A few words will suffice to recall that earlier part of the story
which is here presupposed. Pandion, son of Cecrops, had been
driven out of Attica by his cousins, the sons of Metion, brother
of Cecrops and son of Erechtheus. He went to Megara, where
he was made king; and there Aegeus and three other sons were
born to him. After Pandion’s death, Aegeus, aided by his three
brothers, reconquered Attica, which the four shared among them ;
he himself became king of Athens. But he lived in fear of the
Pallantidae, the fifty giant sons of his brother Pallas, who had
designs on his throne. He was childless; and on consulting
Apollo at Delphi as to his hope of issue, received an obscure
response, on which he resolved to seek light from the wise
Pittheus, king of Troezen'. Pittheus, who divined the meaning
of the oracle, was led by it to desire that Theseus should be
united with his daughter Aethra ; and he laid his plans accord-
ingly?. But Aethra had already been visited by the sea-god
Poseidon, whom Troezen worshipped; and he (as the Troeze-
nians deemed) was the true father of the son whom she afterwards
bore. Before leaving Troezen, Aegeus left with Aethra his


1 Apollod. 3. 15. 5: Plut. Zhes. 3. enjoin continence on Aegeus until he
Cp. Eur. Aled. 674—686. should have returned to Athens. Pittheus,
2 Apollod. δέ. μεθύσας αὐτὸν τῇ inferring that his guest was not doomed
θυγατρὶ σνγκατέκλινεν : Plut. 1c. ἔπεισεν ἴο be childless, wished that his own house
αὐτὸν ἢ διηπάτησε τῇ AlOpg σνγγενέσθαι. should furnish the heir to the Athenian
The purport of the oracle (ἀσκοῦ ro» throne.
προὔχοντα πόδα.. μὴ λύσῃς K.T.A.) Was to





ODE XVII.
