 Chapter 7 Part 2 of Myths and Legends of All Nations. This is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox.org, recording by Anna Simon. Myths and Legends of All Nations by Logan Marshall. Part 2 of Chapter 7, The Golden Fleece. If I were to tell you all the adventures of the Argonauts, it would take me till nightfall, and perhaps a great deal longer. There was no lack of wonderful events, as you may judge from what you have already heard. At a certain island, they were hospitably received by King Cisacus, its sovereign, who made a feast for them and treated them like brothers. But the Argonauts saw that this good king looked downcast and very much troubled, and they therefore inquired of him what was the matter. King Cisacus hereupon informed them that he and his subjects were greatly abused and incommodated by the inhabitants of a neighbouring mountain, who made war upon them and killed many people and ravaged the country, and while they were talking about it, Cisacus pointed to the mountain and asked Jason and his companion what they saw there. I see some very tall objects, answered Jason, but they are at such a distance that I cannot distinctly make out what they are. To tell your majesty the truth, they look so very strangely that I am inclined to think them clouds, which a chance to take something like human shapes. I see them very plainly, remarked Lynsius, whose eyes, you know, were as far-sighted as a telescope. They are a band of enormous giants, all of whom have six arms apiece, and a club, a sword, or some other weapon in each of their hands. You have excellent eyes, said King Cisacus. Yes, they are six armed giants, as you say, and these are the enemies whom I and my subjects have to contend with. The next day, when the Argonauts were about setting sail, down came these terrible giants, stepping a hundred yards at a stride, brandishing their six arms apiece, and looking very formidable so far aloft in the air. Each of these monsters was able to carry on a whole war by himself, for with one of his arms he could fling immense stones and wield a club with another, and a sword with a third, while a fourth was poking a long spear at the enemy, and the fifth and the sixth were shooting him with a bow and arrow. But luckily, though the giants were so huge and had so many arms, they had each but one heart and that no bigger nor braver than the heart of an ordinary man. Besides, if they had been like the hundred armed priaries, the brave Argonauts would have given them their hands full of fight. Jason and his friends went boldly to meet them, slew a great many, and made the rest take to their heels, so that if the giants had had six legs apiece instead of six arms it would have served them better to run away with. Another strange adventure happened when the voyagers came to Thrace, where they found a poor blind king named Phineas, deserted by his subjects and living in a very sorrowful way all by himself. On Jason's inquiring whether they could do him any service, the king answered that he was terribly tormented by three great winged creatures called harpies, which had the faces of women and the wings, bodies and claws of vultures. These ugly wretches were in the habit of snatching away his dinner, and allowed him no peace of his life. Upon hearing this, the Argonauts spread a plentiful feast on the seashore, well-knowing from what the blind king said of their greediness that the harpies would snuff up the scent of the victuals and quickly come to steal them away. And so it turned out, forheartly was the table set, before the three hideous vulture women came flapping their wings, seized the food and their talons, and flew off as fast as they could. But the two sons of the north wind drew their swords, spread their pinions, and set off through the air in pursuit of the thieves, whom they had last overtook among some islands after a chase of hundreds of miles. The two winged youths blustered terribly at the harpies, for they had the rough temper of their father, and so frightened them with their drawn swords that they solemnly promised never to trouble King Phineas again. Then the Argonauts sailed onward and met with many other marvelous incidents, any one of which would make a story by itself. At one time they landed on an island and were reposing on the grass, when they suddenly found themselves assailed by what seemed a shower of steel-headed arrows. Some of them stuck in the ground, while others hit against their shields, and several penetrated their flesh. The fifty heroes started up and looked about them for the hidden enemy, but could find none nor see any spot on the whole island where even a single archer could lie concealed. Still, however, the steel-headed arrows came whizzing among them, and at last, happening to look up to it, they beheld a large flock of birds, hovering and wheezing aloft and shooting their feathers down upon the Argonauts. These feathers were the steel-headed arrows that had so tormented them. There was no possibility of making any resistance, and the fifty heroic Argonauts might all have been killed or wounded by a flock of troublesome birds without ever setting eyes on the golden fleece, if Jason had not thought of asking the advice of the oaken image. So he ran to the galley as fast as his legs would carry him. Oh, daughter of the speaking oak, cried he, all out of breath. We need your wisdom more than ever before. We are in great peril from a flock of birds who are shooting us with their steel-pointed feathers. What can we do to drive them away? Make a clutter on your shields, said the image. Under receiving this excellent counsel, Jason hurried back to his companions, who were far more dismayed than when they fought with the six-armed giants, and baited them strike with their swords upon their brazen shields. Fought with, the fifty heroes set heartily to work, banging with might and mane, and raised such a terrible clatter that the birds made what haste they could to get away. And though they had shot half the feathers out of their wings, they were soon seen skimming among the clouds, a long distance off, and looking like a flock of wild geese. Orpheus celebrated this victory by playing a triumphant anthem on his harp, and sang so melodiously that Jason begged him to resist, lest, as the steel-feathered birds have been driven away by an ugly sound, they might be enticed back again by a sweet one. While the Argonauts remained on this island, they saw a small vessel approaching the shore, in which were two young men of princely demeanour, and exceedingly handsome, as young princes generally were in those days. Now, who do you imagine these two voyagers turned out to be? Why, if you will believe me, they were the sons of that very Frixus, who in his childhood had been carried to Colchis on the back of the Golden Fleece ram. Since that time, Frixus had married the king's daughter, and the two young princes had been born and brought up at Colchis, and had spent their play-days on the outskirts of the Grove, in the centre of which the Golden Fleece was hanging upon a tree. They were now on their way to Greece, in hopes of getting back a kingdom that had been wrongfully taken from their father. When the princes understood whether the Argonauts were going, they offered to turn back and guide them to Colchis. At the same time, however, they spoke as if it were very doubtful whether Jason would succeed in getting the Golden Fleece. According to their account, the tree on which tongue was guarded by a terrible dragon, who never failed to devour at one mouthful every person who might venture within his reach. There are other difficulties in the way, continued the young princes. But is not this enough? Ha! brave Jason, turn back before it is too late. It would brave us to the heart if you and your forty-nine brave companions should be eaten up at fifty mouthfuls by this excrual dragon. My young friends quietly replied, Jason. I do not wonder that you think the dragon very terrible. You have grown up from infancy in the fear of this monster, and therefore still regard him with the awe that children feel for the bug-bearers and hobgoblins which their nurses have talked to them about. But in my view of the matter, the dragon is merely a pretty large serpent, who is not half so likely to snap me up at one mouthful as I am to cut off his ugly head and strip the skin from his body. At all events, turn back who may, I will never see grease again, unless I carry with me the Golden Fleece. We will none of us turn back, cried his forty-nine brave comrades. Let us get on board the galley this instant, and if the dragon is to make a breakfast of us, much good may it do him. And Orpheus, whose custom it was to set everything to music, began to harp and sing most gloriously, and made every mother's son of them feel as if nothing in this world were so delectable as to fight dragons, and nothing so truly honourable as to be eaten up at one mouthful in case of the worst. After this, being now under the guidance of the two princes who were well acquainted with the way, they quickly sailed to Colgis. When the king of the country, whose name was Ietus, heard of their arrival, he instantly summoned Jason to court. The king was a stern and cruel-looking potentate, and though he put on as polite and hospitable an expression as he could, Jason did not like his face a bit better than that of the wicked king Pilius, who dethroned his father. You are welcome, brave Jason, said King Ietus. Pray, are you on a pleasure voyage? Or do you meditate the discovery of unknown islands? Or what other cause has procured me the happiness of seeing you at my cause? Great sir, replied Jason, with an obeisance, for Chiron had told him how to behave with propriety, whether to kings or beggars. I have come hither with a purpose which I now beg your Majesty's