Epigoni

pl. (Greek Hist.) The sons and descendants of the Grecian heroes who were killed in the first Theban war. The war of the Epigoni is famous in ancient history. They resolved to avenge the death of their fathers, and marched against Thebes, under the command of Thersander. The two armies met and engaged on the banks of the Cephi us. The fight was obstinate and bloody, but victory declared for the Epigoni, and some of the The bans fled to Illyricum with Leodamus, their general, while others retired into Thebes, where they were soon besieged, and forced to surrender. Ep'igram, n. [Fr. épigramme, from Gr. epigramma, an inscription.] This term, as shown by i derivation, was originally applied to the inscriptions on the tombs and monuments of ancient Greece. They were generally written in verse, and showed great simplicity of style. Usually they were either dedicatory, descriptive, amatory, or elegiac. They were seldom humorous, and their chief merit consisted in the justne of a single thought conveyed in harmonious language. The ancient Romans, in their acceptation of the term E. , seem to approach nearer to the idea of modern E. Catullus and Martial were among their most famous epigrammatists. In modern times an E. is considered to be a short poem usually consisting of two to eight lines, in which some striking or ingenious thought is expre ed; whether it be serious or humorous is a matter of indifference. The French have always excelled in this kind of writing. The Germans have usually combined moral proverbs with their epigrams; but those of Schiller and Gæthe are generally satirical. Pope, Byron, Burns, and Moore have written epigrammatic satire with the greatest succe . Epigrammatic, Epigrammatical, a . [Fr. epigram mat i que.) Writing epigrams; dealing in epigrams; as, an epigrammatic poet. -Suitable to epigrams; belonging to epigrams; concise; pointed; poignant, as, epigrammatic wit, an epigram matic style. Epigrammatically, adv. In an epigrammatic manner.