Full of these remembrances , he came within sight of a lofty mountain , which the people thereabouts told him was called Parnassus . On the slope of Mount Parnassus was the famous Delphi , whither Cadmus was going . This Delphi was supposed to be the very midmost spot of the whole world . The place of the oracle was a certain cavity in the mountain side , over which , when Cadmus came thither , he found a rude bower of branches . It reminded him of those which he had helped to build for Phoenix and Cilix , and afterwards for Thasus . In later times , when multitudes of people came from great distances to put questions to the oracle , a spacious temple of marble was erected over the spot . But in the days of Cadmus , as I have told you , there was only this rustic bower , with its abundance of green foliage , and a tuft of shrubbery , that ran wild over the mysterious hole in the hillside . When Cadmus had thrust a passage through the tangled boughs , and made his way into the bower , he did not at first discern the half-hidden cavity . But soon he felt a cold stream of air rushing out of it , with so much force that it shook the ringlets on his cheek . Pulling away the shrubbery which clustered over the hole , he bent forward , and spoke in a distinct but reverential tone , as if addressing some unseen personage inside of the mountain . `` Sacred oracle of Delphi , '' said he , `` whither shall I go next in quest of my dear sister Europa ? '' There was at first a deep silence , and then a rushing sound , or a noise like a long sigh , proceeding out of the interior of the earth . This cavity , you must know , was looked upon as a sort of fountain of truth , which sometimes gushed out in audible words ; although , for the most part , these words were such a riddle that they might just as well have staid at the bottom of the hole . But Cadmus was more fortunate than many others who went to Delphi in search of truth . By and by , the rushing noise began to sound like articulate language . It repeated , over and over again , the following sentence , which , after all , was so like the vague whistle of a blast of air , that Cadmus really did not quite know whether it meant anything or not : `` Seek her no more ! Seek her no more ! Seek her no more ! '' `` What , then , shall I do ? '' asked Cadmus .
For , ever since he was a child , you know , it had been the great object XXXXX his life to find his sister .
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