in like manner Eur. Orest. 1253, 1254; 1273, 1274.
Τί δέ με τόδε χρέος ἀπύεις,
Ἔννεπέ μοι, φίλα. (dochm.)
Αφοβος ἔχει κενὸς, ὦ φίλα,
Στίβος, ὃν οὐ δοκεῖς.

The verses Aesch. Agam. 1407, 1426, where four shorts seem to stand between two dochmii:

Τί κακὸν, ὦ γύναι,

Χθονοτρεφές - ἐδανὸν ἢ ποτόν.
Μεγαλόμητις εἶ,

Περίφρονα - δ ̓ ἔλακες, ώςπερ οὖν.

are thus to be measured as follows:

Τί κακὸν, ὦ γύναι, χθονοτρεφὲς ἐδανὸν
Ἢ ποτὸν πασαμένα φυτᾶς ἐξ ἁλὸς ὀρόμενον.
Μεγαλόμητις εἶ, περίφρονα δ ̓ ἔλακες,

Ὥσπερ οὖν φονολιβεῖ τύχα φρὴν ἐπιμαίνεται.

Five shorts are a resolved cretic.

The irrational cretic is sometimes preceded by an anapaest, instead of an iamb, the shorts of which, however, are never allowed to be contracted; a dochmius with a disyllabic anacrusis :

11

as Soph. Oed. Col. 117 ; 149.

Τίς ἄρ ̓ ἦν ; ποῦ ναίει ;

Αλαῶν ὀμμάτων.

Such a dochmius, however, is often so in appearance only, as Aesch. Sept. 122.

Γενύων ἱππείων,

Eur. Herc. fur. 878.

Μανίαισιν Λύσσας,

where γενύων is to be read as two syllables, and μανίαισιν 28 three.

The resolution of the middle time of the cretic is not permitted; hence rhythms, as Aesch. Suppl. 349, 361.

The irrational cretic sometimes occurs, without the preceding iamb or anapaest, before or after dochmii, as Eur. Orest. 168; 189.

1

Θωΰξασ ̓ ἔβαλες ἐξ ὕπνου.

Οὐδὲ γὰρ πόθον ἔχει βορᾶς.

If an anacrusis, or a trochaic basis with the anacrusis, is prefixed to the irrational cretic, rhythms seemingly iambic are formed, in which the middle time is everywhere admissible, the iambi ischiorrhogici, so called by Hermann:

a dochmius with the arsis, so called, as Eur. Phoen. 320, 321.

Ἢ ποθεινὸς φίλοις,

Η ποθεινὸς Θήβαις.

Soph. Trach. 846-848; 857-859.

Η που ὀλοὰ στένει,
Ἤ που ἀδινῶν χλωρὰν
Τέγγει δακρύων ἄχναν.
Α τότε θοὰν νύμφαν
Αγαγες ἀπ' αἰπεινᾶς

Τάνδ ̓ Οιχαλίας αἰχμᾷ.

Such a dimeter occurs also in the catalectic form, as, with the anacrusis:

With

The Romans used the dochmius rarely or never. them the bacchic rhythm supplied its place. Hermann thought he had found dochmii in Plautus, as Menaechm. V.

6, 9.

Verbéra, cómpedes,

Molaé, mágna lassitúdó, fames.

B. Bacchic Rhythms.

The bacchius, like the cretic, consists of five times, which are in the relation of 3:2. The subordinate relation of the principal arsis is iambic, rising therefore, while the principal relation is falling, and in this contrast lies the arrhythmy of the bacchius:

The following forms, therefore, are possible:

1337

པ-༔.

last long.

In the closing foot a short may stand for the

The Greeks rejected altogether, with the exception of a few passages in tragedy, the bacchic rhythm on account of its arrhythmy. Wherever it does occur, it is for the most part apparently only, as Pind. Olymp. I. Epod. 4, which verse is not to be measured:

but

Dimet. bacch., anap., log. dactyl. log.

Dochm., dact. log. acat., dact. log. acat.

Ποσειδῶν, ἐπεί νιν καθαροῦ λέβητος ἔξελε Κλωθώ.

A single bacchius often seems to be prefixed to other rhythms as an introduction. Such a bacchius is the trochaic basis

X

-; see above, p. 61.

with the anacrusis: ~-

The monometer occurs sometimes between iambic trimeters, as Soph. Oed. R. 1468, 1471, 1475.

"10' oraş.

Τί φημί ;
Λέγω τι.

Oed. Col. 318, 1271. In like manner the dimeter Arist. A ch. 735.

Πεπρᾶσθαι πεπρᾶσθαι.

These words are, however, to be considered as a kind of iniq deyμarizά, which are not bound by any definite rhythm. The following verses seem to be real bacchii; Rhes. 705 sqq.

Η. Δοκεῖς γὰρ ;

Η. Τί μὴν ου ;

Η. Θρασὺς γοῦν ἐς ἡμᾶς.

Η. Τίς ; ἀλκὴν τίν' αἰνεῖς ;

Η. Οδυσσή.

The tetrameter is most frequent. Hephaestion quotes as an example:

Ὁ ταῦρος δ ̓ ἔοικεν κυρίξειν τίν' ἀρχάν, Φθάσαντος δ ̓ ἐπ ̓ ἔργοις προπηδήσεται νιν. Similar is the verse in Aesch. Prom. 115.

Τίς ἀχω, τίς ὀδμὰ προςέπτα μ' ἀφεγγής ; Aesch. Eum. 789.

Στενάζω ; τί ῥέξω; γένωμαι; δύσοιστα. and the verse in Dion. Hal. de Comp. p. 132.

Τίν ̓ ἀκτὴν, τίν ὅλαν δράμω; ποῖ πορευθῶ;

The Romans made frequent use of the bacchius, both in tragedy and comedy. It supplies in some degree the place of the dochmius, which it resembles very much on account of its disharmonic character, with this difference, that although the dochmius is arrhythmic in its composition, it is altogether eurhythmic in its parts, while the bacchius is wholly arrhythmic. Thus it serves in tragedy, as the dochmius with the Greeks, for the expression of the highest passion, despair and grief, and in comedy it indicates, in a comical manner, sadness, haste, confusion. It occurs, however, in cantica alone, never in the dialogue.

The poets have taken many liberties in the treatment of the bacchius. The arses are frequently resolved, and, thereby, the violent character of the rhythm is even heightened. The short is middle timed; it can, therefore, be changed into a long, and this again, according to the license of the older Roman poets, be resolved into two shorts. Thus, the following form arises:

Plautus sometimes treats the verse as asynartete. Bacchic verses, moreover, delight in diaereses. The tetrameter has usually a principal diaeresis, which, however, is frequently neglected. The catalexis is in disyllabum only. The following measures are in use:

(1) The Dipody or the Dimeter.-Dimeter bacchiacus.