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028 - Legends Bellerophon and Theseus · Myths and Legends of Ancient Greece and Rome

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  Speaker 1: Section twenty six of Myths and Legends. This is a
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  Speaker 1: LibriVox recording or LibriVox recordings are in the public domain.
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  Speaker 1: Recording by David Nicol. Myths and Legends of Ancient Greece
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  Speaker 1: and Rome by E. M. Barons. Bellerophon Bellerophon or Bellerophontes
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  Speaker 1: was the son of Glaucus, king of Corinth, and grandson
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  Speaker 1: of Sissyphus. In consequence of an unpremeditated murder, Bellerophon fled
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  Speaker 1: to Tyrants, where he was kindly received by King Pretus,
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  Speaker 1: who purified him from his crime. And Taya, the wife
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  Speaker 1: of Pretus, was so charmed with a comely youth that
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  Speaker 1: she fell in love with him. But Bellerophon did not
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  Speaker 1: return her affection, and she, in revenge, slandered him to
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  Speaker 1: the king. By a gross misrepresentation of the facts, the
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  Speaker 1: first impulse of Preetus, when informed of a conduct to Bellerophon,
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  Speaker 1: was to kill him, but the youth, with his gentle
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  Speaker 1: and winning manners, had so endeared himself to his host
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  Speaker 1: that he felt it impossible to take his life with
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  Speaker 1: his own hands. He therefore sent him to his father
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  Speaker 1: in law, Yubartes, King of Lysia, with a kind of
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  Speaker 1: letter or tablet, which contained mysterious signs indicating his desire
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  Speaker 1: that the bearer of the missive should be put to death.
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  Speaker 1: But the gods watched over the true and loyal youth
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  Speaker 1: and inclined the heart of Yabartes, who was an amiable prince,
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  Speaker 1: towards his guest, judging by his appearance that he was
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  Speaker 1: of noble birth. He entertained him, according to the hospitable
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  Speaker 1: custom of the Greeks, in the most princely manner, for
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  Speaker 1: nine days, and not until the morning of the tenth
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  Speaker 1: did he inquire his name and errand Bellerophon now presented
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  Speaker 1: to him the letter entrusted to him by Praetus. Eobartes,
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  Speaker 1: who had become greatly attached to the youth, was horror
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  Speaker 1: struck at its contents. Nevertheless, he concluded that Praetus must
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  Speaker 1: have good reasons for his conduct, and that probably Bellerophon
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  Speaker 1: had committed a crime which deserved death. But as he
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  Speaker 1: could not make up his mind to murder the guest
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  Speaker 1: he had grown to esteem, he decided to despatch him
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  Speaker 1: upon dangerous enterprises in which he would in all probability
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  Speaker 1: lose his life. He first sent him to kill the Chimera,
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  Speaker 1: a monster which was at this time devastating the country.
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  Speaker 1: The forepart of its body was that of a lion,
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  Speaker 1: the center of a goat, and the hind part of
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  Speaker 1: a dragon, whilst out of its jaws issued flames of fire.
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  Speaker 1: Before starting on this difficult task, Bellerophon invoked the protection
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  Speaker 1: of the gods, and in answer to his prayer, they
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  Speaker 1: despatched to his aid the immortal winged horse Pegasus, the
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  Speaker 1: offspring of Poseidon and Medusa. But the divine animal would
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  Speaker 1: not suffer himself to be caught, and, at last worn
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  Speaker 1: out with his fruitless exertions, Bellerophon fell into a deep
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  Speaker 1: sleep beside the sacred spring Pirene. Here Pallas Athena appeared
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  Speaker 1: to him in a dream and presented him with a
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  Speaker 1: magic bridle for the purpose of capturing the divine steed.
