“It was one heifer that bare Crétheus and Salméneus ! bold in counsel; and we, in our day, who now look upon the golden light of the sun, were sprung from them in the third generation; but, if any feud befall men of the same kin, the Fates withdraw to hide their shame. It ill befitteth us twain to appeal to brazen swords or spears in dividing the great honours of our fathers. As for the flocks and the tawny herds of cattle, and all the fields, which thou hast taken from our parents and holdest for thine own, while feeding fat thy wealth—all these I leave thee, and it irketh me not that they give provision to thy house beyond all measure. But, as for the royal sceptre and the throne, in which Aeson once sat, while he duly laid down the law for a nation of horsemen, these do thou release to us without vexation on either side, lest haply thou shouldest cause fresh ill to spring up therefrom.” Thus spake he; and Pelias, on his part, gave a soft answer :— “I shall be even as thou wilt; but old age is already coming over me, while thy bloom of youth is even now swelling with fulness, and thou hast it in thy power to remove the resentment of the gods
below. For Phrixus biddeth us go to the halls of Aeétés, and bring his spirit home, and recover the fleecy fell of the ram, on which he was erstwhile rescued from the sea, and from his step-dame’s impious weapons. Such is the message brought me by a wondrous dream, and I have inquired of the oracle at Castalia, whether there is need for further quest, and the oracle bids me make ready with all speed a ship to escort him home again. This is the quest that I would have thee bring promptly to an end; and, thereupon, I swear that I shall deliver up to thee the sole sovereignty and kingdom. As a mighty pledge, may Zeus, the father of our common ancestor, be our witness !” This agreement they approved, and then they parted; and Jason forthwith sent messengers to tell men everywhere that there would be a voyage indeed. And soon there came the three sons unwearied in war, whom the bright-eyed Aleméné and Léda bare unto Zeus, the son of Cronus; and two heroes with their tresses waving on high, the offspring of Poseidon, with a soul of honour inspired by their lofty courage, from Pylos and from the foreland at Taenarus ; and goodly fame was won by both of them, even by Euphémus, and by thee, Periclymenus, whose power extendeth far. And Apollo’s son came also, even that minstrel of the lyre, that father of song, the famous Orpheus. And
Hermes of the golden wand sent two sons to take part in the unabating toil, even Echion and Eurytus, exulting in their youth. Swiftly came they who dwell by the foot of the Pangaean mount, for with gladsome mind did their father, Boreas, lord of the winds, speedily equip Zétés and Calais, with their purple pinions heaving adown their backs. And Héra it was who enkindled in the demigods that all-persuasive sweet desire for the ship Argo, that” none should be left behind, and stay by his mother’s side, nursing a life that knoweth no peril; but should, even if death were to be the meed, win, with the aid of his comrades, a peerless elixir of prowess. But, when the flower of the seamen came down to the shore of Iélcus, Jason numbered them and praised them, every one; and, to aid him, Mopsus, after inquiring the will of heaven by noting the flight of birds and by drawing lots, right gladly gave the host the signal to set forth. And, when they had slung the anchor over the vessel’s prow, the leader took in his hands a golden goblet, and, standing at the stern, called on Zeus, the father of the sons of
Heaven, whose lance is the lightning ; called also on the swiftly rushing waves and winds, to speed them on their way ; and on the night-watches and on the tracks across the main, praying that the days might be propitious, and that the fortune of their return to their home might be kindly. And from the clouds there answered an auspicious peal of thunder, and there came bright flashes of lightning bursting forth) and the heroes took fresh courage at the bidding of the signals sent of heaven. And the seer inspired them with good hopes, while he loudly bade them lay their hands to the oars, and from under their swift palms the rowing sped on, and could not be sated. And so, sent on their way by the breezes of the South wind, they reached the mouth of the Inhospitable Sea, and there they marked out a plot of holy ground in honour of Poseidon; and withal there was a red herd of Thracian bulls, and a hollow of stone newly built on the summit of an altar. And, as they sped on their way into deep peril, they besought the Lord of Ships, that they might escape the irresistible onset of the clashing rocks; for twain were they, and alive withal, and they rolled onward more swiftly than the battle-lines of the loudly roaring winds; but that voyage of the demigods made them stand still in death. And then they went to Phiasis, where they mingled in battle with the swarthy Colchians in the realm of Aeétés himself.
