 Illustrations. Crown 8vo. los. 6d. 
 Vol. II. Pike and other Coarse Fish. 132 Illustrations. Crown 8vo. los. 6d. 
 
 RACING AND STEEPLECHASING. By the EARL OF SUFFOLK AND 
 BERKSHIRE, W. G. CRAVEN, &c. 56 Illustrations. Crown 8vo. IQJ. 6d. 
 
 SHOOTING. By LORD WALSINGHAM, and Sir RALPH PAYNE-GALLWEY, Bart. 
 Vol. I. Field and Covert. With 105 Illustrations. Crown 8vo. IQJ. 6d. 
 Vol. II. Moor and Marsh. With 65 Illustrations. Crown 8vo. los. 6d. 
 
 CYCLING. By VISCOUNT BURY (Earl of Albemarle) and G. LACY HILLIER. 
 
 With 19 Plates and 70 Woodcuts, &c. Crown 8vo. los. 6d. 
 ATHLETICS AND FOOTBALL. By MONTAGUE SHEARMAN. With 6 plates 
 
 and 45 Woodcuts, &c. Crown 8vo. ioj. 6d. 
 BOATING. By W. B. WOODGATE. With 10 plates and 39 Woodcuts. 
 
 Crown 8vo. los. 6d. 
 
 CRICKET. By A. G. STEEL and the Hon. R. H. LYTTELTON. With n plates 
 
 and 52 Woodcuts, c. Crown 8vo. los. 6d. 
 DRIVING. By the DUKE OF BEAUFORT. With n Plates and 54 Woodcuts, 
 
 &c. Crown 8vo. los. 6d. 
 
4 A CATALOGUE OF BOOKS IN GENERAL LITERATURE 
 
 BADMINTON LIBRARY (The)--(c<mttnued). 
 FENCING, BOXING, AND WRESTLING. By WALTER H. POLLOCK, F. 
 
 C. GROVE, C. PREVOST, E. B. MICHELL, and WALTER ARMSTRONG. 
 
 With 18 Plates and 24 Woodcuts, &c. Crown 8vo. los. 6d. 
 GOLF. By HORACE HUTCHINSON, the Rt. Hon. A. J. BALFOUR, M.P., 
 
 ANDREW LANG, Sir W. G. SIMPSON, Bart., &c. With 19 Plates and 69 
 
 Woodcuts, &c. Crown 8vo. los. 6d. 
 TENNIS, LAWN TENNIS, RACKETS, AND FIVES. By J. M. and C. G. 
 
 HEATHCOTE, E. O. PLEYDELL-BOUVERIE, and A. C. AINGER. With 12 
 
 Plates and 67 Woodcuts, &c. Crown 8vo. los. 6d. 
 RIDING AND POLO. By Captain ROBERT WEIR, Riding-Master, R.H.G., 
 
 J. MORAY BROWN, &c. With 18 Plates and 41 Woodcuts, &c. Cr. 8vo. 
 
 BAGEHOT (Walter). BIOGRAPHICAL STUDIES. 8vo. i2j. 
 
 - ECONOMIC STUDIES. 8vo. IQJ. 6d. 
 
 - LITERARY STUDIES. 2 vols. 8vo. 28*. 
 
 - THE POSTULATES OF ENGLISH POLITICAL ECONOMY. 
 Crown 8vo. 2s. 6d. 
 
 A PRACTICAL PLAN FOR ASSIMILATING THE ENGLISH 
 
 AND AMERICAN MONEY AS A STEP TOWARDS A UNIVERSAL 
 MONEY. Crown 8vo. as. 6d. 
 
 BAGWELL (Richard). IRELAND UNDER THE TUDORS. (3 vols.) 
 Vols. I. and II. From the first invasion of the Northmen to the year 1578. 
 8vo. 32J. Vol. III. 1578-1603. 8vo. i8j. 
 
 BAIN (Alex.). MENTAL AND MORAL SCIENCE. Crown 8vo. ior. 6d. 
 
 - SENSES AND THE INTELLECT. 8vo. i$s. 
 
 - EMOTIONS AND THE WILL. 8vo. 155. 
 
 - LOGIC, DEDUCTIVE AND INDUCTIVE. Part I., Dediiction, 
 4>y. Part II., Induction, 6s. 6d. 
 
 - PRACTICAL ESSAYS. Crown 8vo. 2s. 
 
 BAKER (James). BY THE WESTERN SEA : a Novel. Cr. 8vo. y. 6d. 
 
 BAKER. EIGHT YEARS IN CEYLON. With 6 Illustrations. Crown 
 8vo. 3-y. 6d. 
 
 - THE RIFLE AND THE HOUND IN CEYLON. With 6 Illustra- 
 tions. Crown 8vo. y. 6d. 
 