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  Speaker 1: On awaking, Bellerophon instinctively put out his hand to grasp it, when,
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  Speaker 1: to his amazement, there lay beside him the bridle of
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  Speaker 1: his dream, whilst Pegasus was quietly drinking at the fountain
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  Speaker 1: close by. Seizing him by the main, Bellerophon threw the
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  Speaker 1: bridle over his head and succeeded in mounting him without
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  Speaker 1: further difficulty. Then, rising with him into the air, he
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  Speaker 1: slew the chimera with his arrows. Yabartes next sent him
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  Speaker 1: on an expedition against the Solomons, a fierce neighboring tribe
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  Speaker 1: with whom he was at enemity. Bellerophon succeeded in vanquishing them,
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  Speaker 1: and was then despatched against the much dreaded Amazons, but
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  Speaker 1: greatly to the astonishment of Eubartes, the hero again returned victorious. Finally,
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  Speaker 1: Yabartes placed a number of the bravest Liciens in ambush
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  Speaker 1: for the purpose of destroying him, but not one returned alive,
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  Speaker 1: for Bellerophon bravely defended himself and slew them all. Convinced
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  Speaker 1: at length that Bellerophon, far from deserving death, was the
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  Speaker 1: special favorite of the gods, who had evidently protected him
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  Speaker 1: throughout his perilous exploits, the king now ceased his persecutions.
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  Speaker 1: Yabats admitted him to a share in the government and
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  Speaker 1: gave him his daughter in marriage. But Bellerophon, having attained
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  Speaker 1: the summit of earthly prosperity, became intoxicated with pride and vanity,
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  Speaker 1: and incurred the displeasure of the gods by endeavoring to
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  Speaker 1: mount to heaven on his winged horse for the purpose
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  Speaker 1: of gratifying his idle curiosity. Zeus punished him for his
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  Speaker 1: impiety by sending a gadfly to sting the horse, who
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  Speaker 1: became so restive that he threw his rider, who was
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  Speaker 1: precipitated to the earth. Filled with remorse at having offended
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  Speaker 1: the gods, Bellerophon fell a prey to the deepest melancholy,
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  Speaker 1: and wandered about for the remainder of his life in
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  Speaker 1: the loneliest and most desolate places. After death, he was
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  Speaker 1: honored in Corinth as a hero, and an altar was
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  Speaker 1: erected to him in the grove of Poseidon. Theseus Eegius,
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  Speaker 1: king of Athens, being twice married and having no children,
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  Speaker 1: was so desirous of an heir to his throne that
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  Speaker 1: he made a pilgrimage to Delphi in order to consult
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  Speaker 1: the oracle, but the response being ambiguous, he repaired to
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  Speaker 1: Tresine to consult his wise friend Piteas, who reigned over
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  Speaker 1: that city, by whose advice he contracted a secret marriage
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  Speaker 1: with his friend's daughter Ethra. After passing some time with
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  Speaker 1: his bride, Egius prepared to take his departure for his
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  Speaker 1: own dominions, But before doing so, he led Ethra to
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  Speaker 1: the sea shore, where, after depositing his sword and sandals
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  Speaker 1: under a huge rock, he thus addressed her, should the
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  Speaker 1: gods bless our union with a son, do not reveal
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  Speaker 1: to him the name and rank of his foe until
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  Speaker 1: he is old enough to possess the strength requisite for
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  Speaker 1: moving this stone, Then send him to my palace at Athens,
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  Speaker 1: bearing these tokens of his identity. A son was born
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  Speaker 1: to Ethra, whom she called Theseus, and who was carefully
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  Speaker 1: trained and educated by his grandfather Piteus. When he had
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  Speaker 1: developed to a strong and manly youth, his mother conducted
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  Speaker 1: him to the spot where the rock had been placed
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  Speaker 1: by Aegeus, and at her command he rolled away the
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  Speaker 1: stone and took possession of the sword and sandals, which
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  Speaker 1: had lain there for sixteen years, and which she now
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  Speaker 1: desired him to convey to his father, Aegeus, King of Athens.