permission to execute. King Pilius, who sits on my father's throne, to which he has no more right than to the one on which your excellent Majesty is now seated, has engaged to come down from it and to give me his crown and scepter, provided I bring him the golden fleece. This, as your Majesty is aware, is now hanging on a tree here at Colgis, and I humbly solicit your gracious leave to take it away. In spite of himself, the king's face twisted itself into an angry frown, for above all things else in the world he prized the golden fleece, and was even suspected of having done a very wicked act in order to get it into his own possession. It put him into the worst possible humour, therefore, to hear that the gallant Prince Jason and forty-nine of the bravest young warriors of Greece had come to Colgis with a sole purpose of taking away his chief treasure. Do you know? asked King Aetis, eyeing Jason very sternly. What are the conditions which you must fulfil before getting possession of the golden fleece? I have heard, rejoined the youth, that a dragon lies beneath a tree on which the prize hangs, and that whoever approaches him runs the risk of being devoured at a mouthful. True, said the king, with a smile that did not look particularly good-natured. Very true, young man, but there are other things as hard, or perhaps a little harder, to be done before you could even have the privilege of being devoured by the dragon. For example, you must first tame my two brazen footed and brazen-lunged bulls, which Vulcan, the wonderful blacksmith, made for me. There is a furnace in each of their stomachs, and they breathe such hot fire out of their mouths and nostrils that nobody has hitherto gone nigh them without being instantly burned to a small black cinder. What do you think of this, my brave Jason? I must encounter the peril, answered Jason, composedly, since it stands in the way of my purpose. After taming the fiery bulls, continued King Edis, who is determined to scare Jason if possible, you must yoke them to a plow, and must plow the sacred earth in the grove of Mars, and sow some of the same dragon's teeth from which Katmus raised the crop of armed men. They are an unruly set of reprobates, those sons of the dragon's teeth, and unless you treat them suitably, they will fall upon you sword in hand. You and your forty-nine Argonauts, my bold Jason, are hardly numerous or strong enough to fight with such a host as will spring up. My master Kyren, replied Jason, taught me long ago the story of Katmus. Perhaps I can manage to crawl some sons of the dragon's teeth as well as Katmus did. I wished that dragon had him, mattered King Edis to himself, and the four-footed pedant his schoolmaster into the bargain. Why, what a foolhardy, self-conceited cockscomb he is! We'll see what my fire-breathing bulls will do for him. Well, Prince Jason, he continued aloud, and as complacently as he could. Make yourself comfortable for today, and to-morrow morning, since you insist upon it, you shall try your skill at the plow. While the king talked with Jason, a beautiful young woman was standing behind the throne. She fixed her eyes earnestly upon the youthful stranger, and listened attentively to every word that was spoken, and when Jason withdrew from the king's presence, this young woman followed him out of the room. I am the king's daughter, she said to him, and my name is Medea. I know a great deal of which other young princesses are ignorant, and can do many things which they would be afraid so much as to dream of. If you will trust to me, I can instruct you how to tame the fiery bulls, and sew the dragon's teeth, and get the golden fleece. Indeed, beautiful princess, answered Jason, if you will do me this service, I promise to be grateful to you my whole life long. Gazing at Medea, he beheld a wonderful intelligence in her face. She was one of those persons whose eyes are full of mystery, so that while looking into them, you seem to see a very great way. As into a deep well, yet can be never certain whether you see into the furthest death, or whether there be not something else hidden at the bottom. If Jason had been capable of fearing anything, he would have been afraid of making this young princess his enemy. For, beautiful as she now looked, she might in the very next instant become as terrible as a dragon that kept watch over the golden fleece. Princess, he exclaimed, you seem indeed very wise and very powerful, but how can you help me to do the things of which you speak? Are you an enchantress? Yes, Prince Jason, answered Medea, with a smile. You have hit upon the truth. I am an enchantress. Circe, my father's sister, taught me to be one, and I could tell you if I pleased who was the old woman with the peacock, and pomegranate, and the cuckoo staff, whom you carried over the river, and likewise who it is that speaks through the lips of the oaken image that stands in the prow of your galley. I am acquainted with some of your secrets, you perceive. It is well for you that I am favourably inclined, for otherwise you would hardly escape being snapped up by the dragon. I should not so much care for the dragon, replied Jason, if I only knew how to manage the brazen footed and fury-lunged bulls. If you are as brave as I think you, and as you have need to be, said Medea, your own bold heart will teach you that there is but one way of dealing with a mad bull. What it is, I leave you to find out in a moment of peril. As for the fiery breath of these animals, I have a charmed ointment here, which will prevent you from being burned up and cure you if you chance to be a little scorched. So she put a golden box into his hand, and directed him how to apply the perfumed unjunt which it contained, and where to meet her at midnight. Only be brave, added she, and before daybreak the brazen bulls shall be tamed. The young man assured her that his heart would not fail him. He then rejoined his comrades, and told them what had passed between the princes and himself, and warned them to be in readiness in case there might be need of her help. At the appointed hour he met the beautiful Medea on the marble steps of the king's palace. She gave him a basket, in which were the dragon's teeth, just as they had been pulled out of the monster's jaws by Katmas long ago. Medea then let Jason down the palace steps, and through the silent streets of the city, and into the royal pasture ground, where the two brazen-footed bulls were kept. It was a starry night, with a bright gleam along the eastern edge of the sky, where the moon was soon going to show herself. After entering the pasture the princes paused and looked around. There they are, said she, reposing themselves and chewing their fury cuts in that furthest corner of the field. It will be excellent sport, I assure you, when they catch a glimpse of your figure. My father, and always called, delighted nothing so much as to see a stranger trying to yoke them in order to come at the golden fleece. It makes a holiday in Colgis whenever such a thing happens. For my part, I enjoy it immensely. You cannot imagine in what a mere twinkling of an eye their hot breath shrivels a young man into a black cinder. Are you sure, beautiful Medea? asked Jason, quite sure that the unjunt in the gold box will prove her remedy against those terrible burns. If you doubt, if you are in the least afraid, said the princes, looking him in the face by the dim starlight, we had better never have been born than go a step nire to the bulls. But Jason had set his heart steadfastly on getting the golden fleece, and I positively doubt whether he would have gone back without it even had he been certain of finding himself turned into a red-hot cinder or a handful of white ashes the instant he made a step further. He therefore let go Medea's hand and walked boldly forward in the direction with which she had pointed. At some distance before him he perceived four streams of fury vapour regularly appearing and again vanishing after dimly lighting up the surrounding obscurity. These, you will understand, were caused by the breath of the brazen bulls, which was quietly stealing out of their four nostrils as they lay chewing their cuts. At the first two or three steps which Jason made, the four fury streams appeared to gush out somewhat more plentifully, for the two brazen bulls had heard his foot-tramp and were lifting up their hot noses to snuff the air. He went a little further, and by the way in which the red vapour now spouted forth he judged that the creatures had got upon their feet. Now he could see glowing sparks and vivid jets of flame. At the next step each of the bulls made the pasture echo with a terrible roar, while the burning breath which they thus belched forth lit up the whole field with a momentary flesh. One others tried that bold Jason make, and suddenly, as a streak of lightning, on came these fury animals, roaring like thunder and sending out sheets of white flame, which so kindled up the scene that the young man could discern every object more distinctly than by daylight. Most distinctly of all he saw the two horrible creatures galloping right down upon him, their brazen hooves rattling and ringing over the ground, and their tails sticking up stiffly into the air, as has always been the fashion with angry bulls. Their breath scorched the herbage before them. So intensely hot it was, indeed, that it caught a dry tree under which Jason was now standing, and set it all in a light blaze. But as for Jason himself, thanks to Medea's enchanted ointment, the white flame curl around his body without injuring him a jot more than if he'd been made of asbestos. Greatly encouraged at finding himself not yet turned into a cinder, the young man awaited the attack of the bulls. Just as the brazen brutes fancied themselves sure of tossing him into the air, he caught one of them