There was
a king of Argos
who had but one child, and that child was a girl. If he had had a son,
he would have trained him up to be a brave man and great king; but he
did
not know what to do with this fair-haired daughter. When he saw her
growing
up to be tall and slender and wise, he wondered if, after all, he would
have to die some time and leave his lands and his gold and his kingdom
to her. So he sent to Delphi and asked the Pythia about it. The Pythia
told him that he would not only have to die some time, but that the son
of his daughter would cause his death.
This
frightened the king
very much, and he tried to think of some plan by which he could keep
the
Pythia's words from coming true. At last he made up his mind that he
would
build a prison for his daughter and keep her in it all her life. So he
called his workmen and had them dig a deep round hole in the ground,
and
in this hole they built a house of brass which had but one room and no
door at all, but only a small window at the top. When it was finished,
the king put the maiden, whose name was Danaë, into it; and with
her
he put her nurse and her toys and her pretty dresses and everything
that
he thought she would need to make her happy.
"Now we
shall see that the
Pythia does not always tell the truth," he said.
So
Danaë was kept shut
up in the prison of brass. She had no one to talk to but her old nurse;
and she never saw the land or the sea, but only the blue sky above the
open window and now and then a white cloud sailing across. Day after
day
she sat under the window and wondered why her father kept her in that
lonely
place, and whether he would ever come and take her out. I do not know
how
many years passed by, but Danaë grew fairer every day, and by and
by she was no longer a child, but a tall and beautiful woman; and
Jupiter
amid the clouds looked down and saw her and loved her.
One day it
seemed to her
that the sky opened and a shower of gold fell through the window into
the
room; and when the blinding shower had ceased, a noble young man stood
smiling before her. She did not know-nor do I-that it was mighty
Jupiter
who had thus come down in the rain; but she thought that he was a brave
prince who had come from over the sea to take her out of her
prison-house.
After that
he came often,
but always as a tall and handsome youth; and by and by they were
married,
with only the nurse at the wedding feast, and Danaë was so happy
that
she was no longer lonesome even when he was away. But one day when he
climbed
out through the narrow window there was a great flash of light, and she
never saw him again.
Not long
afterwards a babe
was born to Danaë, a smiling boy whom she named Perseus. For four
years she and the nurse kept him hidden, and not even the women who
brought
their food to the window knew about him. But one day the king chanced
to
be passing by and heard the child's prattle. When he learned the truth,
he was very much alarmed, for he thought that now, in spite of all that
he had done, the words of the Pythia might come true.
The only
sure way to save
himself would be to put the child to death before he was old enough to
do any harm. But when he had taken the little Perseus and his mother
out
of the prison and had seen how helpless the child was, he could not
bear
the thought of having him killed outright. For the king, although a
great
coward, was really a kind-hearted man and did not like to see anything
suffer pain. Yet something must be done.
So he bade
his servants make
a wooden chest that was roomy and watertight and strong; and when it
was
done, he put Danaë and the child into it and had it taken far out
to sea and left there to be tossed about by the waves. He thought that
in this way he would rid himself of both daughter and grandson without
seeing them die; for surely the chest would sink after a while, or else
the winds would cause it to drift to some strange shore so far away
that
they could never come back to Argos again.
All day and
all night and
then another day, fair Danaë and her child drifted over the sea.
The
waves rippled and played before and around the floating chest, the west
wind whistled cheerily, and the sea birds circled in the air above; and
the child was not afraid, but dipped his hands in the curling waves and
laughed at the merry breeze and shouted back at the screaming birds.
But on the
second night all
was changed. A storm arose, the sky was black, the billows were
mountain
high, the winds roared fearfully; yet through it all the child slept
soundly
in his mother's arms. And Danaë sang over him this song:
"Sleep,
sleep, dear child,
and take your rest
Upon your
troubled mother's
breast;
For you can
lie without
one fear
Of dreadful
danger lurking
near.
Wrapped
in soft robes
and warmly sleeping,
You do not
hear your mother
weeping;
You do not see
the mad waves
leaping,
Nor heed the
winds their
vigils keeping.
The stars
are hid, the night
is drear,
The waves beat
high, the
storm is here;
But you can
sleep, my darling
child,
And know
naught of the uproar
wild."
