uld, but I doubt whether I am strong enough to carry you across."

"Then," said she very scornfully, "neither are you strong enough to
pull King Pelias off his throne. And, Jason, unless you will help an
old woman at her need, you ought not to be a king. What are kings made
for, save to succor the feeble and distressed? But do as you please.
Either take me on your back, or with my poor old limbs I shall try my
best to struggle across the stream."

Saying this, the old woman poked with her staff in the river as if to
find the safest place in its rocky bed where she might make the first
step. But Jason by this time had grown ashamed of his reluctance to
help her. He felt that he could never forgive himself if this poor
feeble creature should come to any harm in attempting to wrestle
against the headlong current. The good Chiron, whether half horse or
no, had taught him that the noblest use of his strength was to assist
the weak; and also that he must treat every young woman as if she were
his sister and every old one like a mother. Remembering these maxims,
the vigorous and beautiful young man knelt down and requested the good
dame to mount upon his back.

"The passage seems to me not very safe," he remarked, "but as your
business is so urgent I will try to carry you across. If the river
sweeps you away it shall take me, too."

"That, no doubt, will be a great comfort to both of us," quoth the old
woman. "But never fear! We shall get safely across."

So she threw her arms around Jason's neck; and, lifting her from the
ground, he stepped boldly into the raging and foamy current, and began
to stagger away from the shore. As for the peacock, it alighted on the
old dame's shoulder. Jason's two spears, one in each hand, kept him
from stumbling and enabled him to feel his way among the hidden
rocks; although every instant he expected that his companion and
himself would go down the stream together with the driftwood of
shattered trees and the carcasses of the sheep and cow. Down came the
cold, snowy torrent from the steep side of Olympus, raging and
thundering as if it had a real spite against Jason or, at all events,
were determined to snatch off his living burden from his shoulders.
When he was half way across the uprooted tree (which I have already
told you about) broke loose from among the rocks and bore down upon
him with all its splintered branches sticking out like the hundred
arms of the giant Briareus. It rushed p