Theseus, however, being his own master, gave preference to those struggles which would make him a benefactor of either the Greeks at large or of his native land. Thus, the bull let loose by Poseidon which was ravaging the land of Attica, a beast which all men lacked the courage to confront, Theseus singlehanded subdued, and set free the inhabitants of the city from great fear and anxiety.

And after this, allying himself with the Lapiths, he took the field against the Centaurs, those creatures of double nature, endowed with surpassing swiftness, strength, and daring, who were sacking, or about to sack, or were threatening, one city after another. These he conquered in battle and straightway put an end to their insolence, and not long thereafter he caused their race to disappear from the sight of men.

At about the same time appeared the monsterThe Minotaur, “the bull of Minos,” to whom seven boys and seven girls were annually sent as tribute by the Athenians; cf. Plat. Phaedo 58a. reared in Crete, the offspring of Pasipha, daughter of Helius, to whom our city was sending, in accordance with an oracle's command, tribute of twice seven children. When Theseus saw these being led away, and the entire populace escorting them, to a death savage and foreseen, and being mourned as dead while yet living, he was so incensed that he thought it better to die than to live as ruler of a city that was compelled to pay to the enemy a tribute so lamentable.

Having embarked with them for Crete, he subdued this monster, half-man and half-bull, which possessed strength commensurate with its composite origin, and having rescued the children, he restored them to their parents, and thus freed the city from an obligation so savage, so terrible, and so ineluctable.

But I am at a loss how to deal with what remains to be said; for, now that I have taken up the deeds of Theseus and begun to speak of them, I hesitate to stop midway and leave unmentioned the lawlessness of ScironA mythical robber who haunted the rocks between Attica and Megara. and of Cercyon and of other robbers like them whom he fought and vanquished and thereby delivered the Greeks from many great calamities.

But, on the other hand, I perceive that I am being carried beyond the proper limits of my theme and I fear that some may think that I am more concerned with Theseus than with the subject which I originally choseSee the Introduction to this discourse.. In this dilemma I prefer to omit the greater part of what might be said, out of regard for impatient hearers, and to give as concise an account as I can of the rest, that I may gratify both them and myself and not make a complete surrender to those whose habit it is out of jealousy to find fault with everything that is said.