n outcast and wanderer.

Arrived after a long and painful pilgrimage at the river Achelous, he
discovered, to his unspeakable joy, a beautiful and fertile island, which
had but lately emerged from beneath the water. Here he took up his abode;
and in this haven of rest he was at length freed from his sufferings, and
finally purified of his crime by the river-god Achelous. But in his
new-found home where prosperity smiled upon him, Alcmaeon soon forgot the
loving wife and child he had left behind, and wooed Calirrhoe, the
beautiful daughter of the river-god, who became united to him in marriage.

For many years Alcmaeon and Calirrhoe lived happily together, and two sons
were born to them. But {279} unfortunately for the peace of her husband,
the daughter of Achelous had heard of the celebrated necklace and veil of
Harmonia, and became seized with a violent desire to become the possessor
of these precious treasures.

Now the necklace and veil were in the safe-keeping of Arsinoe; but as
Alcmaeon had carefully concealed the fact of his former marriage from his
young wife, he informed her, when no longer able to combat her
importunities, that he had concealed them in a cave in his native country,
and promised to hasten thither and procure them for her. He accordingly
took leave of Calirrhoe and his children, and proceeded to Psophis, where
he presented himself before his deserted wife and her father, king Phegeus.
To them he excused his absence by the fact of his having suffered from a
fresh attack of madness, and added that an oracle had foretold to him that
his malady would only be cured when he had deposited the necklace and veil
of Harmonia in the temple of Apollo at Delphi. Arsinoe, deceived by his
artful representations, unhesitatingly restored to him his bridal gifts,
whereupon Alcmaeon set out on his homeward journey, well satisfied with the
successful issue of his expedition.

But the fatal necklace and veil were doomed to bring ruin and disaster to
all who possessed them. During his sojourn at the court of king Phegeus,
one of the servants who had accompanied Alcmaeon betrayed the secret of his
union with the daughter of the river-god; and when the king informed his
sons of his treacherous conduct, they determined to avenge the wrongs of
their sister Arsinoe. They accordingly concealed themselves at a point of
the road which Alcmaeon was compelled to pass, and as he neared the spot
they suddenly emerged from their