Celebrating Labor...or Toil?

Belated post for Labor Day:  some sightings of the old Athenian playwright...At the Montgomery (Alabama) Advertiser:

Reflecting on the ancient words of Sophocles may not be the way you'd planned to spend your Labor Day holiday, but the old fellow did have a way with words and some serious insights to offer. As the nation celebrates Labor Day, it's worth noting a pithy observation of his: "Without labor nothing prospers."

And at the Ventura County (Calif.) Star:

So this Labor Day, we endeavor to honor labor and to highlight for our state education and legislative leaders the musings of Sophocles, relevant today, that "without labor nothing prospers."

This appears to be Electra 945: ponou toi chôris ouden eutuchei.  [Cf. also the "gnome" cited by Schwickerath here (just above footnote 50).]  Glynn Wilson (of the Locust Fork Journal blog), however, protests the misuse of the quotation; certainly Sophocles did not have the labor movement in mind!  Jebb translates more correctly, but (alas!) in a way that can't be picked up by newspaper columnists for Labor Day:  "Nothing succeeds without toil."

Comments

[Edward Lacey]

I believe that should be ponou toi chôris ouden eutuchei.

[Mischa]

Edward,

Yes, you're right: I'll adjust the text accordingly...