Just then, there came a splendid butterfly, fluttering along the meadow; and Cadmus, Phoenix, and Cilix set off in pursuit of it, crying out that it was a flower with wings.  Europa, who was a little wearied with playing all day long, did not chase the butterfly with her brothers, but sat still where they had left her, and closed her eyes.  For a while, she listened to the pleasant murmur of the sea, which was like a voice saying “Hush!” and bidding her go to sleep.  But the pretty child, if she slept at all, could not have slept more than a moment, when she heard something trample on the grass, not far from her, and peeping out from the heap of flowers, beheld a snow-white bull.

And whence could this bull have come?  Europa and her brothers had been a long time playing in the meadow, and had seen no cattle, nor other living thing, either there or on the neighbouring hills.

“Brother Cadmus!” cried Europa, starting up out of the midst of the roses and lilies.  “Phoenix!  Cilix!  Where are you all?  Help!  Help!  Come and drive away this bull!”

But her brothers were too far off to hear; especially as the fright took away Europa’s voice, and hindered her from calling very loudly.  So there she stood, with her pretty mouth wide open, as pale as the white lilies that were twisted among the other flowers in her garlands.

Nevertheless, it was the suddenness with which she had perceived the bull, rather than anything frightful in his appearance, that caused Europa so much alarm.  On looking at him more attentively, she began to see that he was a beautiful animal, and even fancied a particularly amiable expression in his face.  As for his breath—­the breath of cattle, you know, is always sweet—­it was as fragrant as if he had been grazing on no other food than rosebuds, or, at least, the most delicate of clover blossoms.  Never before did a bull have such bright and tender eyes, and such smooth horns of ivory, as this one.  And the bull ran little races, and capered sportively around the child; so that she quite forgot how big and strong he was, and, from the gentleness and playfulness of his actions, soon came to consider him as innocent a creature as a pet lamb.

Thus, frightened as she at first was, you might by and by have seen Europa stroking the bull’s forehead with her small white hand, and taking the garlands off her own head to hang them on his neck and ivory horns.  Then she pulled up some blades of grass, and he ate them out of her hand, not as if he were hungry, but because he wanted to be friends with the child, and took pleasure in eating what she had touched.  Well, my stars! was there ever such a gentle, sweet, pretty, and amiable creature as this bull, and ever such a nice playmate for a little girl?