 BALL (The Rt. Hon. T. J.). THE REFORMED CHURCH OF IRE- 
 LAND (1537-1889). 8vo. 7s. 6d. 
 
 HISTORICAL REVIEW OF THE LEGISLATIVE SYSTEMS 
 
 OPERATIVE IN IRELAND (1172-1800). 8vo. 6s. 
 
 BEACONSFIELD (The Earl of). NOVELS AND TALES. The 
 Hughenden Edition. With 2 Portraits and n Vignettes, n vols. Crown 
 8vo. 425. 
 
 Endymion. 
 
 Lothair. 
 
 Coningsby. 
 
 Venetia. 
 
 Henrietta Temple. 
 Contarini Fleming, &c. 
 
 Alroy, Ixion, &c. 
 The Young Duke, &c. 
 Vivian Grey. 
 
 Tancred. Sybil. 
 
 NOVELS AND TALES. Cheap Edition, n vols. Crown 8vo. is. each, 
 boards; is. 6d. each, cloth. 
 
PUBLISHED BY MESSRS. LONGMANS, GREEN, & CO. 5 
 
 BECKER (Professor). GALLUS; or, Roman Scenes in the Time of Augus- 
 tus. Post 8vo. ?s. 6d. 
 
 CHARICLES ; or, Illustrations of the Private Life of the Ancient Greeks. 
 
 Post 8vo. 7-r. 6d. 
 
 BELL (Mrs. Hugh). WILL O' THE WISP : a Story. Crown 8vo. 3*. 6d. 
 
 - CHAMBER COMEDIES. Crown 8vo. 6s. 
 
 BLAKE (J.). TABLES FOR THE CONVERSION OF 5 PER CENT. IN- 
 TEREST FROM '-jV TO 7 PER CENT. 8vo. i2s. 6d. 
 
 BOOK (THE) OF WEDDING DAYS. Arranged on the Plan of a Birthday Book. 
 With 96 Illustrated Borders, Frontispiece, and Title-page by Walter Crane ; 
 and Quotations for each Day. Compiled and Arranged by K. E. J. REID, 
 MAY Ross, and MABEL BAMFIELD. 410. zis. 
 
 BRASSEY (Lady). A VOYAGE IN THE 'SUNBEAM,' OUR HOME 
 
 ON THE OCEAN FOR ELEVEN MONTHS. 
 
 Library Edition. With 8 Maps and Charts, and 118 Illustrations, 8vo. zis. 
 Cabinet Edition. With Map and 66 Illustrations, Crown 8vo. 7s. 6d. 
 Cheap Edition. With 66 Illustrations, Crown 8vo. 3^. 6d. 
 School Edition. With 37 Illustrations, Fcp. 2s. cloth, or y. white parchment. 
 Popular Edition. With 60 Illustrations, 410. 6d. sewed, is. cloth. 
 
 - SUNSHINE AND STORM IN THE EAST. 
 Library Edition. With 2 Maps and 114 Illustrations, 8vo. 2is. 
 Cabinet Edition. With 2 Maps and 114 Illustrations, Crown 8vo. js. 6d. 
 Popular Edition. With 103 Illustrations, 410. 6d. sewed, is. cloth. 
 
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 FORTIES'. 
 
 Cabinet Edition. With Map and 220 Illustrations, Crown 8vo. js. 6d. 
 Popular Edition. With 183 Illustrations, 410. 6d. sewed, is. cloth. 
 
 - THE LAST VOYAGE TO INDIA AND AUSTRALIA IN THE 
 
 ' SUNBEAM '. With Charts and Maps, and 40 Illustrations in Monotone 
 (20 full-page), and nearly 200 Illustrations in the Text. 8vo. 2is. 
 
 THREE VOYAGES IN THE ' SUNBEAM '. Popular Edition. With 
 
 346 Illustrations, 4to. 2s. 6d. 
 
 BRAY (Charles). THE PHILOSOPHY OF NECESSITY ; or, Law in 
 Mind as in Matter. Crown 8vo. 5^. 
 
 BRIGHT (Rev. J. Franck). A HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 4 vols. Cr. 8vo. 
 Period I. Mediaeval Monarchy : The Departure of the Romans to Richard III. 
 
 From A.D. 449 to 1485. 45. 6d. 
 
 Period II. Personal Monarchy : Henry VII. to James II. From 1485 to 1688. 5^. 
 Period III. Constitutional Monarchy : William and Mary to William IV. 
 
 From 1689 to 1837. js. 6d. 
 Period IV. The Growth of Democracy : Victoria. From 1837 to 1880. 6s. 
 
