. Grecian and Roman mythology . ng of Lycia, conceived a tender affection for thehandsome youth, which was soon changed to hatred because it foundno return on the part of Bellerophon. She basely accused him of anattempt on her honor, and enjoined her husband to avenge both herand himself. But the rites of hospitality were too sacred to allow ofProetus killing Bellerophon; he therefore sent him to Iobates, hisfather-in-law, with a letter, in which he was desired to avenge the crimeof which the bearer was accused, by putting him to death. , did not read the letter until he had hos
. Grecian and Roman mythology . ng of Lycia, conceived a tender affection for thehandsome youth, which was soon changed to hatred because it foundno return on the part of Bellerophon. She basely accused him of anattempt on her honor, and enjoined her husband to avenge both herand himself. But the rites of hospitality were too sacred to allow ofProetus killing Bellerophon; he therefore sent him to Iobates, hisfather-in-law, with a letter, in which he was desired to avenge the crimeof which the bearer was accused, by putting him to death. , did not read the letter until he had hospitably received Bel-lerophon, after which, he also abhorred the thought of violating thesacred rites of hospitality. He therefore trusted to chance to effecthis ruin, bidding him embark in the most dangerous enterprises, inwhich his destruction seemed inevitable. Of the monsters which descended from Phorcys and fair Ceto, one,the terrible Gorgo, was vanquished by Perseus ; but another, not less 310 GRECIAN AND ROMAN formidable, was assigned toBellerophon as a trial of hisvalor. It was the fire-vomitingChimsera, with the head ofa lion, the body of a goat,and the tail of a dragon. Tothis bold adventure the godslent their assistance, grantingBellerophon the winged horsePegasos. The hero bestrodehim and then in the air com-menced the fight. The mon-ster defended herself to theutmost, sending from hermouth whole masses of fire,and coiling her dragon tail informidable windings. But all this availed her not After a perseve-ring and obstinate struggle, the monster lay stretched on the groundweltering in her blood. Thus the most difficult tasks assigned to the heroes of antiquity, arealways the killing of monsters and unnatural beings, who by degreesmust vanish from the chain of things. It seems almost as if thesefictions implied that truth and dream, reality and fable, had long tostruggle with one another, before order was established. And it wasa worthy task of the heroes
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1870, booksubjectmytholo, bookyear1876
