At first , King Minos will be angry ; but he will soon forgive his only child ; and , by and by , he will rejoice , I know , that no more youths and maidens must come from Athens to be devoured by the Minotaur . I have saved you , Theseus , as much for my father 's sake as for your own . Farewell ! Heaven bless you ! '' All this was so true , and so maiden-like , and was spoken with so sweet a dignity , that Theseus would have blushed to urge her any longer . Nothing remained for him , therefore , but to bid Ariadne an affectionate farewell , and to go on board the vessel , and set sail . In a few moments the white foam was boiling up before their prow , as Prince Theseus and his companions sailed out of the harbor , with a whistling breeze behind them . Talus , the brazen giant , on his never-ceasing sentinel 's march , happened to be approaching that part of the coast ; and they saw him , by the glimmering of the moonbeams on his polished surface , while he was yet a great way off . As the figure moved like clockwork , however , and could neither hasten his enormous strides nor retard them , he arrived at the port when they were just beyond the reach of his club . Nevertheless , straddling from headland to headland , as his custom was , Talus attempted to strike a blow at the vessel , and , overreaching himself , tumbled at full length into the sea , which splashed high over his gigantic shape , as when an iceberg turns a somerset . There he lies yet ; and whoever desires to enrich himself by means of brass had better go thither with a diving bell , and fish up Talus . On the homeward voyage , the fourteen youths and damsels were in excellent spirits , as you will easily suppose . They spent most of their time in dancing , unless when the sidelong breeze made the deck slope too much . In due season , they came within sight of the coast of Attica , which was their native country . But here , I am grieved to tell you , happened a sad misfortune . You will remember -LRB- what Theseus unfortunately forgot -RRB- that his father , King Aegeus , had enjoined it upon him to hoist sunshiny sails , instead of black ones , in case he should overcome the Minotaur , and return victorious . In the joy of their success , however , and amidst the sports , dancing , and other merriment , with which these young folks wore away the time , they never once thought whether their sails were black , white , or rainbow colored , and , indeed , left it entirely to the mariners whether they had any sails at all . Thus the vessel returned , like a raven , with the same sable wings that had wafted her away . But poor King Aegeus , day after day , infirm as he was , had clambered to the summit of a cliff that overhung the sea , and there sat watching for Prince Theseus , homeward bound ; and no sooner did he behold the fatal blackness of the sails , than he concluded that his dear son , whom he loved so much , and felt so proud of , had been eaten by the Minotaur . He could not bear the thought of living any longer ; so , first flinging his crown and sceptre into the sea -LRB- useless baubles that they were to him now -RRB- , King Aegeus merely stooped forward , and fell headlong over the cliff , and was drowned , poor soul , in the waves that foamed at its base !
This was melancholy news for Prince Theseus , who , when he stepped ashore , found himself king of all the country , whether he would or no ; and such a turn of fortune was enough XXXXX make any young man feel very much out of spirits .
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