fleet once more equipped, and Oxylus
elected commander-in-chief.

And now success at length crowned the efforts of the long-suffering
descendants of the great hero. They obtained possession of the
Peloponnesus, which was divided among them by lot. Argos fell to Temenus,
Lacedaemon to Aristodemus, and Messene to Cresphontes. In gratitude for the
services of their able leader, Oxylus, the kingdom of Elis, was conferred
upon him by the Heraclidae.

THE SIEGE OF TROY.

Troy or Ilion was the capital of a kingdom in Asia Minor, situated near the
Hellespont, and founded by Ilus, son of Tros. At the time of the famous
Trojan war this city was under the government of Priam, a direct descendant
of Ilus. Priam was married to Hecuba, daughter of Dymas, king of Thrace;
and among the most celebrated of their children were the renowned and {284}
valiant Hector, the prophetess Cassandra, and Paris, the cause of the
Trojan war.

Before the birth of her second son Paris, Hecuba dreamt that she had given
birth to a flaming brand, which was interpreted by AEsacus the seer (a son
of Priam by a former marriage) to signify that she would bear a son who
would cause the destruction of the city of Troy. Anxious to prevent the
fulfilment of the prophecy, Hecuba caused her new-born babe to be exposed
on Mount Ida to perish; but being found by some kind-hearted shepherds, the
child was reared by them, and grew up unconscious of his noble birth.

As the boy approached manhood he became remarkable, not only for his
wonderful beauty of form and feature, but also for his strength and
courage, which he exercised in defending the flocks from the attacks of
robbers and wild beasts; hence he was called Alexander, or helper of men.
It was about this time that he settled the famous dispute concerning the
golden apple, thrown by the goddess of Discord into the assembly of the
gods. As we have already seen, he gave his decision in favour of Aphrodite;
thus creating for himself two implacable enemies, for Hera and Athene never
forgave the slight.

Paris became united to a beautiful nymph named Oenone, with whom he lived
happily in the seclusion and tranquillity of a pastoral life; but to her
deep grief this peaceful existence was not fated to be of long duration.

Hearing that some funereal games were about to be held in Troy in honour of
a departed relative of the king, Paris resolved to visit the capital and
take part in them himself. There he so grea