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[18] 18-31. This whole passage, the “κόλασις τῆς ῞ηρας”, was omitted entirely by Zen. His authority would be greater but for the suspicion that he may have seen an “ἀπρεπές” in such a tale of the gods. Internal evidence, however, is strongly in his favour. The last line (31) comes in very awkwardly, “αὖτις” having no particular reference, whereas 32 joins on perfectly to 17. There are several forms which do not belong to the old Epic dialect, e.g. “μέμνηι, κρέμω, ἠλάστεον, γῆν” for “γαῖαν” (see note on 3.104), “ἀθλήσαντα” (for “ἀεθλ”.). “ξύν” for “σύν” in order to ‘make position’ for a short syllable in thesi can hardly be right, and “ῥυσάμην” elsewhere always has the “υ” long. It is of course possible to emend by conjecture; for μέμνηι we can read “μέμνη᾽”(“αι”) (cf. 21.442) as also in 20.188, 21.396, Od. 24.115 (“διὰ τοῦ η_ εἶχον πᾶσαι” Did.: does this imply “μέμνεαι” as Ludw. thinks? or should we read “διὰ τοῦ ι” — or “ηι” — implying “μέμνη᾽” as the variant?) or “μέμνησ᾽”(“αι”) with Choiroboskos, cf. 23.648. So for κρέμω we can read “κρέμἀ”(“ο”) (Nauck has “σε κρέμασ᾽”(“α”) for “τε κρέμω”); and “ῥύμην” for ῥυσάμην with Heyne. But it may be questioned whether the older forms ever stood in this place. The rather barbarous character of the legend is no argument for the antiquity of the passage itself; for the rudest mythology of Greece attains to literary recognition only in post-Homeric times, and is studiously ignored in the older period of the Epos. The legend is evidently closely related to that in 14.249 q.v.

οὐ: Brandreth is probably right in omitting “”, see on 5.349. For τε κρέμω MSS. write “τ᾽ ἐκρέμω”, entirely abolishing the caesura.

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