At last the
morning of the
third day came, and the chest was tossed upon the sandy shore of a
strange
island where there were green fields and, beyond them, a little town. A
man who happened to be walking near the shore saw it and dragged it far
up on the beach. Then he looked inside, and there he saw the beautiful
lady and the little boy. He helped them out and led them just as they
were
to his own house, where he cared for them very kindly. And when
Danaë
had told him her story, he bade her feel no more fear; for they might
have
a home with him as long as they should choose to stay, and he would be
a true friend to them both.
II. THE MAGIC SLIPPERS
So
Danaë and her son
stayed in the house of the kind man who had saved them from the sea.
Years
passed by, and Perseus grew up to be a tall young man, handsome, and
brave,
and strong. The king of the island, when he saw Danaë, was so
pleased
with her beauty that he wanted her to become his wife. But he was a
dark,
cruel man, and she did not like him at all; so she told him that she
would
not marry him. The king thought that Perseus was to blame for this, and
that if he could find some excuse to send the young man on a far
journey,
he might force Danaë to have him whether she wished or not.
One day he
called all the
young men of his country together and told them that he was soon to be
wedded to the queen of a certain land beyond the sea. Would not each of
them bring him a present to be given to her father? For in those times
it was the rule, that when any man was about to be married, he must
offer
costly gifts to the father of the bride.
"What kind
of presents do
you want?" said the young men.
"Horses,"
he answered; for
he knew that Perseus had no horse.
"Why don't
you ask for something
worth the having?" said Perseus; for he was vexed at the way in which
the
king was treating him. "Why don't you ask for Medusa's head, for
example?"
"Medusa's
head it shall be!"
cried the king. "These young men may give me horses, but you shall
bring
Medusa's head."
"I will
bring it," said Perseus;
and he went away in anger, while his young friends laughed at him
because
of his foolish words.
What was
this Medusa's head
which he had so rashly promised to bring? His mother had often told him
about Medusa. Far, far away, on the very edge of the world, there lived
three strange monsters, sisters, called Gorgons. They had the bodies
and
faces of women, but they had wings of gold, and terrible claws of
brass,
and hair that was full of living serpents. They were so awful to look
upon,
that no man could bear the sight of them, but whoever saw their faces
was
turned to stone. Two of these monsters had charmed lives, and no weapon
could ever do them harm; but the youngest, whose name was Medusa, might
be killed, if indeed anybody could find her and could give the fatal
stroke.
When
Perseus went away from
the king's palace, he began to feel sorry that he had spoken so rashly.
For how should he ever make good his promise and do the king's bidding?
He did not know which way to go to find the Gorgons, and he had no
weapon
with which to slay the terrible Medusa. But at any rate he would never
show his face to the king again, unless he could bring the head of
terror
with him. He went down to the shore and stood looking out over the sea
towards Argos, his native land; and while he looked, the sun went down,
and the moon arose, and a soft wind came blowing from the west. Then,
all
at once, two persons, a man and a woman, stood before him. Both were
tall
and noble. The man looked like a prince; and there were wings on his
cap
and on his feet, and he carried a winged staff, around which two golden
serpents were twined.
He asked
Perseus what was
the matter; and the young man told him how the king had treated him,
and
all about the rash words which he had spoken. Then the lady spoke to
him
very kindly; and he noticed that, although she was not beautiful, she
had
most wonderful gray eyes, and a stern but lovable face and a queenly
form.
And she told him not to fear, but to go out boldly in quest of the
Gorgons;
for she would help him obtain the terrible head of Medusa.
"But I have
no ship, and
how shall I go?" said Perseus.
"You shall
don my winged
slippers," said the strange prince, "and they will bear you over sea
and
land."
"Shall I go
north, or south,
or east, or west?" asked Perseus.
"I will
tell you," said the
tall lady. "You must go first to the three Gray Sisters, who live
beyond
the frozen sea in the far, far north. They have a secret which nobody
knows,
and you must force them to tell it to you. Ask them where you shall
find
the three Maidens who guard the golden apples of the West; and when
they
shall have told you, turn about and go straight thither. The Maidens
will
give you three things, without which you can never obtain the terrible
head; and they will show you how to wing your way across the western
ocean
to the edge of the world where lies the home of the Gorgons."
