Chorus.

The gods so will that, soon or late,

Each mortal taste of sorrow;

A frown to-day from surly Fate,

A biting blast to-morrow.

Orestes.

Others ’twixt hope and fear may sway, my fate

Is fixed and scapeless.[n71] Like a charioteer,

Dragged from his course by steeds that spurned the rein,

Thoughts past control usurp me. Terror lifts,