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diff --git a/old/68180-0.txt b/old/68180-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index ae31c47..0000000 --- a/old/68180-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,13945 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg eBook of The book of the ancient Greeks, by -Dorothy Mills - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and -most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms -of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you -will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before -using this eBook. - -Title: The book of the ancient Greeks - An Introduction to the History and Civilization of Greece from - the Coming of the Greeks to the Conquest of Corinth by Rome in - 146 B.C. - -Author: Dorothy Mills - -Release Date: May 26, 2022 [eBook #68180] - -Language: English - -Produced by: Al Haines - -*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE BOOK OF THE ANCIENT -GREEKS *** - - - - - - - -[Frontispiece: HERMES OF PRAXITELES. 4th Century BC.] - - - - The Book of the Ancient Greeks - - An Introduction to the History and Civilization of Greece - from the Coming of the Greeks to the Conquest - of Corinth by Rome in 146 B.C. - - - By - - Dorothy Mills, M.A. - - Teacher of History at the Brearley School, New York - Author of "The Book of the Ancient World" - - - - _With 16 Illustrations and a Map_ - - - - G. P. Putnam's Sons - New York & London - The Knickerbocker Press - - - - - Copyright, 1925 - by - Dorothy Mills - - Published, August, 1925 - Second impression, March, 1928 - Third impression, October, 1928 - Fourth impression, September, 1929 - Fifth impression, October, 1930 - Sixth impression, October, 1931 - - All rights reserved. This book, or parts thereof, must - not be reproduced in any form without permission. - - - The Knickerbocker Press - New York - - Made in the United States of America - - - - -To - -M. C. S. M. - - - - -{v} - -PREFACE - -This book, like the first of the series the _Book of the Ancient -World_, was used in its original manuscript form by one of my history -classes. It carries on the story of the way in which man has been -learning how to live from the time of the Coming of the Greeks to the -loss of Greek independence in 146 B.C. - -The spirit of a nation is expressed and its history is recorded in -three ways: in its political history, in its literature and in its -art. The aim of this book has been to use such parts of the -political history of the Greeks, of their literature and of their art -as seem to have been the outward and visible signs of the spirit that -inspired them. - -It would not have been possible to write this book in this way -without the kind permission of translators and publishers to use -copyright translations. I gladly take this opportunity to -acknowledge my debt to Professor Gilbert Murray and the Oxford -University Press for the translation of the _Iphigenia in Tauris_; to -Mr. A. W. Pickard--Cambridge and the Oxford University Press for the -translations from _Demosthenes_; to Mr. A. E. Zimmern and the Oxford -University Press for passages from the _Greek Commonwealth_; and to -the Trustees of the Jowett Fund and the Oxford University Press for -translations {vi} from _Plato_ and _Thucydides_; to Sir Arthur Evans -for passages from an article in the _Monthly Review_; to Mr. G. S. -Freeman for translations from the _Schools of Hellas_ by the late -Kenneth J. Freeman; to Mr. A. S. Way for a passage from the -_Persians_; to Mr. A. W. Crawley for passages from the translation of -the _Odyssey_ by Butcher and Lang; to Mrs. Putnam for an extract from -_The Lady_; to Miss Leslie White Hopkinson for her arrangement of one -of the _Elegiacs of Solon_; to Messrs. Macmillan and Co. for -translations from the _Iliad_ by Lang, Leaf and Myers, from -_Pausanias_ by Sir J. G. Frazer, from _Plato's Republic_ by Davies -and Vaughan, from the_ Trial and Death of Socrates_ by F. G. Church, -from _Herodotus_ by G. C. Macaulay, from _Xenophon_ by H. G. Dakyns, -and for various translations in _Greek Athletic Sports and Festivals_ -(E. N. Gardiner), _The City State of the Greeks and Romans_ (W. Warde -Fowler) and _Our Hellenic Heritage_ (H. R. James); to Messrs. J. M. -Dent and Sons for translations from _Plutarch's Lives_; to Messrs. G. -Bell and Sons for translations from _Aristophanes_ by B. B. Rogers, -from _Theocritus_ by S. C. Calverley and from _Aristotle_ by Sir F. -G. Kenyon; to Messrs. George Allen and Unwin for translations from -the _Homeric Hymns_ by Andrew Lang; to Messrs. Edward Arnold and Co. -for three poems from _Love, Worship and Death_ by Sir Rennell Rodd; -and to Messrs. Longmans, Green and Co. for translations from _Select -Epigrams from the Greek Anthology_ by J. W. Mackail, and from _Greek -History for Young Readers_ by Alice Zimmern. - -{vii} - -This book is only intended as an introduction to the history of Greek -civilization, and the difficulty of my task has been to decide on -what to omit. Everyone will not agree with me as to what I have -taken and what I have left, but my aim will have been accomplished, -if the book should create a desire to know something more of the -great heritage which has come to us from the Greeks. - -DOROTHY MILLS. - -NEW YORK, March, 1925. - - - - -{ix} - -CONTENTS - -CRETE AND THE CIVILIZATION OF THE EARLY AEGEAN WORLD - -CHAPTER - -I.--THE MEDITERRANEAN WORLD - -II.--CRETE - - I.--LEGENDS OF CRETE - II.--THE PALACES OF CRETE - III.--DRESS - IV.--RELIGION AND LITERATURE - V.--A DAY IN CRETE - VI.--THE DESTROYERS - -III.--THE MAINLAND - - I.--TROY AND THE FIRST DISCOVERIES - II.--MYCENAE AND TIRYNS - III.--LIFE IN THE HOMERIC AGE - IV.--THE GREEK MIGRATIONS - - -THE GREEKS - -I.--THE LAND OF GREECE - -II.--GREEK RELIGION AND THE ORACLES - -{x} - -III.--THE OLYMPIC GAMES - -IV.--THE GREEK CITY-STATE - -V.--SPARTA - - I.--THE GOVERNMENT OF SPARTA: LAWS OF LYCURGUS - II.--CUSTOMS IN SPARTA - III.--SPARTAN EDUCATION - -VI.--THE GROWTH OF ATHENS - - I.--EARLIEST ATHENS - II.--THE RULE OF THE FEW: THE OLIGARCHY - III.--SOLON, THE WISE MAN OF ATHENS - AND THE RULE OF THE MANY - IV.--THE TYRANTS - -VII.--GREEK COLONIES - - I.--THE FOUNDING OF A COLONY - II.--IONIA AND LYDIA - -VIII.--THE BEGINNING OF THE PERSIAN WARS - - I.--DARIUS AND THE IONIAN REVOLT - II.--MARATHON - -IX.--THE GREAT PERSIAN INVASION UNDER XERXES - -{xi} - - I.--THE PREPARATIONS: - (a) THE PERSIANS - (b) THE GREEKS - II.--THERMOPYLAE - III.--THEMISTOCLES - IV.--SALAMIS TO THE END - -X.--THE ATHENIAN EMPIRE - - I.--THE FORTIFICATIONS OF ATHENS - II.--THE CONFEDERACY OF DELOS - III.--THE ATHENIAN EMPIRE UNDER PERICLES - -XI.--LIFE IN ANCIENT ATHENS IN THE TIME OF PERICLES - - I.--A WALK IN ANCIENT ATHENS - II.--ATHENIAN DRESS - III.--THE ATHENIAN HOUSE - IV.--ATHENIAN TRADE - V.--ATHENIAN POTTERY - -XII.--A DAY WITH AN ATHENIAN - - I.--THE ATHENIAN GENTLEMAN - II.--THE ATHENIAN LADY - -XIII.--THE ATHENIAN SCHOOLBOY - -XIV.--THE GREEK THEATRE - -{xii} - -XV.--THE TEMPLES OF ATHENS - - I.--GREEK TEMPLES - II.--THE ACROPOLIS IN THE TIME OF PERICLES - III.--LATER HISTORY OF THE ACROPOLIS - -XVI.--THE DOWNFALL OF ATHENS - - I.--RIVALRY BETWEEN ATHENS AND SPARTA AND THE BEGINNING - OF THE PELOPONNESIAN WAR - II.--ATHENS DURING THE WAR - III.--ALCIBIADES - IV.--THE DOWNFALL OF ATHENS AND THE SUPREMACY OF SPARTA - V.--THE MARCH OF THE TEN THOUSAND - -XVII.--THE GREAT DAYS OF THEBES - - I.--LEGENDS AND EARLY HISTORY OF THEBES - II.--EPAMINONDAS - -XVIII.--ALEXANDER THE GREAT - - I.--PHILIP OF MACEDON - II.--DEMOSTHENES - III.--ALEXANDER THE GREAT - -{xiii} - -XIX.--THE GIFTS OF GREECE TO THE WORLD - - I.--THE GREEK SPIRIT - II.--SOCRATES - III.--GREEK LITERATURE: THE PHILOSOPHERS - IV.--GREEK LITERATURE: THE HISTORIANS - V.--GREEK LITERATURE: THE DRAMATISTS - VI.--GREEK ART - -XX.--THE HELLENISTIC AGE - - I.--THE EXTENT OF GREEK INFLUENCE - II.--ALEXANDRIA - III.--SCIENCE IN THE HELLENISTIC AGE - IV.--THE END OF GREEK INDEPENDENCE AND THE POWER FROM - THE WEST - -SUGGESTIONS ABOUT BOOKS FOR FURTHER READING - -INDEX - - - - -{xv} - -ILLUSTRATIONS - -Hermes of Praxiteles . . . Frontispiece - -Outline Map of Greece and Coasts of the Aegean Sea [missing from -source book] - -Snake Goddess and Cupbearer - -The Birth of Aphrodite - -Discobolus of Myron - -A Girl Racer - -The Temple of Poseidon at Paestum - -Pericles - -Athens with the Acropolis - -Greek Vases - -The Flute Lesson, and the Writing Lesson - -The Lyre Lesson, and the Poetry Lesson - -Music School Scenes - -{xvi} - -The Theatre at Epidaurus - -The Parthenon - -Alexander the Great - -Sophocles - -Chronological Chart - - -[Transcriber's Note: the above Chronological Chart and the map -mentioned on the title page were both missing from the source book.] - - - - -{1} - - CRETE AND THE CIVILIZATION OF - THE EARLY AEGEAN WORLD - - - -{3} - - CRETE AND THE CIVILIZATION - OF THE EARLY AEGEAN WORLD - - - -CHAPTER I - -THE MEDITERRANEAN WORLD - -To the people of the ancient world the Mediterranean was "The Sea"; -they knew almost nothing of the great ocean that lay beyond the -Pillars of Hercules. A few of the more daring of the Phoenician -navigators had sailed out into the Atlantic, but to the ordinary -sailor from the Mediterranean lands the Ocean was an unknown region, -believed to be a sea of darkness, the abode of terrible monsters and -a place to be avoided. And then, as they believed the world to be -flat, to sail too far would be to risk falling over the edge. - -But the Mediterranean was familiar to the men of the ancient world, -it was their best known highway. In those ancient times, the Ocean -meant separation, it cut off the known world from the mysterious -unknown, but the Mediterranean did not divide; it was, on the -contrary, the chief means of communication between the countries of -the ancient world. For the world was then the coast {4} round the -sea, and first the Phoenicians and later the Greeks sailed backwards -and forwards, North and South, East and West, trading, often -fighting, but always in contact with the islands and coasts. Egypt, -Carthage, Athens and Rome were empires of the Mediterranean world; -and the very name Mediterranean indicates its position; it was the -sea in the "middle of the world." - -In the summer, the Mediterranean is almost like a lake, with its calm -waters and its blue and sunny sky; but it is not always friendly and -gentle. The Greeks said of it that it was "a lake when the gods are -kind, and an ocean when they are spiteful," and the sailors who -crossed it had many tales of danger to tell. The coast of the -Mediterranean, especially in the North, is broken by capes and great -headlands, by deep gulfs and bays, and the sea, more especially that -eastern part known as the Aegean Sea, is dotted with islands, and -these give rise to strong currents. These currents made serious -difficulties for ancient navigators, and Strabo, one of the earliest -writers of Geography, in describing their troubles says that -"currents have more than one way of running through a strait." The -early navigators had no maps or compass, and if they once got out of -their regular course, they ran the danger of being swept along by -some unknown current, or of being wrecked on some hidden rock. The -result was that they preferred to sail as near the coast as was safe. -This was the easier, as the Mediterranean has almost no tides, and as -the early ships were small and light, landing was generally a simple -{5} matter. The ships were run ashore and pulled a few feet out of -the water, and then they were pushed out to sea again whenever the -sailors were ready. - -Adventurous spirits have always turned towards the West, and it was -westwards across the Mediterranean that the civilization we have -inherited slowly advanced. The early Mediterranean civilization is -sometimes given the general name of Aegean, because its great centres -were in the Aegean Sea and on the adjoining mainland. The largest -island in the Aegean is Crete, and the form of civilization developed -there is called Cretan or Minoan, from the name of one of the -legendary sea-kings of Crete, whilst that which spread on the -mainland is called Mycenaean from the great stronghold where dwelt -the lords of Mycenae. - - - - -{6} - -CHAPTER II - -CRETE - -The long narrow island of Crete lies at what might be called the -entrance to the Aegean Sea. This sea is dotted with islands which -form stepping stones from the mainland of Europe to the coast of Asia -Minor. Crete turns her face to these islands and her back to Egypt, -and the Egyptians, who did not travel very much themselves, called -the inhabitants the "Great Men of Keftiu," Keftiu meaning _people at -the back of_. They were the men who dwelt beyond what was familiar -to the Egyptians. - -The Aegean world is a very beautiful one. The Islands rise out of -the sea like jewels sparkling in the sunshine. It is a world -associated with spring, of "fresh new grass and dewey lotus, and -crocus and hyacinth,"[1] a land where the gods were born, one rich in -legend and myth and fairy tale, and, most wonderful of all, a world -where fairy tales have come true. In 1876 a telegram from an -archaeologist flashed through the world, saying he had found the tomb -of wide-ruling Agamemnon, King of Men and Tamer of Horses; and later -on, in Crete, traces were {7} found of the Labyrinth where Theseus -killed the Minotaur. The spade of the archaeologist brought these -things into the light, and a world which had hitherto seemed dim and -shadowy and unreal suddenly came out into the sunshine. - - - -I. LEGENDS OF CRETE - -There is a land called Crete in the midst of the wine-dark sea, a -fair land and a rich, begirt with water, and therein are many men -innumerable and ninety cities.