. Stories from The earthly paradise . whenthe hour of death seems very close to thee, and a beckoningfinger calls thee forth into the cold and dark, then thinkof me. Take these arrows; cherish them as the greatestof all thy treasures, and, in the hour of thy need, castthem with incense on a fire. So shall I hear thy call, andcome to serve thee even once again. The shepherd ceased, and Admetus hung silent, gazingon him. The sun dipped below the farthest hills, andone long shaft of light illumined the figure of the faded, and a grey mist rose from the ground. Theherdsmans form merged into
. Stories from The earthly paradise . whenthe hour of death seems very close to thee, and a beckoningfinger calls thee forth into the cold and dark, then thinkof me. Take these arrows; cherish them as the greatestof all thy treasures, and, in the hour of thy need, castthem with incense on a fire. So shall I hear thy call, andcome to serve thee even once again. The shepherd ceased, and Admetus hung silent, gazingon him. The sun dipped below the farthest hills, andone long shaft of light illumined the figure of the faded, and a grey mist rose from the ground. Theherdsmans form merged into it, became faint and dimarnid the eddying wreaths, and at last vanished from the west a chill wind arose, and blew the mistaway; and King Admetus saw that he was alone. Buton the ground at his feet lay a brazen quiver, full ofarrows. He picked it up, and, deep in thought, made hisway slowly back to the palace. For many years after that King Admetus and Alcestis,his wife, lived in calm happiness and peace. Under their. .4 HE STOOD OUT TRANSFIGURED, GOD-LIKE, IN THE GLOW. THE LOVE OF ALCESTIS 127 rule the land grew rich and prosperous, and their peopleloved and blessed them. No desolating war spread itsravages over that land; no foolish ambition or desire forfame filled the Kings heart. Better to him was thesight of cornfields rich with yellow grain than all thepomp and glory of war. Above the spoils of battle heloved the spoils won by honest labour from the hand ofNature—the clustering harvest of the vine and thegarnered sheaves. Far more than the martial sound ofthe trumpet he delighted to hear the lowing of the sleekcattle in his fields, and the contented voices of happymen and women. Something of godlike grace and wis-dom seemed to have passed into the King during theyear that the god had lived with him, and people fromafar, seeing the prosperous state of his kingdom, criedthat the Golden Age had come. So the King and Queen passed down the years, and thedee
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1910, booksubjectmythology, bookyear19
