a poetical composition, in use among the ancient Greeks. When any person of condition and quality returned home after a long absence or journey into another country, he called together his friends and fellow-citizens, and made them a speech, or rehearsed them a copy of verses, wherein he returned solemn thanks to the immortal gods for his happy return; and ended with an address by way of compliment to his fellow-citizens.—These verses made what the Greeks call ἐπιβατεῖον, epibaterion, of ἐπιβάω, "I go abroad". At going away they had another, called apobaterium.