[2] - - -Legend tells us that it was in this land that Zeus was born, and that -a nymph fed him in a cave with honey and goat's milk. Here, too, in -the same cave was he wedded and from this marriage came Minos, the -legendary Hero-King of Crete. The name Minos is probably a title, -like Pharaoh or Caesar, and this Minos, descendant of Zeus, is said -to have become a great Sea-King and Tyrant. He ruled over the whole -of the Aegean, and even demanded tribute from cities like Athens. -But Theseus, helped by the King's daughter Ariadne, slew the -Minotaur, the monster who devoured the Athenian youths and maidens, -and so defeated the vengeance of the King. This Minos fully realized -the importance of sea-power in the Aegean. Thucydides, the Greek -historian, tells us that he was the first ruler who possessed a navy, -and that in order to protect his increasing wealth, he did all that -was in his power to clear the sea of pirates. Piracy was a -recognized {8} trade in those days, and when strange sailors landed -anywhere, the inhabitants would come down to the shore to meet them -with these words: "Strangers, who are ye? Whence sail ye over the -wet ways? On some trading enterprise or at adventure do ye rove, -even as sea-robbers over the brine?"[3] Minos himself may have been -a great pirate who subdued all the others and made them subject to -him, but whether this were so or not, he was evidently not only a -great sea-king; legend and tradition speak of him as a great Cretan -lawgiver. Every year he was supposed to retire for a space to the -Cave of Zeus, where the Father of Gods and Men gave him laws for his -land. It is because of the great mark left by Minos on the Aegean -world, that the civilization developed there is so often called -Minoan, thus keeping alive for ever the name of its traditional -founder. - -The Labyrinth in which the Minotaur was slain was built by Daedalus, -an Athenian. He was a very skilful artificer, and legend says that -it was he who first thought of putting masts into ships and attaching -sails to them. But he was jealous of the skill of his nephew and -killed him, and so was forced to flee from Athens, and he came to -Knossos where was the palace of Minos. There he made the Labyrinth -with its mysterious thousand paths, and he is also said to have -"wrought in broad Knossos a dancing-ground for fair-haired -Ariadne."[4] - -But Daedalus lost the favour of Minos, who imprisoned him with his -son Icarus. The cunning of {9} the craftsman, however, did not -desert him, and Daedalus skilfully made wings for them both and -fastened them to their shoulders with wax, so that they flew away -from their prison out of reach of the King's wrath. Icarus flew too -near the sun, and the wax melted, and he fell into the sea and was -drowned; but Daedalus, we are told, reached Sicily in safety. - -The Athenians believed that Theseus and Minos had really existed, for -the ship in which, according to tradition, Theseus made his voyage -was preserved in Athens with great care until at least the beginning -of the third century B.C. This ship went from Athens to Delos every -year with special sacrifices, and one of these voyages became -celebrated. Socrates, the philosopher, had been condemned to death, -but the execution of the sentence was delayed for thirty days, -because this ship was away, and so great was the reverence in which -this voyage was held that no condemned man could be put to death -during its absence.[5] It was held that such an act would bring -impurity on the city. - - - -II. THE PALACES OF CRETE - -The first traces of history in Crete take us back to about 2500 B.C. -but it was not till about a thousand years later that Crete was at -the height of her prosperity and enjoying her Golden Age. Life in -Crete at this time must have been happy. The Cretans built their -cities without towers or fortifications; they were a mighty sea -power, but they lived more {10} for peace and work than for military -or naval adventures, and having attained the overlordship of the -Aegean, they devoted themselves to trade, industries and art. - -The Cretans learnt a great deal from Egypt, but they never became -dependent upon her as did the Phoenicians, that other seafaring race -in the Mediterranean. They dwelt secure in their island kingdom, -taking what they wanted from the civilization they saw in the Nile -Valley; but instead of copying this, they developed and transformed -it in accordance with their own spirit and independence. - -The chief city in Crete was Knossos, and the great palace there is -almost like a town. It is built round a large central court, out of -which open chambers, halls and corridors. This court was evidently -the centre of the life of the palace. The west wing was probably -devoted to business and it was here that strangers were received. In -the audience chamber was found a simple and austere seat, yet one -which seizes upon the imagination, for it was said to be the seat of -Minos, and is the oldest known royal throne in the world. - -In the east wing lived the artisans who were employed in decorating -and working on the building, for everything required in the palace -was made on the spot. The walls of all the rooms were finished with -smooth plaster and then painted; originally that the paint might -serve as a protection, but later because the beauty-loving Cretans -liked their walls to be covered with what must have been a joy to -look at, and which reminded them at every turn of {11} the world of -nature in which they took such a keen delight. The frescoes are now -faded, but traces of river-scenes and water, of reeds and rushes and -of waving grasses, of lilies and the crocus, of birds with brilliant -plumage, of flying fish and the foaming sea can still be -distinguished. - -The furniture has all perished, but many household utensils have been -found which show that life was by no means primitive, and the palaces -were evidently built and lived in by people who understood comfort. -In some ways they are quite modern, especially in the excellent -drainage system they possessed. These Cretan palaces were warmer and -more full of life than those in Assyria, and they were dwelt in by a -people who were young and vigorous and artistic, and who understood -the joy of the artist in creating beauty. - -Near the palace was the so-called theatre. The steps are so shallow -that they could not have made comfortable seats, and the space for -performances was too small to have been used for bull-fights, which -were the chief public entertainments. The place was probably used -for dancing, and it may have been that very dancing ground wrought -for Ariadne.[6] - - - -III. DRESS - -The dress of the Cretan women was surprisingly modern. The frescoes -on the walls, as well as small porcelain statuettes that have been -found, give us {12} a very clear idea of how the people dressed. The -women had small waists and their dresses had short sleeves, with the -bodice laced in front, and wide flounced skirts often richly -embroidered. Yellow, purple and blue seem to have been the favourite -colours. They wore shoes with heels and sometimes sandals. Their -hair was elaborately arranged in knots, side-curls and braids, and -their hats were amazingly modern. - -The men were not modern-looking. Their only garment was a short -kilt, which was often ornamented with designs in colours, and like -the women, they had an elaborate method of hair-dressing. In general -appearance the men were bronzed, slender and agile-looking. - -[Illustration: SNAKE GODDESS. From Knossos. ca. 2000 B.C. - CUP-BEARER. Fresco from Knossos, ca. 1500 B.C. -Courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.] - -Some of the frescoes are so lifelike that as they were brought to -light during the excavations, it almost seemed as if the spirits of -the long-dead Cretans were returning to the earth. The workmen felt -the spell, and Sir Arthur Evans, who excavated Knossos, has described -the scene as the painting of a young Cretan was found: - - - The colours were almost as brilliant as when laid down over three - thousand years before. For the first time the true portraiture - of a man of this mysterious Mycenaean race rises before us. - There was something very impressive in this vision of brilliant - youth and of male beauty, recalled after so long an interval to - our upper air from what had been till yesterday a forgotten - world. Even our untutored Cretan workmen felt the spell and - fascination. - - They, indeed, regarded the discovery of such a painting {13} in - the bosom of the earth as nothing less than marvellous, and saw - in it the "ikon" of a saint! The removal of the fresco required - a delicate and laborious process of under-plastering, which - necessitated its being watched at night, and one of the most - trustworthy of our gang was told off for the purpose. Somehow or - other he fell asleep, but the wrathful saint appeared to him in a - dream. Waking with a start he was conscious of a mysterious - presence; the animals round began to low and neigh, and there - were visions about; in summing up his experiences the next - morning, "The whole place spooks!" he said.[7] - - -Crete seems to have had more than the other earlier civilizations of -what today is called society. The women were not secluded but mixed -freely at court and in all social functions, and life seems to have -been joyous and free from care. - - - -IV. RELIGION AND LITERATURE - -(a) _Religion_ - -We know almost nothing of the Cretan religion. There were no idols -or images for worship and no temples. The people worshipped in their -houses, and every house seems to have had a room set apart for this -purpose with its shrine and altar; pillars were one of the -distinguishing marks of these shrines. The chief goddess was the -Mother Earth, the Source of Life, a spirit who had a good and kindly -character. Sometimes she was called the Lady of the Wild Creatures, -and bulls were sacrificed in her honour. Scenes representing such -sacrifices are to be found {14} on engraved gems, and the horns of -the bull are frequently found set up on altars and shrines. This -Earth Goddess was Goddess both of the Air and of the Underworld: when -she appears as the Goddess of the Air, she has doves as her symbol; -when she appears as the Goddess of the Underworld, she has snakes. - -Another sacred symbol found in connection with shrines and altars is -the Axe and often a Double Axe. This seems to have been looked upon -as a divine symbol representing power, for it is the axe which -transforms all kinds of material into useful articles and by means of -man's toil it supplies much of what man needs. Ships could not be -built without an axe, and as it was the ship which gave Crete power -in the Aegean, the axe came to be looked upon as symbolizing this -spirit. - -These early Aegean people did not feel the need of any temples. When -they worshipped in what they thought was the dwelling place of the -gods, they chose lonely places, remote hill-tops or caverns or the -depths of a great forest. They selected for this worship some place -that was apart from the daily human life and one that had never been -touched by the hand of man, for they felt that it was such places -that the god would choose for his dwelling. From such spots -developed the idea of a temple; it was to be a building enclosed and -shut out from the world, just as the forest grove had been surrounded -by trees, a place apart from the life of man. - -It was the custom in these early times for people to bring to the god -or goddess offerings of that which {15} was most valuable to them. -The best of the flock, the finest fruit, the largest fish, the most -beautiful vase, were all looked upon as suitable offerings. But many -people could not afford to part with the best of the first-fruits of -their toil, and so it became the custom to have little images made of -the animal or other offering they wished to make, and these were -placed in the shrine. Such images are called _votive offerings_, and -they are a source of rich material out of which the archaeologist has -been able to rebuild parts of ancient life. - - - -(b) Writing and Literature - -One reason why it has been so difficult to know much about the Cretan -religion is because the writing has not yet been deciphered. Over -sixty different signs have been recognized, but no key has yet been -found by means of which the writing can be read. In the palace at -Knossos a great library was found, consisting of about two thousand -clay tablets. These had evidently been placed in wooden chests, -carefully sealed, but at the destruction of Knossos the