Then, for the first time, did the Queen of swiftest darts, in Cyprus born, bind the dappled wryneck to the four spokes of a wheel indissoluble, and brought unto men that maddening bird ; and she taught the son of Aeson the lore of suppliant incantations, that so he might rob Medea of her reverence for her parents, and that a longing for Hellas might stir her with the whip of Suasion, while her heart was all aflame.—- And she quickly revealed the means of performing the labours set by her father, and with oil she mingled antidotes against sore pains, and gave them to Jason, to anoint himself withal ; and they vowed sweet union in mutual wedlock. But when Aeétés had set steadfast in the midst the adamantine plough, and the oxen, which from their tawny jaws were breathing the flame of burning fire, and were ever and anon pawing the ground with their brazen hoofs, Jason led them along, and single-handed brought them beneath the yoke, and straight stretched he the furrows as he was driving, and clave a ridge of clods a fathom deep. Then Aeétés spake on this wise :— “ Let the king, whosoever hath command of the ship, complete this task for me, and then let him carry off the coverlet imperishable, the fleece that gleameth
with its golden fringe.’ When thus he had spoken, Jason flung off his saffron robe, and, putting his trust in God, set his hand to the task ; and, by grace of the counsels of the magic maiden, he quailed not before the fire; but seizing the plough, and binding the necks of the oxen in the harness irresistible, and ever thrusting the unwearied goad into their strong-ribbed frame, the stalwart hero accomplished the allotted measure of his task. And Aeétés, though he could find no voice for his anguish, shrilled forth a cry, in amazement at the stranger’s strength ; and his comrades stretched forth their hands towards the sturdy hero, and crowned him with garlands of grass and greeted him with gentle words ; and at once the wondrous offspring of the Sun-god spake of the shining fleece, telling where it had been stretched out by the falchion of Phrixus; and he hoped that this further labour Jason would not be able to accomplish. For the fleece lay in a dense thicket; cleaving to the ravening jaws of a dragon, which, in bulk and length, was vaster than a ship of fifty oarsmen, built with many a hammer’s blow. ’Tis too far for me to fare along the high-road : for time is pressing; and I know a short path; to many another am I a leader: in the lore of song. Thou must know, Arcesilas, how Jason, by his cunning, slew that serpent with its glaring eyes and spangled
back, and stole away Medea, with her own aid, to be the death of Peleas. And they reached the streams of Ocean, and the Red Sea, and the race of the Lemnian wives who slew their lords. There it was that, in athletic contests, they proved their prowess, with raiment for their prize, and shared the marriage bed; and then it was that the fated day, or, haply, the night-watches, received in a foreign field the seed of your bright prosperity. There it was that the race of Ephémus was planted, to increase for ever in the days to come; and, having mingled with the homes of the Lacedaemonians, in due time they went and dwelt in the isle once called Callisté. Thence was it that the son of Lété caused your race to bring prosperity to the plain of Libya by the honours granted of heaven, and to rule over the divine city of golden-throned Cyrene, having found for it counsel that ruleth in righteousness. Now learn and know the lore of Oedipus :—If a man, with keen-edged axe, were to hew all the boughs of a mighty oak, and mar its comely form; even although its fruit may fail, it nevertheless giveth proof of itself, if ever it cometh at last to the wintry fire; or if, having left its own place desolate,
it resteth (as a beam) on the upright pillars of some palace, and doeth slavish service amid alien walls. But thou, Arcesilas, art a most timely healer, and the God of Healing honoureth the light that cometh from thee. One must needs apply a gentle hand in tending a festering wound ; for, even for the feeble, it is an easy task to shake a city to its foundation, but it is indeed a sore struggle to set it in its place again, unless God becometh a guide unto its rulers. But, for thee, the web of these fair fortunes is now being woven out toward its end. Deign to bestow all earnest heed on happy Cyrene ; and, of the sayings of Homer, take to heart and cherish even this :—“A good messenger,” said he, “ bringeth honour to every business”; even the Muse herself is exalted by a message rightly sped. Cyrene and the most glorious hall of Battus were familiar with the righteous heart of Démophilus; for he, as a youth among boys, and in counsels as an elder who hath attained a hundred years of life, robbeth calumny of her loud voice; he hath learnt to loathe insolence; he neither contend-eth against the nobly born, nor delayeth any decisive deed. For, in the hands of men, the fitting moment hath but a brief limit of time. Well hath he taken note of it; it waiteth on him, as a willing servant,
not as a thrall. But they say the saddest lot of all is to know the good, and yet, perforce, to be debarred therefrom. The famous Atlas indeed is still bearing up against heaven’s weight, banished from his ancestral land and his possessions; but the Titans were set free by immortal Zeus; and, as time passeth on, there are shiftings of sails at the change of the breeze. But the exile avoweth that the day will come, when he shall have drained to the dregs the cup of baneful woe, and shall see his home again; and, near Apollo's fountain, shall betake himself to the joys of the banquet, and yield his soul, full oft, to youthful gladness, and, amid fellow-citizens skilled in song, shall hold in his hands his deftly carven cithern, and attain to peace, doing despite to no man, and being himself unscathed by his townsmen. And haply he will tell how fair a fountain of immortal song he found, Arcesilas, when lately welcomed by a friend at Thebes.
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