rades; but the Sibyl reminded him that the hour was approaching
when he must return to the upper world. "Here," she said, "the path is
divided. To the right, past the palace of Pluto, lies our way to the
Elysian Fields; on the left is the way to Tartarus, the place of
punishment for the wicked."

As they proceeded toward Elysium, AEneas looked around him, and beheld to
the left a vast prison, enclosed by mighty walls, at the foot of which ran
Phlegethon, the river of fire, whirling along great rocks in its furious
current. Across the stream, just opposite to where he was standing, was a
lofty gate, with columns of solid adamant. In an iron tower adjoining sat
Tisiphone, the eldest of the Furies, watching the gate. From within sounds
were heard--groans of pain, the sound of cruel lashes, and the clanking of
chains. AEneas asked his companion what punishments were being inflicted
within, and who were the sufferers. "This," replied the Sibyl, "is
Tartarus, whereinto no righteous person can enter. Here Rhadamanthus
presides: he searches into the deeds of all who are sent hither, obliges
them to confess all the crimes they have committed in the upper world, and
awards the punishment. As soon as the sentence is pronounced, Tisiphone
scourges the doomed one with a whip of scorpions, and then consigns him to
the fierce attendants of her sister Furies. Immediately the gates,
creaking on their hinges, fly open. Within, the entrance is guarded by a
hideous Hydra, with fifty black and gaping mouths. In the pit of Tartarus
beyond, the giants who waged war against the ruler of the Gods lie
prostrated by his thunderbolts. Beside them, enduring terrible tortures,
is Salmoneus. He was a king of Elis in Greece, and was so puffed up by
pride that he rode through his city on a high chariot drawn by four
prancing horses, waving in his hand a torch, and pretending to be Jupiter
himself, wielding his thunderbolts. The Almighty Sire punished his impiety
by hurling from Olympus a real thunderbolt, which deprived him of life;
and now he pays the penalty of his mad pride by eternal sufferings in
Tartarus. There also lies Tityus, the huge giant who, having insulted the
goddess Latona, was slain by the darts of her children, Apollo and Diana,
and whose writhing body now lies extended over nine acres of ground, while
insatiable vultures perpetually prey on his vitals, that are renewed as
fast as they are devoured. Beyond him is Ixion, bound to a wheel