e along by the eddies, the countless
tears that he shed aforetime when he came to the sacred race of the
Hyperboreans and left shining heaven at the chiding of his father, being
in wrath concerning his son whom divine Coronis bare in bright Lacereia
at the mouth of Amyrus. And such is the story told among these men. But
no desire for food or drink seized the heroes nor were their thoughts
turned to joy. But they were sorely afflicted all day, heavy and faint
at heart, with the noisome stench, hard to endure, which the streams of
Eridanus sent forth from Phaethon still burning; and at night they heard
the piercing lament of the daughters of Helios, wailing with shrill
voice; and, as they lamented, their tears were borne on the water like
drops of oil.

Thence they entered the deep stream of Rhodanus which flows into
Eridanus; and where they meet there is a roar of mingling waters. Now
that river, rising from the ends of the earth, where are the portals and
mansions of Night, on one side bursts forth upon the beach of Ocean, at
another pours into the Ionian sea, and on the third through seven mouths
sends its stream to the Sardinian sea and its limitless bay.[1] And from
Rhodanus they entered stormy lakes, which spread throughout the Celtic
mainland of wondrous size; and there they would have met with an
inglorious calamity; for a certain branch of the river was bearing them
towards a gulf of Ocean which in ignorance they were about to enter, and
never would they have returned from there in safety. But Hera leaping
forth from heaven pealed her cry from the Hercynian rock; and all
together were shaken with fear of her cry; for terribly crashed the
mighty firmament. And backward they turned by reason of the goddess, and
noted the path by which their return was ordained. And after a long
while they came to the beach of the surging sea by the devising of Hera,
passing unharmed through countless tribes of the Celts and Ligyans. For
round them the goddess poured a dread mist day by day as they fared on.
And sailing through the midmost mouth, they reached the Stoechades
islands in safety by the aid of the sons of Zeus; wherefore altars and
sacred rites are established in their honour for ever; and not that
sea-faring alone did they attend to succour; but Zeus granted to them
the ships of future sailors too. Then leaving the Stoechades they passed
on to the island Aethalia, where after their toil they wiped away with
pebbles swea