fire -destroyed the chests, though it helped to preserve the clay records. -Some of these were over-charred and so became brittle and broke, but -there are still quantities awaiting decipherment. The writing does -not look as if it represented literature, but more as if it were -devoted to lists and records. It seems strange that people dwelling -in a land so rich in legend and story, and possessed of the art of -writing, should not have left a literature. But in those days the -songs of minstrels preserved the {16} hero-tales in a form that was -then considered permanent, for the minstrel gathered his tales -together and handed them down to his successor by word of mouth in a -way that we, with our careless memories, deem marvellous. This was -actually considered a safer way of preserving the tales and poems -than trusting them to the written form. Be that as it may, however, -the writing that is there still awaits the finding of a key. But in -spite of these difficulties, life in Crete can be partially -reconstructed, and so it will be possible for us to spend a day in -the palace of ancient Knossos. - - - -V. A DAY IN CRETE - -It is early dawn about the year 1500 B.C. The great palace of -Knossos lies quiet and still, for the inhabitants have not yet begun -to stir. When they are aroused, the noise will be like the bustle of -a town, for everything used in the palace is made there, from the -bronze weapons used by the King when he goes out hunting to the great -clay vessels in which not only wine and oil, but also other articles -of food are kept. The palace is guarded by sentries, and the first -person to come out of it in the morning is an officer who goes the -rounds and receives the reports of the night's watch from each -sentry. He then goes into the royal storerooms, where rows of large -vessels stand against the wall, and he inspects them to make sure -that no robbery has taken place and also that there are no leaks and -no wine or oil lost. - -{17} - -By this time the sun is up and the workmen are going to the palace -workshops, where some are at work on pottery, others are weaving, and -others working with metals. Some of the potters are fashioning -beautiful vases, the younger workmen copying the well-known patterns, -the more experienced thinking of new forms, but all of them handing -over the finished vessel to the artist who paints beautiful designs -on them. The weavers have been very busy of late, for today is the -birthday of the Princess, and great festivities are to be held in her -honour, and not only the Princess but the Queen and her maidens and -all the ladies of the court need new and dainty robes for the -functions of the day. The goldsmiths also have been hard at work, -for the King has ordered exquisite jewellery as a gift for his -daughter. All these workmen are now putting the finishing touches to -their work, and in a few hours they will take it to the officials who -will see that it is delivered to the royal apartments. - -Soon all is bustling in the kitchens, for later in the day a great -banquet will be held. Farmers from the country-side come with the -best of their flocks, with delicious fruits and honey; fishermen from -the shore have been out early and have caught fine fish. Nearly -every one who comes has brought some special dainty as a particular -offering for the Princess, for she is much beloved in Knossos and in -all the country round about. - -The morning is spent in preparation for the festivities of the -afternoon. The Princess is arrayed by her maidens in her new and -beautiful robes; her hair {18} is elaborately arranged, a long and -tiresome process, but the time is enlivened by the merry talk of the -maidens who give to their young mistress all the gossip of the -palace. At length she is ready, and she goes to the great audience -chamber, where the King her father presents to her the shining -ornaments he has had made for this day. Then, sitting between her -parents, she receives the good wishes of the courtiers, all of whom -have brought her rich gifts. - -This reception is followed by an exhibition of boxing and -bull-fighting, favourite amusements of the Cretan youths; but the -great excitement of the day is the wild boar hunt which follows. All -the youths and younger men take part, and each hopes that he may -specially distinguish himself in order that on his return he may have -some trophy to present to the Princess, and that she will reward him -by giving him her hand in the dance that evening. - -While the young men are all away at the hunt, the Princess sits with -her parents in the great hall or wanders with her maidens in the -gardens. Great excitement prevails when the hunters return. On -arriving, they hasten to the bath and anoint themselves with oil and -curl their long hair and make themselves ready for the dance. When -all are ready they go out to that - - - dancing place, which Daedalus had wrought in broad Knossos for - Ariadne of the lovely tresses. There were youths dancing and - maidens of costly wooing, their hands on one another's wrists. - Fine linen the maidens had on, and the youths well-woven doublets - faintly {19} glistening with oil. Fair wreaths had the maidens, - and the youths daggers of gold hanging from silver baldrics. And - now they would run around with deft feet exceeding lightly, as - when a potter sitting by his wheel maketh trial of it whether it - run; and now anon they would run in lines to meet one another. - And a great company stood around the lovely dance in joy; and - among them a divine minstrel was making music on his lyre, and - through the midst of them, as he began his strain, two tumblers - whirled.[8] - - -The dance over, the feasting and banqueting begins. The Queen and -the Princess with their maidens retire early to their own apartments, -but the merrymaking goes on in the hall, where tales of the day's -hunt are told, and old tales of other adventures are recalled by the -old men, until weariness overcomes them. Then the Queen sends her -handmaids who "set out bedsteads beneath the gallery, and cast fair -purple blankets over them, and spread coverlets above, and thereon -lay thick mantles to be a clothing over all. Then they go from the -hall with torch in hand." So the youths and men lie down and go to -sleep, and after the excitements of the day "it seemed to them that -rest was wonderful."[9] - - - -VI. THE DESTROYERS - -After the glory of the Golden Age of Crete came destruction. Some -tremendous disaster broke for ever the power of the Sea-Kings. We do -not know {20} what happened, beyond the fact that Knossos was burned, -but from our knowledge of the life of the time and the methods of -warfare, we can make a picture of what probably took place. There -may have been some terrible sea fight, in which the fleet was worsted -and driven back upon the shore. Then the conquerors would march upon -the town and besiege it. The inhabitants, knowing that all was at -stake, would defend it to the last with the most savage fury, cheered -on by the women, who knew that if the city was taken there would be -no hope for them. Their husbands and sons would be slain, the city -utterly destroyed by fire and themselves taken captive. This is what -happened at Knossos. We know the fate of the city, but nothing of -the conquerors. Egyptian records of this time say that "the isles -were restless, disturbed among themselves," but that is all we know. - -The invaders, whoever they were, and from whereever they came, do not -seem to have been men of a highly civilized type, for they left -untouched many works of real art, and carried off only such articles -as could be turned into material wealth. These were the things they -evidently valued, and the degree of civilization to which nations or -individuals have attained, can usually be measured by the comparative -values they put on things. - -And so Knossos fell, and she tasted of "the woes that come on men -whose city is taken: the warriors are slain, and the city is wasted -of fire, and the children and women are led captive of strangers."[10] - -{21} - -The old Knossos was never rebuilt, though another city grew up in the -neighbourhood. The site of the old palace became more and more -desolate, until at length the ruins were completely hidden under a -covering of earth, and the ancient power and glory of Crete became -only a tradition. And so it remained for long centuries, until -archaeologists, discovering what lay beneath those dreary-looking -mounds, recalled for us that spring-time of the world. - - - -[1] Iliad, XIV. - -[2] Odyssey, XIX. - -[3]Odyssey, III. - -[4] Iliad, XVIII. - -[5] See p. 374. - -[6] Important excavations in other parts of Crete have been carried -on by Mr. and Mrs. Hawes. (See Bibliography, p. 410). - -[7] Sir Arthur Evans: in the _Monthly Review_, March, 1901. - -[8] Iliad, XVIII. - -[9] Odyssey, VII. - -[10] Iliad, IX. - - - - -{22} - -CHAPTER III - -THE MAINLAND - - -I. TROY AND THE FIRST DISCOVERIES - -An ancient tradition told the story of how Helen, the beautiful wife -of Menelaus King of Sparta, had been carried off by Paris, son of the -King of Troy, and of how the Greeks collected a mighty army under -Agamemnon, King of Argos and his brother Menelaus and sailed to Troy -to bring back the lost Helen. For ten years they besieged Troy, -during which time they had many adventures and many hero-deeds were -performed. Glorious Hector of the glancing helm was slain by -Achilles fleet of foot, and the gods and goddesses themselves came -down from high Olympus and took sides, some helping the Trojans and -some the Greeks. At length Troy was taken and the Greek heroes -returned home, but their homeward journey was fraught with danger and -they experienced many hardships. The wise Odysseus, especially, went -through many strange adventures before he reached Greece again. All -these tales were put together by the Greek poet Homer, and may be -read in the Iliad and the Odyssey. - -Until the beginning of the nineteenth century no {23} one had -seriously thought that there was any truth in these tales. But in -1822 a boy was born in Germany who was to make the most extraordinary -discoveries about these lands of legend. - -Henry Schliemann was the son of a German pastor who was well versed -in all these ancient legends, and as he grew up, he learned all about -Troy and the old Greek tales. He lived in a romantic neighbourhood. -Behind his father's garden was a pool, from which every midnight a -maiden was said to rise, holding a silver bowl in her hand, and there -were similar tales connected with the neighbouring hills and forests. -But there was not much money to educate the young Schliemann, and -when he was fourteen years old he was taken as errand boy by a -country grocer. This was not perhaps the occupation a -romantic-minded youth would have chosen, but there was no help for -it. One evening, there came into the shop a man, who after sitting -down and asking for some refreshment, suddenly began to recite Greek -poetry. The errand boy stopped his work to listen, and long -afterwards he described the effect this poetry had on him: - - - That evening he recited to us about a hundred lines of the poet - (Homer), observing the rhythmic cadence of the verses. Although - I did not understand a syllable, the melodious sound of the words - made a deep impression upon me, and I wept bitter tears over my - unhappy fate. Three times over did I get him to repeat to me - those divine verses, rewarding his trouble with three glasses of - whiskey, which I bought with the few pence that made up my whole - wealth. From that moment I never {24} ceased to pray God that by - His grace I might yet have the happiness of learning Greek. - - -A few years later, Schliemann was taken as errand boy in a business -house in Amsterdam, and he had to run on all kinds of errands and -carry letters to and from the post. He says of this time: - - - I never went on my errands, even in the rain, without having my - book in hand and learning something by heart. I never waited at - the post-office without reading or repeating a passage in my mind. - - -Schliemann got on well and the time came when he was able to found a -business of his own. Now at last he had time to learn Greek, and he -read everything written by or about the ancient Greeks on which he -could lay his hands. And then came the time to which he had been -looking forward all his life. He was able to free himself from his -business and to sail for the Greek lands. - -Schliemann believed that the tales of Troy were founded on true -historic facts, but everybody laughed at this opinion, and he was -often ridiculed for holding it so firmly. Now, however, he was to -prove himself victorious, for he went to the place where he believed -Troy had once stood and began to dig. His expectations were more -than realized, for he found six cities, one of which was later -conclusively proved to be the Troy of Homer! Homer had written about -what was really true, and though legends and myths had been woven -into his poem, the main events had really taken place, and a -civilization {25} which up to that time had, as it was thought, never -existed, suddenly came out into the record