GORDIAN

RNO?,. THE. Phry iter oy riage 2 oracle at De ated | on choice of a king, were told to) the Grst man they met riding on an tory | chariot towards the temple of Zeus. rica. | According to the lerend, the choice fell zin|on a peasant, Gordias, who afterwards rms, | dedicated his chariot to Zeas. He ts sald weal, | to have fastened the pole of the chariot te was the yoke with such an intricate knot that, rtu- | in time, a report spread that the man who | could untie it would conquer Asia. Alex- (376 | ander of Macedon made short work of the > SO | difficult task by cutting through the knot nce | with his sword. ‘** To cat the Gordian yver | knot” now denotes a rough and ready by | manner of solving a difficulty. hed | GORDON, [s. 159]