by the horn, and the other by his screwed up tail, and helped them in a grip like that of an iron vice, one with his right hand, the other with his left. Well, he must have been wonderfully strong in his arms to be sure. But the secret of the matter was that the brazen bulls were enchanted creatures, and that Jason had broken the spell of their fiery fierceness by his bold way of handling them. And ever since that time it has been the favourite method of brave men, when danger assails them, to do what they call, taking the bull by the horns, and to grip him by the tail is pretty much the same thing, that is, to throw aside fear and overcome the peril by despising it. It was now easy to yoke the bulls, and to harness them to the plow which had lain rusting on the ground for a great many years gone by, so long was it before anybody could be found capable of plowing that piece of land. Jason, I suppose, had been told how to draw a thorough by the good old Kyren, who perhaps used to allow himself to be harnessed to the plow. At any rate, our hero succeeded perfectly well in breaking up the Greensword, and by the time that the moon was a quarter of a journey up the sky the plowed field lay before him, a large tract of black earth ready to be sown with a dragon's teeth. So Jason scattered them broadcast and harrowed them into the soil with a brush-harrow, and took his stand on the edge of the field, anxious to see what would happen next. Must we wait long for harvest time, he inquired of Medea, who was now standing by his side? Whether sooner or later it will be sure to come, answered the princes. A crop of armed men never fails to spring up when the dragon's teeth have been sown. The moon was now higher loft in the heavens, and threw its bright beams over the plowed field, whereas yet there was nothing to be seen. Any farmer on viewing it would have said that Jason must wait weeks before the green blades would peep from among the clots, and whole months before the yellow grain would be ripened for the sickle, but by and by all over the field there was something that glistened in the moonbeams like sparkling drops of dew. These bright objects sprouted higher, and proved to be the steel heads of spears. Then there was a dazzling gleam from a vast number of polished brass helmets, beneath which, as they grew further out of the soil, appeared the dark and bearded visages of warriors, struggling to free themselves from the imprisoning earth. The first look that they gave at the upper world was a glare of wrath and defiance. Next were seen their bright breastplates. In every right hand there was a sword or spear, and on each left arm a shield, and when this strange crop of warriors had but half grown out of the earth, they struggled, such was their impatience of restraint, and, as it were, tore themselves up by the roots. Wherever a dragon's tooth had fallen there stood a man armed for battle. They made a clanger with their swords against their shields, and eyed one another fiercely, for they had come into this beautiful world and into the peaceful moonlight, full of rage and stormy passions, and ready to take the life of every human brother in recompense for the boon of their own existence. There have been many other armies in the world that seemed to possess the same fierce nature with the one which had now sprouted from the dragon's teeth, but these in the moonlight field were the more excusable, because they never had women for their mothers, and now it would have rejoiced any great captain who was bent on conquering the world, like Alexander or Napoleon, to raise a crop of armed soldiers as easily as Jason did. For a while the warriors stood flourishing their weapons, clashing their swords against their shields, and boiling over with the red-hot thirst for battle. Then they began to shout, show us the enemy, lead us to the charge, death or victory. Come on brave comrades, conquer or die. And a hundred other outcries, such as men always bellow forth on a battlefield, in which these dragon people seemed to have at their tongues ends. At last the front rank caught sight of Jason, who, beholding the flesh of so many weapons in the moonlight, had thought it best to draw his sword. In a moment all the sons of the dragon's teeth appeared to take Jason for an enemy, and crying with one voice, guard the golden fleece. They ran at him with uplifted swords and protruded spears. Jason knew that it would be impossible to withstand this bloodthirsty battalion with a single arm, but determined, since there was nothing better to be done, to die as valiantly as if he himself had sprung from a dragon's tooth. Medea, however, bade him snatch up a stone from the ground. Throw it among them quickly, cried she. It is the only way to save yourself. The armed men were now so nigh that Jason could discern the fire flashing out of their enraged eyes, when he let fly the stone and saw it strike the helmet of a tall warrior who was rushing upon him with his blade aloft. The stone glanced from this man's helmet to the shield of his nearest comrade, and thence flew right into the angry phase of another, hitting him smartly between the eyes. Each of the three, who'd been struck by the stone, took it for granted that his next neighbour had given him a blow, and instead of running any further toward Jason, they began to fight among themselves. The confusion spread through the host, so that it seemed scarcely a moment before they were all hacking, hewing, and stabbing at one another, lopping off arms, heads, and legs, and doing such memorable deeds that Jason was filled with immense admiration, although at the same time he could not help laughing to behold these mighty men punishing each other for an offence which he himself had committed. In an incredibly short space of time, almost as short indeed as it had taken them to grow up, all but one of the heroes of the dragon's teeth were stretched lifeless on the field. The last survivor, the bravest and strongest of the whole, had just forced enough to wave his crimson sword over his head and give a shout of exaltation, crying, Victory, Victory, Immortal Fame, when he himself fell down and lay quietly among his slain brethren. And there was the end of the army that had sprouted from the dragon's teeth, that fierce and feverish fight was the only enjoyment which they had tasted on this beautiful earth. Let them sleep in the bed of honor, said the Princess Medea, with a sly smile at Jason. The world will always have simpletons enough, just like them, fighting and dying, for they know not what, and fancying that posterity will take the trouble to put laurel wreaths upon their rusty and battered helmets. Could you help smiling, Prince Jason, to see the self-conceit of that last fellow just as he tumbled down? It made me very sad, asked Jason gravely, and to tell you the truth, Princess, the Golden Fleece does not appear so well worth the winning after what I have here beheld. You will think differently in the morning, sub Medea. True, the Golden Fleece may not be so valuable as you thought it, but then there is nothing better in the world, and one must needs have an object, you know. Come, your night's work has been well performed, and to-morrow you can inform King Eetus that the first part of your allotted task is fulfilled. Agreeably, to Medea's advice, Jason went betimes in the morning to the Palace of King Eetus. Entering the presence chamber, he stood at the foot of the throne and made a low obeisance. Your eyes look heavy, Prince Jason, observed the King. You appear to have spent a sleepless night. I hope you have been considering the matter a little more wisely, and have concluded not to get yourself scorched to a cinder in attempting to tame my brazen-lunged bulls. That is already accomplished, made please Your Majesty, replied Jason. The bulls have been tamed and yoked, the field has been ploughed, the dragon's teeth have been sewn broadcast and heralded into the soil. The crop of armed warriors has sprung up, and they have slain one another to the last man. And now I solicit Your Majesty's permission to encounter the dragon, that I may take down the golden fleece from the tree and depart with my forty-nine comrades. King Eetus scowled and looked very angry and excessively disturbed, for he knew that, in accordance with his kingly promise, he ought now to permit Jason to win the fleece, if his courage and skill should enable him to do so. But since the young man had met with such good luck in the matter of the brazen bulls and dragon's teeth, the king feared that it would be equally successful in slaying the dragon. And therefore, though he would gladly have seen Jason snapped up at a mouthful, he was resolved, and it was a very wrong thing of this wicked potentate, not to run any further risk of losing his beloved fleece. You never would have succeeded in this business, young man, said he, if my unjudiful daughter Medea had not helped you with her enchantments. Had you acted fairly, you would have been at this instant a black cinder or a handful of white ashes. I forbid you, on pain of death, to make any more attempts to get the Golden Fleece. To speak my mind plainly, you shall never set eyes on so much as one of its glistening locks. Jason left the king's presence in great sorrow and anger. He could think of nothing better to be done than to summon together his forty-nine brave Argonauts, march at once to the Grove of Mars, slay the dragon, take possession of the Golden Fleece, get on board the Argo, and spread all sales for Iocos. The success of this scheme depended, it is true, on the doubtful point whether all the fifty heroes might not be snapped up as so many mouthfuls by the dragon. But as Jason was hastening down the palace steps, the princess Medea called after him and beckoned him to return. Her black eyes shone upon him