1-115. In this long prooemium the poet both addresses and eulogises the Muses, to whose injunction and inspiration, at a time when he was a shepherd on Mount Helicon, he attributes his faculty of song, while the subject he proposes was suggested by them as they were singing the praises of the gods in a procession by night from Helicon. There is much probability in the opinion of Hermann, that the present introduction has been variously arranged, altered, and enlarged by successive rhapsodists. He discriminates not less than seven distinct, recensions, in other words, so many separate prooemia prefixed to the Theogony by those professional reciters of it, the union of all which by the earlier copyists resulted in the present incongruous medley. In some of these he supposes only the first line to have existed, followed immediately by v. 22, or v. 53, or v. 94. In others he thinks v. 5-10 were wanting, or only 3-4, together with 22-74; while in some recensions he conceives the prooemium ended with v. 52, in others with v. 21, or with v. 74. All this is, of course, but conjecjural; and we can only say of his theory, that each of these presumed recensions would present in itself a

tolerably complete and connected narrative, free from the repetitions which at present involve and disfigure it. Dr. Flach regards as spurious the whole passage from v. 5 to v. 35, and 43—103. Schoemann (com. crit. p. 62) observes, "sunt autem partes tres (prooemii) distinguendae, quarum prima usque ad v. 36, poetam Musarum instinctu ad canendum provocatum esse memorat, altera usque ad v. 104 tota in Musarum laudibus versatur, tertia usque ad v. 115 brevem rerum in theogonia proponendarum indicem habet." It is to be remarked that a similar proëme to Zeus and the Muses commences the ̓́Εργα καὶ Ἡμέραι.

1. Μουσάων κ.τ.λ. 'From the Muses of Helicon begin we to sing.' This was the usual formula, or a similar one k Aids ȧpxwμeσea, such as we find in the Homeric hymns.-'EXIkwviάdwv is not a mere epithet, but is added because Helicon was also the poet's abode, so that he claims them, as it were, κатà συγγένειαν. The form Ελικωνιὰς is to be compared with 'Aσiàs, 'Aσwπiàs, (Here. Fur. 785,) Ziμoevtiàs, Rhes. 826. We have 'Exiкwviάdwv in Herc. F. 791. Cf. 'Epy. 658.

2. at Feλik@vos. Flach, Inf. 23. This word does not take the digamma.

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3. The combinations καί τε, καί νυ, ἀλλά νυ, are not uncommon in Hesiod, but it is sometimes difficult to define in words the force which they exert on the narration. See Opp. 268. Inf. v. 22. Generally, καί τε seems to imply that an event happens conditionally rather than absolutely; ‘and it may be that, &c. See, for instance, Opp. 515-16. Ι. Χ. 224, σύν τε δύ ̓ ἐρχομένω, καί τε πρὸ ὁ τοῦ ἐνόησεν. Ib. xviii. 309, ξυνός ἐνυάλιος, καί τε κτανέοντα κατέκτα. In many places TE seems poetically a synonyn of τοι, as inf. 609, 784, 797. Here apparently there has been some interpolation, and probably of v. 2, so that the original reading was αἵτε περὶ κρήνην κ.τ.λ. Another commencement seems to have been, Μουσάων Ελικωνιάδων ἀρχώμεθ ̓ ἀείδειν, αἵτε λοεσσάμεναι κ.τ.λ. (ν. 5.)

Ibid. περὶ κρήνην, round Aganippe, which is called ἰοείδης from the dark and shadowy aspect of its clear and tranquil surface. " Significatur splendor aquae nigricans, ut violae, qualis est in uberioris aquae fonte." Van Lennep. The altar of Zeus, near to or in it, is regarded as the central object round which the dance was held, according to the most ancient custom of the heroic times. The regular abode of the Muses was on Olympus, inf. v. 63, so that these visits to Helicon, as to a spot consecrated to them, were occasional.

4. βωμόν. Schol. ἐν Ἑλικῶνι γὰρ βωμὸς ἦν τοῦ Διὸς τοῦ Ελικωνίου. “ Alibi, quod sciam, ejus arae mentio non exstat.” Van Lennep.