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  Speaker 1: His mother and grandfather were anxious that the youth should
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  Speaker 1: travel by the safe sea route, the road between Trezene
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  Speaker 1: and Athens being at this time infested with robbers of
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  Speaker 1: a great ferocity and enormous strength. But feeling within himself
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  Speaker 1: the spirit of a hero, Theseus resolved to emulate the
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  Speaker 1: deeds of Heracles, with whose fame all grease resounded, and
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  Speaker 1: therefore chose the more dangerous journey by land, as calculated
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  Speaker 1: to afford him an opportunity of distinguishing himself by feats
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  Speaker 1: of valor. His first adventure occurred at Epidaurus, where he
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  Speaker 1: met Periphetes, a son of Hephaistus, who was armed with
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  Speaker 1: an iron club, with which he killed all travelers. Having
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  Speaker 1: received from his grandfather a full description of this savage,
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  Speaker 1: Theseus at once recognized him, and, rushing upon him with
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  Speaker 1: his sword, succeeded after a desperate encounter in killing him.
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  Speaker 1: He appropriated the club as a trophy of his victory
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  Speaker 1: and proceeded on his journey without hindrance until he arrived
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  Speaker 1: at the Isthmus of Corinth. Here the people warned him
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  Speaker 1: to beware of Cinnis, the robber who forced all travelers
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  Speaker 1: to bend with him one of the branches of a
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  Speaker 1: tall pine tree. Having dragged it to the ground, the
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  Speaker 1: cruel Cinnys suddenly released his hold, whereupon, on the bough,
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  Speaker 1: rebounding high up into the air, the unfortunate victim was
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  Speaker 1: dashed to the ground and killed. When Theseus beheld Cynnus
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  Speaker 1: advancing towards him, he steadily awaited his approach. Then, seizing
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  Speaker 1: his powerful club, he killed the inhuman wretch with one blow.
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  Speaker 1: Passing through the woody district of Cromyon, Theseus next slew
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  Speaker 1: a wild and dangerous sow, which had long ravaged the country.
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  Speaker 1: He then continued his journey and approached the borders of Megara, where,
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  Speaker 1: on a narrow path overhanging the sea, dwelt the wicked Sirn,
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  Speaker 1: another terror to travelers. It was his custom to compel
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  Speaker 1: all strangers who passed his abode to wash his feet,
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  Speaker 1: during which operation he kicked them over the rock into
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  Speaker 1: the sea. Theseus boldly attacked the giant, overcame him, and
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  Speaker 1: then flung his body over the cliff where so many
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  Speaker 1: of his victims had perished. Theseus now journeyed on to Eleusus,
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  Speaker 1: where he found another adversary in the person of King Cercon,
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  Speaker 1: who forced all comers to wrestle with him and killed
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  Speaker 1: those whom he vanquished. But Theseus overcame the mighty wrestler,
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  Speaker 1: and slew him. Near Eleusis, on the banks of the
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  Speaker 1: river Sophysius, Theseus met with a new adventure. Here lived
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  Speaker 1: the giant Domastes, called Procrustes, or the Stretcher, who had
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  Speaker 1: two iron beds, one being long and the other short,
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  Speaker 1: into which he forced all strangers. In the short one
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  Speaker 1: he placed the tall men, whose limbs he cut to
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  Speaker 1: the size of the bed, whilst the short ones he
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  Speaker 1: assigned the large bed, stretching them out to fit it.
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  Speaker 1: And thus he left his victims to expire in the
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  Speaker 1: most cruel torments. Theseus freed the country from this inhuman
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  Speaker 1: monster by serving him as he had done his unfortunate victims.