with such chiquine intelligence that he felt as if there were a serpent peeping out of them. And although she had done him so much service only the night before, he was by no means very certain that she would not do him an equally great mischief before sunset. These enchantresses, you must know, are never to be dependent upon. What says King Aetis, my royal and upright father? inquired Medea, slightly smiling. Would he give you the Golden Fleece without any further risk or trouble? On the contrary, answered Jason, he is very angry with me for taming the brazen bulls and sowing the dragon's teeth, and he forbids me to make any more attempts, and positively refuses to give up the Golden Fleece, whether I slay the dragon or no. Yes, Jason, said the princess, and I can tell you more. Unless you set sail from Colchis before tomorrow's sunrise, the king means to burn your fifty-word galley, and put yourself and your forty-nine brave comrades to the salt, but be of good courage. The Golden Fleece you shall have, if it lies within the power of my enchantments to get it for you. Wait for me here an hour before midnight. At the appointed hour you might again have seen Prince Jason and the Princess Medea side by side, stealing through the streets of Colchis on their way to the Sacred Grove, in the centre of which the Golden Fleece was suspended to a tree. While they were crossing the pasture ground, the brazen bulls came toward Jason, lowing, nodding their heads and thrusting forth their snouts, which, as other cattle do, they loved to have rubbed and caressed by a friendly hand. Their fierce nature was thoroughly tamed, and with their fierceness the two furnaces in their stomachs had likewise been extinguished, in so much that they probably enjoyed far more comfort in grazing and chewing their cuts than ever before. Indeed, it had here to fore been a great inconvenience to these poor animals that, whenever they wished to eat a mouthful of grass, the fire out of their nostrils had shriveled it up before they could manage to crop it. How they contrived to keep themselves alive is more than I can imagine. But now, instead of emitting jets of flame and streams of sulfurous vapour, they breathed the very sweetest of cow breath. After kindly patting the bulls, Jason followed Medea's guidance into the Grove of Mars, where the great oak trees that had been growing for centuries threw so thick a shade that the moonbeams struggled vainly to find their way through it. Only here and there a glimmer fell upon the leaf-strewn earth, or now and then a breeze stirred the boughs aside, and gave Jason a glimpse of the sky. Lest in that deep obscurity he might forget that there was one overhead. At length, when they had gone further and further into the heart of the dressiness, Medea squeezed Jason's hand. Look yonder! she whispered. Do you see it? Gleaming among the venerable oaks there was a radiance, not like the moonbeams, but rather resembling the golden glory of the setting sun. It proceeded from an object which appeared to be suspended at about a man's height from the ground, a little further within the wood. What is it? asked Jason. Have you come so far to seek it? exclaimed Medea, and do you not recognise the mead of all your toils and perils when it glitters before your eyes? It is the golden fleece. Jason went onward a few steps further, and then stopped to gaze. Oh! how beautiful it looked, shining with a marvellous light of its own, that inestimable prize which so many heroes had longed to behold, but had perished in the quest of it, either by the perils of their voyage, or by the fiery breath of the brazen-lunged bulls. How gloriously it shines! cried Jason in a rapture. It has surely been dipped in the richest gold of sunset. Let me hasten onward and take it to my bosom. Stay! said Medea, holding him back. Have you forgotten what guarded? To save the truth, in the joy of beholding the object of his desires, the terrible dragon had quite slipped out of Jason's memory. Soon, however, something came to pass that reminded him what perils were still to be encountered. An antelope that probably mistook the yellow radiance for sunrise came bounding fleetily through the grove. He was rushing straight toward the golden fleece, when suddenly there was a frightful hiss, and the immense head and half the scaly body of the dragon was thrust forth, for he was twisted round the trunk of the tree on which the fleece hung, and, seizing the poor antelope, swallowed him with one snap of his jaws. After this feat the dragon seemed sensible that some other living creature was within reach, on which he felt inclined to finish his meal. In various directions he kept poking his ugly snout among the trees, stretching out his neck a terrible long way, now here, now there, and now closer to spot where Jason and the princes were hiding behind an oak. Upon my word, as the head came waving and undulating through the air, and reaching almost within arm's length of Prince Jason, it was a very hideous and uncomfortable sight. The gape of his enormous jaws was nearly as white as the gateway of the king's palace. Well, Jason, whispered Medea, for she was ill-natured, as all enchantresses are, and wanted to make the bold youth tremble. What do you think now of your prospect of winning the golden fleece? Jason answered only by drawing his sword and making a step forward. Stay, foolish youth, said Medea, grasping his arm. Do not you see you are lost without me as your good angel? In this gold box I have a magic potion which will do the dragon's business far more effectually than your sword. The dragon had probably heard the voices, for swift as lightning, his black head and forked tongue came hissing among the trees again, darting full forty feet at a stretch. As it approached, Medea tossed the contents of the gold box right down the monster's wide open throat. Immediately, with an outrageous hiss and a tremendous wriggle, flinging his tail up to the tip-top of the tallest tree and shattering all its branches as it crashed heavily down again, the dragon fell at full length upon the ground and lay quite motionless. It is only a sleeping potion, said the enchantress to Prince Jason. One always finds a use for this mischievous creature sooner or later, so I did not wish to kill him outright. Quick, snatch the prize and let us be gone. You have won the golden fleece. Jason caught the fleece from the tree and hurried through the grove, the deep shadows of which were illuminated as he passed by the golden glory of the precious object that he bore along. A little way before him he beheld the old woman whom he had helped over the stream, with her peacock beside her. She clapped her hands for joy and beckoning him to haste disappeared among the duskiness of the trees. Aspying the two-winged sun to the north wind, who were just sporting themselves in the moonlight a few hundred feet aloft, Jason bathed them tell the rest of the Argonauts to embark as speedily as possible. But Linceas, with his sharp eyes, had already caught a glimpse of him, bringing the golden fleece, although several stone walls, a hill, and the black shadows of the grove of Mars intervened between. By his advice the heroes had seated themselves on the benches of the galley, where their oars held perpendicularly, ready to let fall into the water. As Jason drew near he heard the talking image calling to him, with more than ordinary eagerness in his grave sweet voice. Make haste, Prince Jason, for your life make haste. With one bound he leapt aboard. At sight of the glorious radiance of the golden fleece, the forty-nine heroes gave a mighty shout, and Orpheus, striking his harp, sang a song of triumph to the cadence of which the galley flew over the water, homeward bound, as if careering along with wings. Chapter 8 of Myths and Legends of All Nations This is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox.org. Recording by Lucy LaFaro, New South Wales, Australia Myths and Legends of All Nations by Logan Marshall The Cyclops When the great city of Troy was taken, all the chiefs who had fought against it set sail for their homes. But there was a raw thin heaven against them, for indeed they had borne themselves haughtily and cruelly in the day of their victory. Therefore they did not all find a safe and happy return. For one was shipwrecked, and another was shamefully slain by his false wife in his palace. And others found all things at home troubled and changed, and were driven to seek new dwellings elsewhere. And some whose wives and friends and people had been still true to them, through those ten long years of absence, were driven far and wide about the world before they saw their native land again. And of all, the wise Ulysses was he who wandered farthest and suffered most. He was well neither last to sail, for he had tarried many days to do pleasure to Agamemnon, lord of all the Greeks. Twelve ships he had with him, twelve he had brought to Troy. And in each there were some fifty men, being scarce half of those that had sailed in them in the old days. So many valiant heroes slept the last sleep by Simoy and Scamander, and in the plain and on the seashore slain in battle all by the shafts of Apollo. First they sailed north-west to the Thracian coast, where the Sikonians dwelt, who had helped the men of Troy. Their city they took, and in it much plunder, slaves, and oxen. And jars of fragrant wine. And might have escaped unhurt, but that they stayed to hold revel on the shore. For the Sikonians gathered their neighbours, being men of the same blood, and did battle with the invaders, and drove them to their ship. And when Ulysses numbered his men, he found that he had lost six out of each ship. Scares had he set out again, when the wind began to blow fiercely. So, seeing a smooth sandy beach, they drove the ships ashore, and dragged