of history. - - - -II. MYCENAE AND TIRYNS - -All these discoveries sent a thrill of excitement through the world, -and of course at first many mistakes were made. Because Troy was -found to have really existed, everything found there was immediately -connected with the Trojan heroes of the Iliad, and some things which -were obviously legendary were treated as facts. Schliemann himself -was not entirely free from these first exaggerations, but encouraged -by what he had already discovered, he determined to find still more. - -Now Pausanias, an ancient Greek traveller, had written a book about -his travels, and one of the places he had visited was Mycenae on the -mainland of Greece. Here, he said, he had seen the tomb of -Agamemnon, who on his return from Troy had been murdered by his wife, -Clytemnestra, and hastily buried. Up to the time of Schliemann no -one had seriously believed that there had ever been such a person as -Agamemnon, but the spirit of discovery was in the air, and what might -not still be found! Schliemann determined that having proved that -Troy had once existed, he would find truth in still more legends, and -he went to Mycenae and began to excavate. The early Greeks had not -the same beliefs about the future life that the Egyptians had, but -they did believe that death meant removing the dwelling-place on -earth to one beneath the {26} earth, and so the early Greek tomb was -built in much the same shape as the earthly house. These Greeks did -not allow man to go naked and alone into the other world; they gave -to the departed to take with him all that was best and finest of his -earthly possessions. They filled the tomb with everything that could -add to his comfort, and if he were a king or great chief, he would be -surrounded by things which would mark him out from other men and -point to his great position. This being so, Schliemann thought that -a king's tomb would be easily recognized, and he opened what he -thought was probably the burial place of Agamemnon. What he saw -swept him off his feet with excitement! Before doing anything else -he sent a telegram to the King of Greece, which was speedily -published throughout the world. The telegram said: "With great joy I -announce to Your Majesty that I have found the tomb of Agamemnon!" - -The sensation created by this news was tremendous. That it was -really the tomb of the wide-ruling King of Argos was perhaps -uncertain, but it was undoubtedly the tomb of a great lord who had -lived at the same time, and at his death had been buried in barbaric -magnificence. Diadems, pendants, necklaces, ornaments of all kinds, -goblets, plates, vases, all of pure gold were piled high in confusion -in the tomb, and close by were other tombs also filled with untold -treasure. In one grave alone Schliemann counted 870 objects made of -the purest gold. This was only the beginning of excavations at -Mycenae. Later on, a great palace was uncovered, and other {27} work -at Tiryns, nearer the sea, showed that another palace had existed -there. - -These buildings were very unlike the palace at Knossos; the latter -had no fortifications, but these were strongly fortified. They had -great walls, so mighty that in ancient times the Greeks thought the -walls of Tiryns had been built by demons, and Pausanias considered -them even more wonderful than the Pyramids. The fortress palace of -Mycenae was entered by the gate of the Lionesses, which was reached -by a rather narrow road, along which only seven men could march -abreast. This seems a rather mean approach to so splendid a palace, -but such narrow approaches were necessary in those war-like times, -for they made it more difficult for an enemy to approach the gates. - -Mycenae and Tiryns are the best known today of the ancient -fortress-palaces on the mainland of Greece, but at the time when they -were built there were many others. The great lords frequently chose -the hill-tops for their dwellings, for the sake of better security -and for the protection they could then in their turn afford the -surrounding country people in times of danger. Most of these -fortress-palaces were in the neighbourhood of the coast, for no true -Greek was ever quite happy unless he were within easy reach and sight -of the sea. - - - -III. LIFE IN THE HOMERIC AGE - -The Homeric Age was the age of the great hero-kings and chiefs. Most -of these were supposed to {28} be descended from the gods, and they -shine through the mists of the early days in Greece as splendid, -gorgeous figures. Heaven was nearer to the earth in those days, and -the gods came down from Olympus and mixed familiarly with man. Life -was very different in this heroic age from the life of historic -Greece, and it is evident from the excavations and discoveries that -have been made, that it was a civilization with distinct -characteristics of its own which preceded what is known as the Greece -of history. It was an age when the strong man ruled by the might of -his own strong arm, and piracy was quite common. Manners and customs -were very primitive and simple, yet they were combined with great -material splendour. Women held a high position in this society and -they wore most gorgeous clothes. A Mycenaean lady, arrayed in her -best, would wear a dress of soft wool exquisitely dyed or of soft -shining linen, and she would glitter with golden ornaments: a diadem -of gold on her head, gold pins in her hair, gold bands round her -throat, gold bracelets on her arms, and her hands covered with rings. -Schliemann says that the women he found in one of the tombs he opened -were "literally laden with jewellery." - -The fortress-palaces were the chief houses and the huts of the -dependents of the king or chief would be crowded round them, but -these huts have, of course, disappeared. The palaces themselves were -strongly built, with courtyards and chambers opening from them. -"There is building beyond building, and the court of the house is -cunningly wrought with a wall {29} and battlements, and well-fenced -are the folding doors; no man may hold it in disdain."[1] -Excavations have proved that the Homeric palaces did indeed exist: -and well fortified though they were, their gardens and vineyards and -fountains must have made of them very pleasant dwelling-places. - - - There was a gleam as it were of sun or moon through the - high-roofed hall of great-hearted Alcinous. Brazen were the - walls which ran this way and that from the threshold to the - inmost chamber, and round them was a frieze of blue, and golden - were the doors that closed in the good house. Silver were the - door-posts that were set on the brazen threshold, and silver the - lintel thereupon, and the hook of the door was of gold. And on - either side stood golden hounds and silver, which Hephaestus had - wrought by his cunning, to guard the palace of great-hearted - Alcinous, being free from death and age all their days. And - within were seats arrayed against the wall this way and that, - from the threshold even to the inmost chamber, and thereon were - spread light coverings finely woven, the handiwork of women. - There the chieftains were wont to sit eating and drinking for - they had continual store. Yea, and there were youths fashioned - in gold, standing on firm-set bases, with flaming torches in - their hands, giving light through the night to the feasters in - the palace. And he had fifty handmaids in the house, and some - grind the yellow grain on the mill-stone, and others weave webs - and turn the yarn as they sit, restless as the leaves of the tall - poplar tree: and the soft olive oil drops off that linen, so - closely is it woven. And without the courtyard hard by the door - is a great garden, and a hedge runs round on either {30} side. - And there grow tall trees blossoming, pear-trees and - pomegranates, and apple-trees with bright fruit, and sweet figs, - and olives in their bloom. The fruit of these trees never - perisheth, neither faileth, winter nor summer, enduring through - all the year. Evermore the West Wind blowing brings some fruits - to birth and ripens others. Pear upon pear waxes old, and apple - on apple, yea and cluster ripens upon cluster of the grape, and - fig upon fig. There too hath he a fruitful vineyard planted, - whereof the one part is being daily dried by the heat, a sunny - spot on level ground, while other grapes men are gathering, and - yet others they are treading in the wine-press. In the foremost - row are unripe grapes that cast the blossom, and others there be - that are growing black to vintaging. There too, skirting the - furthest line, are all manner of garden beds, planted trimly, - that are perpetually fresh, and therein are two fountains of - water, whereof one scatters his streams all about the garden, and - the other runs over against it beneath the threshold of the - courtyard and issues by the lofty house, and thence did the - townsfolk draw water. These were the splendid gifts of the gods - in the palace of Alcinous.[2] - - -A blue frieze just like the one described above has been found both -at Mycenae and Tiryns. - -The furniture in these houses was very splendid. We read of -well-wrought chairs, of goodly carven chairs and of chairs inlaid -with ivory and silver; of inlaid seats and polished tables; of -jointed bedsteads and of a fair bedstead with inlaid work of gold and -silver and ivory; of close-fitted, folding doors and of doors with -silver handles; and of rugs of soft wool. Rich and varied were the -ornaments and vessels {31} used: goodly golden ewers and silver -basins, two-handled cups, silver baskets and tripods, mixing bowls of -flowered work all of silver and one that was beautifully wrought all -of silver and the lips thereof finished with gold. The most famous -cup of all was that of the clear-voiced orator Nestor; this had four -handles on which were golden doves feeding and it stood two feet from -the ground. Very skilful was all the work done in metal at this -time, and the warriors went out arrayed in flashing bronze, bearing -staves studded with golden nails, bronze-headed spears and -silver-studded swords, their greaves were fastened with silver -clasps, they wore bronze-bound helmets, glittering girdles and belts -with golden buckles. Only a god could have fashioned a wondrous -shield such as Achilles bore, on which were depicted scenes from the -life of the time (the description of it can be read in the Iliad), -but the tombs at Mycenae and elsewhere have yielded weapons and -treasures very similar to those used by the heroes in Homer. - - - -IV. THE GREEK MIGRATIONS - -It was more than a thousand years after the Pyramids had been built -that Crete reached her Golden Age. When Knossos was destroyed, the -centres of civilization on the mainland, such as Mycenae and Tiryns, -became of greater importance, and life was lived as Homer has -described it. All this was the Greece of the Heroic Age, the Greece -to which the Greeks of the later historical times {32} looked back as -to something that lay far behind them. - -Nearly two thousand years ago the site of Mycenae was just as it had -remained until the excavations of Schliemann, and in the second -century A.D. a Greek poet sang of Mycenae: - - The cities of the hero-age thine eyes may seek in vain, - Save where some wrecks of ruin still break the level plain. - So once I saw Mycenae, the ill-starred, a barren height - Too bleak for goats to pasture--the goat-herds point the site. - And as I passed a greybeard said: "Here used to stand of old - A city built by giants and passing rich in gold."