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  Speaker 1: The hero now continued his journey and at length reached
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  Speaker 1: Athens without meeting with any further adventures. When he had
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  Speaker 1: arrived at his destination, he found his father a helpless
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  Speaker 1: tool in the hands of the sorceress Medea, whom he
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  Speaker 1: had married after her departure from Corinth. Knowing by means
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  Speaker 1: of her supernatural powers, that Theseus was the king's son,
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  Speaker 1: and fearing that her influence might be weakened by his presence,
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  Speaker 1: she poisoned the mind of the old King against the stranger,
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  Speaker 1: whom she represented as being a spy. It was accordingly
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  Speaker 1: arranged that Theseus should be invited to a banquet and
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  Speaker 1: a strong poison mixed with his wine. Now Theseus had
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  Speaker 1: resolved to reveal himself at this feast to the father,
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  Speaker 1: whom he yearned to embrace. Before tasting the wine, he
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  Speaker 1: put his plan into execution, and drew out his sword
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  Speaker 1: so that the eyes of the king might rest upon it.
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  Speaker 1: When Ageus beheld once more the well known weapon which
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  Speaker 1: he had so often wielded, he knew that it was
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  Speaker 1: his son who stood before him. He warmly embraced him,
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  Speaker 1: presented him as his heir to his courtiers and subjects,
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  Speaker 1: and then, no longer able to endure the son of Medeir,
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  Speaker 1: he banished her forever from his dominions. When Theseus was
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  Speaker 1: acknowledged as the rightful heir to the throne, he was
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  Speaker 1: opposed by the fifty sons of Pallas, the king's brother,
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  Speaker 1: who had confidently expected that on the demise of the
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  Speaker 1: old King, the government of the country would devolve upon them.
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  Speaker 1: They therefore resolved to put Theseus to death. But their
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  Speaker 1: plans becoming known to him, he surprised them as they
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  Speaker 1: lay in ambush awaiting his approach, and destroyed them all. Fearing, however,
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  Speaker 1: lest the Athenians might entertain a prejudice against him on
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  Speaker 1: account of his extermination of their fellows citizens the Palatids,
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  Speaker 1: Theseius resolved to perform some signal service for the state,
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  Speaker 1: which should gain for him the hearts of the people.
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  Speaker 1: He accordingly decided to rid the country of the famous
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  Speaker 1: Bull of Marathon, which had become a terror to the
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  Speaker 1: cultivators of the land. He captured the animal and brought
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  Speaker 1: him in chains to Athens, where after publicly exhibiting him
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  Speaker 1: to the astonished multitude, he solemnly sacrificed him to Apollo.
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  Speaker 1: The next enterprise undertaken by Theseus far surpassed all his
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  Speaker 1: other feats of her heroic daring, and secured to him
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  Speaker 1: the universal admiration and gratitude of his fellow citizens. This
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  Speaker 1: was the slaying of the Minotaur, which put an end
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  Speaker 1: forever to the shameful tribute of seven youths and seven maidens,
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  Speaker 1: which was exacted from the Athenians every nine years. The
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  Speaker 1: origin of this barbarous tribute was as follows, Androgios, the
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  Speaker 1: youthful son of Minos, King of Crete, having been treacherously
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  Speaker 1: murdered by the Athenians, his father, anxious to avenge the
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  Speaker 1: death of his son, declared war against their king Aegeus,
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  Speaker 1: and conquered Athens and the villages in its vicinity. The
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  Speaker 1: conqueror henceforth compelled the Athenians to send to him every
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  Speaker 1: nine years a tribute of seven youths and seven maidens
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  Speaker 1: of the noblest families in the land. Who became the
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  Speaker 1: prey of the minotaur, a monster, half man, half bull,
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  Speaker 1: whose lair was in the wonderful labyrinth constructed by Deedless
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  Speaker 1: for the Cretan king. When Theseus informed his father of
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  Speaker 1: his heroic determination, he was overwhelmed with grief and endeavored
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  Speaker 1: by every means in his power to shake his son's resolution.
