d
settled in a land called Caria, and they never burned or harmed the
asparagus thorn to which Perigyne had prayed in the thicket.

Greece was so lawless in these days that all the road from Troezene
northward to Athens was beset by violent and lawless men. They loved
cruelty even more than robbery, and each of them had carefully thought
out his particular style of being cruel. The cities were small, and at
war with each other, or at war among themselves, one family fighting
against another for the crown. Thus there was no chance of collecting an
army to destroy the monstrous men of the roads, which it would have been
easy enough for a small body of archers to have done. Later Theseus
brought all into great order, but now, being but one man, he went
seeking adventures.

On the border of a small country called Megara, whose people were much
despised in Greece, he found a chance of advancing himself, and gaining
glory. He was walking in the middle of the day along a narrow path at
the crest of a cliff above the sea, when he saw the flickering of a
great fire in the blue air, and steam going up from a bronze caldron of
water that was set on the fire. On one side of the fire was a foot-bath
of glittering bronze. Hard by was built a bower of green branches, very
cool on that hot day, and from the door of the bower stretched a great
thick hairy pair of naked legs.

Theseus guessed, from what he had been told, that the owner of the legs
was Sciron the Kicker. He was a fierce outlaw who was called the Kicker
because he made all travellers wash his feet, and, as they were doing
so, kicked them over the cliff. Some say that at the foot of the cliff
dwelt an enormous tortoise, which ate the dead and dying when they fell
near his lair, but as tortoises do not eat flesh, generally, this may be
a mistake. Theseus was determined not to take any insolence from Sciron,
so he shouted--

'Slave, take these dirty legs of yours out of the way of a Prince.

'Prince!' answered Sciron, 'if my legs are dirty, the gods are kind who
have sent you to wash them for me.'

Then he got up, lazily, laughing and showing his ugly teeth, and stood
in front of his bath with his heavy wooden club in his hand. He whirled
it round his head insultingly, but Theseus was quicker than he, and
again, as when he slew the Pine-Bender, he did not strike, for striking
is slow compared to thrusting, but like a flash he lunged forward and
drove the thick end of h