Then the
man took off his
winged slippers, and put them on the feet of Perseus; and the woman
whispered
to him to be off at once, and to fear nothing, but be bold and true.
And
Perseus knew that she was none other than Athena, the queen of the air,
and that her companion was Mercury, the lord of the summer clouds. But
before he could thank them for their kindness, they had vanished in the
dusky twilight.
Then he
leaped into the air
to try the Magic Slippers.
III. THE GRAY SISTERS
Swifter
than an eagle, Perseus
flew up towards the sky. Then he turned, and the Magic Slippers bore
him
over the sea straight towards the north. On and on he went, and soon
the
sea was passed; and he came to a famous land, where there were cities
and
towns and many people. And then he flew over a range of snowy
mountains,
beyond which were mighty forests and a vast plain where many rivers
wandered,
seeking for the sea. And farther on was another range of mountains; and
then there were frozen marshes and a wilderness of snow, and after all
the sea again,-but a sea of ice. On and on he winged his way, among
toppling
icebergs and over frozen billows and through air which the sun never
warmed,
and at last he came to the cavern where the three Gray Sisters dwelt.
These three
creatures were
so old that they had forgotten their own age, and nobody could count
the
years which they had lived. The long hair which covered their heads had
been gray since they were born; and they had among them only a single
eye
and a single tooth which they passed back and forth from one to
another.
Perseus heard them mumbling and crooning in their dreary home, and he
stood
very still and listened.
"We know a
secret which even
the Great Folk who live on the mountain top can never learn; don't we,
sisters?" said one.
"Ha! ha!
That we do, that
we do!" chattered the others.
"Give me
the tooth, sister,
that I may feel young and handsome again," said the one nearest to
Perseus.
"And give
me the eye that
I may look out and see what is going on in the busy world," said the
sister
who sat next to her.
"Ah, yes,
yes, yes, yes!"
mumbled the third, as she took the tooth and the eye and reached them
blindly
towards the others.
Then, quick
as thought, Perseus
leaped forward and snatched both of the precious things from her hand.
"Where is
the tooth? Where
is the eye?" screamed the two, reaching out their long arms and groping
here and there. "Have you dropped them, sister? Have you lost them?"
Perseus
laughed as he stood
in the door of their cavern and saw their distress and terror.
"I have
your tooth and your
eye," he said, "and you shall never touch them again until you tell me
your secret. Where are the Maidens who keep the golden apples of the
Western
Land? Which way shall I go to find them?"
"You are
young, and we are
old," said the Gray Sisters; "pray, do not deal so cruelly with us.
Pity
us, and give us our eye."
Then they
wept and pleaded
and coaxed and threatened. But Perseus stood a little way off and
taunted
them; and they moaned and mumbled and shrieked, as they found that
their
words did not move him.
"Sisters,
we must tell him,"
at last said one.
"Ah, yes,
we must tell him,"
said the others. "We must part with the secret to save our eye."
And then
they told him how
he should go to reach the Western Land, and what road he should follow
to find the Maidens who kept the golden apples. When they had made
everything
plain to him Perseus gave them back their eye and their tooth.
"Ha! ha!"
they laughed; "now
the golden days of youth have come again!" And, from that day to this,
no man has ever seen the three Gray Sisters, nor does any one know what
became of them. But the winds still whistle through their cheerless
cave,
and the cold waves murmur on the shore of the wintry sea, and the ice
mountains
topple and crash, and no sound of living creature is heard in all that
desolate land.
IV. THE WESTERN MAIDENS
As for
Perseus, he leaped
again into the air, and the Magic Slippers bore him southward with the
speed of the wind. Very soon he left the frozen sea behind him and came
to a sunny land, where there were green forests and flowery meadows and
hills and valleys, and at last a pleasant garden where were all kinds
of
blossoms and fruits. He knew that this was the famous Western Land, for
the Gray Sisters had told him what he should see there. So he alighted
and walked among the trees until he came to the center of the garden.
There
he saw the three Maidens of the West dancing around a tree which was
full
of golden apples, and singing as they danced. For the wonderful tree
with
its precious fruit belonged to Juno, the queen of earth and sky; it had
been given to her as a wedding gift, and it was the duty of the Maidens
to care for it and see that no one touched the golden apples.
