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tive, by our Poet in his Hippolytus, uvaía da Juxá, and alfo in his Iphigenia in Tauris ' ἐυναίων πηδαλίων. Hefychius has nappuλal3 a fubftantive, which he defines to be a neft made of dry pieces of wood, and cites the Ion of Euripides for the very word: This at prefent is no where to be found in this play, and confequently we may fairly prefume, that it was the true and original reading in this paffage: Hefychius has also another word nappupa, which he explains to mean the small shoots of branches; and this is a fenfe extremely adapted to the prefent occafion: Evvalas will then be underftood in its proper sense, as an adjective, importing abfconditos, or the well-concealed neft under the battlements. Since the above Note was written, I find from Dr. Mufgrave's remarks, that Weffelingius, Editor of Diodorus Siculus, has there anticipated the last of these proposed alterations nagpúgas; and on a reference to his Note I discover, that Arnaldus, on the fame authority of Hefychius, had also substituted in this line of Euripides the former word nappuλa's: Confequently both these emendations have been anticipated. Left the Reader should be furprised at this circumstance, it may not perhaps be improper to inform him, that I was naturally induced to confult my Lexicon, obferving two adjectives here coupled together, and when I looked for napongas, both the other words foon prefented themselves to my eye with a sense extremely appofite: On fo refpectable an authority as that of Hefychius, nagpuλas ought to be inferted in the printed editions of our Poet, fince it appears to me no longer dubious, but certain.

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3 Καρφυλαί, ἂν ἐκ τῶν ξηρῶν ξύλων 4 Καρφίξαι νοσσιαί θάμνοι.

• Lect. 1. 1. 11. p. 76.

Verfe 189. Καλλιβλέφαρον φως.

The original epithet was naipapov, which was rejected by all the Commentators, as a word of no authority and unintelligible: In its place they have fubstituted naλépagov, which Barnes has admitted into the text, and tranflates it acutum lumen: It properly fignifies the ointment for the eyelids in order to render them beautiful, and in this fenfe is tranflated by Pliny: But it appears to me in this paffage as exceptionable, as the word they have exploded, and introduces an additional fyllable into the metre. Dr. Mufgrave has propofed to read κάλλει λιπαρὸν oι φιαρὸν φως in allufion to the rays of light, reflected from the gilding of the temple: But fince the publication of his edition he has thought of another emendation, which I had his confent here to mention In the preceding line but one he alters ye into με, and inftead of καλλίφαρον φως he reads Βάλλει λιπαρὸν φως, Dives lux me percutit, or as we fay in English, the light. ftrikes me. There can be no doubt of the Latinity of the expreffion, fince we find in Horace,

Nec tam Lariffæ percuffit campus opimæ.

γε

(L. 1. Od. 7. V. 11.)

And for the idiom of it in Greek Dr. Mufgrave cites Philof tratus', in the life of Apollonius, who fpeaking of a certain ftone fays, "if it be feen by day, it ftrikes the eyes with a

I L. 3. c. 46. ed. Olear. p. 133.

great

great number of corufcations,” ἐι δὲ μεθ ̓ ἡμέραν ὁρῶτο, βάλλει τὲς ὀφθαλμες μαρμαρυγᾶις μυρίαις. Το this authority the fol lowing line of Homer may not improperly be added;

Ἠλιος μὲν ἔπεῖα νέον προσέβαλλεν ἀμέρας. (V. 421.)

As I have a right to propofe my own conjecture, I fubmit to the Reader, whether inftead of naλípagov we ought not to read nannivaov Qus pulchrè fluens lumen, the beautiful flow of light from the temples or ftatues: This will exactly correfpond with the original metre, from which all the other emendations depart; and this epithet is ufed by our Poet in his Alceftis and in his Medea.

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Verfe 235. Παλλάδος.

This and the following line in the edition of Barnes is given to Creusa inftead of the Chorus, though he acknowledges, that at first he was of a different opinion; but he conceived from the expreffion of παρέσας δ ̓ ἀμφὶ τὰς being in the plural number, that Ion was referred to the domesticks of Creufa by her for farther information. I cannot admit the inference as neceffary, becaufe the Chorus might speak of their Queen in the plural number, as a mark of additional respect, of which there are frequent inftances; and therefore there is no occafion for the alteration of Reifke of the words into the fingular; or perhaps they might allude to Creusa now entering and probably accompanied with a train of other Attendants befides themselves. The expreffion alfo of τῶν ἐμῶν τυράννων, or my Sovereigns, feems better adapted to *V. 585, * Anim, in Eurip. p. 146.

> V. 589.

the

the mouth of the Chorus than to that of the royal Creufa; Thus Ion immediately accofts her in the fubfequent fpeech, according to this idea: Dr. Mufgrave in his edition has given thefe lines to the Chorus, and he mentions the authority of one manufcript in fupport of it.

Verfe 265. Πρὸς θεῶν.

Though both the Cambridge and Oxford Editor have annexed the mark of interrogation to the Latin verfion of this line, yet they have omitted to infert it in the Greek text; but the fentence obviously requires it, as Heath justly obferves.

Verfe 271. Νομίζεται.

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This word will admit the fenfe of "ut recepti moris eft, according to the received cuftom;" and is thus used by Efchylus and Ariftophanes. I mention this circumstance, because Dr. Mufgrave afferts, that he does not rightly comprehend it, and has therefore proposed a very unneceffary emendation of ρυθμίζεται.

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As the first fyllable in ripa is always long, it constitutes a fpondee in the fecond foot, which is inadmiffible in the

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Iambick measure: To remedy this effential defect of metre, Scaliger propofed to read in this paffage rí po; but Dr. Mufgrave just before his death informed me, that in order to prevent the open vowel he propofed to infert Tt poy. Since this is omitted in his edition, I have here mentioned it.

Verfe

324.

Τάλαινά σ' ἡ τεκεσ', ἢ τίς ποτ' ἂν ἄρα.

Here again the metre is defective from the fpondee in the fourth foot of the Iambick verfe: Both Heath and Mufgrave have paffed it over in filence; but Barnes in his Note has mentioned the tranfpofition of the words propofed by Scaliger, Ταλαιά γ' ἄρα σ' ἡ τεκέσ' ἥτις ποτ' ήν. There is a much eafier amendment, which obviously prefents itself, and I am furprized that it has efcaped the Commentators: Instead of τειν' ή τίς why thiould we not read τεκέσα τις

Verfe 337. Aga

As the fentence does not demand an interrogation, this word is erroneously circumflexed in the edition of Barnes: It is rightly printed in that of Mufgrave; but he omits to mention the alteration.

Verfe 396. Διακοσα

The authority of Sophocles, where Alanove bou begins an Iambick verfe in his Philoctetes, may be here added to that

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