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  Speaker 1: But confident of success, Theseus assured his father that he
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  Speaker 1: would slay the minotaur and return home victorious. It was
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  Speaker 1: customary for the vessel bearing its unhappy freight of human
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  Speaker 1: victims to use on this voyage black sails only, but
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  Speaker 1: Theseus promised his father that should he return in safety,
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  Speaker 1: he would hoist white ones in their place. Before leaving Athens,
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  Speaker 1: Theseus by the advice of an oracle, chose Aphrodite as
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  Speaker 1: his guardian and protectress, and accordingly offered up a sacrifice
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  Speaker 1: to her. When he arrived in the presence of King Minos,
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  Speaker 1: the goddess of Love inspired Ariadne, the beautiful daughter of
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  Speaker 1: the king, with an ardent attachment for the noble young hero.
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  Speaker 1: During a secret interview in which a mutual confession of
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  Speaker 1: affection took place, Ariadne furnished him with a sharp sword
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  Speaker 1: and a clue of thread, the end of which she
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  Speaker 1: desired him to fasten at the entrance to the labyrinth,
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  Speaker 1: and to continue to unwind it till he reached the
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  Speaker 1: lair of the minotaur. Full of hope as to the
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  Speaker 1: successful issue of his undertaking, theseus took leave of the
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  Speaker 1: kind maiden, after expressing his gratitude for her timely aid.
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  Speaker 1: At the head of his companions. He was now conducted
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  Speaker 1: by Minos to the entrance of the labyrinth. Strictly adhering
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  Speaker 1: to the injunctions of the fair Ariadne, he succeeded in
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  Speaker 1: finding the minotaur, whom, after a fierce and violent struggle,
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  Speaker 1: he defeated and killed, then carefully feeling his way by
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  Speaker 1: means of the clue of thread, he led his companions
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  Speaker 1: safely out of the labyrinth. They then fled to their ship,
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  Speaker 1: taking with them the lovely maiden, to whose affection for
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  Speaker 1: their deliverer they owed their safety. Arrived at the island
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  Speaker 1: of Naxos, Theseus had a dream in which Dionysus, the
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  Speaker 1: Wine God, appeared to him and informed him that the
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  Speaker 1: fates had decreed that Ariadne should be his bride, at
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  Speaker 1: the same time menacing the hero with all kinds of
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  Speaker 1: misfortunes should he refuse to resign her. Now, Theseus, having
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  Speaker 1: been taught from his youth to reverence the gods, feared
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  Speaker 1: to disobey the wishes of Dionesus. He accordingly took a
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  Speaker 1: sad farewell of the beautiful maiden, who so tenderly loved him,
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  Speaker 1: and left her on the lonely island, where she was
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  Speaker 1: found and wooed by the wine God. Theseus and his
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  Speaker 1: companions felt keenly the loss of their benefactress, and, in
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  Speaker 1: their grief at parting with her, forgot that the ship
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  Speaker 1: still bore the black sails with which she had left
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  Speaker 1: the Attic coast. As she neared the port of Athens. Aegeus,
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  Speaker 1: who was anxiously awaiting the return of his son on
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  Speaker 1: the beach, caught sight of the vessel with its black sails, and,
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  Speaker 1: concluding that his gallant son had perished, threw himself in
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  Speaker 1: desp into the sea. With the unanimous approval of the Athenians,
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  Speaker 1: Theseius now ascended the vacant throne, and soon proved himself
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  Speaker 1: to be not only a valiant hero, but also a
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  Speaker 1: wise prince and prudent legislator. Athens was at this time
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  Speaker 1: but a small city surrounded by a number of villages,
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  Speaker 1: each of which possessed its own separate form of government.