Perseus
stopped and listened
to their song: "We sing of the old, we sing of the new,-
Our joys are
many, our sorrows
are few;
Singing,
dancing,
All hearts
entrancing,
We wait to
welcome the good
and the true.
The
daylight is waning, the
evening is here,
The sun will
soon set, the
stars will appear.
Singing,
dancing,
All hearts
entrancing,
We wait for
the dawn of
a glad new year.
The tree
shall wither, the
apples shall fall,
Sorrow shall
come, and death
shall call,
Alarming,
grieving,
All hearts
deceiving,-
But hope shall
abide to
comfort us all.
Soon the
tale shall be told,
the song shall be sung,
The bow shall
be broken,
the harp unstrung,
Alarming,
grieving,
All hearts
deceiving,
Till every joy
to the winds
shall be flung.
But a new
tree shall spring
from the roots of the old,
And many a
blossom its leaves
shall unfold,
Cheering,
gladdening,
With joy
maddening,-
For its boughs
shall be
laden with apples of gold."
PERSEUS STOPPED AND
LISTENED TO THEIR
SONG
Then
Perseus went forward
and spoke to the Maidens. They stopped singing, and stood still as if
in
alarm. But when they saw the Magic Slippers on his feet, they ran to
him,
and welcomed him to the Western Land and to their garden.
"We knew
that you were coming,"
they said, "for the winds told us. But why do you come?"
Perseus
told them of all
that had happened to him since he was a child, and of his quest of
Medusa's
head; and he said that he had come to ask them to give him three things
to help him in his fight with the Gorgons.
The Maidens
answered that
they would give him not three things, but four. Then one of them gave
him
a sharp sword, which was crooked like a sickle, and which she fastened
to the belt at his waist; and another gave him a shield, which was
brighter
than any looking-glass you ever saw; and the third gave him a magic
pouch,
which she hung by a long strap over his shoulder.
"These are
three things which
you must have in order to obtain Medusa's head; and now here is a
fourth,
for without it your quest must be in vain." And they gave him a magic
cap,
the Cap of Darkness; and when they had put it upon his head, there was
no creature on the earth or in the sky-no, not even the Maidens
themselves-that
could see him.
When at
last he was arrayed
to their liking, they told him where he would find the Gorgons, and
what
he should do to obtain the terrible head and escape alive. Then they
kissed
him and wished him good luck, and bade him hasten to do the dangerous
deed.
And Perseus donned the Cap of Darkness, and sped away and away towards
the farthermost edge of the earth; and the three Maidens went back to
their
tree to sing and to dance and to guard the golden apples until the old
world should become young again.
V. THE DREADFUL GORGONS
With the
sharp sword at
his side and the bright shield upon his arm, Perseus flew bravely
onward
in search of the dreadful Gorgons; but he had the Cap of Darkness upon
his head, and you could no more have seen him than you can see the
wind.
He flew so swiftly that it was not long until he had crossed the mighty
ocean which encircles the earth, and had come to the sunless land which
lies beyond; and then he knew, from what the Maidens had told him, that
the lair of the Gorgons could not be far away.
He heard a
sound as of some
one breathing heavily, and he looked around sharply to see where it
came
from. Among the foul weeds which grew close to the bank of a muddy
river
there was something which glittered in the pale light. He flew a little
nearer; but he did not dare to look straight forward, lest he should
all
at once meet the gaze of a Gorgon, and be changed into stone. So he
turned
around, and held the shining shield before him in such a way that by
looking
into it he could see objects behind him as in a mirror.
Ah, what a
dreadful sight
it was! Half hidden among the weeds lay the three monsters, fast
asleep,
with their golden wings folded about them. Their brazen claws were
stretched
out as though ready to seize their prey; and their shoulders were
covered
with sleeping snakes. The two largest of the Gorgons lay with their
heads
tucked under their wings as birds hide their heads when they go to
sleep.
But the third, who lay between them, slept with her face turned up
towards
the sky; and Perseus knew that she was Medusa.
