mountains of an island rising out of the horizon, and then he knew that it behoved him to be careful, for he was coming close to the scene of his conflict.

Athene, filling him with wisdom, taught him to what part of the island to go, and he presently alighted on the seashore. The cliffs ran down to the beach, forming many coves and creeks, among which the waters dashed and gurgled with a pleasant sound. And there, in the mouth of a huge dark cavern, lay the three Gorgons fast asleep.

Perseus trod softly on the shingle, and drew near to the entrance of the cave, that he might examine those dreadful monsters more closely. Their bodies ended in the tail of a serpent, and were covered with great scales of iron, as large as the tiles of a cottage, that made a fearful clattering when they moved or turned; their hands and arms were of solid brass, and Medusa had living snakes instead of hair. Perseus trembled, as well he might, for what if they should wake while he was killing Medusa? They would set their eyes upon him, and he would become stone. He crept softly round a corner of one of the rocks, and put on the helmet of Dis, so that even if they woke, they would not be able to see him.

But still, if he fixed his eyes on theirs, he would be petrified, and he must look steadily at them, in order to be able to aim a true blow. Then he discovered why Athene had given him a buckler of glass. An old tree hung down over the cavern it had once, perhaps, shaded it with a fair arbour of leaves; but now it was dead, dry, and sapless. On one of the branches of this tree, Perseus hung his buckler, so that in it he might see the monsters plainly reflected, without looking at the Gorgons themselves. Then he drew his sword, and commended himself to the gods, and looked steadily at the buckler.

The snakes on Medusa's head twined and twisted themselves together, as if they were afraid of the stranger: they hissed with their long forked tongues, and seemed to shoot fire out of their eyes. But Perseus wreathed his hand in three of them, as you would do to a flowering grass by the stream side, that you wanted to break off. Medusa awoke, and uttered a furious yell, and tried to entwine her scaly body around him. If she had done that, nothing could have saved him, but he was too quick for her. her long tail came rattling over the stones to enfold him, he, pulling at the snakes, stretch her neck out to its full length.

For as

made her

Then he

smote it manfully with his sword, and it came off in his hand.

But though Medusa was dead, the danger of Perseus was not over. The other Gorgons had awoke at her dying yell, and terrible was their fury and their violence. They roared, they screamed, they struck the ground with their tails; they sought in all directions for the slayer of their sister monster. Their outcries were echoed by the cliffs above, and died away among the winding valleys of the island. Perseus, meanwhile, invisible in the helmet of Dis, smiled at their rage. And when their fury had exhausted itself, he took Medusa's head in his hands, and winged his way back towards Seriphos.

This is, when rightly explained, a very true story, and what is stranger, it is or ought to be true of every one of those who read it. We have all of us a Medusa, against whom we are bound to go forth, and whom we must kill, if we would not have her kill us. The world, the flesh, and the devil, are the three Gorgons with whom we have to fight. Of these, the world and the devil are beyond our power to destroy: we must be content to resist them. But though we shall never be able, while we live, entirely to overcome our own evil wills; we

may begin to do so, we may little by little destroy them daily. And this is what is meant, when it is said that two of the Gorgons were immortal, but that Medusa was mortal.

And why are we bound to fight manfully against ourselves? Why, but for the same reason as the hero of my story had? To shew our love to the Great King That made us His own when we were infants, and has all our lives long fed, and guarded us. And we cannot go forth to battle in our own strength. We must take the helmet of salvation, and the shield of faith, which will be as a mirror to us, shewing us sin in its true light, whereas, if we look at it as it seems, we shall be, as Lot's wife was, turned to stone, and have no power to flee from it. We also must have wings given us, wherewith we may rise far above this world, and "and set our affections on things above."

If we have all this armour, and manfully go forth to fight with our Medusa, we shall assuredly overcome it: and though the other two Gorgons may seek to hurt us, they will not be able. And, finally, when the battle is over, we shall go to our FATHER'S House with peace and glory.

Or all the gods that reigned on Mount Olympus, Zeus, whom we often call Jupiter, was lord and king. He ordained that which was to come to pass he sent war or peace upon the earth; he commanded and the other

:

gods obeyed. They dwelt in their

golden halls, eating and drinking immortality: they had swift-footed Hermes to their messenger, and beautiful youths to fill their cups; they had the Nine Muses to sing before them, and Apollo himself to strike his lyre of many strings. But the Father of gods and men sat apart on the highest peak of the mountain,