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  Speaker 1: But by means of kind and conciliatory measures, Theseius induced
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  Speaker 1: the heads of these different communities to resign their sovereignty
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  Speaker 1: and to entrust the administration of public affairs to a court,
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  Speaker 1: which should sit constantly at Athens and exercised jurisdiction over
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  Speaker 1: all the inhabitants of Attica. The result of these judicious
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  Speaker 1: measures was that the Athenians became a united and powerful people,
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  Speaker 1: and that numbers of strangers and foreigners flocked to Athens,
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  Speaker 1: which became a flourishing maritime port as a commercial center
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  Speaker 1: of great importance. Theseius renewed the Isthmian Games, and also
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  Speaker 1: instituted numerous festivals, the principle of which was the Panathena,
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  Speaker 1: held in honor of Athena Polias. It is related that Athesius,
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  Speaker 1: upon one occasion, arrived during a voyage at the Amazonian coast.
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  Speaker 1: Anxious to ascertain the object of his visit, the Amazons
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  Speaker 1: sent Hippolyta, one of their number, with presents to the stranger.
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  Speaker 1: But no sooner did the fair herald set foot on
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  Speaker 1: board his vessel than Theesias set sail and carried her
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  Speaker 1: off to Athens, where he made her his queen. Enraged
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  Speaker 1: at this indignity, the Amazons determined to be revenged some
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  Speaker 1: time afterwards, when the whole affair would appear to have
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  Speaker 1: been forgotten. They seized the opportunity when the city of
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  Speaker 1: Athens was in a defenseless condition, and landed an army
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  Speaker 1: in Attica. So sudden was their attack that they had
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  Speaker 1: penetrated into the very heart of the city before the
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  Speaker 1: Athenians could organize their forces. But Theesius expeditiously collected his
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  Speaker 1: troops and commenced such a furious onslaught upon the invaders
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  Speaker 1: that after a desperate encounter, they were driven from the city.
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  Speaker 1: Peace was then elluded, whereupon the Amazons vacated the country.
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  Speaker 1: During this engagement, Hippolyta, forgetful of her origin, fought valiantly
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  Speaker 1: by the side of her husband against her own kinsfolk,
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  Speaker 1: and perished on the field of battle. It was soon
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  Speaker 1: after this sad event that Theseus joined the world renowned
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  Speaker 1: Caledonian boar hunt, in which he took a leading part.
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  Speaker 1: He also formed one of the brave band who shared
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  Speaker 1: in the perils of the Argonautic expedition. The remarkable friendship
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  Speaker 1: which existed between Theseus and Perithous originated under such peculiar
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  Speaker 1: circumstances that it is worthy of mention. Hearing, upon one
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  Speaker 1: occasion that his herds pasturing in the plains of Marathon
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  Speaker 1: had been carried off by Perrithus, Theseus collected together an
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  Speaker 1: armed force and sallied forth to punish the plunderer. But
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  Speaker 1: when the two heroes met face to face, both were
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  Speaker 1: seized with an impulse of sympathetic admiration for each other. Perithuus,
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  Speaker 1: holding out his hand in a token of peace, exclaimed,
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  Speaker 1: what satisfaction shall I render thee Theseus, be thou thyself
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  Speaker 1: the judge. Theseus seized the prophet hand and replied, I
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  Speaker 1: ask nought save thy friendship, whereupon the heroes embraced each
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  Speaker 1: other and swore eternal fidelity. When soon afterwards Perrithus became
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  Speaker 1: united to Hippodamia, a Thessalian princess, he invited Theseus to
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  Speaker 1: the wedding feast, which was also attended, among other guests,
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  Speaker 1: by a large number of centaurs who were friends of Perytheus.
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  Speaker 1: Towards the end of the banquet, Rithion, a young centaur,
• 19:31
  Speaker 1: heated and flushed with wine, seized the lovely bride and
• 19:35
  Speaker 1: sought by force to carry her off. The other centaurs,
• 19:39
  Speaker 1: following his example, each endeavored to capture a maiden. Perithous
• 19:43
  Speaker 1: and his followers, aided by Theseus, who rendered most valuable assistants,
• 19:48
  Speaker 1: attacked the centaurs, and, after a violent hand to hand
• 19:51
  Speaker 1: struggle in which many perished, forced them to relinquish their prey.
