love of his country. He begins now to
pity his countrymen, yet he seems gratified by their distress,
because it will contribute to his glory.

20. This onion was very different from the root which now passes under
that name. It had a sweet flavor, and was used to impart an
agreeable flavor to wine. It is in high repute at the present day
in Egypt.--FELTON.

21. [I have interpreted the very ambiguous words {houo d' hypo
pythmenes esan} according to Athenaeus as quoted by Clarke, and his
interpretation of them is confirmed by the Scholium in the Venetian
edition of the Iliad, lately published by Villoisson.]--TR.

22. Homer here reminds the reader, that Nestor belonged to a former
generation of men, who were stronger than the heroes of the war.

23. [It would have suited the dignity of Agamemnon's rank to have
mentioned _his_ wound first; but Nestor making this recital to the
_friend of Achilles_, names him slightly, and without any
addition.]--TR.

24. [It is said that the Thebans having war with the people of
Orchomenos, the Pylians assisted the latter, for which cause
Hercules destroyed their city.--See Scholium per Villoisson.]--TR.

Footnotes for Book XII:
1. [The word is of scripture use; see Gen. ch. xxx. where it describes
the cattle of Jacob.]--TR.

2. [Alluding to the message delivered to him from Jupiter by
Iris.]--TR.

3. The morality of the Iliad deserves particular attention. It is not
_perfect_, upon Christian principles. How should it be under the
circumstances of the composition of the poem? Yet, compared with
that of all the rest of the classical poetry, it is of a
transcendently noble and generous character. The answer of Hector
to Polydamas, who would have dissuaded a further prosecution of the
Trojan success, has been repeated by many of the most devoted
patriots the world ever saw. _We_, who defy augury in these
matters, can yet add nothing to the nobleness of the
sentiment.--H.N. COLERIDGE.

4. [{pleonon de toi ergon ameinon.}--This is evidently proverbial, for
which reason I have given it that air in the translation.]--TR.

5. There is something touching in this simile. Our attention is fixed,
not so much on the battle, as on the struggles of the laboring,
true-hearted woman, who toils for a hard-earned pittance for her
children. The description is not so much illustrated by the simile,
as the