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[350] The original reading must surely have been “ἦε σύ γ᾽ ἐς πόλεμον πωλήσεαι; ἦ τέ σ᾽ ὀΐω κτλ.”: ‘wilt thou frequent the battle-field?’ The mistake was easily made in transcription from old Attic; Hartmann's “οὐ σύ γ᾽ ἔτ᾽ ἐς π.” adopted by van L. is very violent, and gives a less vigorous sense. As the text stands, the two clauses beginning with “εἰ” are evidently not co-ordinate or even consistent. We can only explain them by supposing that the train of thought is, ‘if you mean to frequent (cf. 1.490) the battle-field, you will (be taught to) dread the battle if you so much as hear the sound of it anywhere’; which is possible, but not very satisfactory. πυθέσθαι is probably used of direct hearing, not in the sense of ‘hearing battle talked about,’ cf. 15.379 “ἐπύθοντο κτύπον”, 224 “μάχης ἐπύθοντο”.

The Iliad, edited, with apparatus criticus, prolegomena, notes, and appendices. Walter Leaf. London. Macmillan. 1900.

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