was never seen in the world, before nor since.
There can be nothing else so intricate, unless it
were the brain of a man like Dcedalus, who
planned it, or the heart of any ordinary man;
which last, to be sure, is ten times as great a
mystery as the labyrinth of Crete. Theseus had
not taken five steps before he lost sight of Ari-
adne; and in five more his head was crowing
dizzy. But still he went on, now creeping
through a low arch, now ascending a flight of
steps, now in one crooked passage, and now in
another, with here a door opening before him,
and there one banging behind, until it really
seemed as if the walls spun round, and whirled
him round along with them. And all the while,
through these hollow avenues, now nearer, now
farther off again, resounded the cry of the Mino-
taur; and the sound was so fierce, so cruel, so
ugly, so like a bull's roar, and withal so like a
human voice, and yet like neither of them, that
the brave heart of Theseus, grew sterner and
angrier at every step; for he felt it an insult
to the moon and sky, and to our affectionate
and simple Mother Earth, that such a monster
should have the audacity to exist.

[[59]]

p058 _ -chap- _ toc-1 _ p059w _ toc-2 _ +chap+ _ p060

v?