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traditions which, if not of equal antiquity, were grounded on the
same feeling, seem to have but one heart and soul, with scarcely a
wish or object apart, and only to live as they are always ready to
die for one another. It is true that the relation between them is
not always one of perfect equality; but this is a circumstance
which, while it often adds a peculiar charm to the poetical
description, detracts little from the dignity of the idea which it
presents. Such were the friendships of Hercules and Iolaus, of
Theseus and Pirithous, of Orestes and Pylades; and though These may
owe the greater part of their fame to the later epic or even
dramatic poetry, the moral groundwork undoubtedly subsisted in the
period to which the traditions are referred. The argument of the
Iliad mainly turns on the affection of Achilles for Patroclus, whose
love for the greater hero is only tempered by reverence for his
higher birth and his unequalled prowess. But the mutual regard which
united Idomeneus and Meriones, Diomedes and Sthenelus, though, as
the persons themselves are less important, it is kept more in the
back-ground, is manifestly viewed by the poet in the same light. The
idea of a Greek hero seems not to have been thought complete,
without such a brother in arms by his side."--Thirlwall, Greece, vol.
i. p. 176, seq.
244 "As hungry wolves with raging appetite,
Scour through the fields, ne'er fear the stormy night--
Their whelps at home expect the promised food,
And long to temper their dry chaps in blood--
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