Very
stealthily he went nearer
and nearer, always with his back towards the monsters and always
looking
into his bright shield to see where to go. Then he drew his sharp sword
and, dashing quickly downward, struck a back blow, so sure, so swift,
that
the head of Medusa was cut from her shoulders and the black blood
gushed
like a river from her neck. Quick as thought he thrust the terrible
head
into his magic pouch and leaped again into the air, and flew away with
the speed of the wind.
Then the
two older Gorgons
awoke, and rose with dreadful screams, and spread their great wings,
and
dashed after him. They could not see him, for the Cap of Darkness hid
him
from even their eyes; but they scented the blood of the head which he
carried
in the pouch, and like hounds in the chase, they followed him, sniffing
the air. And as he flew through the clouds he could hear their dreadful
cries and the clatter of their golden wings and the snapping of their
horrible
jaws. But the Magic Slippers were faster than any wings, and in a
little
while the monsters were left far behind, and their cries were heard no
more; and Perseus flew on alone.
VI. THE GREAT SEA BEAST
Perseus
soon crossed the
ocean and came again to the Land of the West. Far below him he could
see
the three Maidens dancing around the golden tree; but he did not stop,
for, now that he had the head of Medusa safe in the pouch at his side,
he must hasten home. Straight east he flew over the great sea, and
after
a time he came to a country where there were palm trees and pyramids
and
a great river flowing from the south. Here, as he looked down, a
strange
sight met his eyes: he saw a beautiful girl chained to a rock by the
seashore,
and far away a huge sea beast swimming towards her to devour her. Quick
as thought, he flew down and spoke to her; but, as she could not see
him
for the Cap of Darkness which he wore, his voice only frightened her.
Then
Perseus took off his
cap, and stood upon the rock; and when the girl saw him with his long
hair
and wonderful eyes and laughing face, she thought him the handsomest
young
man in the world.
"Oh, save
me! save me!" she
cried as she reached out her arms towards him.
Perseus
drew his sharp sword
and cut the chain which held her, and then lifted her high up upon the
rock. But by this time the sea monster was close at hand, lashing the
water
with his tail and opening his wide jaws as though he would swallow not
only Perseus and the young girl, but even the rock on which they were
standing.
He was a terrible fellow, and yet not half so terrible as the Gorgon.
As
he came roaring towards the shore, Perseus lifted the head of Medusa
from
his pouch and held it up; and when the beast saw the dreadful face he
stopped
short and was turned into stone; and men say that the stone beast may
be
seen in that selfsame spot to this day.
Then
Perseus slipped the
Gorgon's head back into the pouch and hastened to speak with the young
girl whom he had saved. She told him that her name was Andromeda, and
that
she was the daughter of the king of that land. She said that her
mother,
the queen, was very beautiful and very proud of her beauty; and every
day
she went down to the seashore to look at her face as it was pictured in
the quiet water; and she had boasted that not even the nymphs who live
in the sea were as handsome as she. When the sea nymphs heard about
this,
they were very angry and asked great Neptune, the king of the sea, to
punish
the queen for her pride. So Neptune sent a sea monster to crush the
king's
ships and kill the cattle along the shore and break down all the
fishermen's
huts. The people were so much distressed that they sent at last to ask
the Pythia what they should do; and the Pythia said that there was only
one way to save the land from destruction,-that they must give the
king's
daughter, Andromeda, to the monster to be devoured.
The king
and the queen loved
their daughter very dearly, for she was their only child; and for a
long
time they refused to do as the Pythia had told them. But day after day
the monster laid waste the land, and threatened to destroy not only the
farms, but the towns; and so they were forced in the end to give up
Andromeda
to save their country. This, then, was why she had been chained to the
rock by the shore and left there to perish in the jaws of the beast.
While
Perseus was yet talking
with Andromeda, the king and the queen and a great company of people
came
down the shore, weeping and tearing their hair; for they were sure that
by this time the monster had devoured his prey. But when they saw her
alive
and well, and learned that she had been saved by the handsome young man
who stood beside her, they could hardly hold themselves for joy. And
Perseus
was so delighted with Andromeda's beauty that he almost forgot his
quest
which was not yet finished; and when the king asked him what he should
give him as a reward for saving Andromeda's life, he said:
"Give her
to me for my wife."
