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} 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 Io. 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 Io had a little son, she caused the child to be
stolen from her. Then Io 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
{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 robbers and
wild beasts, but Io 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 Io, 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}
XI.
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 Io, who had now been dead a long
time. Aegyptus 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 Io 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 they had a king
already, who though he was not nearly so wise as Danaus, had a great
many soldiers to fight {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 magnificence, and many sacrifices were offered to
the gods. But Danaus took his daughters aside and gave to each {36}
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 {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 underground 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 Hypermnestra 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 long
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} never-ending punishment. There was a stream of rushing
water, close to which a great vessel had been placed, and each of the
Danaïdes, 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 Danaïdes 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 to go toiling on at it in
vain for ever.
{39}
XII.
PHAËTHON.
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 Oceanus 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
Phaëthon. When Phaëthon 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} journey in order to see him, and Phaëthon said it
was because he had something to ask him, which he longed for more
than anything else in the world. Helios promised to grant his wish,
never suspecting what it was, and to please Phaëthon, 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 anyone 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 afterwards he was shut
out from the company of the other gods. So when Helios had confirmed
his promise by this solemn oath, Phaëthon 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 Phaëthon 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 Phaëthon clambered up into the
shining chariot, more proud and happy than he had ever been in his
life. The horses flew along {41} the usual path, and Phaëthon,
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 Phaëthon, 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.
{42}
XIII.
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
ways. If he went 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, 'Zeus is lightning!' And
whoever was hit by the torches was immediately killed by the king's
spearmen, that it might seem as if he had been struck dead by his
lightning. The gods let Salmoneus go on for {43} some 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 has 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. {44} 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 was
never at an end.
{45}
XIV.
BELLEROPHON.
In the city of Corinth there were two young brothers, the sons 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 whoever had killed another, even
though unintentionally, was defiled, and needed to be purified by
means of sacrifices and baths. It was not everyone who understood
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} 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 believed his wife
and was exceedingly angry, but as Bellerophon 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 Iobates, who was
king of Lycia. It was a long distance 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 which 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 {47} opposite coast, so he got into it, and
after a few days' journey, arrived at the country of King Iobates 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 Iobates 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 Iobates 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 Bellerophon {48} 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,
and he was ready to venture upon any errand however 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 companion. 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, {49} the goddess would often help him
by a dream. Bellerophon 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.