when the world has become old and feeble, and grows young again through
bitter pains.

Then she said to Pelias's daughters: "Do to your father as I did to this
ram, and he will grow young and strong again." But she only told them
half the spell; so they failed, while Medeia mocked them; and poor old
Pelias died, and his daughters came to misery. But the songs say she
cured AEson, Jason's father, and he became young and strong again.

But Jason could not love her, after all her cruel deeds. So he was
ungrateful to her, and wronged her: and she revenged herself on him. And
a terrible revenge she took--too terrible to speak of here. But you will
hear of it yourselves when you grow up, for it has been sung in noble
poetry and music; and whether it be true or not, it stands forever as a
warning to us, not to seek for help from evil persons, or to gain good
ends by evil means. For if we use an adder even against our enemies, it
will turn again and sting us.

But of all the other heroes there is many a brave tale left, which I
have no space to tell you, so you must read them for yourselves--of the
hunting of the boar in Calydon, which Meleager killed; and of Heracles's
twelve famous labours; and of the seven who fought at Thebes; and of
the noble love of Castor and Polydeuces, the twin Dioscouroi; how when
one died, the other would not live without him, so they shared their
immortality between them; and Zeus changed them into the two twin stars,
which never rise both at once.

And what became of Cheiron, the good immortal beast? That, too, is a sad
story; for the heroes never saw him more. He was wounded by a poisoned
arrow, at Pholoc among the hills, when Heracles opened the fatal wine
jar, which Cheiron had warned him not to touch. And the Centaurs smelt
the wine, and flocked to it, and fought for it with Heracles; but he
killed them all with his poisoned arrows, and Cheiron was left alone.
Then Cheiron took up one of the arrows, and dropped it by chance upon
his foot; and the poison ran like fire along his veins, and he lay down,
and longed to die; and cried: "Through wine I perish, the bane of all my
race. Why should I live forever in this agony? Who will take my
immortality that I may die?"

Then Prometheus answered, the good Titan, whom Heracles had set free
from Caucasus: "I will take your immortality and live forever, that I
may help poor mortal men." So Cheiron gave him his immortality, and
died, and had rest fr