them out of reach of the waves, and waited till the storm should abate. And the third morning, being fair, they sailed again, and journeyed prosperously, till they came to the very end of the great Peloponnesian land, where Cape Malaya looks out upon the southern sea. But contrary currents baffled them, so that they could not round it. And the north wind blew so strongly, that they must feign drive before it. And on the tenth day they came to the land where the lotus grows, a wondrous fruit, of which whosoever eats, cares not to see country, or wife, or children again. Now the lotus-eaters, for so they called the people of the land, were a kindly folk, and gave of the fruit to some of the sailors, not meaning them any harm, but thinking it to be the best that they had to give. These, when they had eaten, said that they would not sail any more over the sea, which, when the wise Ulysses heard, he bade their comrades, bind them, and carry them, sadly complaining to the ships. Then, the wind having abated, they took to their oars, and rode for many days, till they came to the country where the cyclops dwell. Now, a mile or so from the shore, there was an island, very fair and fertile, but no man dwells there, or tills the soil. And in the island, a harbour where a ship may be safe from all winds, and at the head of the harbour, a stream falling from the rock, and whispering olders all about it. Into this the ships passed safely, and were hauled up on the beach. And the crews slept by them, waiting for the morning. And the next day they hunted the wild goats, of which there was great store on the island, and feasted right merrily on what they caught, with draughts of red wine, which they had carried off from the town of the Syconians. But on the morrow, Ulysses, for he was ever fond of adventure, and would know of every land to which he came, what manner of men they were that dwelt there, took one of his twelve ships, and bade row to the land. There was a great hill sloping to the shore, and there rose up here and there a smoke from the caves where the cyclops dwelt apart, holding no converse with each other, for they were a rude and savage folk, but ruled each his own household, not caring for others. Now very close to the shore was one of these caves, very huge and deep, with laurels round about the mouth, and in front a fold with walls built of rough stone, and shaded by tall oaks and pines. So Ulysses chose out of the crew the twelve bravest, and bade the rest guard the ship, and went to see what manner of dwelling this was, and who abode there. He had his sword by his side, and on his shoulder a mighty skin of wine, sweet smelling and strong, with which he might win the heart of some fierce savage, should he chance to meet with such, as indeed his prudent heart forecasted that he might. So they entered the cave, and judged that it was the dwelling of some rich and skilful shepherd, for within there were pens for the young of the sheep, and of the goat, divided all according to their age, and there were baskets full of cheeses, and four milk-pales ranged along the wall. But the Cyclops himself was away in the pastures. Then the companions of Ulysses besought him that he would depart, taking with him, if he would, a store of cheeses and sundry of the lambs and of the kids. But he would not, for he wished to see, after his want, what manner of host this strange shepherd might be, and truly he saw it to his cost. It was evening when the Cyclops came home, a mighty giant, twenty feet in height or more. On his shoulder he bore a vast bundle of pine logs for his fire, and threw them down outside the cave with a great crash, and drove the flocks within, and closed the entrance with the huge rock, which twenty wagons and more could not bear. Then he milked the ewes and all the she-goats, and half of the milk he curdled for cheese, and half he set ready for himself, when he should sup. Next he kindled a fire with the pine logs, and the flame lighted up all the cave, showing Ulysses and his comrades. Who are ye, cried Polyphemus, for that was the giant's name, are ye traders, or happily pirates? For in those days it was not counted shame to be called a pirate. Ulysses shudded at the dreadful voice and shape, but bore him bravely and answered, we are no pirates mighty sir, but Greeks sailing back from Troy and subjects of the great King Argymenon, whose fame is spread from one end of heaven to the other. And we are come to beg hospitality of thee in the name of Zeus, who rewards or punishes hosts and guests according as they be faithful the one to the other or no. Nay said the giant, it is but idle talk to tell me of Zeus and the other gods. We cyclops take no account of gods, holding ourselves to be much better and stronger than they, but come, tell me where have you left your ship? But Ulysses saw his thought when he asked about the ship, how he was minded to break it and take from them all hope of flight. Therefore he answered him craftily, ship we have none, for that which was ours king beside and break, driving it on a jutting rock on this coast, and we whom thou cease are all that are escaped from the waves. Polyphemus answered nothing, but without more ado caught up two of the men, as a man might catch up the whelps of a dog, and dash them on the ground, and tore them limb from limb, and devoured them with huge drafts of milk between, leaving not a morsel, not even the very bones. But the others when they saw the dreadful deed could only weep and pray to Zeus for help, and when the giant had ended his foul meal, he lay down among his sheep and slept. Then Ulysses questioned much in his heart whether he should slay the monster as he slept, for he doubted not that his good sword would pierce to the giant's heart, mighty as he was. But being very wise he remembered that should he slay him, he and his comrades would yet perish miserably, for who should move away the great rock that lay against the door of the cave. So they waited till the morning, and the monster woke and milked his flocks, and afterward seizing two men devoured them for his meal. Then he went to the pastures, but put the great rock on the mouth of the cave, just as the man puts down the lid upon his quiver. All that day the wise Ulysses was thinking what he might best do to save himself and his companions, and the end of his thinking was this. There was a mighty pole in the cave, green wood of an olive tree, big as a ship's mast, which polyfamous purpose to use when the smoke should have dried it as a walking staff. Of this he cut off a fathom's length, and his comrades sharpened it and hardened it in the fire, and then hid it away. At evening the giant came back and drove his sheep into the cave, nor left the rams outside, as he had been want to do before, but shut them in. And having duly done his shepherd's work, he made his cruel feast as before. Then Ulysses came forward with the wine-skin in his hand, and said, Drink, Cyclops, now that thou hast feasted. Drink and see what precious things we had in our ship, but no one hereafter will come to thee with such like, if thou dealest with strangers as cruel as thou hast dealt with us. Then the Cyclops drank and was mightily pleased, and said, Give me again to drink and tell me thy name, stranger, and I will give thee a gift such as a host should give. In good truth this is a rare liquor. We too have vines, but they bear no wine like this, which indeed must be such as the gods drink in heaven. Then Ulysses gave him the cup again, and he drank. Thrice he gave it to him, and thrice he drank, not knowing what it was and how it would work within his brain. Then Ulysses spoke to him, Thou didst ask my name, Cyclops. Lo, my name is no man, and now that thou knowest my name, thou shouldst give me thy gift. And he said, My gift shall be that I will eat thee last of all thy company. And as he spoke he fell back in a drunken sleep. Then Ulysses bade his comrades be of good courage, for the time was come when they should be delivered. And they thrust the stake of olive wood into the fire till it was ready, green as it was, to burst into flame. And they thrust it into the monster's eye, for he had but one eye, and that in the midst of his forehead, with the eyebrow below it. And Ulysses leaned with all his force upon the stake, and thrust it in with the might and main. And the burning wood hissed in the eye, just as the red hot iron hisses in the water when a man seeks to temper steel for a sword. Then the giant leapt up and tore away the stake and cried aloud, so that all the cyclops who dwelt on the mountainside heard him, and came about his cave, asking him, What ale of thee polyphemus that thou makest this uproar in the peaceful night, driving away sleep? Is anyone robbing thee of thy sheep or seeking to slay thee by craft or force? And the giant answered, No man slays me by craft. Nay, but, they said, If no man does thee wrong, we cannot help thee. The sickness which great Zeus may send, Who can avoid? Pray to our father, Poseidon, for help. Then they departed, and Ulysses was glad at heart for the good success of his device, when he said that he was no man. But the cyclops rolled away the great stone from the door of the cave, and sat in the midst, stretching out his hands to fill where the perchance, the men within the cave, would seek to go out among the sheep. Long did Ulysses think how he and his comrades should best escape. At last he lighted upon a good device, and much he thanked Zeus that, for this once the giant had driven the rams with the other sheep into the cave. For these being great and strong, he fastened his comrades under the bellies of the beasts, tying them with Ossia twigs, of which the giant made his bed. One ram he took and fastened a man beneath it, and two others he set, one on either side. So he did with the six, for but