Sir Richard C. Jebb, Commentary on Sophocles: Oedipus at Colonus

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The MSS. give “καὶ γὰρ ἄλλους ἐφόνευσα κ.τ.λ.” Hermann's ἁλοὺς (for “ἄλλους”) must mean either (1) “"caught,"” as in a net, by fate, or (2) “"caught"” by Laïus and his men, in the sense of, “"driven to fight for life."” Neither sense is tolerable. Campbell suggests, “"I murdered, and was convicted of the murder,"” saying that “ἁλοὺς ἐφόνευσα”=“ἑάλων φονεύσας”. This is as if one said in English, “"Having been hanged, he did the murder."” To ἀγνώς the short “α^” would be a grave objection: Soph. has the first “α” long thrice in “ἄγνοια”, twice in “ἀγνοεῖν”, once in “ἀγνώς” (O. T. 681), and short never: even in “αὐτόγνωτος” (Ant. 875) the “ο” is long. Porson's ἄνους could hardly mean, “"without understanding"” merely in the sense of “"unwittingly."” The word means “"silly,"” “"foolish"” (Ant. 281), and should here mean, “"in folly,"” which is not an apt sense.

And all these corrections, confined to ἄλλους, leave a blot. After ἐφόνευσα, καὶ ὤλεσα is intolerably weak. Mekler's καὶ γὰρ ἄν, οὓς ἐφόνευς᾿, ἔμ᾽ ἀπώλεσαν brings out the point on which Oed. insists, and to which the words “νόμῳ καθαρός” (548) refer,—viz. that, in slaying, he was defending his own life. Cp. 271. After he had returned the blow of Laïus, the attendants set on him (see on O. T. 804—812). The change of “ἐφόνευσ᾽ ἔμ᾽ ἀπώλεσαν” into “ἐφόνευσα καὶ ἀπώλεσα” (or “κἀπώλεσα”) would have been easy if “ἐφόνευσά μ᾽ ἀπώλεσα” had once been written. In Ai. 794 L has “ὥστε κ᾽ ὠδίνειν” instead of “ὥστε μ᾽ ὠδίνειν”. Cp. Her. 1.11 (Gyges was forced) “ἢ τὸν δεσπότεα ἀπολλύναι ἢ αὐτὸν ὑπ᾽ ἄλλων ἀπόλλυσθαι”.