A Story of the Golden Age

he had been awakened by the sound of hurrying feet, and many voices, and the barking of dogs, beneath his chamber window. When he went dow

sus," said Echion, the eldest. "How glad we should be if you

arrior when he hears the battle-call. "I am certainly stron

eed, he was expecting such a request, and would have b

e I sit here, bound with the fetters of

ast of the ancient race of heroes, whose whole life had been spent in the household of Autolycus. Old as he was, he outstrode all the other huntsmen; but Odysseus, young and supple, kept close behind him,--a dwarf following in the wake of a giant. Upward and still upward they toiled, while their comr

d boar cannot be on these bleak heights. Would it not be

spot, not in search of game, but to show you what is a truly great and beautiful sight. Your tutor has told m

s of Helios. Southward lay the Bay of Crissa, and beyond it the land of mighty Pelops, and busy Corinth, and the rich pasture-lands of Arcadia. Then turning to the west, he saw, like a mere speck on the horizon, his own loved Ithaca; while nearer were the woods of Calydon and the green headlands of Achaia. At that mome

ero, baring his gray head to the cold winds. "Wha

tears as he thought of his home and of those whom he

bought with silver and gold, nor yet is it to be seized upon with violence. Better have a clean conscience than to own all

ir deep baying, and the trampling of many feet among the dead leaves upon the ground, had roused the beast, and stirred him into fury. Suddenly he sprang from his lair, and gnashing his huge tusks,

e. But the lad, undaunted, struck manfully with his weapon. The bright spear was driven straight to the heart of the beast; with one great cry he fell, and gnashing his huge jaws helplessly he died among the withered leaves. The boy, faint with pain and the joy of victory, staggered into the arms of his stalwart uncles, who had hastened to succor him. Gent

, and his fair grandmother Amphithea nursed him. And when the pain left him, and he began to grow strong again, he loved to lie on

ng in the light of the blazing brands,--"when I was much younger than now, it wa

n vineyards and in orchards, and no other man in all ?tolia was happier or more blessed than he. He had married, early in life, the pri

, and all ye deathless ones, that this my son may be the foremost among the men of Hellas. And let it come to pass, that when they see his valian

unwearied fingers drew out the lines of his untried life. Sad Clotho held the golden distaff in her hand, and twirled and twisted the delicate thread. Lachesis, now sad, now hopeful, with her long white fingers held the hourglass, and framed her lips to say, 'It is enough.' And Atropos, blind and unpitying as the future always is, stood ready, with cruel shears, to clip the twist in twain. Busily and silently sad Cloth

nd when she knew that not a single spark was left glowing upon it, she locked it safely in a chest where none but she could find

6 at the end

aertes your father, and the great heroes of that day, to far-off Colchis, in search of the Golden Fleece. Many brave deeds were his in fo

hards filled with abundance of pleasant fruit. Grateful, as men should always be, to the givers of peace and plenty, he held within his halls a harvest festival, to which the brave

mistake was that! For, in her anger at the slight, Artemis sent a savage boar, with ivory tusks and foaming mouth, to overrun the lands of Calydon. Many a field did the monster ravage, many a tree uproot; and all the growing vines, which late had borne so rich a vintage, were trampled to the ground. Sadly troubl

Idas the boaster, the father-in-law of Meleager, from Messene; and mighty Jason, captain of the Argo; and Atalanta, the swift-footed daughter of Iasus of Arcadia; and many Acarnanian huntsmen

l-seasoned spears. On the tenth, the bugles sounded, and hounds and huntsmen gathered in the courtyard of the chief, chafing for the hu

home: her weapons are the distaff and the needle; her duty is to practise well the household virtues. If you allow this y

d how, when an infant, she was left to perish on the Parthenian hill, and would have died, had not a she-bear cared for her until some hunters rescued her? Have you heard how, as she grew up, her beauty was greater than that of any other maiden, and how no one but Artemis, the archer-queen, could shoot the swift arrow so fair and straight? Have you heard what she did on the ship Argo, when, with Jason as our captain, we sailed to the

I will ride with you into the wood," said he, 'and never

odshot eyes, he charged furiously upon them. A score of hounds were slain outright; and Cepheus, rushing blindly onward, was caught by the beast, and torn in pieces by his sharp tusks. Brave Peleus of Phthia with unsteady aim let fly an arrow from his bow, which, falling short of the mark, smote his friend Eurytion full in the breast, and stretched him lifeless upon the ground. Then swift-footed Atalanta, bounding forward, struck the beast a deadly blow with her spear. He stopped short his furious onslaught; and Amphiaraus, the hero and prophe

ed huntress. For the first wound--the true death stroke, indeed--was given by

forbidden them. Yet they would not loose their hold upon the prize, but drew their swords, and wrathfully threatened Meleager's life. The hero's heart grew hot within him, and he shrunk not from the affray. Long and fearful was the struggle,--uncles against nephew; but in the end the sons of Thestios lay bleeding upon the grou

boar was awarded to them. They called their chiefs around them, and all their brave men, and made war upon King Oineus and Meleager. Many bat

im. Upon the hard earth she knelt: she beat the ground with her hands, and heaped the dust about her; and, weeping bitter tears, she called upon Hades and heartles

aten. With uplifted hands and tearful eyes, King Oineus and the elders of the city came to Meleager, and besought him to take the field again. Rich gifts they offered him. They bade him choose for his own the most fertile farm in Calydon,--at the least fifty acres, half for tillage and half for vines; but he would not listen to them. The din of battle thickened outside the gates; the towers shook with the

TO HELP IN THE DE

TO HELP IN THE DE

be sealed. Then came the fair Cleopatra, and knelt before her husband, and besought him to withhold no longer the aid which he alone could give. 'O Meleager,' she sobbed, 'none but tho

donian warriors rally around him. Fiercely did they meet the foe. Terrible was the bloodshed. Back from the battered gates and the crumbling wa

e fruit as of old; but the gifts and large rewards which the elders had promised to

eering presence of fair Cleopatra. For the remembrance of his mother's curse and his country's

she thought of the half-burnt brand which she had hidden, and of

e burning of the brand? He can never again bring comfort to my hea

owly burned away, so did the life of Meleager wane. Lovingly he bade his wife farewell; softly he whispered a prayer to

omfortless halls of Hades, Althea hastened to seek her son's forgiveness. The loving heart of Cleopatra, surcharged with grief, was broken; and her gentle spirit fled to the world of shades to meet that of her hero-husband. And Me

e wound upon his knee healed slowly; and when at last he could walk again, a white scar, as long and as broad as a finger, told the stor

den with ripening fruit," said he to Odysseus; "and the days are near at hand whe

he nearest way; and days' and months might pass ere any ship, sent thi

to Iolcos by the sea, carrying gifts and a message fr

her still from Itha

y vessels sailing to Corinth and the islands of the sea. Once at Corinth, and we shal

e Eub?an Sea; and no one could say how many dangers they might meet, or how many delays they s

words of sage advice. "I shall see thee no more," he said; "but thy name shall be spoken countless ages hence, a