Page:Tragedies of Seneca (1907) Miller.djvu/84

66 Still raging at the theft of Hercules; At thy command, to birds of prey will give My bleeding bearl at thy command will live.

[The first act seems to be complete here, except for the commenting chorus which would naturally follow. Oedipus has temporarily yielded to his daughter's will.]

[The following passage fittingly opens the second act or episode. Although some editors would assign it to Antigone, it seems more fittingly to belong to a messenger who has just arrived, for the double reason that it gives fresher information from Thebes than Antigone would naturally possess; and that Oedipus, after the speech to his daughter with which the previous scene ended, would hardly address to her as rough a reply as he uses in his next speech.]

Messenger: Thee, sprung from regal stock to be our guide, In fear of civil strife our Thebes invokes, And prays that thou wouldst save thy father's house From the flaming torch of war. No mere threats, these; For ever nearer does destruction come. One brother claims his share of royal power, His turn to rule according to the bond, And now is rousing all the tribes of Greece To bloody war. Against the walls of Thebes Seven camps have set them down. Haste to our aid, And war and crime prohibit equally. Oedipus: Do I seem one to stay the hand of crime, And teach it to refrain from kindred blood? Should I teach righteousness and filial love? They take me as a model for their crimes, And follow me. I gladly recognize And praise them as my sons; I urge them on To do some outrage worthy of their sire. Then on, my worthy offspring; by your deeds Approve your noble birth; do ye surpass My glory and my praises; do some deed Because of which your father will rejoice