[164:2] I have followed Casaubon's advice in not attempting to translate this letter, who "marvels that interpreters have endeavoured to translate it, for what can wasting time be, if this is not?" And Schweighaeuser says that he will not attempt to explain it further, lest he should seem to be endeavouring to appear wiser than Apollo. [169:1] Hesiod. [183:1] It seems certain that there is some great corruption in this and the preceding sentence. [188:1] Ἀῤῥηφόροι. At Athens, two maidens chosen in their seventh year, who carried the peplos, and other holy things, ἄῤῥητα, of Pallas in the Scirrophoria. Others write it ἐρση- or ἐῤῥηφόροι, which points to Ἔρση, a daughter of Cecrops, who was worshipped along with Pallas. Liddell and Scott, Gr. Lex. _in voc._ [190:1] There is no classical authority for ἐξελεύθερος; though Demosthenes has ἐξελευθερικὸς, relating to a freedman. [192:1] The beginning of this fragment of Hesiod is given up as hopelessly corrupt by the commentators; and there is probably a great deal of corruption running through the whole of it. [193:1] The text here is so corrupt as to be quite unintelligible. [199:1] The Balearic Isles. [201:1] ἡ γλῶσσ' ὀμῶμοχ', ἡ δὲ φρὴν ἀνώμοτος. Eur. Hip. 763. [203:1] κρατὴρ, from κεράννυμι, to mix. BOOK IV. 1. Hippolochus the Macedonian, my friend Timocrates, lived in the time of Lynceus and Douris of Samos, pupils of Theophrastus[210:1] the Eresian. And he had made a bargain with Lynceus, as one may learn from his letters, that if ever he was present at any very expensive banquet, he would relate to him the whole of the preparations which were made; and Lynceus in return made him the same promise. And there are accordingly some letters of each of them on the subject of banquets; in which Lynceus relates the banquet which was given at Athens by Lamia the Attic female flute-player to King Demetrius, surnamed Poliorcetes, (and Lamia was the mistress of Demetrius.) And Hippolochus reports the marriage feast of Caranus the Macedonian. And we have also met with other letters of Lynceus, written to the same Hippolochus, giving an account of the banquet of King Antigonus, when he celebrated the Aphrodisian festival at Athens, and also that given by King Ptolemy. And I will show you the very letters themselves. But as the letter of Hippolochus is very scarce, I will run over to you the principal things which are contained in it, just for the sake of conversation and amusement at the present time.