k
by night?'

The shepherd shook his head. 'Few men have passed Periphetes the
Maceman,' said he, 'and wiser are they who trust to swift ships than to
the upland path.'

'You speak kindly, father,' said Theseus, 'but I am minded to make the
upland paths safe for all men.'

So they parted, and Theseus walked through the sunset and the dusk,
always on a rising path, and the further he went the harder it was to
see the way, for the path was overgrown with grass, and the shadows were
deepening. Night fell, and Theseus hardly dared to go further, for on
his left hand was a wall of rock, and on his right hand a cliff sinking
sheer and steep to the sea. But now he saw a light in front of him, a
red light flickering, as from a great fire, and he could not be content
till he knew why that fire was lighted. So he went on, slowly and
warily, till he came in full view of the fire which covered the whole of
a little platform of rock; on one side the blaze shone up the wall of
cliff on his left hand, on the other was the steep fall to the sea. In
front of this fire was a great black bulk; Theseus knew not what it
might be. He walked forward till he saw that the black bulk was that of
a monstrous man, who sat with his back to the fire. The man nodded his
heavy head, thick with red unshorn hair, and Theseus went up close to
him.

'Ho, sir,' he cried, 'this is my road, and on my road I must pass!'

The seated man opened his eyes sleepily.

'Not without my leave,' he said, 'for I keep this way, I and my club of
iron.'

'Get up and begone!' said Theseus.

'That were hard for me to do,' said the monstrous man, 'for my legs will
not bear the weight of my body, but my arms are strong enough.'

'That is to be seen!' said Theseus, and he drew his sword, and leaped
within the guard of the iron club that the monster, seated as he was,
swung lightly to this side and that, covering the whole width of the
path. The Maceman swung the club at Theseus, but Theseus sprang aside,
and in a moment, before the monster could recover his stroke, drove
through his throat the sword of Aegeus, and he fell back dead.

'He shall have his rights of fire, that his shadow may not wander
outside the House of Hades,' said Theseus to himself, and he toppled the
body of the Maceman into his own great fire. Then he went back some way,
and wrapping himself in his mantle, he slept till the sun was high in
heaven, while the fire had sunk into its embers, and Th