eal
anything from Apollo, and never to lay hands on his holy shrine; and
Phoebus swore that of all the undying gods there should be none so
dear to him as Hermes. "And of this love," he said, "I will give thee
a pledge. My golden rod shall guard thee, and teach thee all that Zeus
may say to me for the well or ill-doing of gods or men. But the higher
knowledge for which thou didst pray may not be thine; for that is
hidden in the mind of Zeus, and I have sworn a great oath that none
shall learn it from me. But the man who comes to me with true signs, I
will never deceive; and he who puts trust in false omens and then
comes to inquire at my shrine, shall be answered according to his
folly, but his offering shall go into my treasure-house. Yet further,
son of Maia, in the clefts of Parnassos far away dwell the winged
Thriai, who taught me long ago the secret things of times to come. Go
thou, then, to the three sisters, and thus shalt thou test them. If
they have eaten of the honeycomb before they speak, they will answer
thee truly; but if they lack the sweet food of the gods, they will
seek to lead astray those who come to them. These I give thee for thy
counselors; only follow them warily; and have thou dominion over all
flocks and herds, and over all living things that feed on the wide
earth; and be thou the guide to lead the souls of mortal men to the
dark kingdom of Hades."

So was the love of Apollo for Hermes made sure; and Hermes hath his
place amongst all the deathless gods and dying men. Nevertheless, the
sons of men have from him no great gain, for all night long he vexes
them with his treacherous wiles.

THE SORROW OF DEMETER.

In the fields of Enna, in the happy Island of Sicily, the beautiful
Persephone was playing with the girls who lived there with her. She
was the daughter of the lady Demeter, and every one loved them both,
for Demeter was good and kind to all, and no one could be more gentle
and merry than Persephone. She and her companions were gathering
flowers from the field, to make crowns for their long flowing hair.
They had picked many roses and lilies and hyacinths, which grew in
clusters around them, when Persephone thought she saw a splendid
flower far off; and away she ran, as fast as she could, to get it. It
was a beautiful narcissus, with a hundred heads springing from one
stem; and the perfume which came from its flowers gladdened the broad
heaven above, and the earth and sea around it.