The Tragedies of Euripides, Volume I.. Euripides
the God.
ORES. Do not thou kill me; I, the unhappy, have died enough already under the hands of the Argives; but pass over our present ills.
ELEC. O Orestes! oh wretched in thy youth, and thy fate, and thy untimely death, then oughtest thou to live, when thou art no more.
ORES. Do not by the Gods throw cowardice around me, bringing the remembrance of my woes so as to cause tears.
ELEC. We shall die; it is not possible not to groan our misfortunes; for the dear life is a cause of pity to all mortals.
ORES. This is the day appointed for us! but we must either fit the suspended noose, or whet the sword with our hand.
ELEC. Do thou then kill me, my brother; let none of the Argives kill me, putting a contumely on the offspring of Agamemnon.
ORES. I have enough of thy mother's blood, but thee I will not slay; but die by thine own hand in whatever manner thou wilt.
ELEC. These things shall be; I will not be deserted by thy sword;72 but I wish to clasp my hands around thy neck.
ORES. Thou enjoyest a vain gratification, if this be an enjoyment, to throw thy hands around those who are hard at death's door.
ELEC. Oh thou most dear! oh thou that hast the desirable and most sweet name, and one soul with thy sister!
ORES. Thou wilt melt me; and still I wish to answer thee in the endearment of encircling arms, for why am I any longer ashamed? O bosom of my sister, O dear object of my caresses, these embraces are allowed to us miserable beings instead of children and the bridal bed.
ELEC. Alas! How can the same sword (if this request be lawful) kill us, and one tomb wrought of cedar receive us?
ORES. This would be most sweet; but thou seest how destitute we are, in respect to being able to share our sepulture.
ELEC. Did not Menelaus speak in behalf of thee, taking a decided part against thy death, the base man, the deserter of my father? [Note73.]
ORES. He showed it not even in his countenance, but keeping his hopes on the sceptre, he was cautious how he saved his friends. But let be, he will die acting in a manner nobly, and most worthily of Agamemnon. And I indeed will show my high descent to the city, striking home to my heart with the sword; but thee, on the other hand, it behooveth to act in concert with my bold attempts. But do thou, Pylades, be the umpire of our death, and well compose the bodies of us when dead, and bury us together, bearing us to our father's tomb. And farewell – but I am going to the deed, as thou seest.
PYL. Hold. This one thing indeed first I bring in charge against thee – Dost thou think that I can wish to live when thou diest?74
ORES. For how does it concern thee to die with me?
PYL. Dost ask? But how does it to live without thy company?
ORES. Thou didst not slay my mother, as I did, a wretch.
PYL. With thee I did at least; I ought also to suffer these things in common with thee.
ORES. Take thyself back to thy father, do not die with me. For thou indeed hast a city (but I no longer have), and the mansion of thy father, and a great harbor of wealth. But thou art frustrated in thy marriage with this unhappy virgin, whom I betrothed to thee, revering thy friendship. Nevertheless do thou, contracting other nuptials, be a blest father, but the connection between me and thee no longer subsists, But thou, O darling name of my converse, farewell, be happy, for this is not allowed me, but it is to thee; for we, the dead, are deprived of happiness.
PYL. Surely thou art wide astray from my purposes. Nor may the fruitful plain receive my blood, nor the bright air, if ever I betraying thee, having freed myself, forsake thee; for I committed the slaughter with thee (I will not deny it), and I planned all things, for which now thou sufferest vengeance. Die then I must with thee and her together, for her, whose marriage I have courted, I consider as my wife; for what good excuse ever shall I give, going to the Delphian land to the citadel of the Phocians, I, who was present with you, your friend, before indeed you were unfortunate, but now, when you are unfortunate, am no longer thy friend? It is not possible – but these things are my care also. But since we are about to die, let us come to a common conference, how Menelaus may be involved in our calamity.
ORES. O thou dearest man: for would I see this and die.
PYL. Be persuaded then, but defer the slaughtering sword.
ORES. I will defer, if any how I can avenge myself on my enemy.
PYL. Be silent then, for I have but small confidence in women.
ORES. Do not at all fear these, for they are friends that are present.
PYL. Let us kill Helen, which will cause great grief to Menelaus.
ORES. How? for the will is here, if it can be done with glory.
PYL. Stabbing her; but she is lurking in thy house.
ORES. Yes indeed, and is putting her seal on all my effects.
PYL. But she shall seal no more, having Pluto for her bridegroom.
ORES. And how can this be? for she has a train of barbarian attendants.
PYL. Whom? for I would be afraid of no Phrygian.
ORES. Such men as should preside over mirrors and scents.
PYL. For has she brought hither her Trojan fineries?
ORES. Oh yes! so that Greece is but a cottage for her.
PYL. A race of slaves is a mere nothing against a race that will not be slaves.
ORES. In good truth, this if I could achieve, I shrink not from two deaths.
PYL. But neither do I indeed, if I could revenge thee at least.
ORES. Disclose thy purpose, and go through it as thou sayest.
PYL. We will enter then the house, as men about to die.
ORES. Thus far I comprehend, but the rest I do not comprehend.
PYL. We will make our lamentation to her of the things we suffer.
ORES. So that she shall weep, though joyed within her heart.
PYL. And the same things will be for us to do afterward, which she does then.
ORES. Then how shall we finish the contest?
PYL. We will wear our swords concealed beneath our robes.
ORES. But what slaughter can there be before her attendants?
PYL. We will bolt them out, scattered in different parts of the house.
ORES. And him that is not silent we must kill.
PYL. Then the circumstances of the moment will point out what steps to take.
ORES. To kill Helen, I understand the sign.
PYL. Thou seest: but hear on what honorable principles I meditate it. For, if we draw our sword on a more modest woman, the murder will blot our names with infamy. But in the present instance, she shall suffer vengeance for the whole of Greece, whose fathers she slew, and made the brides bereaved of their spouses; there shall be a shout, and they will kindle up fire to the Gods, praying for many blessings to fall to thee and me, inasmuch as we shed the blood of a wicked woman. But thou shalt not be called the matricide, when thou hast slain her, but dropping this name thou shalt arrive at better things, being styled the slayer of the havoc-dealing Helen. It never, never were right that Menelaus should be prosperous, and that thy father, and thou, and thy sister should die, and thy mother; (this I forbear, for it is not decorous to mention;) and that he should seize thy house, having recovered his bride by the means of Agamemnon's valor. For may I live no longer, if I draw not my black sword upon her. But if then we do not compass the murder of Helen, having fired the palace we will die, for we shall have glory, succeeding in one of these two things, nobly dying, or nobly rescued.
CHOR. The daughter of Tyndarus is an object of detestation to all women, being one
Or,
Dindorf's text and punctuation must be altered.
ευ in this passage