or
to this Lato, who had but two children, while she had fourteen lovely
sons and daughters, any one of which was worthy of honor. All this so
enraged Lato that she begged Apollo, who was the god of the silver bow,
and Diana, her huntress daughter, to take revenge on Niobe. Obedient to
her commands, Apollo and Artemis descended to earth, and in one day slew
all the children of Niobe. Then this proud mother, left alone, could do
nothing but weep, and this she did continually until Jupiter took pity
on her and turned her into stone, and whirled her away from Thebes to
Mount Sipylus, the scene of her happy childhood. In this picture of
Niobe she clasps her youngest child, who has fled to her for
protection.

I cannot give pictures of all the figures, but one of the most
interesting is this brother and sister. She is wounded, and he endeavors
to raise his garment so as to shield her and himself from the deadly
arrows which pursue them (Fig. 44).

This figure of the eldest daughter is very beautiful. An arrow has
pierced her neck, and the right hand is bent back to the wound. The face
is noble and simple, and has been a favorite model to Guido Reni and
other Italian masters (Fig. 45).

[Illustration: FIG. 45.--THE ELDEST DAUGHTER.]

Fig. 46 shows one of the older sons, who, though wounded and fallen on
one knee, still looks toward his slayer with an air of defiance. There
is a world of interest connected with these statues, and they move us
with a variety of emotions. The poor mother, so prosperous a moment
before, and now seeing her children dying around her, slain by the sure
arrows of the unseen gods--how can we pity her enough! and then the
brave son who tries to shield his sister while he is dazed by the
suddenness of the misfortunes which he cannot account for; the old
pedagogue, to whom the youngest boy has run for protection--and,
indeed, all demand our sympathy for their grief and our admiration for
their beauty, which is still theirs in spite of their woe.

One of the young sculptors who was employed with Scopas in the work on
the mausoleum was LEOCHARES. We read of several statues of Zeus and
Apollo by this master, but his most celebrated work was the group of
Ganymede borne upward by the eagle of Zeus. There are several copies of
this sculpture, but that given here, from the Vatican figure, is the
best of all, and is very beautiful. We know very few facts concerning
Leochares, and cannot even say whether he