m was to give him grains of wheat and a
dragon car, with which he travelled all about the world, teaching men to
sow corn and reap harvests.

Proserpine seems to have been contented in her underground kingdom, where
she ruled with Pluto. It was supposed to be below the volcanic grounds
in southern Italy, near Lake Avernus. The entrance to it was guarded by
a three-headed dog, named Cerberus, and the way to it was barred by the
River Styx. Every evening Mercury brought all the spirits of the people
who had died during the day to the shore of the Styx, and if their
funeral rites had been properly performed, and they had a little coin on
the tongue to pay the fare, Charon, the ferryman, took them across; but
if their corpses were in the sea, or on battle-fields, unburied, the poor
shades had to flit about vainly begging to be ferried over. After they
had crossed, they were judged by three judges, and if they had been
wicked, were sent over the river of fire to be tormented by the three
Furies, Alecto, Megara, and Tisiphone, who had snakes as scourges and in
their hair. If they had been brave and virtuous, they were allowed to
live among beautiful trees and flowers in the Elysian fields, where Pluto
reigned; but they seem always to have longed after the life they had
lost; and these Greek notions of bliss seem sad besides what we know to
be the truth. Here, too, lived the three Fates, always spinning the
threads of men's lives; Clotho held the distaff, Lachesis drew out the
thread, and Atropos with her shears cut it off when the man was to die.
And, though Jupiter was mighty, nothing could happen but by Fate, which
was stronger than he.

[Picture: Mars and Victory]

CHAP. III.--THE PEOPLING OF GREECE.

[Picture: Decorative chapter header]

You remember the Titans who rebelled against Jupiter. There was one who
was noble, and wise, and kind, who did not rebel, and kept his brother
from doing so. His name was Prometheus, which means Forethought; his
brother's was Epimetheus, or Afterthought; their father was Iapetus.
When all the other Titans had been buried under the rocks, Jupiter bade
Prometheus mould men out of the mud, and call on the winds of heaven to
breathe life into them. Then Prometheus loved the beings he had made,
and taught them to build houses, and tame the animals, and row and sail
on the sea, and study the stars. But Zeus was afraid they would be