six were left out of the twelve who had ventured with him from the ship. And there was one mighty ram, far larger than all the others, and to this Ulysses clung, grasping the fleece tight with both his hands. So they waited for the morning, and when the morning came the rams rushed forth to the pasture, but the giant sat in the door and felt the back of each as it went by, nor thought to try what might be underneath. Last of all went the giant ram, and the cyclops knew him as he passed and said, How is this thou who art the leader of the flock? Thou art not want thus to lag behind? Thou hast always been the first to run to the pastures and streams in the morning, and the first to come back to the fold when evening fell. And now thou art last of all. Perhaps thou art troubled about thy master's eye, which some wretch, no man, they call him, has destroyed, having first mastered me with wine? He has not escaped, I wean, I would that thou could speak and tell me where he is lurking. Of a truth I would dash out his brains upon the ground and avenge me of this no man. So speaking he let him pass out of the cave, but when they were out of reach of the giant Ulysses loosed his hold of the ram and then unbound his comrades, and they hastened to their ship, not forgetting to drive before them a good store of the cyclops' fat sheep. Right glad were those that had abode by the ship to see them, nor did they lament for those who had died, though they were famed to do so, for Ulysses forbade, fearing lest the noise of their weeping should betray them to the giant where they were. Then they all climbed into the ship, and sitting well in order on the benches, smoked the sea with their oars, laying too right lustily, that they might the sooner get away from the accursed land. And when they had rowed a hundred yards or so, so that a man's voice could yet be heard by one who stood upon the shore, Ulysses stood up in the ship and shouted, He was no coward, O cyclops, whose comrades thou didst so foully slay in thy den, justly art thou punished, monster, that devourest thy guess in thy dwelling. May the gods make thee suffer yet worse things than these. Then the cyclops in his wroth broke off the top of a great hill, a mighty rock, and hurled it where he had heard the voice. Right in front of the ship's bow it fell, and a great wave rose as it sank, and washed the ship back to the shore. But Ulysses seized a long pole with both hands, and pushed the ship from the land, and bade his comrades, ply their oars, nodding with his head, for he was too wise to speak, lest the cyclops should know where they were. Then they rowed with all their might and main. And when they had gotten twice as far as before, Ulysses made as if he would speak again, but his comrades sought to hinder him, saying, Nay, my lord, anger not the giant any more. Surely we thought before we were lost, when he threw the great rock, and washed our ship back to the shore. And if he hear thee now, he may crush our ship and us, for the man throws a mighty bolt, and throws it far. But Ulysses would not be persuaded, but stood up and said, Here, cyclops, if any man ask, who blinded thee, say that it was the warrior Ulysses, son of Laertes, dwelling in Ithaca. And the cyclops answered with a groan, Of a truth the old oracles are fulfilled. For long ago there came to this land one telimus, a prophet, and dwelt among us even to old age. This man foretold me that one Ulysses would rob me of my sight. But I looked for a great man, and a strong, who should subdue me by force. And now a weakling has done the deed, having cheated me with wine. But come now hither, Ulysses, and I will be a host indeed to thee. Or at least may Poseidon give thee such a voyage to thy home as I would wish thee to have. For know that Poseidon is my sire. Maybe that he may heal me of my grievous wound. And Ulysses said, Would to God I could send thee down to the abode of the dead, where thou wouldst be past all healing, even from Poseidon's self. Then the cyclops lifted up his hands to Poseidon and prayed. Hear me, Poseidon, if I am indeed thy son and thou my father, may this Ulysses never reach his home, or if the fates have ordered that he should reach it, may he come alone, or his comrades lost, and come to find sore trouble in his house. And as he ended, he hurled another mighty rock, which almost lighted on the rudder's end, yet missed it as if by a hare's breath. So Ulysses and his comrades escaped, and came to the island of the wild goats, where they found their comrades, who indeed had waited long for them, in sore fear lest they had perished. Then Ulysses divided among his company all the sheep which they had taken from the cyclops, and all with one consent gave him for his share the great ram which had carried him out of the cave, and he sacrificed it to Zeus, and all that day they feasted right merrily on the flesh of sheep and on sweet wine, and when the night was come they lay down upon the shore and slept. End of chapter 8 The Cyclops Chapter 9 of Myths and Legends of All Nations This is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more information or to volunteer please visit LibriVox.org Recording by Paradise Camouflage Myths and Legends of All Nations by Logan Marshall Chapter 9 Oedipus and the Sphinx It befell in times past that the gods, being angry with the inhabitants of Thebes, sent into their land a very troublesome beast which men called the Sphinx. Now this beast had the face embraced of a fair woman, but the feet and claws of a lion, and it was one to ask a riddle of such as encountered it, and such as answered not a right, it would tear and devour. When it had laid waste the land many days, their chance to come to Thebes won Oedipus, who had fled from the city of Corinth, that he might escape the doom which the gods had spoken against him, and the men of the place told him of the Sphinx how she cruelly devoured the people, and that he who should deliver them from her should have the kingdom. So Oedipus, being very bold and also ready of wit, went forth to meet the monster, and when she saw him she spoke, saying, Read me this riddle right or die, what liveth there beneath the sky, four-footed creature that doth choose, now three feet and now twain to use, and still more feebly over the plain, walketh with three feet than with twain, and Oedipus made reply, to his man, who in life's early day four-footed crawleth on his way, when time hath made his strength complete, upright his form and twain his feet, when age hath bound him to the ground, a third foot in his staff is found, and when the Sphinx found that her riddle was answered she cast herself from a high rock and perished. As a result, Oedipus received the Great Kingdom of Thebes and the hand of the widowed Queen Yocasta in marriage. Four children were born to them, two sons, Eteocles and Polynesus, and two daughters, Antigone and Isminae. Now the gods had decreed that Oedipus should murder his own father and marry his own mother, and by a curious chance this was precisely what he had done. As a baby he had been left to die lest he should live to fulfil the doom, but had been rescued by an old shepherd and brought up at the court of Corinth. Fleeing from there that he might not murder him, whom he believed to be his father, he had come to Thebes and on the way had met Leos, his true father, the king, and killed him. While he remained ignorant of the facts, Oedipus was very happy and reigned in great power and glory, but when pestilence fell upon the land and he discovered the truth of the almost forgotten oracle, he was very miserable and in madness of grief put out his own eyes. End of chapter 9. Recording by Andi from Inveron and mlys.ws. Chapter 10 of Myths and Legends of All Nations This is LibriVox Recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox.org. Recording by Kalinda Myths and Legends of All Nations by Logan Marshall Chapter 10 Antigone, a faithful daughter and sister Jocasta, when she learned that Oedipus was really her son, was so filled with horror and distress that she took her own life. But Antigone and his menet were sorry for their father whom they loved very dearly and sought by every means they knew to render his suffering less. Longing to see again the land of Corinth which he had left seized the blind Oedipus, and like a beggar staff in hand he set out. Only Antigone accompanied him, guiding his step and striving daily to keep up his courage. After much wandering, Oedipus was finally cast into prison. Then the two sons took possession of the kingdom, making agreement between themselves that each should reign for the space of one year. And the elder of the two, whose name was Ateacles, first had the kingdom. But when his year was come to an end he would not abide by his promise, but kept that which he should have given up, and drove out his younger brother from the city. Then the younger, whose name was Polyneses, fled to Argos to King Adrastas, and after a while he married the daughter of the king, who made a covenant with him that he would bring him back with a high hand to Thebes and set him on the throne of his father. Then the king sent messengers to certain of the princes of Greece, and treating that they would help in this matter. And of these some would not, but others hearkened to his words, and so that a great army was gathered together, and followed the king and Polyneses to make war against Thebes. So they came and pitched their camp over against the city. And after they had been there many days the battle grew fierce about the wall. But the chiefest fight was between the two brothers, for the two came together in an open space before the gates. And first Polyneses prayed to Hera, for she was the goddess of the great city of Argos, which had helped him in his enterprise, and Ateacles prayed to Pallas of the Golden