his tomb (in which, probably,
the ashes of other Centaurs were deposited) sent forth so offensive
a smell, that the Locrians, who were the inhabitants of the adjacent
country, were surnamed the 'Ozolae,' that is, the 'ill-smelling,' or
'stinking,' Locrians. Although the river Evenus lay in the road
between Calydon and Trachyn, still it did not run through the middle
of the latter city, as some authors have supposed; for in such case
Hercules would have been more likely to have passed it by the aid of
a bridge or of a boat, than to have recourse to the assistance of
the Centaur Nessus, and to have availed himself of his acquaintance
with the fords of the stream.

Hercules, in lapse of time, becoming tired of Deianira, by whom he
had one son, named Hyllus, fell in love with Iole, the daughter of
Eurytus; and that prince, refusing to give her to him, he made war
upon Oechalia, and, having slain Eurytus, he bore off his daughter.
Upon his return from that expedition, he sent Lychas for the
vestments which he had occasion to use in a sacrifice which it was
his intention to offer. Deianira, jealous on account of his passion
for Iole, sent him either a philtre or love potion, which
unintentionally caused his death, or else a tunic smeared on the
inside with a certain kind of pitch, found near Babylon, which, when
thoroughly warmed, stuck fast to his skin; and this it is, most
probably, which has been termed by poets and historians, the tunic
of Nessus. It seems, however, pretty clear that Hercules fell into a
languishing distemper, without any hopes of recovery, and, probably,
in a fit of madness, he threw Lychas into the sea, which
circumstance was made by the poets to account for the existence
there of a rock known by that name.

Proceeding afterwards to Trachyn, he caused Deianira to hang herself
in despair; and, having consulted the oracle concerning his
distemper, he was ordered to go with his friends to Mount Oeta, and
there to raise a funeral pile. He understood the fatal answer, and
immediately prepared to execute its commands. When the pile was
ready, Hercules ascended it, and laid himself down with an air of
resignation, on which Philoctetes kindled the fire, which consumed
him. Some, however, of the ancient authors say, with more
probability, that Hercules died at Trachyn, and that his corpse was
burned on Mount Oeta. His apotheosis commence