 BRYDEN (H. A.). KLOOF AND KARROO : Sport, Legend, and Natural 
 
 History in Cape Colony. With 17 Illustrations. 8vo. los. 6d. 
 
 BUCKLE (Henry Thomas). HISTORY OF CIVILISATION IN ENG- 
 LAND AND FRANCE, SPAIN AND SCOTLAND. 3 vols. Cr. 8vo. 24*. 
 
6 A CATALOGUE OF BOOKS IN GENERAL LITERATURE 
 
 BULL (Thomas). HINTS TO MOTHERS ON THE MANAGEMENT 
 OF THEIR HEALTH during the Period of Pregnancy. Fcp. 8vo. u. 6d. 
 
 - THE MATERNAL MANAGEMENT OF CHILDREN IN HEALTH 
 AND DISEASE. Fcp. 8vo. is. 6d. 
 
 BUTLER (Samuel). EREWHON. Crown 8vo. $s. 
 
 - THE FAIR HAVEN. A Work in Defence of the Miraculous Element 
 in our Lord's Ministry. Crown 8vo. js. 6d. 
 
 - LIFE AND HABIT. An Essay after a Completer View of Evolution. 
 Cr. 8vo. js. 6d. 
 
 - EVOLUTION, OLD AND NEW. Crown 8vo. icw. 6d. 
 
 - UNCONSCIOUS MEMORY. Crown 8vo. 7 s. 6d. 
 
 ALPS AND SANCTUARIES OF PIEDMONT AND THE 
 
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 - SELECTIONS FROM WORKS. Crown 8vo. 7$. 6d. 
 
 LUCK, OR CUNNING, AS THE MAIN MEANS OF ORGANIC 
 
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 - EX VOTO. An Account of the Sacro Monte or New Jerusalem at 
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 HOLBEIN'S 'LA DANSE'. y. 
 
 CARL YLE. THOMAS CARLYLE : a History of his Life. By J. A. FROUDE. 
 1795-1835, 2 vols. Crown 8vo. js. 1834-1881, 2 vols. Crown 8vo. js. 
 
 CASE (Thomas). PHYSICAL REALISM : being an Analytical Philosophy 
 from the Physical Objects of Science to the Physical Data of Sense. 8vo. ~L$S. 
 
 CHETWYND (Sir George). RACING REMINISCENCES AND EX- 
 PERIENCES OF THE TURF. 2 vols. 8vo. 2u. 
 
 CHILD (Gilbert W.). CHURCH AND STATE UNDER THE 
 TUDORS. 8vo. 155-. 
 
 CHISHOLM (G. G.). HANDBOOK OF COMMERCIAL GEOGRAPHY. 
 With 29 Maps. 8vo. i6s. 
 
 CHURCH (Sir Richard). Commander-in-Chief of the Greeks in the War 
 of Independence : a Memoir. By STANLEY LANE-POOLE. 8vo. 5^. 
 
 CLIVE (Mrs. Archer). POEMS. Including the IX. Poems. Fcp. 8vo. 6s. 
 
 CLODD (Edward). THE STORY OF CREATION : a Plain Account of 
 Evolution. With 77 Illustrations. Crown 8vo. 3^. 6d. 
 
 CLUTTERBUCK (W. J.). THE SKIPPER IN ARCTIC SEAS. With 
 39 Illustrations. Crown 8vo. ios. 6d. 
 
 COLEWSO (J. W.). THE PENTATEUCH AND BOOK OF JOSHUA 
 CRITICALLY EXAMINED. Crown 8vo. 6s. 
 
 COLMORE (G.). A LIVING EPITAPH : a Novel. Crown 8vo. 6s. 
 COMYN (L. W.). ATHERSTONE PRIORY : a Tale. Crown 8vo. zs. 6d. 
 
 COWINGTOK" (John). THE ^ENEID OF VIRGIL. Translated into 
 English Verse. Crown 8vo. 6^. 
 
 - THE POEMS OF VIRGIL. Translated into English Prose. Cr. 8vo.6s. 
 
 COX (Rev. Sir G. W.). A HISTORY OF GREECE, from the Earliest 
 Period to the Death of Alexander the Great. With n Maps. Cr. 8vo. js. 6d. 
 
PUBLISHED BY MESSRS. LONGMANS, GREEN, & CO. 7 
 
 CRAKE (Rev. A. D.). HISTORICAL TALES. Cr. 8vo. 5 vols. 2s. 6d. each. 
 
 The House of Walderne. A Tale of 
 
 the Cloister and the Forest in the 
 
 Days of the Barons' Wars. 
 Brain Fitz-Count. A Story of Wal- 
 
 lingford Castle and Dorchester 
 
 Abbey. 
 