Shield, whose temple stood hard by. Then they crouched, each covered with his shield and holding his spear in his hand, if by chance his enemy should give occasion to smite him. And if one showed so much as an eye above the rim of his shield the other would strike at him. But after a while King Ateacles slipped upon a stone that was under his foot and uncovered his leg, at which, straight way, Polyneses took aim with his spear piercing at the skin. But so doing he laid his own shoulder-bear, and King Ateacles gave him a wound in the breast. He broke his spear in striking, and would have fared ill, but that with a great stone he smote the spear of Polyneses and broke this also in the middle. And now were the two equal, for each had lost his spear, so they drew their swords and came yet closer together. But Ateacles used a device which he had learned in the land of Thessaly, for he drew his left foot back as if he would have ceased from the battle, and then of a sudden moved the right forward, and so, smiting sideways, drove his sword right through the body of Polyneses. But when, thinking that he had slain him, he set his weapons in the earth and began to spoil him of his arms, the other, for he yet breathed a little, laid his hand upon his sword, and though he had scarce strength to smite, yet gave the king a mortal blow, so that the two lay dead together on the plane. And the men of Thebes lifted up the bodies of the dead and bare them both into the city. When these two brothers, the sons of King Oedipus, had fallen each by the hand of the other, the kingdom fell to Creon their uncle. For not only was he the next of kin to the dead, but also the people held him in great honor because his son, Manusaeus, had offered himself with a willing heart that he might deliver his city from captivity. Now when Creon was come to the throne, he made a proclamation about the two princes, commanding that they should bury Ateicles with all honor, seeing that he died as besieged a good man and a brave, doing battle for his country, that it should not be delivered into the hands of the enemy. But as for Polyneses, he bade them leave his body to be devoured by the fowls of the air and the beasts of the field, because he had joined himself to the enemy and would have beaten down the walls of the city and burned the temples of the gods with fire and led the people captive. Also he commanded that if any man should break this decree, he should suffer death by stoning. Now Antigone, who was sister to the two princes, heard that the decree had gone forth, and, chanceing to meet her sister as many before the gates of the palace, spake to her, saying, O my sister, has thou heard this decree that the king hath put forth concerning our brethren that are dead? Then as many made answer, I have heard nothing, my sister, only that we are bereaved of both our brethren in one day, and that the army of the Argyres is departed in this night that is now past. So much I know, but no more. Harken then, King Creon hath made a proclamation that they shall bury Ateicles with all honor, but that Polyneses shall lie unburied, that the birds of the air and the beasts of the field may devour him, and that whosoever shall break this decree shall suffer death by stoning. But if it be so, my sister, how can we avail to change it? Think whether or no, thou wilt share with me the doing of this deed. What deed? What meanest thou? To pay due honor to this dead body. What? Will thou bury him when the king hath forbidden it? Yes, for he is my brother, and also thine, though perchance thou wouldst not have it so, and I will not play him false. Oh, my sister, wilt thou do this when Creon hath forbidden it? Why should he stand between me and mine? But think now what sorrows are come upon our house, for our father perished miserably having first put his own eyes out, and our mother hanged herself with her own hands. Our two brothers fell in one day, each by the other's spear, and now we too only are left. And shall we not fall into a worse destruction than any if we transgress these commands of the king? Think, too, that we are women and not men, and of necessity obey them that are stronger. Wherefore, as for me, I will pray the dead to pardon me, seeing that I am thus constrained, but I will obey them that rule. I advise thee not, and if thou thinkest thus, I would not have thee for helper, but know that I will bury my brother, nor could I better die than for doing such a deed. For as he loved me, so also do I love him greatly, and shall not I do pleasure to the dead rather than to the living, seeing that I shall abide with the dead forever. But thou, if thou wilt dishonor to the laws of the gods, I dishonor them not, only I cannot set myself against the powers that be. So be it, but I will bury my brother. Oh, my sister, how I fear for thee. Fear for thyself. Thine own lot needeth all thy care. Thou wilt at least keep thy counsel, nor tell the thing to any man. Not so, hide it not. I shall scorn thee more if thou proclaim it not allowed to all. So Antigony departed, and after a while came to the same place, King Crown, clad in his royal robes and with his scepter in his hand, and set forth his counsel to the elders who were assembled, how he had dealt with the two princes according to their deserving, giving all honour to him that loved his country and casting forth the other unburied. And he bade them take care that this decree should be kept, saying that he also had appointed certain men to watch the body. And he had scarcely left speaking when there came one of these same watchers and said, I have not come hither in haste, O King, nay, I doubted much while I was yet on the way, whether I should not turn again. For now I thought, fool, why goest thou where thou shalt suffer for it? And then again, fool, the King will hear the matter elsewhere, and then how wilt thou fare? But at the last I came as I had purposed, for I knew that nothing may happen to me contrary to fate. But say, said the King, what troubles thee so much? First hear my case. I did not the thing and know not who did it, and it were a grievous wrong should I fall into trouble for such a cause. Thou makest a long preface excusing thyself, but yet haste, as I judge something to tell. Fear, my Lord, ever causeeth delay. Will thou not speak out thy news and then be gone? I will speak it. Know then that some man hath thrown dust upon his dead corpse, and done beside such things as are needful. What sayest thou? Who hath dared to do this deed? That I know not, for there was no mark as of spade or pickaxe, nor was the earth broken, nor had wagon passed thereon. We were sore dismayed when the watchman showed the thing to us, for the body we could not see. Buried indeed it was not, but rather covered with dust. Nor was there any sign as of wild beast or of dog that had torn it. Then there rose a contention among us, each blaming the other and accusing his fellows, and himself denying that he had done the deed or was privy to it. And doubtless we had fallen to blows, but that one spake a word which had made us all tremble for fear, knowing that it must be as he said. For he said that the thing must be told to thee, and in no wise hidden. So we drew lots, and by evil chance the lot fell upon me, wherefore I am here, not willingly, for no man loveth him that bringeth evil tidings. Then said the chief of the old men, Consider, O king, for happily this thing is from the gods. But the king cried. Thinkest thou that the gods care for such a one as this dead man, who would have burnt their temples with fire and laid waste the land which they love, and said it not the laws? Not so. But there are men in this city who have long time had ill will to me, not bowing their necks to my yoke, and they have persuaded these fellows with money to do this thing. Surely there was never so evil a thing as money, which maketh cities into ruinous heaps, and banisheth men from their houses, and turneth their thoughts from good unto evil. But as for them that have done this deed for hire of a truth they shall not escape, for I say to thee, fellow, if ye bring not here before my eyes the man that did this thing, I will hang you up alive. So shall ye learn that ill gains bring no profit to a man. So the guard departed, but as he went he said to himself, Now may the gods grant that the man be found, but however this may be, thou shalt not see me come again on such an errand as this, for even now I have escaped beyond all hope. Notwithstanding, after his space he came back with one of his fellows, and they brought with them the maiden Antigone with her hands bound together, and it chanced that at the same time King Crayon came forth from the palace. Then the guard set forth the thing to him saying, We cleared away the dust from the dead body and sat watching it, and when it was now noon, and the sun was at its height, there came a whirlwind over the plain driving a great cloud of dust, and when this had passed we looked, and lo, this maiden whom we had brought hither stood by the dead corpse, and when she saw that it lay bare as before, she sent up an exceeding bitter cry, even as a bird whose young ones have been taken from the nest. Then she cursed them that had done this deed and brought dust and sprinkled it upon the dead man, and poured water upon him three times. Then we ran and laid hold upon her and accused her that she had done this deed, and she denied it not. But as for me it is well to have escaped from death, but it is ill to bring friends into the same. Yet I hold that there is nothing dearer to a man than his life. Then said the King to Antigone, Tell me in a word, didst thou know my decree? I knew it, was it not plainly declared? How daredst thou to transgress the laws? Zeus made not such laws, nor justice that dwelleth with the gods below. I judged not that thy