PROMETHEUS
HERMES
OKEANOS
STRENGTH
HEPHÆSTOS
FORCE
_Chorus of Ocean Nymphs_
_ARGUMENT.—In the old time, when Cronos was sovereign of the Gods, Zeus,
whom he had begotten, rose up against him, and the Gods were divided in
their counsels, some, the Titans chiefly, siding with the father, and
some with the son. And Prometheus, the son of Earth or Themis, though
one of the Titans, supported Zeus, as did also Okeanos, and by his
counsels Zeus obtained the victory, and Cronos was chained in Tartaros,
and the Titans buried under mountains, or kept in bonds in Hades. And
then Prometheus, seeing the miseries of the race of men, of whom Zeus
took little heed, stole the fire which till then had belonged to none
but Hephæstos and was used only for the Gods, and gave it to mankind,
and taught them many arts whereby their wretchedness was lessened. But
Zeus being wroth with Prometheus for this deed, sent Hephæstos, with his
two helpers, Strength and Force, to fetter him to a rock on Caucasos._
_And in yet another story was the cruelty of the Gods made known. For
Zeus loved Io, the daughter of Inachos, king of Argos, and she was
haunted by visions of the night, telling her of his passion, and she
told her father thereof. And Inachos, sending to the God at Delphi, was
told to drive Io forth from her home. And Zeus gave her the horns of a
cow, and Hera, who hated her because she was dear to Zeus, sent with her
a gadfly that stung her, and gave her no rest, and drove her over many
lands._
_Note._—The play is believed to have been the second of a Trilogy, of
which the first was _Prometheus the Fire-giver_, and the third
_Prometheus Unbound_.