nions. The enraged mother complained to Jupiter of the violence offered to her daughter by his brother Pluto. Jupiter promised that she should return to the earth, provided she had eaten nothing in hell. Upon which, Ceres went down rejoicing; and Proferpine was returning with transport, when Afcalaphus declared, that he faw Proferpine eat fome grains of a pomegranate, which the gathered in Pluto's orchard. By this discovery, her return was stopped. The mother, incensed at this intelligence, changed Afcalaphus into an owl; and, by her importunate intreaty, extorted from Jupiter, that Proferpine fhould live one half of the year with her, and the reft of the time with her husband Pluto. Proferpine afterwards fo loved this dif-` agreeable husband, that she became jealous of him, and changed his mistress Mentha into the herb. samed mint.

СНАР.

CHA P. XXXVI.

OF PLUTUS, NOX, CHARON, AND THE TITANS.

PLUTUS, god of riches, is faid to be blind,

ous.

void of judgment, and of a nature quite timor

All these qualities denote fome peculiar property of this god. He is blind, and void of judg ment, in the unequal diftribution of riches, as he frequently paffes by good men, whilft the wicked are loaded with wealth; and timorous, because the rich are conftantly in fear, and watch over their treasures with great care and anxiety.

Nox, goddess of darknefs, is the most ancient of all the goddeffes. She married the river Erebus in hell, by whom she had many daughters. Nox is painted in black robes befet with stars.

CHARON, the son of Erebus and Nox, is the ferryman of hell. He is reprefented by the poets as a terrible, grim, dirty, old fellow. According to the fable, he attended with his boat, and, for a fmall piece of money, carried over the river Styx the fouls of the dead; yet not all promifcuously, but only those whofe bodies were committed to grave. The unburied fhades wandered about

the

the

the fhores an hundred years, and then were admitted into the boat, and ferried over the lake.

The TITANS or GIANTS were at first inhabi→ tants of the earth, who, trufting to their great ftature and ftrength, waged war against Jupiter, and attempted to dethrone him from the poffeffion of heaven. In this battle they heaped up mountains upon mountains, and from thence darted trees. of fire into heaven. They hurled alfo prodigious ftones and folid rocks, which falling again upon the earth, or in the fea, became mountains or islands. But, being unfuccessful in the attempt, and deftroyed by the thunder of Jupiter, with the affistance of the other gods, they were driven from the earth, and caft into hell.

CHAP. XXXVII.

OF THE FATES, FURIES, AND HARPIES.

THE 'HE FATES were three in number, daugh

ters of Erebus and Nox. These were faid to prefide over time paft, prefent, and to come. Their naines are Clotho, Lachefis, and Atropos. Their of

fice

fice is to fuperintend, the thread of life. Clothe holds the diftaff, and draws the thread, Lachefis turns the spindle, and Atropos cuts the thread with her fciffars; that is, the firft calls us into life, the fecond determines our lot and condition, and the third finishes our life.

The FURIES, or Eumenides, were daughters of Nox and Acheron. They were three, namely, Alecto, Megæra, and Tifyphone. Their abode was in hell. to torment the wicked. They were armed with blazing torches, and furrounded with fnakes and other inftruments of horror.

The HARPIES, or birds of prey, were also in-habitants of hell. Thefe were indifferently called Furia, Ocypete, and Lamia. They were inftru ments in the hands of the gods to raise wars in the world, and disturb the peace of mankind.

CHA P. XXXVIII.

OF TARTARUS AND ELYSIUM.

THE

'HE infernal regions, the refidence of Pluto, are faid to be a fubterraneous cavern, whither the fhades or fouls of mortals defcended, and were

judged

judged by Minos,

acus, and Rhadamanthus, ap

pointed by Pluto judges of hell. This place contained Tartarus, the abode of the unhappy; alfo Elyfium, the abode of those that had lived well.

Cerberus, a dog with three heads, was doorkeeper, and, covered with ferpents, always waited at the infernal gate, to prevent mortals from entering, and the Manes or Shades from going out.

Charon, as before mentioned, was ferryman. of hell, and conducted the departed fouls to the tribunal of Minos.

THE

CHAP. XXXIX.

OF THE INFERNAL RIVERS.

HE rivers of Hell were, ACHERON, STYX,
COCYTUS, PHLEGETHON, and LETHE.

The waters of Acheron are extremely muddy and bitter.

Styx is the principal river of hell. It was held in fo great veneration by the gods, that whoever broke the oath he had once made by this river, was deprived of his divinity for one hundred years.

Cocytus