[3] - - -Even to the Greeks of historical times there was a great gap between -the return of the heroes from Troy and the beginnings of their own -historic Greece. That gap has not yet been entirely filled up; it is -even now a more shadowy and misty period to us than the Age of the -Heroes, but it was during these mysterious centuries that there were -wanderings among the peoples, that restlessness and disturbance -spoken of by the Egyptians. It was a dark period in the history of -Greece. Wandering tribes, tall and fair men, came from out the -forests of the north, over the mountains and through the passes into -Greece. Others came from the East. Some again came by sea, driven -out from their island homes by invaders. There was fighting and -slaying and {33} taking of prisoners. The old civilization was -broken down, but slowly something new arose in its place. There were -enemies on all sides, but gradually those who were left of the -conquered made terms with the conquerors; they abandoned their old -language and adopted that of the newcomers, and they dwelt together, -and were known as Greeks. The older civilizations had done their -work and had perished. The time had come for the mind of man to make -greater advances than he had ever before dreamed of, and in the land -of Greece this period begins with the coming of the Greeks. - - - -[1] Odyssey, XVII. - -[2] Odyssey, VII. - -[3] Alpheus, translated by Sir Rennell Rodd in _Love, Worship and -Death_. - - - - -{37} - -THE GREEKS - - -CHAPTER I - -THE LAND OF GREECE - -The land to which people belong always helps to form their character -and to influence their history, and the land of Greece, its mountains -and plains, its sea and sky, was of great importance in making the -Greeks what they were. The map shows us three parts of Greece: -Northern Greece, a rugged mountainous land; then Central Greece with -a fertile plain running down to more mountains; and then, across a -narrow sea, the peninsula known as the Peloponnesus. One striking -feature of the whole country is the nearness of every part of it to -the sea. The coast is deeply indented with gulfs and bays, and the -neighbouring sea is dotted with islands. It is a land of sea and -mountains. - -The soil is not rich. About one-third of the country is mountainous -and unproductive and consists of rock. Forests are found in the -lower lands, but they are not like our forests; the trees are smaller -and the sun penetrates even the thickest places. The trees most -often found are the laurel, the oleander and the myrtle. The forests -were thicker in ancient times; {38} they are much thinner now owing -to the carelessness of peasants who, without thinking of the -consequences, have wastefully cut down the trees. - -The land used by the Greeks for pasture was that which was not rich -enough for cultivation. Goats and sheep and pigs roamed over this -land, and the bees made honey there. In ancient times there was no -sugar and honey was a necessary article of food. - -The cultivated land lay in the plains. The mountains of Greece do -not form long valleys, but they enclose plains, and it was here that -the Greeks cultivated their corn and wine and oil, and that their -cities grew up separated from each other by the mountains. Corn, -wine and oil were absolutely necessary for life in the Mediterranean -world. Every Greek city tried to produce enough corn, chiefly wheat -and barley, for its inhabitants, for the difficulties and sometimes -dangers were great when a city was not self-sufficing. Wine, too, -was necessary, for the Greeks, though they were a temperate nation, -could not do without it. Oil was even more important, for it was -used for cleansing purposes, for food and for lighting. Even to-day -the Greeks use but little butter, and where we eat bread and butter, -they use bread and olives or bread and goat's cheese. The olive is -cultivated all over Greece, but especially in Attica, where it was -regarded as the gift of Athena herself. It was looking across the -sea to Attica that-- - - In Salamis, filled with the foaming - Of billows and murmur of bees, -{39} - - Old Telamon stayed from his roaming, - Long ago, on a throne of the seas; - Looking out on the hills olive-laden, - Enchanted, where first from the earth - The grey-gleaming fruit of the Maiden - Athena had birth.[1] - - -The olive is not a large tree and its chief beauty is in the shimmer -of the leaves which glisten a silvery-grey in the sunshine. Olive -trees take a long time to mature. They do not yield a full crop for -sixteen years or more, and they are nearly fifty years old before -they reach their fullest maturity. It is no wonder that the olive is -a symbol of peace. - -Herodotus, the earliest of the Greek historians, wrote that "it was -the lot of Hellas to have its seasons far more fairly tempered than -other lands." The Mediterranean is a borderland, midway between the -tropics and the colder North. In summer the cool winds from the -North blow upon Greece making the climate pleasant, but in winter -they blow from every quarter, and according to the poet Hesiod were -"a great trouble to mortals." Greek life was a summer life, and the -ancient Greeks lived almost entirely out-of-doors: sailing over the -sea, attending to all their affairs in the open air, from the -shepherd watching his flock on the mountain side to the philosopher -discussing politics in the market place. But the Greeks were a hardy -race, and though the winter life must have been chilly and -uncomfortable, life went on just the same, until the {40} warm spring -sunshine made them forget the winter cold. - -What kind of people were made by these surroundings and what was -their spirit? - -The hardy mountain life developed a free and independent spirit, and -as the mountains cut off the dwellers in the different plains from -each other, separate city-states were formed, each with its own laws -and government. This separation of communities was a source of -weakness to the country as a whole, but it developed the spirit of -freedom and independence in the city dweller as well as in the -mountaineer. As all parts of Greece were within easy reach of the -sea, the Greeks naturally became sailors. They loved the sea and -were at home upon it, and this sea-faring life developed the same -spirit of freedom and independence. - -The mild climate relieved the Greeks of many cares which come to -those who live in harsher lands, but the atmosphere was clear and -bracing, which stimulated clear thinking. The Greeks were the first -great thinkers in the world; they were possessed of a passion for -knowing the truth about all things in heaven and earth, and few -people have sought truth with greater courage and clearness of mind -than the Greeks. - -The poor soil of their land made it necessary for them to work hard -and to form habits of thrift and economy. It was not a soil that -made them rich and so they developed a spirit of self-control and -moderation, and learned how to combine simple living with high -thinking to a greater degree than {41} any other nation has ever -done. But if their soil was poor, they had all round them the -exquisite beauty of the mountains, sea and sky, surroundings from -which they learned to love beauty in a way that has never been -excelled, if, indeed, it has ever been equalled. - -The spirit of a nation expresses itself and its history is recorded -in various ways: in the social relations of the people both with each -other and with other nations, and this is called its political -history; in its language which expresses itself in its literature; -and in its building, which is its architecture. The Greek people -were lovers of freedom, truth, self-control and beauty. It is in -their political history, their literature and their architecture that -we shall see some of the outward and visible signs of the spirit that -inspired them, and the land of Greece is the setting in which they -played their part in the history of civilization. - - - -[1] Euripides: _The Trojan Women_, translated by Gilbert Murray. - - - - -{42} - -CHAPTER II - -GREEK RELIGION AND THE ORACLES - -The city-dwellers in Greece lived in the plains separated from their -neighbours by mountains, and this caused the development of a large -number of separate communities, quite independent of each other, each -having its own laws and government, but there were three things which -all Greeks had in common wherever they lived: they spoke the same -language, they believed in the same gods, and they celebrated -together as Greeks their great national games. - -The Greeks called themselves Hellenes and their land Hellas. Like -the Hebrews and the Babylonians, they believed that there had been a -time when men had grown so wicked that the gods determined to destroy -the old race of man and to create a new one. A terrible flood -overwhelmed the earth, until nothing of it was left visible but the -top of Mount Parnassus, and here, the old legend tells us, a refuge -was found by two people, Deucalion and his wife Pyrrha, who alone had -been saved on account of their righteous lives. Slowly the waters -abated, until the earth was once more dry and habitable, but -Deucalion and Pyrrha were alone and did not {43} know what they -should do. So they prayed to the gods and received as an answer to -their prayer the strange command: "Depart, and cast behind you the -bones of your mother." At first they could not understand what was -meant, but at length Deucalion thought of an explanation. He said to -Pyrrha: "The earth is the great mother of all; the stones are her -bones, and perhaps it is these we must cast behind us." So they took -up the stones that were lying about and cast them behind them, and as -they did so a strange thing happened! The stones thrown by Deucalion -became men, and those thrown by Pyrrha became women, and this race of -men peopled the land of Greece anew. The son of Deucalion and Pyrrha -was called Hellen, and as the Greeks looked upon him as the legendary -founder of their race, they called themselves and their land by his -name. - -These earliest Greeks had very strange ideas as to the shape of the -world. They thought it was flat and circular, and that Greece lay in -the very middle of it, with Mount Olympus, or as some maintained, -Delphi, as the central point of the whole world. This world was -believed to be cut in two by the Sea and to be entirely surrounded by -the River Ocean, from which the Sea and all the rivers and lakes on -the earth received their waters. - -In the north of this world, were supposed to live the Hyperboreans. -They were the people who lived beyond the North winds, whose home was -in the caverns in the mountains to the North of Greece. The -Hyperboreans were a happy race of beings who {44} knew neither -disease nor old age, and who, living in a land of everlasting spring, -were free from all toil and labour. - -Far away in the south, on the banks of the River Ocean, lived another -happy people, the Aethiopians. They were so happy and led such -blissful lives, that the gods used sometimes to leave their home in -Olympus and go and join the Aethiopians in their feasts and banquets. - -On the western edge of the earth and close to the River Ocean were -the Elysian Fields, sometimes called the Fortunate Fields and the -Isles of the Blessed. It was to this blissful place that mortals who -were specially loved by the gods were transported without first -tasting of death, and there they lived forever, set free from all the -sorrows and sufferings of earth, it was a land-- - - Where falls not hail, or rain, or any snow, - Nor ever wind blows loudly; but it lies - Deep-meadow'd, happy----. - - -The Sun and the Moon and the Rosy-fingered Dawn were thought of as -gods who rose out of the River Ocean and drove in their chariots -through the air, giving light to both gods and men. - -What kind of religion did the Greeks have? Now _religion_ may be -explained in many different ways, and there have been many different -religions in the world, but there has never been a nation that has -had no religion. From the earliest times men have realized that -there were things in the world that {45} they could not understand, -and these mysteries showed them that there must be some Being greater -than man who had himself been created; and it is by what is called -religion that men have sought to come into relationship with this -Being greater than themselves. - -The Egyptians in their religious beliefs had been very much occupied -with the idea of the life after death, but at first the Greeks -thought of this very little. They believed that proper burial was -necessary for the future happiness of the soul, and want of this was -looked upon as a very serious disaster, but beyond the insisting on -due and fitting burial ceremonies their thoughts were not much -occupied with the future. The reason of this was probably because -the Greeks found this life so delightful. They were filled with the -joy of being alive and were keenly interested in everything -concerning life; they felt at home in the world. The gods in whom -the Greeks believed were not supposed to have created the world, but -they were themselves part of it, and every phase of this life that -was so full of interest and adventure was represented by the -personality of a god. First, it was the outside life, nature with -all its mysteries, and then all the outward activities of man. -Later, men found other things difficult to explain, the passions -within them, love and hatred, gentleness and anger, and gradually -they gave personalities to all these emotions and thought of each as -inspired by a god. These gods were thought of as very near to man; -men and women in the Heroic Age had claimed descent from them, and -they were supposed to come {46} down to earth and to hold frequent -converse with man. The Greeks trusted their gods and looked to them -for protection and assistance in all their affairs, but these gods -were too human and not holy enough to be a real inspiration or to -influence very much the conduct of those who believed in them. - -The chief gods dwelt on Mount Olympus in Thessaly and were called the -Olympians; others had dwellings on the earth, in the water, or in the -underworld. Heaven, the water and the underworld were each under the -particular sovereignty of a great overlord amongst the gods. - - - Three brethren are we [said Poseidon], Zeus and myself and Hades - is the third, the ruler of the folk in the underworld. And in - three lots are all things divided, and each drew a domain of his - own, and to me fell the hoary sea, to be my habitation for ever, - when we shook the lots; and Hades drew the murky darkness, and - Zeus the wide heaven, in clear air and clouds, but the earth and - high Olympus are common to all.