Nature Myths and Stories for Little Children Part 8

Around his neck they read this message, "This is my husband here.

"For his child he gives his liver to the princess, dear. I, his very lowly wife, have brought it."

[Ill.u.s.tration]

PERSEPHONE.

Demeter had the care of all the plants, fruits and grains in the world.

She taught the people how to plow the fields and plant the seeds.

She helped them gather in their harvests.

They loved the kind earth-mother and gladly obeyed her.

They also loved her daughter, the beautiful Persephone.

Persephone wandered all day in the meadows among the flowers.

Wherever she went the birds, singing merrily, flocked after her.

The people said, "Where Persephone is, there is the warm suns.h.i.+ne.

"Flowers bloom when she smiles.

"Listen to her voice; it is like a bird's song."

Demeter wished always to have her child near her.

One day Persephone went alone into a meadow near the sea. She had made a wreath for her hair, and gathered all the flowers that her ap.r.o.n could hold.

Far away across the meadow she saw a white flower gleaming. She ran to it and found that it was a narcissus, but far more beautiful than any she had ever seen.

On a single stem were a hundred blossoms. She tried to pick it, but the stem would not break. With all her strength she grasped it, and slowly it came up by the roots.

It left a great opening in the earth which grew larger and larger.

Persephone heard a rumbling like thunder under her feet. Then she saw four black horses coming toward her from the opening.

Behind them was a chariot made of gold and precious stones.

In it sat a dark, stern man. It was Hades.

He had come up from his land of darkness, and was shading his eyes with his hands.

He saw Persephone, beautiful with flowers, and instantly caught her in his arms and placed her in the chariot beside him.

The flowers fell from her ap.r.o.n. "Oh! my pretty flowers," she cried, "I have lost them all."

Then she saw the stern face of Hades.

Frightened, she stretched out her hands to kind Apollo who was driving his chariot overhead. She called to her mother for help.

Hades drove straight toward his dark underground home.

The horses seemed to fly.

As they left the light, Hades tried to comfort Persephone.

He told her of the wonders of his kingdom. He had gold and silver and all kinds of precious stones.

Persephone saw gems glittering on every side as they went along, but she did not care for them.

Hades told her how lonely he was, and that he wished her to be his queen and share all his riches.

Persephone did not want to be a queen. She longed only for her mother and the bright suns.h.i.+ne.

Soon they came to the land of Hades.

It seemed very dark and dismal to Persephone, and very cold, too.

A feast was ready for her, but she would not eat.

She knew that any one who ate in Hades' home could never return to earth again.

She was very unhappy, though Hades tried in many ways to please her.

Everything on the earth was unhappy, too.

One by one the flowers hung their heads and said, "We cannot bloom, for Persephone has gone." The trees dropped their leaves and moaned, "Persephone has gone, gone."

The birds flew away and said, "We cannot sing for Persephone has gone."

Demeter was more miserable than any one else. She had heard Persephone call her, and had gone straight home.

She searched all the earth for her child. She asked every one she met these questions, "Have you seen Persephone? Where is Persephone?"

The only answer she ever received was, "Gone, gone, Persephone is gone!"

Demeter became a wrinkled old woman. No one would have known that she was the kind mother who had always smiled on the people.

Nothing grew on the earth and all was dreary and barren.

Demeter said that she would do nothing until Persephone returned to her.