To do his errands and carry his messages through the universe the supreme god Zeus had a herald, Hermes, the god of the wind. As the wind blows out of the great sky, so Hermes descended from Olympus to earth to do the sky god's bidding. Equipped as a herald he wore a winged cap and winged sandals, which carried him about with great speed. He had also a short sword bent like a scythe, given him by Zeus with the cap and sandals. He possessed the strange power of making himself invisible, and of assuming different forms. As he had besides a ready wit and an eloquent tongue, he could make himself very useful. It was one of his common tasks to carry sleep to mortals, and his most solemn office was to conduct the souls of the dying to the other world.

This is the way the Odyssey describes Hermes setting forth on one of the errands of Zeus:—

One of the most famous adventures of Hermes was the slaying of the many-eyed monster Argus, from whom he rescued the unhappy Io. This is why the old Greek poet, whom we have quoted, calls the god the Argicide. Another of his well known missions was the care of the motherless infant Bacchus, whom he conveyed to the nymphs of Nysa to be reared. An adventurer himself, Hermes was ever ready to aid heroes in their exploits. It was with his sword that Perseus cut off the Gorgon's head: we may read the story in Hawthorne's "Wonder-Book" and Kingsley's "Greek Heroes."

Nor was Hermes above a bit of mischief now and then. An old Homeric hymn tells of a sly prank he played upon Apollo, when he was a mere baby, stealing the herds of Admetus which Apollo was keeping. He was an ingenious fellow too, and this is how he invented the lyre. Taking from the beach a tortoise, he cleaned out the shell, pierced it with holes, and stretched from hole to hole, at regular intervals, cords of sheep gut.

With this instrument Apollo was so delighted that Hermes straightway presented it to him, to make some amends, as it were, for the injury done him. In return Apollo bestowed the caduceus, or wand, upon Hermes, and the two gods vowed eternal friendship.

The Greeks were very fond of their god Hermes. He was not too grand to be companionable, like the awe-inspiring Zeus or the haughty Apollo. They thought of him as a blithe, gentle being whose lighthearted ways and easy good nature made him a general favorite. It was an early custom to set up in his honor stone posts at the crossroads. Sometimes they were topped by the heads of other gods, but these were called for him, hermÆ. In the course of time better statues were made in full length figure. The head reproduced in our illustration is from such an one which used to stand in a temple of Olympia, from the ruins of which it was unearthed a few years ago.

The entire right arm and parts of both legs are missing, but the other portions of the statue show the god's position. He is leaning against a tree trunk, holding on his left arm the infant Bacchus, who was, as we have seen, consigned to his care by Zeus. Hermes is not, however, looking at the child, but gazes dreamily before him, his head bent in the pensive pose which we see. The features are cut with typical Greek regularity, but the countenance has besides its own individual charm. The droop of the upper eyelid suggests a dreamy nature, and in the curve of the smiling lips is a hint of playfulness. The lower forehead is full, showing over the eyes the bar of flesh which marks the strongly masculine nature. The closely cropped curls preserve the perfect contour of the head. The small, beautiful ear is as daintily modeled as the ringlets of hair.

The face wins us at once with its gentle amiability. It is tender and playful, and withal exquisitely refined and courteous. What a deferential listener is suggested in that pose of the head! The pure outline of the face calls to mind those knights of chivalry who gathered about King Arthur's Round Table, and one wonders if Sir Galahad himself might not have looked like this.

This statue is the work of the great sculptor Praxiteles, and is the only original marble in existence direct from his hands. All the rest of his work is known from descriptions and copies. We can understand, then, how sculptors and critics the world over have examined it to study the sculptor's methods. It is of Parian marble, much stained with iron rust from its long entombment under the soil.