• 19:55
  Speaker 1: After the death of Hippolyta, Theseus sought the hand of Phedra,
• 19:58
  Speaker 1: the sister of his former bride Ariadne, to whom he
• 20:01
  Speaker 1: became united For some years. They lived happily together, and
• 20:05
  Speaker 1: their union was blessed by the birth of two sons.
• 20:08
  Speaker 1: During this time, Hippolytus, the son of the Amazonian queen,
• 20:11
  Speaker 1: had been absent from home, having been placed under the
• 20:14
  Speaker 1: care of the king's uncles in order to be educated.
• 20:17
  Speaker 1: When having grown to manhood, he now returned to his
• 20:19
  Speaker 1: father's palace. His young stepmother Pedra, fell violently in love
• 20:24
  Speaker 1: with him, but Hippolytus failed to return her affection and
• 20:27
  Speaker 1: treated her with contempt and indifference. Filled with rage and
• 20:32
  Speaker 1: despair at his coldness, Fedra put an end to her existence,
• 20:36
  Speaker 1: and when she was discovered by her husband, she held
• 20:38
  Speaker 1: in her hand a letter accusing Hippolytus of being the
• 20:41
  Speaker 1: cause of her death and of having conspired against the
• 20:44
  Speaker 1: honor of the king. Now Poseidon had, upon one occasion
• 20:51
  Speaker 1: promised to grant theseus whatever request he should demand. He
• 20:56
  Speaker 1: therefore called upon the sea god to destroy Hippolytus, whom
• 20:59
  Speaker 1: he cursed in the most solemn manner. The father's awful
• 21:05
  Speaker 1: malediction fell but too soon upon his innocent son, for
• 21:09
  Speaker 1: as the latter was driving his chariot along the sea
• 21:11
  Speaker 1: shore between Trezene and Athens, a monster sent by Poseidon
• 21:15
  Speaker 1: rose out of the deep and so frightened the horses
• 21:18
  Speaker 1: that they became altogether unmanageable. As they rushed on in
• 21:22
  Speaker 1: their mad career. The chariot was dashed to pieces, and
• 21:25
  Speaker 1: the unfortunate youth, whose feet had become entangled in the reins,
• 21:29
  Speaker 1: was dragged along until life was nearly extinct. In this condition,
• 21:34
  Speaker 1: he was found by the unhappy Theseus, who, having ascertained
• 21:37
  Speaker 1: the true fact of the case from an old servant
• 21:40
  Speaker 1: of Pedra, had hastened to prevent the catastrophe. But he
• 21:44
  Speaker 1: arrived too late, and was only able to soothe the
• 21:47
  Speaker 1: last moments of his dying son by acknowledging the sad
• 21:49
  Speaker 1: mistake which he had committed and declaring his firm belief
• 21:53
  Speaker 1: in his honor and innocence. After these events, Theseus was
• 21:57
  Speaker 1: persuaded by his friend Perithous, who had also about this
• 22:00
  Speaker 1: time lost his young wife Hippodamia, to join him in
• 22:04
  Speaker 1: a journey through Greece, with the object of carrying off
• 22:06
  Speaker 1: by force the most beautiful maidens whom they should chance
• 22:09
  Speaker 1: to meet. Arrived at Sparta, they beheld in the temple
• 22:13
  Speaker 1: of Artemis. Helen, the daughter of Zeus and Leda, who
• 22:17
  Speaker 1: was engaged in performing sacred dances in honor of the goddess.
