ing brand meant. She told her husband all about it, and they finally
decided to ask an oracle to explain the dream.

A few days later the messenger they had sent to the oracle came home,
and Hecuba shed many tears when he brought word that the child Paris was
destined to bring destruction upon his native city.

To escape this calamity, Priam ordered that Paris should be carried out
of the city, and that he should be left in a forest, where the wild
beasts would eat him up, or where he would be sure to die from hunger
and cold.

Poor little Paris was therefore lifted out of his comfortable cradle,
and left alone in the woods, where he cried so hard that a passing
hunter heard him. This man was so sorry for the poor child, that he
carried him home to his wife, who brought the little stranger up with
her own children.

As he lived with hunters, Paris soon learned their ways; and he became
so active that when he was quite grown up he went to Troy to take part
in the athletic games, which were often held there in honor of the gods.
He was so strong that he easily won all the prizes, although Hector and
the other young princes were also striving for them.

When Paris went up to receive the crown of wild olive leaves which was
the victor's prize, every one noticed his likeness to the royal family;
and his sister Cas-san'dra, who was able to foretell future events, said
that he was the son of Priam and Hecuba, and that he would bring great
misfortunes upon Troy.

The king and queen paid no heed to these words, but gladly welcomed
Paris home, and lavished all kinds of gifts upon him to make up for
their cruelty and long neglect.

Paris was so fond of change and adventure, that he soon grew tired of
court life, and asked Priam for a ship, so that he might sail off to
Greece.

This request was readily granted, and Paris went away. The young prince
sailed from island to island, and came at last to the southern part of
the Peloponnesus, where the descendants of Hercules had founded the city
of Sparta. Here he was warmly welcomed by King Men-e-la'us; but this
king was obliged to leave home shortly after the arrival of Paris, and
he bade Helen, his wife, the most beautiful woman in the world, do all
she could to entertain the noble stranger.

Helen was so kind to Paris that he soon fell in love with her. His
greatest wish was to have her as his wife: so he began to tell her that
Ve'nus, the goddess of love, had promised him