The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1873-04-03
THE AqAMEnlNoN OF EscHYLUs.
The seventh Lecture OF Professor Miles
Last Night.

The seventh Lecture OF Professor Miles
Last Night.
The thoughtful and suggestive lecture ol
Professor Miles. delivered last night al tne
Widows Home, was listened to with deep
attention and pleasure by select and CRITICAL
audience.
The subject of the lecture was the Agamem-
non of Eschylus, and the lecturer began oy
carefully drawn contrast between the TWO
master-minds of The Greek tragic drama
sophocles and E.cbylus. There were pas
sages of great subllmlty ln sophocles, but COM
pared with Eschylus 1t was the snDllmlty OF
perfect art as contrasted with the rugged
grandeur of Nature; sophoces was the poet
CT religion and morality, Aschylus the mighty
and awful preacher OF righteousness. In the
Agamemnon, Cnoephore and Eumenides
were comprised the only regular trilosy OF
E,chylus that has been preserved, and This
exhibits the fatal selt.propagation OF crime,
the awful and mysterious course OF retriou-
live Justice, and the triumph Of reconcillng
Providence. The first of these plays In which
the keynote was struck and the future pro-
phetIcally foreshadowed appeared, OF all The
Greek plays, the one which the student most
instincLively turns to from Macbeth, from some
kindred tone of spirit and also, perhaps, from
come suggestions of CIylemneslra by Lady
Macbeth. The subject OF the first play-the
Apamemnon-is the murder of that king, by
his vile, on his victorious return from Troy.
The second piece exhibits The aVenglng Oh
Agamemnon by the murder of Clytemnestra
at The hands of their son Orestes. The third
piece represents the matricide pursued by the
aveDglng Furles, purified by the Intervention
of the gods, and satisfied justice terminating
the crimes and woes OF the royal house.
The lecturer then sketched the story of
Aganemnon, the fiery chain of signals which
noliaed his wife OF his victory al Troy, and
prepared her for his coming and the execu-
ton of the plot against his life; the com.
ing of Agamemnon and the hypocritical
but beautiful greeting of hls wife; the murder;
the irresolution and the subsequent horror of
the chorus of venerable citizens; the ehame-
less avowal of the crime by Clytemneslra and
her bold justification Of 1t as fated, lawful
retrlbutlon for Agamemnon's sacIlflce of Iphi-
genla, their daughter; and her meeting with
Egislhus, her paramonr, With whom she
then expected to occupy her gullt-purchased
throne. Thus the drama terminated with the
triumph of crime, but the other dramas oil the
trilcgy carried out the evolutioDs OF the tragic
story to the ultimate triumph OF justice and
mercy reconcled. During this narration the
lecturer recited many of the most striking
poetlcal passages Of The play, including the
first ode OF che chorus, relating the story of
The Trojan war, and giving their torebodlngs
of the Impending evils that hang over the
royal house.
The lecture closed with the following strik-
ing tribute to the genius OF Aschylus.
This believer, then, in morals as dependent
upon something deeper than mere specific
commands, which leave everything uncertain
or Indifferent for which there is not special
command; this spirit elevated above the beast
standard OF mere reward and punishment; this
prophet procaiming, not omnlpotent power
as the ground OF right, for 1t might equally be
The ground of omnipotent wrong, but justice
guided by merciful wisdom; this rebuker OF
sin and pride and sehshness in a corrupt
generation; this high-souled old Grecian de-
mands our reverence and admiration, es one
of those consecrated voices crying In the
wilderness, which, from time to time, In the
ages, Providence has raised up TO be the wit
nesses aud preachers of everlasting truths.