 Edwy the Fair ; or, The First Chronicle 
 
 of ^Escendune. 
 Alfgar the Dane; or, The Second 
 
 Chronicle of -<Escendune. 
 The Rival Heirs : being the Third and 
 
 Last Chronicle of ^Escendune. 
 
 HISTORY OF THE CHURCH UNDER THE ROMAN EMPIRE, 
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 CREIGHTON" (Mandell, D.D.) HISTORY OF THE PAPACY DUR- 
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 CRUMP (A.). A SHORT ENQUIRY INTO THE FORMATION OF 
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 - AN INVESTIGATION INTO THE CAUSES OF THE GREAT 
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 of Silver by Germany. 8vo. 6s. 
 
 CTTRZON (Hon. George W.). RUSSIA IN CENTRAL ASIA IN 1889 
 AND THE ANGLO-RUSSIAN QUESTION. 8vo. 2is. 
 
 DANTE. LA COMMEDIA DI DANTE. A New Text, carefully Revised 
 with the aid of the most recent Editions and Collations. Small 8vo. 6s. 
 
 DELAND (Mrs.). JOHN WARD, PREACHER. Cr. 8vo. as. bds., 2s. 6d. cl. 
 
 SIDNEY : a Novel. Crown 8vo. dr. 
 THE OLD GARDEN, and other Verses. Fcp. 8vo. 5*. 
 
 DE REDCLIFFE. THE LIFE OF THE RIGHT HON. STRATFORD 
 CANNING : VISCOUNT STRATFORD DE REDCLIFFE. By STANLEY 
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 DE SALTS (Mrs.). Works by : 
 
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 DE TOCQTJEVILLE (Alexis). DEMOCRACY IN AMERICA. Trans- 
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 DOWELL (Stephen). A HISTORY OF TAXATION AND TAXES IN 
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 DOYLE (A. Conan). MICAH CLARKE : a Tale of Monmouth's Rebellion. 
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 THE CAPTAIN OF THE POLESTAR ; and other Tales. Cr. 8vo. 6s. 
 
A CATALOGUE OF BOOKS IN GENERAL LITERATURE 
 
 DRANE (Augusta T.).~- THE HISTORY OF ST. DOMINIC, FOUNDER 
 OF THE FRIAR PREACHERS. With 32 Illustrations. 8vo. 15*. 
 
 DUBLIN UNIVERSITY PRESS SERIES (The) : a Series of Works 
 undertaken by the Provost and Senior Fellows of Trinity College, Dublin. 
 
 Abbott's (T. K.) Codex Rescriptus 
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 Evangeliorum Versio Ante- 
 
 hieronymiana ex Codice Usseriano 
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 Allman's (G. J.) Greek Geometry from 
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 Casey's (John) Sequel to Euclid's Ele- 
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 Analytical Geometry of the 
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 Davies' (J. F. )Eumenidesof ^Eschylus, 
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 8vo. 7.?. 
 
 Dublin Translations into Greek and 
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 Tyrrell. 8vo. 6s. 
 
 Graves' (R. P.) Life of Sir William 
 Hamilton. 3 vols. 155. each. 
 
 Griffin (R. W.) on Parabola, Ellipse, 
 and Hyperbola. Crown 8vo. 6s. 
 
 Hobart's (W. K.) Medical Language 
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 Macalister's (A. ) Zoology and Morpho- 
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 Maguire's (T.) Parmenides of Plato, 
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 Southey's (R. ) Correspondence with 
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 Stubbs' (J. W. ) History of the Univer- 
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 Thornhill's (W. J.) The ^Eneid of 
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 Vols. I., II. and III. 8vo. each i2s. 
 
 The Acharnians of Aristo- 
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 Verse. Crown 8vo. is. 
 
 Webb's (T. E.) Goethe's Faust, Trans- 
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 The Veil of Isis ; a Series 
 
 of Essays on Idealism. 8vo. los. 6d. 
 
 Wilkins' (G.) The Growth of the 
 Homeric Poems. 8vo. 6s. 
 
 EWALD (Heinrich). THE ANTIQUITIES OF ISRAEL. 8vo. i2s. 6d. 
 
 THE HISTORY OF ISRAEL. 8vo. Vols. I. and II. 24^. Vols. III. 
 
 and IV. 2is. Vol. V. i8s. Vol. VI. i6s. Vol. VII. 2is. Vol. VIII. i8.y. 
 
 FARWELL (G. S.).-THE GREEK LYRIC POETS. 8vo. i6s. 
 FARRAR (F. W.). LANGUAGE AND LANGUAGES. Crown 8vo. 6s. 
 
 FIRTH (J. C.). NATION MAKING : a Story of New Zealand Savageism 
 and Civilisation. Crown 8vo. 6s. 
 