5. Vulgo Τερμησσοῖο. One copy gives Παρνησοῖο, others Περμησσοίο οι Περμησοῖο. Hesych. Περμησός ποταμός.

6. Ολμειοῦ

Id. Ολμειός ποταμός. (See also in ἱπποκρήνης, where the present passage is referred to by name.) Cobet, Misc. Crit. p. 221, says the orthography is with the single σ. Gaisford and Van Lennep edit Περμησσοῖο, but Goettling thinks Περμησσός was a later name of the same river, which joins the Holmius and flows into the Copaic lake. He remarks that Pausanias (ix. 29, 3) describes Aganippe as the daughter of Termessus, for so the MSS. are said to read, though the editors have introduced Περμησσού (—ήσσου) on conjecture. The schol. attributes the reading Tepunooîo to the grammarian Crates, adding κακῶς, ὁ γὰρ Τερμησὸς ὄρος ἐστὶ, καὶ οὐ ποταμός.—The genitive is used according to the common Homeric idiom, e. g. 11. xv. 265, λούεσθαι ἐϋρρεῖος ποταμοιο. So Scut. Herc. 342, κονίοντες πεδίοιο. Hesiod adopted the same construction in the 'Hoιαι (fragm. lxxvi.) νίψατο Βοιβιάδος λίμνης πόδα παρθένος ἀδμής.

6. Ολμειοῦ. So (with the aspirate) the best copies appear to give, and so Van Lennep has edited. Goettling, while he adopts 'Ολμειοῦ with the ordinary editions, (on the ground that the Aeolic dialect rejoiced in the lenis), says, " Verior forma Ολμειός esse videtur." For this little known river Wolf cites Strabo, ix. p. 624, Καὶ ὁ Περμησσός τε καὶ ὁ Ολμειὸς ἐκ τοῦ Ἑλικῶνος συμβάλλοντες ἀλλήλοις εἰς τὴν αὐτὴν ἐμπίπτουσι λίμνην τὴν Κωπαΐδα τοῦ ̔Αλιάρτου πλησίον. The word is formed like Πηνειός, Σπερχειός, and perhaps, (like

ησσός,) belonged to the ancient dialect of that part of Hellas.

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10. Τόσσαν

14. ἰοχέαιραν

14. φοίβον Απ. Μ.

9. πολλῷ KLM, Ald.

8. ἐπερρώσαντο, ‘moved nimbly, or stamped vigorously with their feet. Schol. ἐπιτεταμένως καὶ ἐρρωμένως καὶ εὐτόνως ἐχόρευσαν. Il. i. 529, ἀμβροσιαι δ ̓ ἄρα χαῖται ἐπερρώσαντο άνακτος Κρατὸς ἀπ ̓ ἀθανάτοιο. Ibid. xxiv. 616, εὐνὰς Νυμφάων, αἵ τ ̓ ἀμφ' Αχελώϊον ἐρρώσαντο. It is better to take the aorist of past time, rather than as implying habitual action. This introduces the imperfect στεῖχον, ibant, which Goettling supposes to be the same as an aorist in sense. The tenor of the narrative runs thus :-The Muses had been dancing on Helicon; thence they descended by night, singing of the gods, to the place where Hesiod was tending his flocks. There they addressed him, ordered him to compose poetry, and gave him a wand of the green bay-tree, as a token of their favour and a badge of the profession of a bard. Goettling explains ἐννύχια. to mean, that the Muses appeared in a dream ; but this view detracts much from the real character of the narrative. The extract given by Goettling from a letter of M. Aurelius the Emperor to Fronto (i. 2), proves the very contrary to what he asserts, and shows that Aurelius contended for a real visitation, while Fronto had explained away the passage to mean a mere phantasy.

9. πολλῷ Aldus with some MSS. Like αἰὼν and αιθήρ, this word (ἀὴρ or τὴρ, i.e. ἀὴρ) may have had two genders.

10. ὄσσα, like κληδων, φήμη, signifies a divine voice. Schol. τὴν θείαν φωνήν. Inf. v. 832 it is applied to the roaring of a bull, but as a subterranean and preternatural sound. Cf. inf. 43. 65. 701. 12. Αργείην. Hesych. in v.) seems wrongly to have interpreted this λευκήν. Clearly, the Argive goddess is meant. πεδίλοις, cf. inf. 454, "Ηρην χρυσοπέδιλον. Goettling omits this verse, because he thinks it unlikely that the particular attribute of Argive should have been added in a scheme of general Greek mythology. Argos, however, in its ancient acceptation, comprised a great part of upper Hellas. See Aesch. Suppl. 255 seqq. Van Lennep thinks from v. 11 to v. 21 might at least be left out without loss to the narrative; but he allows that the list of names they contain is not alien from the poet's general scheme. He remarks that "Hpn properly takes the digamma.

14. Απόλλωνα. The first syllable is made long as in @τάλλων, Opp. 131, where see the note. - ιοχέαιραν, an ancient epithet of the Huntress in her terrestrial, of the Darter in her celestial capacity, probably from χέω, as the Romans said fundere or superfundere tela. Others (and so gloss. cod. Barocc. 60) explain τόξοις χαίρουσαν. - It is rather remarkable that so brief a mention (v. 918) is made in the Theogony as we now have it, of the birth of these important divinities, Apollo and Artemis.