1 20 Gleanings from the 



deities, who firft rides a panther, as Silenus, an afs. 

 Heroes, fuch as Perfeus, Thefeus, and the Diofcuri, 

 are mounted on horfes. Okeanus beftrides a winged 

 fteed (" Prom. Vin6L," 395). The northern gods 

 generally ride ; Odin on Sleipnir. He faddles it 

 for himfelf. Night had a fteed Hrimfaxi (rimy- 

 mane), as Day had Skinfaxi (mining-mane). 1 In 

 the earlieft period of Teutonic mythology the 

 horfe feems to have been the favourite animal for 

 facrifice. There is no doubt that before the intro- 

 duction of Chriftianity its flefh was conftantly 

 eaten. Nothing in the ways of the heathen was 

 fo offenfive to the new converts as the not giving 

 up the killing of horfes and eating of their flem. 2 

 Cascina, on approaching the fcene of the over- 

 throw of Varus, faw horfes' heads faftened to 

 the ftems of trees. Thefe were the Roman horfes 

 which had been offered up to the German gods. 3 



The Roman "horfey" man ufed to fwear by 

 Hippona, a goddefs of horfes. His Greek equiva- 

 lent appears at the beginning of the " Clouds " of 

 Ariftophanes. The horfe, like the camel, is not 

 found on the moft ancient Egyptian monuments : 

 " Tout ce qu'il eft prudent d'en conclure, c'eft que 

 ces animaux n'etaient ni Tun ni 1'autre abondants 

 en Egypte du temps de 1'ancien empire, et qu'ils 

 n'etaient point encore comptes alors en nombre des 

 animaux domeftiques " (Chabas, p. 423). 



Such are fome of the great affociations connected 

 with horfes in heroic days. Argos, Epidaurus, 



1 Grimm's "Northern Mythol.," ed. Stallybrafs, i. 328. 



2 Ibid., p. 47. 3 T ac>> "Ann.," i. 61. 



