For at the same time, the breath of the horses kept foaming and blowing around their backs and the wheels' tracks.
§720κεῖνος δʼ ὑπʼ αὐτὴν ἐσχάτην στήλην ἔχων §721ἔχριμπτʼ ἀεὶ σύριγγα, δεξιὸν δʼ ἀνεὶς §722σειραῖον ἵππον εἶργε τὸν προσκείμενον.
And he, keeping his wheel-axle always close to the very edge of the pillar, let go the right trace-horse while holding back the inner one.
§723καὶ πρὶν μὲν ὀρθοὶ πάντες ἕστασαν δίφροι· §724ἔπειτα δʼ Αἰνιᾶνος ἀνδρὸς ἄστομοι §725πῶλοι βίᾳ φέρουσιν· ἐκ δʼ ὑποστροφῆς §726τελοῦντες ἕκτον ἕβδομόν τʼ ἤδη δρόμον §727μέτωπα συμπαίουσι Βαρκαίοις ὄχοις·
And before indeed, all the chariots stood upright; but then the hard-mouthed fillies of the Aenian man carried him away by force, and turning back, as they were completing already their sixth and seventh course, they crashed their foreheads against the Barcaean chariot.
§728κἀντεῦθεν ἄλλος ἄλλον ἐξ ἑνὸς κακοῦ §729ἔθραυε κἀνέπιπτε, πᾶν δʼ ἐπίμπλατο §730ναυαγίων Κρισαῖον ἱππικῶν πέδον.
And from then on, one from another, from a single mishap, was crashing and falling upon each other, and all was filled with chariot-wreckage in the Crisaean plain of horses.
§731γνοὺς δʼ οὑξ Ἀθηνῶν δεινὸς ἡνιοστρόφος §732ἔξω παρασπᾷ κἀνακωχεύει παρεὶς §733κλύδωνʼ ἔφιππον ἐν μέσῳ κυκώμενον.
But the clever charioteer from Athens, perceiving this, pulled his horses aside and held them back, letting pass the wave of horses and chariots that was surging in the middle.
And Orestes was driving last, keeping his fillies behind, placing his trust in the finish.
§736ὅπως δʼ ὁρᾷ μόνον νιν ἐλλελειμμένον, §737ὀξὺν διʼ ὤτων κέλαδον ἐνσείσας θοαῖς §738πώλοις διώκει, κἀξισώσαντε ζυγὰ §739ἠλαυνέτην, τότʼ ἄλλος, ἄλλοθʼ ἅτερος §740κάρα προβάλλων ἱππικῶν ὀχημάτων.
But as soon as he saw him left alone, sending a sharp shout through the ears of his swift fillies, he pursued him; and having leveled their yokes they drove together, now one, now the other putting the heads of their chariots in front.
And through all the other courses indeed, the wretched man urged on safely, upright from his upright chariot.
§743ἔπειτα λύων ἡνίαν ἀριστερὰν §744κάμπτοντος ἵππου λανθάνει στήλην ἄκραν §745παίσας· ἔθραυσε δʼ ἄξονος μέσας χνόας
But then, while loosening the left rein as the horse was turning, he struck the very edge of the pillar without realizing it, and shattered the middle wheel-hubs of the axle.
§746κἀξ ἀντύγων ὤλισθεν· ἐν δʼ ἑλίσσεται §747τμητοῖς ἱμᾶσι· τοῦ δὲ πίπτοντος πέδῳ §748πῶλοι διεσπάρησαν ἐς μέσον δρόμον.
And he slipped from the chariot-rim and was entangled in the cut reins; and as he fell to the ground, the fillies dispersed toward the middle of the course.
§749στρατὸς δʼ ὅπως ὁρᾷ νιν ἐκπεπτωκότα §750δίφρων, ἀνωλόλυξε τὸν νεανίαν, §751οἷʼ ἔργα δράσας οἷα λαγχάνει κακά, §752φορούμενος πρὸς οὖδας, ἄλλοτʼ οὐρανῷ §753σκέλη προφαίνων, ἔς τέ νιν διφρηλάται, §754μόλις κατασχεθόντες ἱππικὸν δρόμον, §755ἔλυσαν αἱματηρόν, ὥστε μηδένα §756γνῶναι φίλων ἰδόντʼ ἂν ἄθλιον δέμας.
And when the crowd saw him fallen from the chariot, they raised a shriek for the young man, that having done such deeds, he meets with such evils, now being dragged along the ground, now showing his legs to the sky, until the charioteers, having with difficulty stopped the horses' course, released him all bloody, so that no friend on seeing it would have recognized his wretched body.
§757καί νιν πυρᾷ κέαντες εὐθὺς ἐν βραχεῖ §758χαλκῷ μέγιστον σῶμα δειλαίας σποδοῦ §759φέρουσιν ἄνδρες Φωκέων τεταγμένοι, §760ὅπως πατρῴας τύμβον ἐκλάχῃ χθονός.
And having burned him on a pyre straightway, in a small bronze urn the mighty body of wretched ashes men of the Phocians appointed for this bring, so that he may obtain a tomb in his fatherland.
