Part 6 (1/2)

But the ram carried the two children far away over land and sea, till he came to the Thracian Chersonese, and there h.e.l.le fell into the sea. So those narrow straits are called 'h.e.l.lespont,' after her; and they bear that name until this day.

Then the ram flew on with Phrixus to the north-east across the sea which we call the Black Sea now; but the h.e.l.lens call it Euxine. And at last, they say, he stopped at Colchis, on the steep Circa.s.sian coast; and there Phrixus married Chalciope, the daughter of Aietes the king; and offered the ram in sacrifice; and Aietes nailed the ram's fleece to a beech, in the grove of Ares the war-G.o.d.

And after awhile Phrixus died, and was buried, but his spirit had no rest; for he was buried far from his native land, and the pleasant hills of h.e.l.las. So he came in dreams to the heroes of the Minuai, and called sadly by their beds, 'Come and set my spirit free, that I may go home to my fathers and to my kinsfolk, and the pleasant Minuan land.'

And they asked, 'How shall we set your spirit free?'

'You must sail over the sea to Colchis, and bring home the golden fleece; and then my spirit will come back with it, and I shall sleep with my fathers and have rest.'

He came thus, and called to them often; but when they woke they looked at each other, and said, 'Who dare sail to Colchis, or bring home the golden fleece?' And in all the country none was brave enough to try it; for the man and the time were not come.

Phrixus had a cousin called aeson, who was king in Iolcos by the sea.

There he ruled over the rich Minuan heroes, as Athamas his uncle ruled in Boeotia; and, like Athamas, he was an unhappy man. For he had a step-brother named Pelias, of whom some said that he was a nymph's son, and there were dark and sad tales about his birth. When he was a babe he was cast out on the mountains, and a wild mare came by and kicked him.

But a shepherd pa.s.sing found the baby, with its face all blackened by the blow; and took him home, and called him Pelias, because his face was bruised and black. And he grew up fierce and lawless, and did many a fearful deed; and at last he drove out aeson his step-brother, and then his own brother Neleus, and took the kingdom to himself, and ruled over the rich Minuan heroes, in Iolcos by the sea.

And aeson, when he was driven out, went sadly away out of the town, leading his little son by the hand; and he said to himself, 'I must hide the child in the mountains; or Pelias will surely kill him, because he is the heir.'

So he went up from the sea across the valley, through the vineyards and the olive groves, and across the torrent of Anauros, toward Pelion the ancient mountain, whose brows are white with snow.

He went up and up into the mountain, over marsh, and crag, and down, till the boy was tired and footsore, and aeson had to bear him in his arms, till he came to the mouth of a lonely cave, at the foot of a mighty cliff.

Above the cliff the snow-wreaths hung, dripping and cracking in the sun; but at its foot around the cave's mouth grew all fair flowers and herbs, as if in a garden, ranged in order, each sort by itself. There they grew gaily in the suns.h.i.+ne, and the spray of the torrent from above; while from the cave came the sound of music, and a man's voice singing to the harp.

Then aeson put down the lad, and whispered-

'Fear not, but go in, and whomsoever you shall find, lay your hands upon his knees, and say, ”In the name of Zeus, the father of G.o.ds and men, I am your guest from this day forth.”'

Then the lad went in without trembling, for he too was a hero's son; but when he was within, he stopped in wonder to listen to that magic song.

And there he saw the singer lying upon bear-skins and fragrant boughs: Cheiron, the ancient centaur, the wisest of all things beneath the sky.

Down to the waist he was a man, but below he was a n.o.ble horse; his white hair rolled down over his broad shoulders, and his white beard over his broad brown chest; and his eyes were wise and mild, and his forehead like a mountain-wall.

And in his hands he held a harp of gold, and struck it with a golden key; and as he struck, he sang till his eyes glittered, and filled all the cave with light.

And he sang of the birth of Time, and of the heavens and the dancing stars; and of the ocean, and the ether, and the fire, and the shaping of the wondrous earth. And he sang of the treasures of the hills, and the hidden jewels of the mine, and the veins of fire and metal, and the virtues of all healing herbs, and of the speech of birds, and of prophecy, and of hidden things to come.

Then he sang of health, and strength, and manhood, and a valiant heart; and of music, and hunting, and wrestling, and all the games which heroes love: and of travel, and wars, and sieges, and a n.o.ble death in fight; and then he sang of peace and plenty, and of equal justice in the land; and as he sang the boy listened wide-eyed, and forgot his errand in the song.

And at the last old Cheiron was silent, and called the lad with a soft voice.

And the lad ran trembling to him, and would have laid his hands upon his knees; but Cheiron smiled, and said, 'Call hither your father aeson, for I know you, and all that has befallen, and saw you both afar in the valley, even before you left the town.'

Then aeson came in sadly, and Cheiron asked him, 'Why camest you not yourself to me, aeson the aeolid?'

And aeson said-

'I thought, Cheiron will pity the lad if he sees him come alone; and I wished to try whether he was fearless, and dare venture like a hero's son. But now I entreat you by Father Zeus, let the boy be your guest till better times, and train him among the sons of the heroes, that he may avenge his father's house.'

Then Cheiron smiled, and drew the lad to him, and laid his hand upon his golden locks, and said, 'Are you afraid of my horse's hoofs, fair boy, or will you be my pupil from this day?'