JASON.
_Ques._ Who was Jason?
_Ans._ He was the son of Æson, king of Thessaly, and was celebrated on
account of his expedition in search of the Golden Fleece. He is also
known as the husband of the famous sorceress Mede´a.
_Ques._ What was the Golden Fleece?
_Ans._ Phryxus, son of Athamas, king of Thebes, received from his
mother a ram of a golden color, or, according to fable, with a fleece
of pure gold. Some time after, Phryxus and his sister Helle, to escape
from their step-mother Ino, attempted to cross the sea on this ram.
Helle became terrified, and was drowned in the straits which are
called from her, Hellespont. Phryxus arrived in safety at Colchis,
where he sacrificed the ram to Jupiter, who placed it among the signs
of the Zodiac. The fleece was hung in a grove sacred to Mars, where it
was guarded by bulls who breathed flame from their nostrils, and also
by a sleepless dragon. When Jason demanded his father's throne, his
uncle, who wished to continue in the government, persuaded him to
undertake an expedition for the recovery of the Golden Fleece. Jason,
with some brave companions, among whom were Hercules, Orpheus, Castor
and Pollux, went on board a ship called the Argo, from which
circumstance they were called Ar´gonauts. On arriving at Colchis, they
demanded the fleece, which the king, Æetes, promised to Jason on
condition that he would tame the wild bulls that guarded it, kill the
dragon, sow his teeth in the ground, and afterwards destroy the
soldiers who should spring from them. Jason accepted the conditions,
but would inevitably have perished, had not Mede´a, the king's
daughter, saved him by her magical arts. Jason obtained the fleece,
and fled by night from Colchis, carrying with him Mede´a, whom he
married, in fulfilment of the engagement which he had made.
_Ques._ What else is related of Mede´a?
_Ans._ She lived for some time happily with Jason, upon whom she
conferred an additional favor by restoring his aged and decrepit
father to the vigor and beauty of youth. Jason was ungrateful for
these benefits, and divorced Mede´a in order that he might marry
Creusa, the daughter of the king of Corinth.
_Ques._ What was Mede´a's revenge?
_Ans._ She murdered, in the sight of their father, the two children
whom she had borne to Jason, and consumed his palace and bride in a
conflagration raised by her art. As Jason was about to rush upon the
sorceress, she rose in the air in a flying chariot, and escaped to
Athens.
THESEUS.
_Ques._ Who was Theseus?
_Ans._ He was the son of Æ´geus, king of Athens. The Athenians were
obliged to send every year, as tribute to Crete, seven of the noblest
of their young men, and as many maidens. These were usually devoured
by a horrible monster called Minotaur, whom Minos, the king of Crete,
kept in the Labyrinth.
_Ques._ What was the Labyrinth?
_Ans._ It was a building with fifteen hundred rooms above ground, and
as many underneath. These apartments had so many doors, and were
connected by such intricate windings, that no one who was conducted a
certain distance into the edifice, could find the entrance again.
Theseus resolved to deliver the Athenians from this dreadful tribute,
and when the lots were about being cast for the fourth time, he
offered himself as one of the victims. Æ´geus strove to dissuade the
young hero, but in vain; and the tribute ship departed as usual under
black sails, which Theseus promised his father to change for white, in
case of his returning victorious.
When they arrived in Crete, the youths and maidens were exhibited
before King Minos; and Ariadne, the daughter of the king, was so much
struck by the courage and generosity of Theseus that she resolved to
save his life. For this purpose she gave him a ball of thread which
she directed him to attach to the entrance of the Labyrinth, and to
unwind as he proceeded. Theseus followed her instructions, and when he
came to where the Minotaur lay, he slew him, and found his way out by
the thread. The whole band then embarked for Athens.
_Ques._ What became of Ariadne?
_Ans._ She accompanied Theseus on his flight, but he was so ungrateful
as to abandon her on the island of Naxos, where she had fallen asleep
on the shore. Ariadne was afterwards married to Bacchus, who gave her
a crown composed of seven stars, the same which we admire in the
heavens as the Corona Borealis, or Northern Crown.
_Ques._ Of what negligence was Theseus guilty on his return to Athens?
_Ans._ He forgot his promise to his father with regard to the color of
his sails, and Æ´geus, who watched every day for his son's return,
saw the black sails in the distance. He believed from this that his
son was dead. In his despair he cast himself into the sea, which was
called Æge´an from his name. Theseus, after performing many other
wonderful actions, was banished from his country, and died in
obscurity.