§761τοιαῦτά σοι ταῦτʼ ἐστίν, ὡς μὲν ἐν λόγῳ §762ἀλγεινά, τοῖς δʼ ἰδοῦσιν, οἵπερ εἴδομεν, §763μέγιστα πάντων ὧν ὄπωπʼ ἐγὼ κακῶν.
Such indeed are these things for you, painful in story, but to those who saw them, as we did, the greatest of all evils I have ever beheld.
§764φεῦ φεῦ·
Chorus: Alas, alas!
τὸ πᾶν δὴ δεσπόταισι τοῖς πάλαι §765πρόρριζον, ὡς ἔοικεν, ἔφθαρται γένος.
The whole race of our ancient masters, as it seems, is destroyed root and branch.
§766ὦ Ζεῦ, τί ταῦτα, πότερον εὐτυχῆ λέγω,
Clytemnestra: O Zeus, what is this?
§767ἢ δεινὰ μέν, κέρδη δέ;
Am I to call it fortunate, or terrible but gainful?
λυπηρῶς δʼ ἔχει, §768εἰ τοῖς ἐμαυτῆς τὸν βίον σῴζω κακοῖς.
Yet it is painful if I save my life through my own misfortunes.
§769τί δʼ ὧδʼ ἀθυμεῖς, ὦ γύναι, τῷ νῦν λόγῳ;
Tutor: Why are you so despondent, lady, at the present news?
Clytemnestra: To give birth is a wondrously powerful thing; for not even when suffering ill does hatred come upon one toward those whom she bore.
§772μάτην ἄρʼ ἡμεῖς, ὡς ἔοικεν, ἥκομεν.
Tutor: In vain then, as it seems, have we come.
Clytemnestra: Not in vain indeed; for how could you say in vain, if you came to me having sure proofs of his death?
§775προσῆλθες, ὅστις τῆς ἐμῆς ψυχῆς γεγώς, §776μαστῶν ἀποστὰς καὶ τροφῆς ἐμῆς, φυγὰς §777ἀπεξενοῦτο καί μʼ, ἐπεὶ τῆσδε χθονὸς §778ἐξῆλθεν, οὐκέτʼ εἶδεν, ἐγκαλῶν δέ μοι §779φόνους πατρῴους δείνʼ ἐπηπείλει τελεῖν;
He who, born of my own soul, departed from my breasts and my nurture, became a stranger and an exile, and after he left this land, saw me no more, but accusing me of his father's murder, threatened to perform terrible deeds.
§780ὥστʼ οὔτε νυκτὸς ὕπνον οὔτʼ ἐξ ἡμέρας §781ἐμὲ στεγάζειν ἡδύν, ἀλλʼ ὁ προστατῶν §782χρόνος διῆγέ μʼ αἰὲν ὡς θανουμένην.
So that neither by night could sweet sleep cover me, nor by day, but the impending time always led me as one about to die.
§783νῦν δʼ—ἡμέρᾳ γὰρ τῇδʼ ἀπήλλαγμαι φόβου §784πρὸς τῆσδʼ ἐκείνου θʼ· ἥδε γὰρ μείζων βλάβη §785ξύνοικος ἦν μοι, τοὐμὸν ἐκπίνουσʼ ἀεὶ §786ψυχῆς ἄκρατον αἷμα—νῦν δʼ ἕκηλά που §787τῶν τῆσδʼ ἀπειλῶν οὕνεχʼ ἡμερεύσομεν.
But now—for on this day I am freed from fear of her and of him; for she was a greater bane dwelling with me, always drinking up my soul's unmixed blood—now indeed we shall pass our days in peace, as far as her threats are concerned.
§788οἴμοι τάλαινα·
Electra: Wretched me!
For now is the time to lament your misfortune, Orestes, when being in this state you are insulted by this mother of yours.
ἆρʼ ἔχει καλῶς;
Is it well with things?
§791οὔτοι σύ· κεῖνος δʼ ὡς ἔχει καλῶς ἔχει.
Clytemnestra: Not indeed for you; but as he is, it is well with him.
§792ἄκουε, Νέμεσι τοῦ θανόντος ἀρτίως.
Electra: Hear, Nemesis of him who has recently died!
§793ἤκουσεν ὧν δεῖ κἀπεκύρωσεν καλῶς.
Clytemnestra: She heard what was necessary and ordained it well.
§794ὕβριζε· νῦν γὰρ εὐτυχοῦσα τυγχάνεις.
Electra: Insult on; for now you happen to be prosperous.
§795οὔκουν Ὀρέστης καὶ σὺ παύσετον τάδε.
Clytemnestra: Certainly Orestes and you will not stop this.
§796πεπαύμεθʼ ἡμεῖς, οὐχ ὅπως σὲ παύσομεν.
Electra: We have been stopped, not so that we might stop you.
Clytemnestra: You would have come, stranger, worthy to obtain many things, if you have stopped this woman from her loud-tongued clamor.
§799οὐκοῦν ἀποστείχοιμʼ ἄν, εἰ τάδʼ εὖ κυρεῖ.
Tutor: Then I might depart, if these things are well.
Clytemnestra: By no means; since you would act worthily neither of me nor of the host who sent you.