• 22:21
  Speaker 1: Although the maiden was only nine years old, the fame
• 22:23
  Speaker 1: of her beauty, which was destined to play so important
• 22:26
  Speaker 1: a part in the history of Greece, had already spread
• 22:29
  Speaker 1: far and wide. Theseus and Perithous forcibly abducted her, and then,
• 22:34
  Speaker 1: having cast lots for her, she fell to Theseus, who
• 22:37
  Speaker 1: placed her under the charge of his mother Ethra. Perrithus
• 22:40
  Speaker 1: now requested Theseus to assist him in his ambitious scheme
• 22:43
  Speaker 1: of descending to the lower world and carrying off Persephone,
• 22:46
  Speaker 1: the Queen of Hades. Though fully alive to the perils
• 22:50
  Speaker 1: of the undertaking, Theseus would not forsake his friend, and
• 22:53
  Speaker 1: together they sought the gloomy realm of Shades. But Aiades
• 22:58
  Speaker 1: had been forewarned of their approach, and scarcely have the
• 23:00
  Speaker 1: two friends set foot within his dominions, when by his
• 23:04
  Speaker 1: orders they were seized, bound with chains, and secured to
• 23:07
  Speaker 1: an enchanted rock at the entrance of Hades. Here the
• 23:11
  Speaker 1: two friends languished for many years until Heracles passed by
• 23:15
  Speaker 1: in his search for Cerberus. When he released Theseus, but
• 23:19
  Speaker 1: in obedience to an injunction of the gods, left Perithuus
• 23:21
  Speaker 1: to endure forever the punishment of his too daring ambition.
• 23:27
  Speaker 1: While Theseus was imprisoned in the underworld Castor and Pollux,
• 23:31
  Speaker 1: the brothers of Helen invaded Athens and demanded the restoration
• 23:34
  Speaker 1: of their young sister. Seeing his country threatened with the
• 23:38
  Speaker 1: horrors of warfare, an Athenian citizen named Academus, who knew
• 23:42
  Speaker 1: of Helen's place of the concealment, repaired to the camp
• 23:45
  Speaker 1: of the Diascurai and informed them where they would find her.
• 23:49
  Speaker 1: Ethra at once resigned her charge, whereupon the brothers took
• 23:52
  Speaker 1: leave of Athens, and, accompanied by Helen, returned to their
• 23:56
  Speaker 1: native country. By the prolonged absence of Theazias gave rise
• 24:00
  Speaker 1: to other troubles of a more serious character. Thinking the
• 24:04
  Speaker 1: opportunity favorable for a revolt a faction headed by Menesteus,
• 24:09
  Speaker 1: a descendant of Erechtheus arrogated to themselves supreme power and
• 24:13
  Speaker 1: seized the reigns of government. Returned to Athens, Theseus at
• 24:18
  Speaker 1: once took active measures to quell the insubordination which existed
• 24:21
  Speaker 1: on all sides. He expelled Menesteus from office, rigorously punished
• 24:25
  Speaker 1: the ringleaders of the revolt, and placed himself once more
• 24:28
  Speaker 1: upon the throne. But his hold upon the people was gone,
• 24:33
  Speaker 1: his former services were all forgotten, And, finding at length
• 24:36
  Speaker 1: that dissensions and revolts were rife, he voluntarily abdicated the
• 24:40
  Speaker 1: throne and retired to his estates in the island of Cyros.
• 24:45
  Speaker 1: Here Lycomedes, king of the island, feigned to receive him
• 24:49
  Speaker 1: with the utmost friendship, but being as it is supposed,
• 24:52
  Speaker 1: in league with Menesteus, he led the old king to
• 24:55
  Speaker 1: the summit of a high rock, under pretense of showing
• 24:58
  Speaker 1: him his estates, and treacherously killed him by pushing him
• 25:02
  Speaker 1: over the cliff. Many centuries after his death, by the
• 25:06
  Speaker 1: command of the Oracle of Delphi, Simon, the father of Militiades,
• 25:11
  Speaker 1: at the conclusion of the Persian War, brought the remains
• 25:13
  Speaker 1: of Theseus, the great benefactor of Athens, to that city,
• 25:18
  Speaker 1: and in his honor a temple was erected, which exists
• 25:21
  Speaker 1: till the present day and serves as a museum of art.
• 25:26
  Speaker 1: End of section twenty six