Never have I seen (saith the Pythian) a nation which nurtured such a race." Cheered by Apollo, Orestes flies while the dread sisters yet sleep; and now within the temple we behold the Furies scattered around, and a pale and lofty shape, the ghost of Clytemnestra, gliding on the stage, awakens the agents of her vengeance.

They break forth as they rouse themselves, "Seize--seize-- seize." They lament--they bemoan the departure of their victim, they expostulate with Apollo, who expels them from his temple.

The scene changes; Orestes is at Athens,--he pleads his cause before the temple of Minerva.

The contest is now shared by gods; Apollo and the Furies are the pleaders--Pallas is the umpire, the Areopagites are the judges.

Pallas casts in her vote in favour of Orestes--the lots are equal--he is absolved; the Furies, at first enraged, are soothed by Minerva, and, invited to dwell in Athens, pour blessings on the land.
A sacred but joyous procession crowns the whole.