“Then at once the Dolphin disappeared and in his stead stood a young man strong and beautiful with golden locks out-sprayed upon the winds and eyes whose light was as the dawn of day.”
Theria would clap her hands softly, saying, “And he leaped upon the shore, our dear Apollo, and beckoned the men with his hand.” She knew the tale by heart.
Nikander would continue, smiling:
“And Apollo, lightly stepping, playing upon his heavenly lyre, led the Cretans hither, right by the place where our house now stands and up to the ‘place of golden tripods’ yonder.
“‘This is to be yours,’ he told the Cretans. ‘Here shall ye serve my oracle.’
“Then the Cretans looked about them. They saw the sterile cliffs and rocky hillsides on which nothing would grow. And they asked in apprehension:
“‘How can we live in this place, O Lord Apollo? Here will no grain grow, no cattle find fodder. Here we cannot fish.’”
The children laughed at this.
“Fish! O foolish, foolish Cretans!”
“Yes, foolish Cretans. So Apollo called them. ‘Do ye so love to delve in the earth, and sweat? Do ye so love to be buffeted by salt water and bitter winds? A secret I will tell you! Sit ye here, attend my worship, and all the nations of the earth shall bring you gifts. My altars shall smoke with the fat of lambs, my temples glow with golden things. But your duty shall be to guard my temple and to receive kindly in my name the tribes of men who gather here.