out of the earth, they struggled--such was their impatience
of restraint--and, as it were, tore themselves up by the roots.
Wherever a dragon's tooth had fallen, there stood a man armed for
battle. They made a clangor with their swords against their shields,
and eyed one another fiercely; for they had come into this beautiful
world and into the peaceful moonlight full of rage and stormy passions
and ready to take the life of every human brother in recompense for
the boon of their own existence.

There have been many other armies in the world that seemed to possess
the same fierce nature with the one which had now sprouted from the
dragon's teeth; but these in the moonlit field were the more
excusable, because they never had women for their mothers. And now it
would have rejoiced any great captain who was bent on conquering the
world, like Alexander or Napoleon, to raise a crop of armed soldiers
as easily as Jason did!

For awhile the warriors stood flourishing their weapons, clashing
their swords against their shields and boiling over with the red-hot
thirst for battle. Then they began to shout, "Show us the enemy! Lead
us to the charge! Death or victory! Come on, brave comrades! Conquer
or die!" and a hundred other outcries, such as men always bellow forth
on a battle-field and which these dragon people seemed to have at
their tongues' ends. At last the front rank caught sight of Jason,
who, beholding the flash of so many weapons in the moonlight, had
thought it best to draw his sword. In a moment all the sons of the
dragon's teeth appeared to take Jason for an enemy; and crying with
one voice, "Guard the Golden Fleece!" they ran at him with uplifted
swords and protruded spears. Jason knew that it would be impossible to
withstand this bloodthirsty battalion with his single arm, but
determined, since there was nothing better to be done, to die as
valiantly as if he himself had sprung from a dragon's tooth.

Medea, however, bade him snatch up a stone from the ground.

"Throw it among them quickly!" cried she. "It is the only way to save
yourself."

The armed men were now so nigh that Jason could discern the fire
flashing out of their enraged eyes, when he let fly the stone and saw
it strike the helmet of a tall warrior who was rushing upon him with
his blade aloft. The stone glanced from this man's helmet to the
shield of his nearest comrade, and thence flew right into the angry
face of another, hitting him smartly