, the rain ceased, and
the parting clouds exhibited the glittering crescent of the young moon.
A sonorous and majestic voice sounded from the skies:--

'Who art thou that hast no other friend than Jove?' 'One whom all
mankind unite in calling a wretch.' 'Art thou a philosopher?'

'If philosophy be endurance. But for the rest, I was sometime a king,
and am now a scatterling.' 'How do they call thee? 'Ixion of Thessaly.'

'Ixion of Thessaly! I thought he was a happy man. I heard that he was
just married.'

'Father of Gods and men! for I deem thee such, Thessaly is not Olympus.
Conjugal felicity is only the portion of the immortals!'

'Hem! What! was Dia jealous, which is common; or false, which is
commoner; or both, which is commonest?'

'It may be neither. We quarrelled about nothing. Where there is little
sympathy, or too much, the splitting of a straw is plot enough for a
domestic tragedy. I was careless, her friends stigmatised me as callous;
she cold, her friends styled her magnanimous. Public opinion was all
on her side, merely because I did not choose that the world should
interfere between me and my wife. Dia took the world's advice upon every
point, and the world decided that she always acted rightly. However,
life is life, either in a palace or a cave. I am glad you ordered it to
leave off thundering.'

'A cool dog this. And Dia left thee? 'No; I left her.' 'What, craven?'

'Not exactly. The truth is-----'tis a long story.

I was over head and ears in debt.'

'Ah! that accounts for everything. Nothing so harassing as a want of
money! But what lucky fellows you mortals are with your _post-obits!_
We Immortals are deprived of this resource. I was obliged to get up a
rebellion against my father, because he kept me so short, and could not
die.'

'You could have married for money. I did.' 'I had no opportunity, there
was so little female society in those days. When I came out, there were
no heiresses except the Parcae, confirmed old maids; and no very rich
dowager, except my grandmother, old Terra.'

'Just the thing; the older the better. However, I married Dia, the
daughter of Deioneus, with a prodigious portion; but after the ceremony
the old gentleman would not fulfil his part of the contract without
my giving up my stud. Can you conceive anything more unreasonable? I
smothered my resentment at the time; for the truth is, my tradesmen all
renewed my credit on the strength of the match, and so we went