 FITZWYGRAM (Major-General Sir F.). HORSES AND STABLES. 
 With 19 pages of Illustrations. 8vo. 5^. 
 
 FORD (Horace). THE THEORY AND PRACTICE OF ARCHERY. 
 New Edition, thoroughly Revised and Re-written by W. BUTT. 8vo. 14^. 
 
 FOUARD (Abbe' Constant). THE CHRIST THE SON OF GOD. With 
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PUBLISHED BY MESSRS. LONGMANS, GREEN, & CO. 9 
 
 FOX. THE EARLY HISTORY OF CHARLES JAMES FOX. By the Right 
 
 Hon. Sir. G. O. TREVELYAN, Bart. 
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 FRANCIS (Francis). A BOOK ON ANGLING: including full Illustrated 
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 FREEMAN (E. A.). THE HISTORICAL GEOGRAPHY OF EUROPE. 
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 FROTTDE (James A.). THE HISTORY OF ENGLAND, from the Fall of 
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 THE ENGLISH IN IRELAND IN THE EIGHTEENTH CEN- 
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 MULHALL (Michael G.). HISTORY OF PRICES SINCE THE YEAR 
 1850. Crown 8vo. 6s. 
 
 MURDOCK (Henry). THE RECONSTRUCTION OF EUROPE: a 
 Sketch of the Diplomatic and Military History of Continental Europe, from 
 the Rise to the Fall of the Second French Empire. Crown 8vo. 9.1. 
 
 MURRAY (David Christie and Henry). A DANGEROUS CATS- 
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 MURRAY (Christie) and HERMAN (Henry).- WILD DARRIE: 
 
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 NANSEN (Dr. Fridtjof ). THE FIRST CROSSING OF GREENLAND. 
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 NEWMAN. THE LETTERS AND CORRESPONDENCE OF JOHN 
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 Sermons to Mixed Congregations. 
 
 Crown 8vo. 6s. 
 Sermons on Various Occasions. Cr. 
 
 8vo. dr. 
 The Idea of a University denned and 
 
 illustrated. Cabinet Edition, Cr. 8vo. 
 
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 Historical Sketches. Cabinet Edition, 
 
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i8 A CATALOGUE OF BOOKS IN GENERAL LITERATURE 
 
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 the Text of the Seven Epistles of St. 
 Ignatius. 3. Doctrinal Causes of 
 Arianism. 4. Apollinarianism. 5. 
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 Scripture. Crown 8vo. Bs. 
 
 An Essay in Aid of a Grammar of 
 Assent. Cabinet Edition, Crown 
 8vo. js. 6d. Cheap Edition, Crown 
 8vo. y. 6d. 
 
 Present Position of Catholics in Eng- 
 land. Crown 8vo. 7$. 6d. 
 
 Callista : a Tale of the Third Century. 
 Cabinet Edition, Crown 8vo. 6s. 
 Cheap Edition, Crown 8vo. y. 6d. 
 
 Loss and Gain : a Tale. Cabinet 
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 Edition, Crown 8vo. y. &/. 
 
 The Dream of Gerontius. i6mo. 6d. 
 sewed, is. cloth. 
 
 Verses on Various Occasions. Cabinet 
 Edition, Crown 8vo. 6s. Cheap 
 Edition, Crown 8vo. y. 6d. 
 Works see Messrs. Longmans &> Co.'s 
 
 NEWMAN (Cardinal).-Works 
 
 An Essay on the Development of ' 
 
 Christian Doctrine. Cabinet Edit., 
 
 Crown 8vo. 6s. Cheap Edition, Cr. \ 
 
 8vo. 3^. 6d. 
 Certain Difficulties felt by Anglicans ! 
 
 in Catholic Teaching Considered, j 
 
 Cabinet Edition. Vol. I. Crown 8vo. ! 
 
 js. 6d. ; Vol. II. Crown 8vo. 5^. 6d. 
 The Via Mediaof the Anglican Church, 
 
 Illustrated in Lectures, &c. Cabinet 
 
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 Cheap Edition, 2 vols. Crown 8vo. 
 
 y. 6d. 
 Apologia pro Vitii Sua. Cabinet Ed. , 
 
 Crown 8vo. 6s. Cheap Ed. 3^. 6d. 
 Essays, Critical and Historical. Cabi- 
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 Cheap Edition, 2 vols. Cr. 8vo. js. 
 Essays on Biblical and on Ecclesias- 
 tical Miracles. Cabinet Edition, 
 
 Crown 8vo. 6s. Cheap Edition, 
 
 Crown 8vo. 3.?. 6d. 
 Tracts, i. Dissertatiunculoe. 2. On 
 
 %* For Cardinal New man's other 
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 NORTON (Charles L.). POLITICAL AMERICANISMS : a Glossary of 
 Terms and Phrases Current in American Politics. Crown 8vo. zs. 6d. 
 
