PISTHETAERUS
Very well! is not this the pole of the birds then?

EPOPS
How their pole?

PISTHETAERUS
Or, if you like it, the land. And since it turns and passes through
the whole universe, it is called, 'pole.'[1] If you build and
fortify it, you will turn your pole into a fortified city.[2]
In this way you will reign over mankind as you do over the grasshoppers
and cause the gods to die of rabid hunger

f[1] From [the word meaning] 'to turn.'
f[2] The Greek words for 'pole' and 'city' only differ by
a single letter.

EPOPS
How so?

PISTHETAERUS
The air is 'twixt earth and heaven. When we want to go to Delphi,
we ask the Boeotians[1] for leave of passage; in the same way, when men
sacrifice to the gods, unless the latter pay you tribute, you exercise
the right of every nation towards strangers and don't allow
the smoke of the sacrifices to pass through your city and territory.

f[1] Boeotia separated Attica from Phocis.