sea."'

'So saying the nymph Eidothee plunged into the sea and I went from that
place anxious, but with hope in my heart.

'Now as soon as the dawn had come I walked by the sea-shore and with me
came the three that I trusted above all my companions. The daughter of
the Ancient One of the Sea, Eidothee, came to us. In her arms she had
the skins of seals newly-slain, one for each of us. And at the cave
where the seals lay she scooped holes in the sand and bade us lie there,
covering ourselves with the skins. Then she spoke to me and said:

'"When my father, the Ancient One of the Sea, comes here to sleep, lay
hands upon him and hold him with all the strength you have. He will
change himself into many shapes, but do not you let go your hold upon
him. When he changes back into the shape he had at first you may let go
your holds. Question him then as to how you may leave this place, or
question him as to any other matter that may be on your mind, and he
will answer you, speaking the truth."'

'We lay down in the holes she had scooped in the sand and she covered
each of us with one of the skins she had brought. Then the seals came
out of the sea and lay all around us. The smell that came from those
beasts of the sea afflicted us, and it was then that our adventure
became terrible. We could not have endured it if Eidothee had not helped
us in this also. She took ambrosia and set it beneath each man's
nostril, so that what came to us was not the smell of the sea-beasts but
a divine savour. Then the nymph went back to the sea.

'We lay there with steadfast hearts amongst the herd of seals until the
sun was at its highest in the heavens. The Ancient One of the Sea came
out of the ocean depths. He went amongst the seals and counted them, and
us four men he reckoned amongst his herd. Then in great contentment he
laid himself down to sleep.

'We rushed upon him with a cry and laid hold on him with all the
strength of our hands. But we had no sooner grasped him than his shape
changed. He became a lion and faced us. Yet we did not let go of our
grasp. He became a serpent, yet we still held him. He became a leopard
and then a mighty boar; he became a stream of water and then a flowering
tree. Yet still we held to him with all our might and our hearts were
not daunted by the shapes he changed to before our eyes. Then, seeing
that he could not make us loose our hold, the Ancient One of the Sea,
who was called Proteus, ceased in hi