第63章 THE GOLDEN FLEECE(9)

"Do you know," asked King Aetes, eyeing Jason very sternly, "what are the conditions which you must fulfill before getting possession of the Golden Fleece?""I have heard," rejoined the youth, "that a dragon lies beneath the tree on which the prize hangs, and that whoever approaches him runs the risk of being devoured at a mouthful.""True," said the king, with a smile that did not look particularly good-natured."Very true, young man.But there are other things as hard, or perhaps a little harder, to be done before you can even have the privilege of being devoured by the dragon.For example, you must first tame my two brazen-footed and brazen-lunged bulls, which Vulcan, the wonderful blacksmith, made for me.There is a furnace in each of their stomachs; and they breathe such hot fire out of their mouths and nostrils, that nobody has hitherto gone nigh them without being instantly burned to a small, black cinder.What do you think of this, my brave Jason?""I must encounter the peril," answered Jason, composedly, "since it stands in the way of my purpose.""After taming the fiery bulls," continued King Aetes, who was determined to scare Jason if possible, "you must yoke them to a plow, and must plow the sacred earth in the Grove of Mars, and sow some of the same dragon's teeth from which Cadmus raised a crop of armed men.They are an unruly set of reprobates, those sons of the dragon's teeth; and unless you treat them suitably, they will fall upon you sword in hand.You and your nine and forty Argonauts, my bold Jason, are hardly numerous or strong enough to fight with such a host as will spring up.""My master Chiron," replied Jason, "taught me, long ago, the story of Cadmus.Perhaps I can manage the quarrelsome sons of the dragon's teeth as well as Cadmus did.""I wish the dragon had him," muttered King Aetes to himself, "and the four-footed pedant, his schoolmaster, into the bargain.Why, what a foolhardy, self-conceited coxcomb he is!

We'll see what my fire-breathing bulls will do for him.Well, Prince Jason," he continued, aloud, and as complaisantly as he could, "make yourself comfortable for to-day, and to-morrow morning, since you insist upon it, you shall try your skill at the plow."While the king talked with Jason, a beautiful young woman was standing behind the throne.She fixed her eyes earnestly upon the youthful stranger, and listened attentively to every word that was spoken; and when Jason withdrew from the king's presence, this young woman followed him out of the room.

"I am the king's daughter," she said to him, "and my name is Medea.I know a great deal of which other young princesses are ignorant, and can do many things which they would be afraid so much as to dream of.If you will trust to me, I can instruct you how to tame the fiery bulls, and sow the dragon's teeth, and get the Golden Fleece.""Indeed, beautiful princess," answered Jason, "if you will do me this service, I promise to be grateful to you my whole life long."' Gazing at Medea, he beheld a wonderful intelligence in her face.She was one of those persons whose eyes are full of mystery; so that, while looking into them, you seem to see a very great way, as into a deep well, yet can never be certain whether you see into the farthest depths, or whether there be not something else hidden at the bottom.If Jason had been capable of fearing anything, he would have been afraid of making this young princess his enemy; for, beautiful as she now looked, she might, the very next instant, become as terrible as the dragon that kept watch over the Golden Fleece.

"Princess," he exclaimed, "you seem indeed very wise and very powerful.But how can you help me to do the things of which you speak? Are you an enchantress?""Yes, Prince Jason," answered Medea, with a smile, "you have hit upon the truth.I am an enchantress.Circe, my father's sister, taught me to be one, and I could tell you, if Ipleased, who was the old woman with the peacock, the pomegranate, and the cuckoo staff, whom you carried over the river; and, likewise, who it is that speaks through the lips of the oaken image, that stands in the prow of your galley.I am acquainted with some of your secrets, you perceive.It is well for you that I am favorably inclined; for, otherwise, you would hardly escape being snapped up by the dragon.""I should not so much care for the dragon," replied Jason, "if I only knew how to manage the brazen-footed and fiery-lunged bulls.""If you are as brave as I think you, and as you have need to be," said Medea, "your own bold heart will teach you that there is but one way of dealing with a mad bull.What it is I leave you to find out in the moment of peril.As for the fiery breath of these animals, I have a charmed ointment here, which will prevent you from being burned up, and cure you if you chance to be a little scorched."So she put a golden box into his hand, and directed him how to apply the perfumed unguent which it contained, and where to meet her at midnight.

"Only be brave," added she, "and before daybreak the brazen bulls shall be tamed."The young man assured her that his heart would not fail him.He then rejoined his comrades, and told them what had passed between the princess and himself, and warned them to be in readiness in case there might be need of their help.At the appointed hour he met the beautiful Medea on the marble steps of the king's palace.She gave him a basket, in which were the dragon's teeth, just as they had been pulled out of the monster's jaws by Cadmus, long ago.Medea then led Jason down the palace steps, and through the silent streets of the city, and into the royal pasture ground, where the two brazen-footed bulls were kept.It was a starry night, with a bright gleam along the eastern edge of the sky, where the moon was soon going to show herself.After entering the pasture, the princess paused and looked around.