The traveller proceeded to tell how he had chased a very swift stag , for a twelve-month together , without ever stopping to take breath , and had at last caught it by the antlers , and carried it home alive . And he had fought with a very odd race of people , half horses and half men , and had put them all to death , from a sense of duty , in order that their ugly figures might never be seen any more . Besides all this , he took to himself great credit for having cleaned out a stable . `` Do you call that a wonderful exploit ? '' asked one of the young maidens , with a smile . `` Any clown in the country has done as much ! '' `` Had it been an ordinary stable , '' replied the stranger , `` I should not have mentioned it . But this was so gigantic a task that it would have taken me all my life to perform it , if I had not luckily thought of turning the channel of a river through the stable-door . That did the business in a very short time ! '' Seeing how earnestly his fair auditors listened , he next told them how he had shot some monstrous birds , and had caught a wild bull alive , and let him go again , and had tamed a number of very wild horses , and had conquered Hippolyta , the warlike queen of the Amazons . He mentioned , likewise , that he had taken off Hippolyta 's enchanted girdle , and had given it to the daughter of his cousin , the king . `` Was it the girdle of Venus , '' inquired the prettiest of the damsels , `` which makes women beautiful ? '' `` No , '' answered the stranger . `` It had formerly been the sword-belt of Mars ; and it can only make the wearer valiant and courageous . '' `` An old sword-belt ! '' cried the damsel , tossing her head . `` Then I should not care about having it ! '' `` You are right , '' said the stranger . Going on with his wonderful narrative , he informed the maidens that as strange an adventure as ever happened was when he fought with Geryon , the six-legged man . This was a very odd and frightful sort of figure , as you may well believe .
Any person , looking at his tracks in the sand or snow , would suppose XXXXX three sociable companions had been walking along together .
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