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 NORTHCOTE (W. H.).- LATHES AND TURNING, Simple, ' Me- 
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 O'BRIEN (William.) WHEN WE WERE BOYS : a Novel. Cabinet 
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 OLIPHANT (Mrs.). MADAM. Crown 8vo. u. boards ; is. 6d. cloth. 
 
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 - LADY CAR : the Sequel of a Life. Crown 8vo. 2s. 6d. 
 
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 O'REITjLY (Mrs.). HURSTLEIGH DENE: a Tale. Crown 8vo. y. 
 
 PAUL (Hermann). PRINCIPLES OF THE HISTORY OF LANGUAGE. 
 
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 PAYN (James). THE LUCK OF THE DARRELLS. Cr. 8vo. u.'bds. ; 
 is. 6d. cl. 
 
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 PHILLIPPS-WOLLEY (C.). SNAP : a Legend of the Lone Mountain. 
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 POLE (W.). THE THEORY OF THE MODERN SCIENTIFIC GAME 
 OF WHIST. Fcp. 8vo. as. 6d. 
 
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 POOLE (W. H. and Mrs.). COOKERY FOR THE DIABETIC. Fcp 
 8vo. as. 6d. 
 
 PRENDERGAST (JohnP.). IRELAND, FROM THE RESTORATION 
 TO THE REVOLUTION, 1660-1690. 8vo. y. 
 
 PROCTOR (R.A.). Works by: 
 
 Old and New Astronomy. 12 Parts, | 
 
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 tion, is. Complete in i vol. 410. 36^. 
 [fn course of publication. 
 The Orbs Around Us. Crown 8vo. 5^. 
 Other Worlds than Ours. With 14 
 
 Illustrations. Crown 8vo. $s. 
 The Moon. Crown 8vo. $s. 
 Universe of Stars. 8vo. los. 6d. 
 Larger Star Atlas for the Library, in 
 
 12 Circular Maps, with Introduction 
 
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 Maps only, i2s. 6d. 
 The Student's Atlas. In 12 Circular 
 
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 New Star Atlas. In 12 Circular Maps. 
 
 Crown 8vo. $s. 
 Light Science for Leisure Hours. 
 
 3 vols. Crown 8vo. $s. each. 
 Chance and Luck. Crown 8vo. zs. 
 
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 Studies of Venus-Transits. With 7 
 
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 Pleasant Ways in Science. Cr. 8vo. $s. 
 How to Play Whist : with the Laws and 
 
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 Home Whist : an Easy Guide to 
 
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 The Stars in their Seasons. 12 Maps. 
 
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 Star Primer. Showing the Starry Sky 
 
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 The Seasons Pictured in 48 Sun-Views 
 
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 Strength and Happiness. With 9 
 
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 Strength : How to get Strong and 
 
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 Rough Ways Made Smooth. Essays on 
 
 Scientific Subjects. Crown 8vo. y. 
 Our Place among Infinities. Cr. 8vo. 5^. 
 The Expanse of Heaven. Cr. 8vo. y. 
 The Great Pyramid. Crown 8vo. y. 
 Myths aad Marvels of Astronomy. 
 
 Crown 8vo. $s. 
 Nature Studies. By Grant Allen, A. 
 
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 R. A. Proctor. Crown 8vo. y. 
 Leisure Readings. By E. Clodd, A. 
 
 Wilson, T. Foster, A. C. Ranyard, 
 
 and R. A. Proctor. Crown 8vo. y. 
 
 PRYCE (John). THE ANCIENT BRITISH CHURCH : an Historical 
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 RANSOME (Cyril). THE RISE OF CONSTITUTIONAL GOVERN- 
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 RAWLINSON (Canon O-.). THE HISTORY OF PHCENICIA. 8vo. 24^. 
 
 RENDLE (William) and NORMAN (Philip). THE INNS OF OLD 
 
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 RIBOT (Th.). THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ATTENTION. Crown 8vo. y. 
 
 RICH (A.). A DICTIONARY OF ROMAN AND GREEK ANTIQUITIES. 
 
 With 2000 Woodcuts. Crown 8vo. js. 6d. 
 
20 A CATALOGUE OF BOOKS IN GENERAL LITERATURE 
 
 RICHARDSON (Dr. B. W.). NATIONAL HEALTH. A Review of 
 the Works of Sir Edwin Chadwick, K.C. B. Crown ^s. 6d. 
 
 RILEY (Athelstan). ATHOS ; or, The Mountain of the Monks. With 
 Map and 29 Illustrations. 8vo. 2is. 
 
