84 HESIOD.

The vaulted sky, the mount Olympian flashed With his continual presence, for he passed Incessant forth, and scattered fires on fires. Hurled from his hardy grasp the lightnings flew Reiterated swift : the whirling flash Cast sacred splendour, and the thunderbolt Fell : roared around the nurture-yielding earth In conflagration ; for on every side The immensity of forests crackling blazed : Yea, the broad earth burned red, the streams that mix With ocean and the deserts of the sea. Round and around the Titan brood of earth Rolled the hot vapour on its fiery surge. The liquid heat air's pure expanse divine Suffused : the radiance keen of quivering flame That shot from writhen lightnings, each dim orb, Strong though they were, intolerable smote, And scorched their blasted vision : through the void Of Erebus the preternatural glare Spread mingling fire with darkness. But to see With human eye and hear with the ear of man Had been as if midway the spacious heaven Hurtling with earth shocked e'en as nether earth Crashed from the centre, and the wreck of heaven Fell ruinous from high. So vast the din When, gods encountering gods, the clang of arms Commingled, and the tumult roared from heaven." E. 908-939. To heighten the turmoil, the winds and elements fight on the side of Zeus. The tide of battle turns. Jove's huge auxiliaries overwhelm the Titans with a succes- sion of great missiles, send them sheer beneath the earth, and consign them to a durance " as far beneath, under earth, as heaven is from earth, for equal is the