Thus, while on the one hand the various cycles traced and retraced by all nations are similar and y et independent, on the other hand, being actually derived from Roman history, they become converted in the Scienza nuova into a bed of Procrustes, to which the history of all nations has to be fitted by force.
He is famous for his numerous amours, especially with the nymphs of springs and fountains; his offspring were mostly wild and cruel, like the sea - the Laestrygones, Polyphemus, Antaeus, Procrustes and the like.
When a stranger claimed his hospitality, Procrustes compelled him, if he was tall, to lie down on the short bed, and then cut off his extremities to make him fit.
The "bed of Procrustes" has become proverbial.