Page:History of Greece Vol I.djvu/97

 LEGENDS RELATING TO HEROES AND MEN. 65 First (he tells us) the Olympic gods made the golden race, good, perfect, and happy men, who lived from the spontaneous abundance of the earth, in ease and tranquillity like the gods themselves : they suffered neither disease nor old age, and theii death was like a gentle sleep. After death they became, by the award of Zeus, guardian terrestrial daemons, who watch unseen over the proceedings of mankind with the regal privilege of dispensing to them wealth, and taking account of good and bad deeds. 1 Next, the gods made the silver race, unlike and greatly infe- rior, both in mind and body, to the golden. The men of this race were reckless and mischievous towards each other, and dis- dainful of the immortal gods, to whom they refused to offer either worship or sacrifice. Zeus in his wrath buried them in the earth : but there they still enjoy a secondary honor, as the 'Blest of the under-world. 2 Thirdly, Zeus made the brazen race, quite different from the silver. They were made of hard ash-wood, pugnacious and ter- rible ; they were of immense strength and adamantine soul, nor did they raise or touch bread. Their arms, their houses, and their implements were all of brass : there was then no iron. This race, eternally fighting, perished by each other's hands, died out, and descended without name or privilege to Hades. 3 Catalogue of Women, as Marktscheffel considers it, placing it Fragm. 133) gives the parentage of a certain Brotos, who must probably be intended as the first of men : Bporof, (if ftlv Ei>^uepof 6 ~Meaa^viOf , airb BpoTov TIVOC aiiTox&ovoc 6 6s 'tlacodof, into BpoTov TOV A.Wepo<; Kal 'H/*epaf. 1 Opp. Di. 120. AvTup kireid^ TOVTO yevog KOTU. yala KU^VSV Tol /J.EV 6aifj.ovE<; slat Aic>f peyahov 610. Ol pa fyvhuaaovaiv re diftaf KOI tr^eivUo! epya, 'Ht'pa taoa/tevoi, TTUVTT) Qoiruvref kit 1 alav HhovTotiorcu Kal TOVTO yepac fiaaiTiTjiov a%ov. AvT&p tirel Kal TOVTO -yevof KaT(i yala Ka7^vij), Tol [iev imo%&6vioi fiuKapef dvrjTol KaTieovTai Aeirepoi, (M? e/ZTr^f TI/J.TJ Kal Totatv btrrjSeZ. 3 The ash was the wood out of which spear-handles were made (Iliad, xvi 142): the NvpQai Me/U<u arc born along with the Gigantes and the Erin VOL. I. 5OC.
 * 0pp. Di. 140.