decrees had such authority that a man should transgress for them the unwritten sure commandments of the gods. For these indeed are not of today or yesterday, but they live for ever, and they are beginning no man knoweth. Should I, for fear of thee, be found guilty against them? That I should die I knew. Why not? All men must die. And if I die before my time, what loss? He who liveth among many sorrows, even as I have lived, counteth it gained to die. But had I left my own mother's son unburied, this had been lost indeed. Then said the King, Such stubborn thoughts have a speedy fall, and are shivered even as the iron that hath been made hard in the furnace. And as for this woman and her sister, for I judge her sister to have had a part in this matter, though they were nearer to me than all my kindred, yet shall they not escape the doom of death, wherefore let some one bring the other woman hither. And while they went to fetch the maiden as many, and Tickany said to the King, Is it not enough for thee to slay me? What need to say more? For thy words please me not, nor mine thee, yet what nobler thing could I have done than to bury my mother's son? And so would all men say, but fear shuddereth their mouths. Nay, said the King, none of the children of Cadmus thinketh thus but thou only, but hold, was not he that fell in battle with this man thy brother also? Yes, truly, my brother he was, and dost thou not dishonor him when thou honorest his enemy? The dead man would not say it, could he speak? Shall then the wicked have like honor with the good? How knowest thou, but that such honor pleaseth the gods below? I have no love for them I hate, though they be dead. Of hating I know nothing, tis enough for me to love. If thou wilt love, go love the dead, but while I live no woman shall rule me. Then those that had been sent to fetch the maiden Ismene brought her forth from the palace, and when the King accused her that she had been privy to the deed she denied not, but would have shared one lot with her sister. But Antigone turned from her, saying, Not so, thou hast no part or lot in the matter, for thou hast chosen life, and I have chosen death, and even so shall it be. And when Ismene saw that she prevailed nothing with her sister she turned to the King and said, Wilt thou slay the bride of thy son? I, said he, there are other brides to win. But none, she made reply, that accord so well with him. I will have no evil wives for my son, said the King. Then cried Antigone, O Haman, whom I love, how thy father wrongeth thee. Then the King bade the guards lead the two into the palace. But scarcely had they gone when they came to the place that Prince Haman, the King's son, who was betrothed to the maiden Antigone. And when the King saw him, he said, Art thou content, my son, with thy father's judgment? And the young man answered, My father, I would follow thy counsels in all things. Then said the King, To his well spoken, my son, this is a thing to be desired, that a man should have obedient children. But if it be otherwise with a man, he hath gotten great trouble for himself, and makeeth sport for them that hate him. And now, as to this matter, there is not worse than an evil wife. Wherefore I say, let this damsel wet a bridegroom among the dead. For since I have found her alone of all this people breaking my decree, surely she shall die. Nor shall it profit her to claim kinship with me, for he that would rule a city must first deal justly with his own kindred. And as for obedience, this it is that makeeth a city to stand both in peace and in war. To this the Prince Heyman made answer, What thou sayest, my father, I do not judge, yet bethink thee, that I see and hear on thy behalf what is hidden from thee. For common men cannot abide thy look if they say that which pleaseth thee not, yet do I hear it in secret. Know, then, that all the city mourneth for this maiden, saying that she dyeth wrongfully for a very noble deed, in that she buried her brother, and to his well, my father, not to be wholly set on thy thoughts, but to listen to the counsel of others. Nay, said the King, shall I be taught by such a one as thou? I pray thee regard my words if they be well, and not my years. Can it be well to honour them that transgress, and hath not this woman transgressed? The people of this city judge not so. The people, sayest thou, is it for them to rule or for me? No city is the possession of one man only. So the two answered one the other, and their anger waxed hot, and at last the King cried, Bring this accursed woman and slay her before his eyes. And the Prince answered, That thou shalt never do, and know this also, that thou shalt never see my face again. So he went away in a rage, and the old men would have appeased the King's wrath, but he would not hearken to them, but said that the two maidens should die. Will thou then slay them both, said the old men? Tiswell said, the King made answered, Her that meddled not with the matter, I harm not. And how will thou deal with the other? There is a desolate place, and there I will shut her up alive in a sepulchre, yet giving her so much of food as shall quit us of guilt in the matter, for I would not have the city defiled. There let her persuade death whom she loveth so much, that he harm her not. So the guards led Antigone away to shut her up alive in the sepulchre, but scarcely had they departed when there came an old prophet Terezius seeking the King. Blind he was, so that a boy led him by the hand, but the gods had given him to see things to come. And when the King saw him he asked, What seekest thou wisest of men? Then the Prophet answered, Harken, O King, and I will tell thee, I sat in my seat after my custom in the place where there all manner of birds resort. And as I sat I heard a cry of birds that I knew not, very strange and full of wrath, and I knew that they tear and slew each other, for I heard the fierce flapping of their wings. And being afraid I made inquiry about the fire and how it burned upon the altars. And this boy, for as I am a guide to others, so he guideeth me, told me that it shone not at all. But smoldered and was dull, and that the flesh which was burnt upon the altar spluttered in the flame and wasted away into corruption and filthiness. And now I tell thee, O King, that the city is troubled by thy ill councils, for the dogs and the birds of the air tear the flesh of this dead son of Oedipus, whom thou sufferest not to have do burial, and carry it to the altars, polluting them therewith. Wherefore the gods receive not from us a prayer or sacrifice, and the cry of the birds hath an evil sound, for they are full of the flesh of a man. Therefore I bid thee be wise in time, for all men may err, but he that keepeth not his folly, but repenteth, doeth well, but stubbornest cometh to a great trouble. Then the King answered, Old man, I know the race of prophets full well, how ye sell your art for gold, but make thy trade as thou wilt. This man shall not have burial, yea, though the eagles of Zeus carry his flesh to their masters thrown in heaven, he shall not have it. And when the prophets spake again, in treating him and warning, the King answered him again, after the same fashion, that he spake not honestly, but had sold his art for money. But at last the prophets spake in great wrath, saying, No, O King, that before many days shall pass, thou shall pay a life for a life, even one of thine own children, for them with whom thou hast dealt unrighteously, shutting up the living with the dead and keeping the dead from them to whom they belong. Therefore the furies lie and wait for thee, and thou shalt see whether or no I speak these things for money, for there shall be mourning and lamentation in thine own house, and against thy people shall be stirred up many cities. And now, my child, lead me home, and let this man rage against them that are younger than I. So the prophet departed, and the old men were so afraid, and said, He hath spoken terrible things, O King, nor ever since these gray hairs were black have we known him say that which was false. Even so, said the King, and I am troubled in heart, and yet I am loathed to the part from my purpose. King Crayon, said the old men, thou needest good counsel. What then would you have done? Set free the maiden from the sepulcher, and give this dead man burial. Then the King cried to his people that they should bring bars wherewith to loosen the doors of the sepulcher, and hastened with them to the place. But coming on their way to the body of Prince Polynesus, they took it up and washed it, and buried that which remained of it, and raised over the ashes a great mound of earth. And this being done, they drew near to the place of the sepulcher, and as they approached it the King heard within a very piteous voice, and knew it for the voice of his son. Then he bade his attendants loose the door with all speed, and when they had loosed it they beheld within a very piteous sight. For the maiden Antigone had hanged herself by the girdle of linen which she wore, and the young man Prince Haman stood with his arms about her dead body embracing it. And when the King saw him he cried to him to come forth, but the Prince glared fiercely upon him, and answered him not a word, but drew his two-edged sword. Then the King, thinking that his son was minded in his madness to slay him, leapt back. But the Prince drove the sword into his own heart, and fell forward on the earth, still holding the dead maiden in his arms. And when they brought the tidings of these things to Queen Eurydice, the wife of King Crayon, and mother to the Prince, she could not endure the grief, being thus bereaved of her children, but laid hold of a sword, and slew with herself therewith. So the house of King Crayon was left desolate unto him that day, because he despised the ordinances of the gods.