[1] - - -Zeus was the greatest of the gods. He was the Father of gods and -men, the lord of the lightning and of the storm-cloud, whose joy was -in the thunder. But he was also the lord of counsel and ruler of -heaven and earth, and he was in particular the protector of all who -were in any kind of need or distress, and he was the guardian of the -home. The court of every house had an altar to Zeus, the Protector -of the Hearth. A great statue of Zeus stood in the temple at -Olympia. It was the work of Pheidias {47} and was considered one of -the Seven Wonders of the ancient world.[2] This statue was destroyed -more than a thousand years ago by an earthquake, but a visitor to -Olympia in ancient times tells us how perfectly it expressed the -character of the god: - - - His power and kingship are displayed by the strength and majesty - of the whole image, his fatherly care for men by the mildness and - lovingkindness in the face; the solemn austerity of the work - marks the god of the city and the law--he seems like to one - giving and bestowing blessings.[3] - - -Hera was the wife of Zeus. She was "golden-throned Hera, an immortal -queen, the bride of loud-thundering Zeus, the lady renowned, whom all -the Blessed throughout high Olympus honour and revere no less than -Zeus whose delight is the thunder."[4] - -Poseidon went to Olympus when he was summoned by Zeus, but he was the -God of the Sea, and he preferred its depths as his home. His symbol -was the trident, and he was often represented as driving over the -waves in a chariot drawn by foaming white horses. All sailors looked -to him for protection and they sang to him: "Hail, Prince, thou -Girdler of the Earth, thou dark-haired God, and with kindly heart, O -blessed one, do thou befriend the mariners."[5] - -Athena, the grey-eyed Goddess, was the Guardian of Athens, and she -stood to all the Greeks, but especially to the Athenians, as the -symbol of three {48} things: she was the Warrior Goddess, "the -saviour of cities who with Ares takes keep of the works of war, and -of falling cities and the battle din."[6] She it was who led their -armies out to war and brought them home victorious. She was Athena -Polias, the Guardian of the city and the home, to whom was committed -the planting and care of the olive trees and who had taught women the -art of weaving and given them wisdom in all fair handiwork; she was -the wise goddess, rich in counsel, who inspired the Athenians with -good statesmanship and showed them how to rule well and justly; and -she was Athena Parthenos, the Queen whose victories were won, and who -was the symbol of all that was true and beautiful and good. - -Apollo, the Far Darter, the Lord of the silver bow, was the god who -inspired all poetry and music. He went about playing upon his lyre, -clad in divine garments; and at his touch the lyre gave forth sweet, -music. To him - - - everywhere have fallen all the ranges of song, both on the - mainland and among the isles: to him all the cliffs are dear, and - the steep mountain crests and rivers running onward to the salt - sea, and beaches sloping to the foam, and havens of the deep. - - -When Apollo the Far Darter "fares through the hall of Zeus, the Gods -tremble, yea, rise up all from their thrones as he draws near with -his shining bended bow."[7] Apollo was also worshipped as Phoebus -the {49} Sun, the God of Light, and like the sun, he was supposed to -purify and illumine all things. - -Following Apollo as their lord were the Muses, nine daughters of -Zeus, who dwelt on Mount Parnassus. We are told that their hearts -were set on song and that their souls knew no sorrow. It was the -Muses and Apollo who gave to man the gift of song, and he whom they -loved was held to be blessed. "It is from the Muses and far-darting -Apollo that minstrels and harpers are upon the earth. Fortunate is -he whomsoever the Muses love, and sweet flows his voice from his -lips."[8] The Muse who inspired man with the imagination to -understand history aright was called Clio. - -The huntress Artemis, the sister of Apollo, was goddess of the moon -as her brother was god of the sun. She loved life in the open air -and roamed over the hills and in the valleys, through the forests and -by the streams. She was the - - - Goddess of the loud chase, a maiden revered, the slayer of stags, - the archer, very sister of Apollo of the golden blade. She - through the shadowy hills and the windy headlands rejoicing in - the chase draws her golden bow, sending forth shafts of sorrow. - Then tremble the crests of the lofty mountains, and terribly the - dark woodland rings with din of beasts, and the earth shudders, - and the teeming sea.[9] - - -Hermes is best known to us as the messenger of the gods. When he -started out to do their bidding, - - - {50} beneath his feet he bound on his fair sandals, golden, - divine, that bare him over the waters of the sea and over the - boundless land with the breathings of the wind. And he took up - his wand, wherewith he entranceth the eyes of such men as he - will, while others again he awaketh out of sleep.[10] - - -Hermes was the protector of travellers, and he was the god who took -special delight in the life of the market place. But there was -another side to his character, he was skilful in all matters of -cunning and trickery, and legend delighted in telling of his -exploits. He began early. "Born in the dawn," we are told, "by -midday well he harped and in the evening stole the cattle of Apollo -the Far Darter."[11] - -Hephaestus was the God of Fire, the divine metal-worker. He was said -to have first discovered the art of working iron, brass, silver and -gold and all other metals that require forging by fire. His workshop -was on Mount Olympus and here he used to do all kinds of work for the -gods. Perhaps his most famous piece was the divine armour and above -all the shield he made for Achilles. Some great quarrel in which he -was concerned arose in Olympus, and Zeus, in rage, threw him out of -heaven. All day he fell until, as the sun was setting, he dropped -upon the isle of Lemnos. - -Athena and Hephaestus were always regarded as benefactors to mankind, -for they taught man many useful arts. - -[Illustration: THE BIRTH OF APHRODITE. Early 5th Century B.C. Museo -delle Terme, Rome.] - -{51} - - - Sing, Muse, of Hephaestus renowned in craft, who with grey-eyed - Athena taught goodly works to men on earth, even to men who - before were wont to dwell in mountain caves like beasts; but now, - being instructed in craft by the renowned craftsman Hephaestus, - lightly the whole year through they dwell, happily in their own - homes.[12] - - -Hestia, the Goddess of the Hearth, played an important part in the -life of the Greeks. Her altar stood in every house and in every -public building, and no act of any importance was ever performed, -until an offering of wine had been poured on her altar. - -Laughter-loving, golden Aphrodite was the Goddess of Love and Beauty. -She rose from the sea born in the soft white foam. "She gives sweet -gifts to mortals and ever on her lovely face is a winsome smile."[13] - -To the ancient Greeks the woods and streams, the hills and rocky -crags of their beautiful land were dwelt in by gods and nymphs and -spirits of the wild. Chief of such spirits was Pan, - - - the goat-footed, the two-horned, the lover of the din of the - revel, who haunts the wooded dells with dancing nymphs that tread - the crests of the steep cliffs, calling upon Pan. Lord is he of - every snowy crest and mountain peak and rocky path. Hither and - thither he goes, through the thick copses, sometimes being drawn - to the still waters, and sometimes faring through the lofty crags - {52} he climbs the highest peaks whence the flocks are seen - below; ever he ranges over the high white hills and at evening - returns piping from the chase breathing sweet strains on the - reeds.[14] - - -These were the chief gods in whom the Greeks believed. How did they -worship them? The centre of their worship was the altar, but the -altars were not in the temples, but outside. They were also found in -houses and in the chief public buildings of the city. The temple was -looked upon as the home of the god, and the temple enclosure was a -very sacred place. A man accused of a crime could flee there and -take refuge, and once within the temple, he was safe. It was looked -upon as a very dreadful thing to remove him by force, for it was -believed that to do so would bring down the wrath of the god upon -those who had violated the right of sanctuary. - -In the houses the altars were those sacred to Hestia, to Apollo and -to Zeus. The altar of Hestia stood in the chief room of the house, a -libation was poured out to her before meals, and special sacrifices -were offered on special occasions; always before setting out on a -journey and on the return from it, and at the time of a birth or of a -death in the house. The altar of Apollo stood just outside the door. -Special prayers and sacrifices were offered at this altar in times of -trouble, but Apollo was not forgotten in the time of joy: those who -had travelled far from home stopped to worship on their return; when -good news came to the house sweet-smelling {53} herbs were burnt on -his altar, and a bride took sacred fire from it to offer to Apollo in -her new home. - -The Greeks had no stated day every week sacred to the gods, but -during the year different days were looked upon as belonging -specially to particular gods. Some of these days were greater than -others and were honoured by public holidays. Others caused no -interruption in the every-day life. - -Priests were attached to the temples, but sacrifices on the altars in -the city or in the home were presented by the king or chief -magistrate and by the head of the household. The Greeks did not -kneel when they prayed, but stood with bared heads. Their prayers -were chiefly for help in their undertakings. They prayed before -everything they did: before athletic contests, before performances in -the theatre, before the opening of the assembly. The sailor prayed -before setting out to sea, the farmer before he ploughed and the -whole nation before going forth to war. Pericles, the great Athenian -statesman, never spoke in public without a prayer that he might -"utter no unfitting word." - -As time went on, the gods of Olympus seemed less near to mortal men, -and they gradually became less personalities than symbols of virtues, -and as such they influenced the conduct of men more than they had -done before. Athena, for example, became for all Greeks the symbol -of self-control, of steadfast courage and of dignified restraint; -Apollo of purity; and Zeus of wise counsels and righteous judgments. - -A particular form of worship specially practised by the Athenians was -that known as the Sacred {54} Mysteries, which were celebrated every -autumn and lasted nine days. This worship centred round Demeter and -was celebrated in her temple at Eleusis near Athens. Demeter was the -Corn-Goddess and it was the story of her daughter Persephone who was -carried off by Hades, lord of the realm of the dead, that was -commemorated in the Sacred Mysteries. - - - Her daughter was playing and gathering flowers, roses and - crocuses and fair violets in the soft meadow, and lilies and - hyacinths, and the narcissus. Wondrously bloomed the flower, a - marvel for all to see, whether deathless gods or deathly men. - From its root grew forth a hundred blossoms, and with its - fragrant odour the wide heaven above and the whole earth laughed, - and the salt wave of the sea. Then the maiden marvelled and - stretched forth both her hands to seize the fair plaything, but - the wide earth gaped, and up rushed the Prince, the host of many - guests, the son of Cronos, with his immortal horses. Against her - will he seized her and drove her off weeping and right sore - against her will, in his golden chariot, but she cried aloud, - calling on the highest of gods and the best ... and the mountain - peaks and the depths of the sea rang to her immortal voice.[15] - - -Demeter heard the cry, but could not save her daughter, and she went -up and down the world seeking her. She reached Attica and was kindly -treated, though the people did not at first know she was a goddess. -When she had revealed herself to them, she commanded them to build -her a temple {55} at Eleusis. But still her daughter did not return -to her, and the gods of Olympus took no heed of her lamenting. Then -she put forth her power as Goddess of the Corn, and she caused it to -stop growing over all the earth. A fearful famine followed, and Zeus -tried to persuade her to relent. But she declared that "she would no -more forever enter on fragrant Olympus, and no more allow the earth -to bear her fruit until her eyes should behold her fair-faced -daughter."