第839页 / 共1391页

Then, I said, we must take Damon into our counsels; and he will

tell us what rhythms are expressive of meanness, or insolence, or

fury, or other unworthiness, and what are to be reserved for the

expression of opposite feelings. And I think that I have an

indistinct recollection of his mentioning a complex Cretic

rhythm; also a dactylic or heroic, and he arranged them in some

manner which I do not quite understand, making the rhythms equal

in the rise and fall of the foot, long and short alternating;

and, unless I am mistaken, he spoke of an iambic as well as of a

trochaic rhythm, and assigned to them short and long quantities.

Also in some cases he appeared to praise or censure the movement

of the foot quite as much as the rhythm; or perhaps a combination

of the two; for I am not certain what he meant. These matters,

however, as I was saying, had better be referred to Damon

himself, for the analysis of the subject would be difficult, you

know?