 ROBERTS (Alexander). GREEK THE LANGUAGE OF CHRIST 
 AND HIS APOSTLES. 8vo. iSs. 
 
 ROG-ET( John Lewis). A HISTORYOFTHE 'OLD WATER COLOUR' 
 SOCIETY. 2 vols. Royal 8vo. 42*. 
 
 ROGET (Peter M.). THESAURUS OF ENGLISH WORDS AND 
 PHRASES. Crown 8vo. los. 6d. 
 
 RONALDS (Alfred). THE FLY-FISHER'S ETYMOLOGY. With 20 
 Coloured Plates. 8vo. 14^. 
 
 ROSSETTI (Maria Francesca). A SHADpW OF DANTE : being an 
 Essay towards studying Himself, his World, and his Pilgrimage. Cr. 8vo. los. 6d. 
 
 RUSSELL. A LIFE OF LORD JOHN RUSSELL. By SPENCER WALPOLE. 
 2 vols. 8vo. 365. Cabinet Edition, 2 vols. Crown 8vo. I2S. 
 
 SEEBOHM (Frederick). THE OXFORD REFORMERS JOHN 
 COLET, ERASMUS, AND THOMAS MORE. 8vo. 14*. 
 
 - THE ENGLISH VILLAGE COMMUNITY Examined in its Re- 
 lations to the Manorial and Tribal Systems, &c. 13 Maps and Plates. 8vo. i6s. 
 
 - THE ERA OF THE PROTESTANT REVOLUTION. With Map. 
 Fcp. 8vo. 2s. 6d. 
 
 SEWELL (Elizabeth M.). STORIES AND TALES. Crown 8vo. is. 6d, 
 each, cloth plain ; 2s. 6d. each, cloth extra, gilt edges : 
 
 Amy Herbert. 
 
 The Earl's Daughter. 
 
 The Experience of Life. 
 
 Katharine Ashton. 
 Margaret Percival. 
 Laneton Parsonage. 
 
 Gertrude. 
 Ivors. 
 Home Life. 
 
 A Glimpse of the World. Ursula. After Life. 
 
 Cleve Hall. | | 
 
 SHAKESPEARE. BO WDLER'S FAMILY SHAKESPEARE, i vol. 8vo. 
 
 With 36 Woodcuts, 14^., or in 6 vols. Fcp. 8vo. 2is. 
 _ OUTLINES OF THE LIFE OF SHAKESPEARE. By J. O. 
 
 HALLIWELL-PHILLIPPS. 2 vols. Royal 8vo. i is. 
 
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 - THE SHAKESPEARE BIRTHDAY BOOK. By MARY F. DUNBAR. 
 32mo. is. 6d. cloth. With Photographs, 32mo. s. Drawing Room Edition, 
 with Photographs, Fcp. 8vo. los. 6d. 
 
 SHORT (T. V.). SKETCH OF THE HISTORY OF THE CHURCH OF 
 ENGLAND to the Revolution of 1688. Crown 8vo. yj. 6d. 
 
PUBLISHED BY MESSRS. LONGMANS, GREEN, & CO. 21 
 
 SILVER LIBRARY, The. Crown 8vo. price 3 s. 6d. each volume. 
 
 She : A History of Adventure. By H. 
 Rider Haggard. 32 Illustrations. 
 
 Allan Quatermain. By H. Rider 
 Haggard With 20 Illustrations. 
 
 Colonel Quaritch, V.C. : a Tale of 
 Country Life. By H. Rider Haggard. 
 
 Cleopatra, By H. Rider Haggard. 
 With 29 Full-page Illustrations. 
 
 Micah Clarke. A Tale of Monmouth's 
 Rebellion. By A. Conan Doyle. 
 
 Petland Revisited. By the Rev. J. G. 
 Wood. With 33 Illustrations. 
 
 Strange Dwellings : a Description of the 
 Habitations of Animals. By the Rev. 
 J. G. Wood. With 60 Illustrations. 
 
 Out of Doors. Original Articles on 
 Practical Natural History. By the 
 Rev. J. G. Wood, n Illustrations. 
 
 Familiar History of Birds. By Edward 
 Stanley, D.D. 160 Illustrations. 
 
 Eight Years in Ceylon. By Sir S. W. 
 Baker. With 6 Illustrations. 
 
 Rifle and Hound in Ceylon. By Sir 
 S. W. Baker. With 6 Illustrations. 
 
 Story of Creation : a Plain Account of 
 Evolution. By Edward Clodd. 
 With 77 Illustrations. 
 
 LifeoftheDuke of Wellington. By the 
 Rev. G. R. Gleig. W 7 ith Portrait. 
 
 History of the Romans under the 
 Empire. By the Very Rev. Charles 
 Merivale. 8 vols. 
 
