s if they had met after a long parting.
They raised the mast and unfurled the sail.

But not toward Pagasae did they go. For now the voice of Argo came to
them, shaking their hearts: Jason and Orpheus, Castor and Polydeuces,
Zetes and Calais, Peleus and Telamon, Theseus, Admetus, Nestor, and
Atalanta, heard the cry of their ship. And the voice of Argo warned
them not to go into the harbor of Pagasae.

As they stood upon the ship, looking toward Iolcus, sorrow came over
all the heroes, such sorrow as made their hearts nearly break. For long
they stood there in utter numbness.

Then Admetus spoke--Admetus who was the happiest of all those who went
in quest of the Golden Fleece. "Although we may not go into the harbor
of Pagasae, nor into the city of Iolcus," Admetus said, "still we have
come to the land of Greece. There are other harbors and other cities
that we may go into. And in all the places that we go to we will be
honored, for we have gone through toils and dangers, and we have
brought to Greece the famous Fleece of Gold."

So Admetus said, and their spirits came back again to the heroes--came
back to all of them save Jason. The rest had other cities to go to, and
fathers and mothers and friends to greet them in other places, but for
Jason there was only Iolcus.

Medea took his hand, and sorrow for him overcame her. For Medea could
divine what had happened in Iolcus and why it was that the heroes might
not go there.

It was to Corinth that the Argo went. Creon, the king of Corinth,
welcomed them and gave great honor to the heroes who had faced such
labors and such dangers to bring the world's wonder to Greece.

The Argonauts stayed together until they went to Calydon, to hunt the
boar that ravaged Prince Meleagrus's country. After that they
separated, each one going to his own land. Jason came back to Corinth
where Medea stayed. And in Corinth he had tidings of the happenings in
Iolcus.

King Pelias now ruled more fearfully in Iolcus, having brought down
from the mountains more and fiercer soldiers. And AEson, Jason's father,
and Alcimide, his mother, were now dead, having been slain by King
Pelias.

This Jason heard from men who came into Corinth from Thessaly. And
because of the great army that Pelias had gathered there, Jason might
not yet go into Iolcus, either to exact a vengeance, or to show the
people THE GOLDEN FLEECE that he had gone so far to gain.

PART III. The Heroes of the Quest