This
pleased the king very
much; and so, on the seventh day, Perseus and Andromeda were married,
and
there was a great feast in the king's palace, and everybody was merry
and
glad. And the two young people lived happily for some time in the land
of palms and pyramids; and, from the sea to the mountains, nothing was
talked about but the courage of Perseus and the beauty of Andromeda.
THE KING SAW IT AND WAS
TURNED INTO
STONE
VII. THE
TIMELY RESCUE
But
Perseus had not forgotten
his mother; and so, one fine summer day, he and Andromeda sailed in a
beautiful
ship to his own home; for the Magic Slippers could not carry both him
and
his bride through the air. The ship came to land at the very spot where
the wooden chest had been cast so many years before; and Perseus and
his
bride walked through the fields towards the town.
Now, the
wicked king of that
land had never ceased trying to persuade Danaë to become his wife;
but she would not listen to him, and the more he pleaded and
threatened,
the more she disliked him. At last when he found that she could not be
made to have him, he declared that he would kill her; and on this very
morning he had started out, sword in hand, to take her life.
So, as
Perseus and Andromeda
came into the town, whom should they meet but his mother fleeing to the
altar of Jupiter, and the king following after, intent on killing her?
Danaë was so frightened that she did not see Perseus, but ran
right
on towards the only place of safety. For it was a law of that land that
not even the king should be allowed to harm any one who took refuge on
the altar of Jupiter.
When
Perseus saw the king
rushing like a madman after his mother, he threw himself before him and
bade him stop. But the king struck at him furiously with his sword.
Perseus
caught the blow on his shield, and at the same moment took the head of
Medusa from his magic pouch.
"I promised
to bring you
a present, and here it is!" he cried.
The king
saw it, and was
turned into stone, just as he stood, with his sword uplifted and that
terrible
look of anger and passion in his face.
The people
of the island
were glad when they learned what had happened, for no one loved the
wicked
king. They were glad, too, because Perseus had come home again, and had
brought with him his beautiful wife, Andromeda. So, after they had
talked
the matter over among themselves, they went to him and asked him to be
their king. But he thanked them, and said that he would rule over them
for one day only, and that then he would give the kingdom to another,
so
that he might take his mother back to her home and her kindred in
distant
Argos.
On the
morrow therefore,
he gave the kingdom to the kind man who had saved his mother and
himself
from the sea; and then he went on board his ship, with Andromeda and
Danaë,
and sailed away across the sea towards Argos.
VIII. THE DEADLY QUOIT
When
Danaë's old father,
the king of Argos, heard that a strange ship was coming over the sea
with
his daughter and her son on board, he was in great distress; for he
remembered
what the Pythia had foretold about his death. So, without waiting to
see
the vessel, he left his palace in great haste and fled out of the
country.
"My
daughter's son cannot
kill me if I will keep out of his way," he said.
But Perseus
had no wish to
harm him; and he was very sad when he learned that his poor grandfather
had gone away in fear and without telling any one where he was going.
The
people of Argos welcomed Danaë to her old home; and they were very
proud of her handsome son, and begged that he would stay in their city,
so that he might some time become their king.
It happened
soon afterwards
that the king of a certain country not far away was holding games and
giving
prizes to the best runners and leapers and quoit throwers. And Perseus
went thither to try his strength with the other young men of the land;
for if he should be able to gain a prize, his name would become known
all
over the world. No one in that country knew who he was, but all
wondered
at his noble stature and his strength and skill; and it was easy enough
for him to win all the prizes.
One day, as
he was showing
what he could do, he threw a heavy quoit a great deal farther than any
had been thrown before. It fell in the crowd of lookers-on, and struck
a stranger who was standing there. The stranger threw up his hands and
sank upon the ground; and when Perseus ran to help him, he saw that he
was dead. Now this man was none other than Danaë's father, the old
king of Argos. He had fled from his kingdom to save his life, and in
doing
so had only met his death.
Perseus was
overcome with
grief, and tried in every way to pay honor to the memory of the unhappy
king. The kingdom of Argos was now rightfully his own, but he could not
bear to take it after having killed his grandfather. So he was glad to
exchange with another king who ruled over two rich cities, not far
away,
called Mycenae and Tiryns. And he and Andromeda lived happily in
Mycenae
for many years.
