Part 32 (1/2)
[244] Servants of Pisthetaerus and Euelpides.
[245] It has already been mentioned that, according to the legend followed by Aristophanes, Procne had been changed into a nightingale and Philomela into a swallow.
[246] The actor, representing Procne, was dressed out as a courtesan, but wore the mask of a bird.
[247] Young unmarried girls wore golden ornaments; the apparel of married women was much simpler.
[248] The actor, representing Procne, was a flute-player.
[249] The parabasis.
[250] A sophist of the island of Ceos, a disciple of Protagoras, as celebrated for his knowledge as for his eloquence. The Athenians condemned him to death as a corrupter of youth in 396 B.C.
[251] Lovers were wont to make each other presents of birds. The c.o.c.k and the goose are mentioned, of course, in jest.
[252] i.e. that it gave notice of the approach of winter, during which season the Ancients did not venture to sea.
[253] A notorious robber.
[254] Meaning, ”_We are your oracles._”--Dodona was an oracle in Epirus.--The temple of Zeus there was surrounded by a dense forest, all the trees of which were endowed with the gift of prophecy; both the sacred oaks and the pigeons that lived in them answered the questions of those who came to consult the oracle in pure Greek.
[255] The Greek word for _omen_ is the same as that for _bird_--[Greek: ornis].
[256] A satire on the pa.s.sion of the Greeks for seeing an omen in everything.
[257] An imitation of the nightingale's song.
[258] G.o.d of the groves and wilds.
[259] The 'Mother of the G.o.ds'; roaming the mountains, she held dances, always attended by Pan and his accompanying rout of Fauns and Satyrs.
[260] An allusion to c.o.c.k-fighting; the birds are armed with brazen spurs.
[261] An allusion to the spots on this bird, which resemble the scars left by a branding iron.
[262] He was of Asiatic origin, but wished to pa.s.s for an Athenian.
[263] Or Philamnon, King of Thrace; the Scholiast remarks that the Phrygians and the Thracians had a common origin.
[264] The Greek word here, [Greek: pappos], is also the name of a little bird.
[265] A basket-maker who had become rich.--The Phylarchs were the headmen of the tribes, [Greek: Phulai]. They presided at the private a.s.semblies and were charged with the management of the treasury.--The Hipparchs, as the name implies, were the leaders of the cavalry; there were only two of these in the Athenian army.
[266] He had now become a senator, member of the [Greek: Boul_e].
[267] Pisthetaerus and Euelpides now both return with wings.
[268] Meaning, 'tis we who wanted to have these wings.--The verse from Aeschylus, quoted here, is taken from 'The Myrmidons,' a tragedy of which only a few fragments remain.
[269] The Greek word signified the city of Sparta, and also a kind of broom used for weaving rough matting, which served for the beds of the very poor.