ἐντὸς δὲ ἀπηξιώθησαν, ἔνθα ̓Αγαμέμνων τε αὐτὸς ἔκειτο καὶ οἱ σὺν αὐτῷ φονευθέντες.

1492 ȧyov, discrimen, the issue: cp. O. C. 587: Eur. Ph. 588 μῆτερ, οὐ λόγων ἔθ ̓ ἁγών.

1494 πρόχειρος . . κτανεῖν. In its primary and usual sense, TрóxЄipos denotes what is ready in the hand (1116). Here it passes into a wholly different sense, applied to a person whose hand is 'forward' or ready, as πрółчμоs is one whose spirit is forward. Cp. Eur. H. F. 161 Tỷ νy рóxεpos v, 'prompt for fight" (= φεύγειν).

1495 μὴ τάσσε: cp. Ant. 664 τοἐπιτάσσειν τοῖς κρατύνουσιν.—ἔνθαπερ, i.e. (ἐκεῖσε) ἔνθαπερ : cp. 1099. The place meant is the μéyapov of the house see on 268 f.

1497 f. πâơ ȧváyêŋ, as O. T. 986, Her. 2. 22, Plat. Phaedo p. 67 A, etc.—τά τ ̓ ὄντα καὶ μέλλοντα: for the omission of the art. with the second partic., cp. 991 n.

Aegisthus means: Must this house witness, not only those sorrows of our family which exist already, but those others which are to come, if I am slain?' He speaks of his impending doom as if it were due, not to his own crimes, but to the working of the hereditary apá, and implies that it will be followed by other deeds of bloodshed. In saying Пeλomidŵv, he appeals, as a last hope, to family sympathies.

1499 Tà Your σ': oá, though emphatic, is elided; see on Ο. Τ. 64 πόλιν τε καμὲ καὶ σ ̓ ὁμοῦ στένει. —ἄκρος: cp. Aesch. Αg. 1130 οὐ κομπάσαιμ ̓ ἂν θεσφάτων γνώμων ἄκρος | εἶναι.

1500 τὴν τέχνην, i.ε., τὴν μαντικήν. Agamemnon fell into the snare laid for him: Ag. 911 ἐς δῶμ ̓ ἄελπτον ὡς ἂν ἡγῆται Δίκη.—Cp. Αi. 1121 οὐ γὰρ βάναυσον τὴν τέχνην ἐκτησάμην.

150I Cp. O. C. 1628 πάλαι δὴ τἀπὸ σοῦ βραδύνεται.

1502 The double change of person within the verse (Or. —Aeg.-Or.) is rare. As G. Wolff observes, there is no instance of it in Aesch.; in Soph. the only other examples occur in the two latest plays, O. C. 832, Ph. 810, 814, 816, at moments of high excitement.

pp. The word is always so written here, as if Orestes could foresee that Aegisthus would utter an aspirated word. Similar instances occur elsewhere. In the theatre, we must suppose, the actor said pe at full length: and possibly the poet so wrote it.

1503 f.μ úyw ore; (dost thou do this), lest..?' Cp. Ο. Τ. 1012 ἢ μὴ μίασμα τῶν φυτευσάντων λάβῃς;-μὲν οὖν: O. T. 705.—κal' ýdovηv lávys; i.e., with such comfort as would

be given by permission to choose the place or mode of death.

Cp. 1493.

1505-1507 The imperf. Xpîv, with elva, implies that, though it ought to be so, it is not. The sense is, in substance, what might be expressed by a conditional sentence, de δίκη ἦν ἂν τοῖς πᾶσιν, εἰ τὸ εἰκὸς ἔπαθον.—εὐθὺς, immediately after the crime in each case; Aegisthus has enjoyed too long an impunity. Cp. 13 f. n.-0e is better here than o, since it suggests more clearly the reference to the actual case of Aegisthus. Toîs Tâσw...8σTIS: cp. Ai. 760, where oσris refers to owμara in 758: Ant. 709, where ouro follows oσTIs in 707.

πράσσειν γε: γε emphasises, not πράσσειν, but rather the whole sentence, and might have immediately followed oσris, if metre had allowed.

κτείνειν, rather than θνῄσκειν, because the speaker is himself the executioner. For the emphatic place of the word, cp. 957 Αἴγισθον.—τὸ πανούργον, equiv. in sense to οἱ πανούργοι: cp. 972 n.: Thuc. I. I3 rò Anor còn kampovv.—Shakesp. Meas. for Meas. act 2, sc. 2, 91: 'Those many had not dared to do that evil, | If the first that did the edict infringe | Had answer'd for his deed.'

Orestes drives Aegisthus into the house.

1508 ὦ σπέρμ' Ατρέως. The dynasty of the Atreidae (δεσ Tóται oi Táλαι, 764) is about to be restored in the person of the rightful heir, Orestes (162), who displaces the usurper Aegisthus, the representative of the Thyestidae.

For

1509 δι' ἐλευθερίας.. ἐξῆλθες, come forth in freedom. Sia denoting the state, cp. Thuc. 6. 34 § 2 aeì dià póßov eiơí. The phrase here is in one respect peculiar. When the verb denotes motion, diá in this idiom usu. denotes a course of action, and not a state; e.g., Thuc. 6. 60 § 3 Sià díkŋs ¿XOeîv, Her. 6. 9 διὰ μάχης ἐλεύσονται.

1510 opμn, the enterprise of the avengers against the tyrants. Cp. Xen. An. 3. 1. το οὐ γὰρ ᾔδει τὴν ἐπὶ βασιλέα opun ('the purpose to attack him ').—reλewoév, 'consummated,' 'perfected'; i.e., 'made completely prosperous.' The word is applied to those who attain maturity in body and mind; Plat. Rep. 487 Α τελειωθεῖσι .. παιδείᾳ τε καὶ ἡλικίᾳ.

This play contains no presage of trouble to come, and fitly ends with the word reλew0év. Contrast the closing words of the Choephori (1075 f.): ποῖ δῆτα κρανεῖ, ποῖ καταλήξει | μετακοιμισθὲν μένος ἄτης;

INDEXES.

I. GREEK.

The number denotes the verse, in the note on which the word or matter is
illustrated. When the reference is to a page, p. is prefixed to the
number. )( means, 'as distinguished from.'