eftain, who can best contend?
Whom shall I match in fight, what trusty friend?"

it occurred to me to compare the founder of the fair and famous city of
Athens with him, and to contrast Theseus with the father of unconquered
glorious Rome. Putting aside, then, the mythological element, let us
examine his story, and wherever it obstinately defies probability, and
cannot be explained by natural agency, let us beg the indulgence of our
readers, who will kindly make allowance for tales of antiquity.

II. Theseus appears to have several points of resemblance to Romulus.
Both were unacknowledged illegitimate children, and were reputed to
descend from the Gods.

"Both warriors, well we all do know,"

and both were wise as well as powerful. The one founded Rome, while the
other was the joint founder of Athens; and these are two of the most
famous of cities. Both carried off women by violence, and neither of
them escaped domestic misfortune and retribution, but towards the end of
their lives both were at variance with their countrymen, if we may put
any trust in the least extravagant writings upon the subject.

III. Theseus traced his descent on the father's side from Erechtheus and
the original Autochthones,[A] while on the mother's side he was
descended from Pelops. For Pelops surpassed all the other princes of the
Peloponnesus in the number of his children as well as in wealth; and of
these he gave many of his daughters in marriage to the chief men of the
country, and established many of his sons as rulers in various cities.
One of these, Pittheus, the grandfather of Theseus, founded Troezen,
which is indeed but a little state, though he had a greater reputation
than any man of his time for eloquence and wisdom. The nature of this
wisdom of his seems to have been much of the same kind as that which
made the reputation of Hesiod, in the collection of maxims known as the
'Works and Days.' One of these maxims is indeed ascribed to Pittheus:

"Let promised pay be truly paid to friends."

At any rate, this is what Aristotle the philosopher has recorded; and
also Euripides, when he speaks of Hippolytus as "child of holy
Pittheus," shows the prevailing opinion about Pittheus. Now Aegeus
desired to have children, and the Oracle at Delphi is said to have given
him the well-known response, forbidding him to have intercourse with any
woman before he reached Athens, but not appearing to explain this
clearly. Consequen