She looked up and saw in the doorway a tall woman wrapped in a long cloak.  Her face was fair to see, but stern, oh, so stern! and her gray eyes were so sharp and bright that Arachne could not meet her gaze.

“Arachne,” said the woman, “I am Athena, the queen of the air, and I have heard your boast.  Do you still mean to say that I have not taught you how to spin and weave?”

“No one has taught me,” said Arachne; “and I thank no one for what I know;” and she stood up, straight and proud, by the side of her loom.

“And do you still think that you can spin and weave as well as I?” said Athena.

Arachne’s cheeks grew pale, but she said:  “Yes.  I can weave as well as you.”

“Then let me tell you what we will do,” said Athena.  “Three days from now we will both weave; you on your loom, and I on mine.  We will ask all the world to come and see us; and great Jupiter, who sits in the clouds, shall be the judge.  And if your work is best, then I will weave no more so long as the world shall last; but if my work is best, then you shall never use loom or spindle or distaff again.  Do you agree to this?” “I agree,” said Arachne.

“It is well,” said Athena.  And she was gone.

II.  THE WOOF.

When the time came for the contest in weaving, all the world was there to see it, and great Jupiter sat among the clouds and looked on.

Arachne had set up her loom in the shade of a mulberry tree, where butterflies were flitting and grasshoppers chirping all through the livelong day.  But Athena had set up her loom in the sky, where the breezes were blowing and the summer sun was shining; for she was the queen of the air.

Then Arachne took her skeins of finest silk and began to weave.  And she wove a web of marvelous beauty, so thin and light that it would float in the air, and yet so strong that it could hold a lion in its meshes; and the threads of warp and woof were of many colors, so beautifully arranged and mingled one with another that all who saw were filled with delight.

“No wonder that the maiden boasted of her skill,” said the people.

And Jupiter himself nodded.

Then Athena began to weave.  And she took of the sunbeams that gilded the mountain top, and of the snowy fleece of the summer clouds, and of the blue ether of the summer sky, and of the bright green of the summer fields, and of the royal purple of the autumn woods,—­and what do you suppose she wove?

The web which she wove in the sky was full of enchanting pictures of flowers and gardens, and of castles and towers, and of mountain heights, and of men and beasts, and of giants and dwarfs, and of the mighty beings who dwell in the clouds with Jupiter.  And those who looked upon it were so filled with wonder and delight, that they forgot all about the beautiful web which Arachne had woven.  And Arachne herself was ashamed and afraid when she saw it; and she hid her face in her hands and wept.