[16] - -At last Zeus consented to interfere and sent Hermes to bring -Persephone back to the earth. When Persephone saw the messenger, -"joyously and swiftly she arose and she climbed up into the golden -chariot and drove forth from the halls; nor sea, nor rivers, nor -grassy glades, nor cliffs could stay the rush of the deathless -horses,"[17] until they reached the temple where dwelt Demeter, who -when she beheld them rushed forth to greet her daughter. But before -leaving Hades, the God had given Persephone a sweet pomegranate seed -to eat, a charm to prevent her wishing to dwell forever with Demeter, -and it was then arranged that Persephone should dwell with Hades, the -lord of the realm of the dead, for one-third of the year, and for the -other two-thirds with her mother and the gods of Olympus. - -This was the story round which centred the worship of the Sacred -Mysteries at Eleusis. There came a time when the worship of the gods -of Olympus did not satisfy the longings of the Greeks for some -assurance that the soul was immortal and that there {56} was a life -after the death of the body. Demeter grew to be a symbol to the -Greeks of the power of the gods to heal and save and to grant -immortality. Her story became an allegory of the disappearance of -the corn and fruit and flowers in the winter and of their return in -the spring, bringing with them gifts to men of hope and life. At the -festival of Eleusis, a kind of mystery play on the whole legend was -acted. All those who attended the festival were required to prepare -for it by a certain ritual of fasting and sacrifice, and it was -believed that in the life after death all would be well with those -who had taken part in the festival with pure hearts and pure hands. - -The greatest religious influence in Greece was probably that of the -Oracle. This was the belief that at certain shrines specially sacred -to certain gods, the worshipper could receive answers to questions -put to the god. In very early times signs seen in the world of -nature were held to have special meanings: the rustling of leaves in -the oak-tree, the flight of birds, thunder and lightning, eclipses of -both the sun and moon or earthquakes. It is easy to understand how -this belief arose. A man, perplexed and troubled by some important -decision he had to make, would leave the city with its bustle and -noise, and go out into the country where he could think out his -difficulty alone and undisturbed. Perhaps he would sit under a tree, -and as he sat and thought, the rustling of the leaves in the breeze -would soothe his troubled mind and slowly his duty would become clear -to him, and it would seem to {57} him that his questions were -answered. Looking up to the sky he would give thanks to Zeus for -thus inspiring him with understanding. On his return home he would -speak of how he had heard the voice of Zeus speaking to him in the -rustling of the leaves, and so the place would gradually become -associated with Zeus, and others would go there and seek answers to -their difficulties, hoping to meet with the same experience, until at -last the spot would become sacred and a shrine would be built there, -and it would at length become known from far and near as an Oracle. -Plato said of these beginnings of the oracles that "for the men of -that time, since they were not so wise as ye are nowadays, it was -enough in their simplicity to listen to oak or rock, if only these -told them true." Other places would in the same way become -associated with other gods, until seeking answers at Oracles became a -well-established custom in Greece. - -The great oracles of Zeus were at Olympia, where the answers were -given from signs observed in the sacrifices offered, and at Dodona, -where they were given from the sound of the rustling of the leaves in -the sacred oak-tree. But the greatest oracle in all Greece was that -of Apollo at Delphi. It was at Delphi that Apollo had fought with -and slain the Python, and it was thought that he specially delighted -to dwell there, and had himself chosen it as the place where he would -make known his will. - - - Here methinketh to stablish a right fair temple, to be a place of - oracle to men, both they that dwell in rich {58} Peloponnesus and - they of the mainland and sea-girt isles, seeking here the word of - wisdom; to them all shall I speak the decree unerring, rendering - oracles within my wealthy shrine.[18] - - -Delphi had been sacred to Apollo ever since these legendary days, and -a great shrine and temple was built there in his honour. - -When a Greek came to consult Apollo, he had first to offer certain -sacrifices, and he always brought with him the richest gifts he could -afford which were placed in the treasury of the god. Then he entered -the temple and placed his request in the hands of a priest, who took -it into the innermost sanctuary and gave it to the prophetess, whose -duty it was to present the petition to the god himself and receive -the answer. In ancient times it was believed that a mysterious -vapour arose in this sanctuary through a cleft in the rocky floor, -and that this vapour, enveloping the prophetess, filled her with a -kind of frenzy in the midst of which she uttered the words of the -answer given her by Apollo. This answer was written down by the -priests and often turned into verse by them and then taken out to the -enquirer. Sometimes these answers were quite plain and -straightforward, such as the one which has remained true through all -the ages. It was the oracle from Apollo at Delphi which said of the -poet Homer: "He shall be deathless and ageless for aye." But -sometimes the answers were like a riddle that required much thinking -over to understand, and {59} sometimes they were so worded that they -might mean either of two things, each the opposite of the other! The -oracle at Delphi was frequently consulted by the Greeks at great -crises of their history, and it had great influence. It was the -priests who in writing down the answer really determined its nature. -They were men who were in constant touch with distant places, they -had had much experience with human nature, and they were well fitted -to give guidance and advice in all kinds of difficult matters. The -oracle at Delphi was thus a power in the worldly affairs of the -Greeks, but it was more than that, it was also a source of moral -inspiration. It encouraged all manner of civilization and the -virtues of gentleness and self-control, it marked the great reformers -with its approval, it upheld the sanctity of oaths, it encouraged -respect and reverence for women. On one of the temples were -inscribed the sayings "Know thyself" and "Nothing in excess." It was -said that these had been placed there by the ancient sages, and in -later times they became famous as maxims in the teaching of the great -philosophers. - -The oracle was not always right in its interpretations; it sometimes -failed in seizing the highest opportunities that lay before it, but -as Greek history unfolds itself before us, we can see a gradual -raising of moral standards, which was due in great measure to the -influence of the oracle of Apollo at Delphi. - - - -[1] Iliad, XV. - -[2] See p. 64. - -[3] Dion Chrysostom. - -[4] Homeric Hymn to Hera. - -[5] Homeric Hymn to Poseidon. - -[6] Homeric Hymn to Athena. - -[7] Homeric Hymn to Apollo. - -[8] Homeric Hymn to Apollo. - -[9] Homeric Hymn to Artemis, - -[10] Odyssey, V. - -[11] Homeric Hymn to Hermes. - -[12] Homeric Hymn to Hephaestus. - -[13] Homeric Hymn to Aphrodite. - -[14] Homeric Hymn to Pan. - -[15] Homeric Hymn to Demeter. - -[16] Homeric Hymn to Demeter. - -[17] Ibid. - -[18] Homeric Hymn to Apollo. - - - - -{60} - -CHAPTER III - -THE OLYMPIC GAMES - -The Greeks were bound together by their language, by their religion, -and also by their great national games. The origin of these games is -still somewhat in doubt. They probably began as some kind of -religious ceremony in connection with burials, such as the Funeral -Games described by Homer that were held in honour of Patroclus. But -whatever may have been their origin, they were firmly established in -the earliest times of historic Greece. - -Greece was never free for long at a time from warfare. The very fact -that the country was divided into so many small and independent -states bred jealousies and hatreds, and state was often at war with -state. This made it necessary that every Greek citizen should be -ready at any moment to take up arms in defence of his home, and so he -had to be physically always in good condition. This was brought -about by regular athletic training which was an important part of the -education of every Greek. It was considered just as bad to have an -ill-trained body as it was to have an ill-trained mind, and one -reason why the Greeks so despised the barbarians, as they called all -those who were not of {61} Greek race, was because the barbarian did -not train his body to the same extent, and because he loved so much -luxury. - -All Greeks, then, received athletic training, and this training aimed -at developing a beautiful body, for it was believed that to run -gracefully was as important as to run swiftly, but though the Greeks -loved contests and competition and strove hard for the victory, -because they cared so much for grace of movement they did not lay -much stress on record-breaking, and so they kept no records of -exceptional athletic feats, which prevents us from knowing details of -some of their great athletic achievements. - -Games were held in nearly every Greek city and were a source of great -pride to the citizens. The more important festivals were those held -in honour of Poseidon at Corinth and called the Isthmian Games, those -at Delphi which commemorated the slaying of the Python by Apollo and -called Pythian Games, and the greatest of all, held every four years -at Olympia in honour of Zeus, and known as the Olympic Games. These -games were the oldest in Greece and they were at all periods the most -important. The first were held, if tradition tells truly, before -Greece had begun her history, and the last long centuries after she -had ceased to be a free state. The first games in historic times -were held in 776 B.C. and the interval between each festival was -called an Olympiad. These Olympiads constituted the Greek calendar, -which took 776 B.C. as its starting point. - -This great festival at Olympia was held in August {62} or September -and lasted five days. It was a national affair and Greeks from all -over the Greek world went to Olympia to take part in it. For a whole -month a truce was proclaimed throughout Greece, all warfare had to -stop, and all ordinary business and pleasure gave way to the greater -business of going to Olympia. The games were usually held from the -eleventh to the sixteenth day of this month of truce, the days before -and after being given up to the journey to and from Olympia. All -roads were declared safe for these days, and great was the punishment -meted out to any who dared molest the pilgrims to Olympia, for they -were going to pay honour to Zeus and were considered as specially -under his protection. Visitors thronged every road and they came -from every direction. They came from all the Peloponnesian states, -from Corinth, Athens and Thebes. They came from the far-off Greek -colonies, some from the shores of the Black Sea, looking almost like -the nomads with whom they came so much in contact; some from Ionia, -men clad in rich robes and of luxurious habits learnt from their -Oriental neighbours; others from the western colonies, from Italy and -Southern Gaul; and yet others, dark and warm-blooded men, from -distant Africa. Yet all were Greeks, bound together in spite of -their differences by the common ties of blood and religion. Some -were rich, and were accompanied by slaves who brought everything -necessary for their comfort, others were poor, who tramped the roads -footsore and weary, but sustained by the thought of the joys of the -festival when they reached their goal. - -{63} - -The gathering together of so many visitors brought all kinds of -people to Olympia: merchants with rich and rare goods for sale, for a -regular fair was carried on during the festival, makers of small -statues hoping for orders to be placed in the temples, poets who -wanted to recite their poems, musicians ready to play on their lyres -to any who would listen, gymnastic trainers from all over Greece who -hoped to learn some new method that would improve their own teaching, -people of all and every kind. Only there were no women. The games -were considered too public a festival for it to be fitting for women -to be present, and the journey was too long and difficult for them to -undertake it. The women who lived near Olympia had a festival of -their own, when they, too, raced and were awarded prizes, but it was -at a different time from the great national festival. - -There was no city at Olympia and but few buildings beyond the -temples, so when the throng of visitors arrived, the first thing they -did was to provide sleeping quarters for themselves. Certain people -were allowed to sleep in some of the porticoes of the buildings -connected with the temples, others had brought tents and a regular -camp arose. Booths of all kinds were erected in which the merchants -displayed their wares; friends and acquaintances from different parts -of Greece met and talked over all that had happened to them since -they last met. Many announcements, too, were made by heralds at this -time; the terms of treaties between different Greek states were -recited in public, for in those days of difficult communication -between states, such a {64} gathering as that at Olympia ensured that -news made public then would be widely spread amongst the different -states. - -Then there were visits to be made to the great temple of Zeus and -sacrifices to be offered. From the middle of the fifth century B.C. -onwards every visitor to Olympia went reverently into the temple to -gaze at the great statue of Zeus.