 Memoirs of Major-General Sir Henry 
 Havelock. By J. Clark Marshman. 
 
 Short Studies on Great Subjects. By 
 James A. Froude. 4 vols. 
 
 Caesar : a Sketch. Byjames A. Froude. 
 
 Thomas Carlyle : a History of his 
 Life. By J. A. Froude. 1795-1835. 
 2 vols. 1834-1881. 2 vols. 
 
 The Two Chiefs of Dunboy : an Irish 
 Romance of the Last Century. By 
 James A. Froude. 
 
 Visits to Remarkable Places. By 
 William Howitt. 80 Illustrations. 
 
 Field and Hedgerow. Last Essays of 
 Richard Jefferies. With Portrait. 
 
 The Story of My Heart ; My Auto- 
 biography. By Richard Jefferies. 
 
 Apologia Pro Vita Sua. 
 Newman. 
 
 By Cardinal 
 
 Callista : a Tale of the Third Century. 
 By Cardinal Newman. 
 
 By Cardinal 
 
 Loss and Gain : a Tale. 
 Newman. 
 
 Essays, Critical and Historical. By 
 Cardinal Newman. 2 vols. 
 
 An Essay on the Development of 
 Christian Doctrine. By Cardinal 
 Newman. 
 
 The Arians of the Fourth Century. 
 By Cardinal Newman. 
 
 Verses on Various Occasions. By 
 Cardinal Newman. 
 
 Parochial and Plain Sermons. By 
 Cardinal Newman. 8 vols. 
 
 Selection, adapted to the Seasons of 
 the Ecclesiastical Year, from the 
 ' Parochial and Plain Sermons '. By 
 Cardinal Newman. 
 
 Certain Difficulties felt by Anglicans 
 in Catholic Teaching Considered. 
 By Cardinal Newman. 2 vols. 
 
 The Idea of a University defined and 
 Illustrated. By Cardinal Newman. 
 
 Essays on Biblical and Ecclesiastical 
 Miracles. By Cardinal Newman. 
 
 Discussions and Arguments on Various 
 Subjects. By Cardinal Newman. 
 
 An Essay in Aid of a Grammar of 
 Assent' By Cardinal Newman, 
 
 The Elements of Banking. 
 D. Macleod. 
 
 By Henry 
 
 A Voyage in the ' Sunbeam '. With 
 66 Illustrations. By Lady Brassey. 
 
22 A CATALOGUE OF BOOKS IN GENERAL LITERATURE 
 
 SMITH (R. Bosworth). CARTHAGE AND THE CARTHAGINIANS. 
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 SOPHOCLES. Translated into English Verse. By ROBERT WHITE- 
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 STANLEY (E.). A FAMILIAR HISTORY OF BIRDS. With 160 Wood- 
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 STEEL (J. H.). A TREATISE ON THE DISEASES OF THE DOG; 
 
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 A TREATISE ON THE DISEASES OF THE OX ; being a Manual 
 
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 A TREATISE ON THE DISEASES OF THE SHEEP; being a 
 
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 STEPHEN (Sir James). ESSAYS IN ECCLESIASTICAL BIO- 
 GRAPHY. Crown 8vo. -js. 6d. 
 
 STEPHENS (H. Morse). A HISTORY OF THE FRENCH REVOLU- 
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 STEVENSON (Robt. Louis).-A CHILD'S GARDEN OF VERSES. 
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 - STRANGE CASE OF DR. JEKYLL AND MR. HYDE. Fcp. 8vo. 
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 STEVENSON (Robert Louis) and OSBOTJRNE (Lloyd). THE 
 
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 STOCK (St. George). DEDUCTIVE LOGIC. Fcp. 8vo. 3 s. 6d. 
 
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 STRONG (Herbert A.), LOGEMAN ( Willem S.) and WHEELER 
 
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 SUPERNATURAL RELIGION ; an Inquiry into the Reality of Divine Revela- 
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 REPLY (A) TO DR. LIGHTFOOT'S ESSAYS. By the Author of ' Super- 
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 TAYLOR (Colonel Meadows). A STUDENT'S MANUAL OF THE 
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 THOMPSON (D. Greenleaf). THE PROBLEM OF EVIL: an Intro- 
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 THE RELIGIOUS SENTIMENTS OF THE HUMAN MIND. 8vo. 
 
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 "WELLINGTON". -LIFE OF THE DUKE OF WELLINGTON. By the 
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 "WELLS (David A.). RECENT ECONOMIC CHANGES and their Effect 
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 WENDT (Ernest Emil). PAPERS ON MARITIME LEGISLATION, 
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 WEYMAN (Stanley J.). THE HOUSE OF THE WOLF : a Romance. 
 
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