[1] This statue was said to be so -marvellously wrought that "those who enter the temple there no longer -think that they are beholding the ivory of India and gold from -Thrace, but the very deity translated to earth by Pheidias," and it -was said that to have made such a life-like image of the god, either -Zeus must have come down from heaven and shown himself in a vision to -Pheidias, or Pheidias must have gone up to heaven and beheld him -there. - - - The god is seated on a throne, he is made of gold and ivory, on - his head is a wreath made in imitation of the sprays of olive. - In his right hand he carries a Victory, also of ivory and gold; - she wears a ribbon, and on her head is a wreath. In the left - hand of the god is a sceptre curiously wrought in all the metals; - the bird perched on the sceptre is an eagle. The sandals of the - god are of gold, and so is his robe. On the robe are wrought - figures of animals and lily flowers. The throne is adorned with - gold and precious stones, also with ebony and ivory; and there - are figures painted, and images wrought on it.[2] - - -It is said that "when the image was completed Pheidias prayed that -the god would give a sign if {65} the work were to his mind, and -immediately, they say, Zeus hurled a thunderbolt into the ground."[3] -"Fare ye to Olympia," said an ancient writer, "that ye may see the -work of Pheidias, and account it a misfortune, each of you, if you -die with this still unknown." And so gracious and full of -loving-kindness was the face of the god, that - - - if any one who is heavy-laden in mind, who has drained the cup of - misfortune and sorrow in life, and whom sweet sleep visits no - more, were to stand before this image, he would forget all the - griefs and troubles of this mortal life.[4] - - -But what of the competitors in the games? They had all been at -Olympia for the last thirty days undergoing a final and special -training. Only men of pure Greek blood might compete, and no one who -had been convicted of any crime or who was guilty of any impiety or -disrespect to the gods. Each candidate had to prove that in addition -to his regular athletic training, he had received special training -for ten months before coming to Olympia. When they had practised for -the last time, the competitors were addressed by one of the officials -in charge. He said to them: - - - If you have exercised yourself in a manner worthy of the Olympic - Festival, if you have been guilty of no slothful or ignoble act, - go on with a good courage. You who have not so practised, go - whither you will.[5] - - -{66} The names of those who were to enter for the games were then -written up on a white board, and should a man withdraw after that, he -was branded as a coward. As soon as the competitor was finally -enrolled, a boar was offered in sacrifice to Zeus, and then he had to -take a solemn oath that he was a full Greek citizen, that he had -fulfilled all the conditions necessary for the games, that he would -abide by the rules of the contest, and that he would play fair, and -such was the spirit of honour and fairness in which the games were -played, that in more than a thousand years there appear the names of -only six or seven competitors who were guilty of breaking their oath. - -The first day of the festival was given up to sacrifices and -processions. The different states always sent official -representatives to the Games, and these would make public entrance in -their chariots, richly arrayed and bearing costly gifts to place in -the treasury of the temple. The next three days were devoted to the -actual contests. - -Long before the dawn on the first of these three days, every seat in -the stadium was occupied. It was situated at the foot of a hill, and -every available spot on the slope of this hill was used by the -spectators. Should anyone leave his place, even for an instant, it -would be lost, and there the spectators sat the whole day through, -until the sun went down. What refreshments they needed, they brought -with them. The sun beat down on their bare heads, for the Games were -in honour of Zeus and he was looked upon as present, and no one might -enter the presence of the Father of Gods and Men with covered head. -{67} Not until the setting sun gave the signal for the end of the -day's contests, did they hurriedly rush off to their tents and snatch -an hour or two of sleep before the coming of the dawn warned them to -rise and secure their seats for the next day's spectacle. - -The contests probably took place in the following order: First, there -were the foot races: there were several of these varying in length -from two hundred yards to three miles. The shortest race of two -hundred yards was for a long time the race which brought greatest -honour to the winner. Then followed the pentathlon which consisted -of five contests: throwing the discus, throwing the spear, running, -jumping and wrestling, and the winner was required to have won three -out of the five. In the pentathlon, in particular, great importance -was attached to the gracefulness of every movement, and the jumping, -discus and spear throwing were generally accompanied by the music of -the flute. Then came what was later regarded as the greatest and -most exciting race of all, the four-horse chariot race. This was a -race that poets loved to describe. Homer tells us how the charioteers - - - all together lifted the lash above their steeds, and smote them - with the reins and called on them eagerly with words: and they - forthwith sped swiftly over the plain; and beneath their breasts - stood the rising dust like a cloud or whirlwind, and their manes - waved on the blowing wind. And the chariots ran sometimes on the - bounteous earth, and other whiles would bound into the air. And - the drivers stood in the cars, and the heart of every man beat in - desire of victory, and they called {68} every man to his horses, - that flew amid their dust across the plain.[6] - - -The boxing and wrestling matches came last, and these were the -roughest and fiercest of all the contests. - -On the last day of the festival the prizes were awarded. They were -very simple, but more highly valued than greater honours could have -been. Each prize consisted of a wreath of olive, which had been cut -from a sacred olive tree with a golden knife by a boy especially -chosen for the purpose, and an old tradition required that both his -parents should be alive. These wreaths used at one time to be placed -on a tripod in the sight of all the people, later, a beautiful table -of gold and ivory was made for them. A herald announced the name of -the victor, his father's name and the city from which he came, and -then one of the judges placed the wreath on his head. This was the -proudest moment of his life, and though other rewards followed on his -return home, nothing ever quite equalled that glorious moment. - -The last day of the festival was given up to sacrifices to Zeus, -followed by banquets and feasting which lasted late into the night. -Every kind of honour was shown the victors: poets wrote odes -celebrating their victories, and sculptors made models for statues of -them, for to every athlete who had won three victories was granted -the honour of being allowed to have his statue erected in the open -space outside the temple of Zeus. - - -[Illustration: DISCOBOLUS OF MYRON. 5th Century B.C. Vatican Rome.] - -The festival over, the victors and their friends and {69} the great -throng of spectators returned to their homes. The victors were not -only proud on account of their own achievements, but for the glory -they had brought to their city. The news of the approaching arrival -of a victor was sent on ahead, and the day of his return to his -native city was always honoured by a public holiday. In some places -it was an old custom to pull down a part of the city wall and make a -special entrance, in order that he who had brought the city such -glory might enter by a path never before trodden by other men. Songs -of triumph were sung to greet him, and he was led to his father's -house along a road strewn with flowers. Rich gifts were presented to -him, and in every way he was treated as a man whom the city delighted -to respect and honour. At Athens the returning victors were honoured -by being allowed to dine thenceforth at the public expense in the -hall where the councillors and great men of the city took their meals. - -Pausanias, the traveller to whom we owe descriptions of so much in -ancient Greece that has now perished, visited Olympia, and he tells -us that - - - many a wondrous sight may be seen, and not a few tales of wonder - may be heard in Greece; but there is nothing on which the - blessing of God rests in so full a measure as the rites of - Eleusis and the Olympic Games.... - - -and Pindar, the Greek poet who has most often sung of the Olympic -Games, summed up the feelings of every victor in the words: "He that -overcometh hath, because of the games, a sweet tranquillity -throughout his life for evermore." - - - -[1] See p. 47. - -[2] Pausanias. - -[3] Pausanias. - -[4] Dion Chrysostom. - -[5] From E. N. Gardiner: _Greek Athletic Sports and Festivals_. - -[6] Iliad, XXIII. - - - - -{70} - -CHAPTER IV - -THE GREEK CITY-STATE - -Whenever men live together in communities, no matter how small they -may be, some form of law has to be observed, in order to maintain -order, and that there may be justice between man and his neighbours. -The form that this law takes in different places and in different -communities is what is called government. - -The earliest form of government in Greece was, like all primitive -government, that of the family, and the word of the head of the -family was law to all those belonging to it. The land on which they -lived belonged to the family as a whole, not to separate individuals, -and the dead were always buried there, until in time the family -claimed as their own that land, where they had lived for generations, -and where their ancestors were buried. - -After a time it became more convenient for families to join together -and live in one community. By this means the labour of cultivating -the land could be more evenly distributed, and in times of attack -from enemies, larger and stronger forces could be used for defence. -This grouping of families {71} together made a _village_ and the -strongest and most capable man in the village would become its chief. - -In time, just as families had found it more to their advantage to -group themselves together and form villages, so did the villages -living in the same neighbourhood find it a better thing to join -together and form a still larger community, which became known as a -kingdom, because instead of having a chief they were ruled by a king. -At first the kings, like the chiefs, were chosen because of their -ability and power, later the office became hereditary and was handed -down from father to son. - -Now because the Greek communities lived in the plains, separated from -each other by mountains, instead of forming one large kingdom, they -formed a great many small ones. There was in ancient times no King -of Greece, but Athens, Sparta, Corinth, Thebes and countless other -cities had their own independent forms of government, their own -rulers, their own armies, their own ships, and except that they were -all Greek and were all bound together by ties of language and -religion, they were quite independent of each other. All these -independent cities became known in time as City-States, for to the -Greek the state meant the city, the territory immediately surrounding -it was included in the state, but the city was the most important -part of it. - -All communities are always governed in one of three ways: either by -one man, or by a few men, or by many men, and the Greeks tried all -these ways, until they found the one that answered best to their -ideals of what a city-state should be. All states did not {72} -develop in the same way, but one stands out from the others as having -most nearly reached the Greek ideal. That state was Athens. Her -story shall be told in its own place; in this chapter we will see -what the Greeks thought an ideal state should be, and what they -believed to be the duties of a good citizen. - -The Greek philosopher Aristotle wrote a book in which these ideals -were set forth.[1] He believed that the end for which the State -existed was that all its citizens could lead what he called a "good -life," and by that he meant the life which best gives opportunities -for man to develop his highest instincts, and which makes it possible -for every citizen to develop his own gifts whatever they may be, in -the highest and truest way. To realize such a life there must be law -and order in a state, and Aristotle considered that the first thing -necessary to ensure this was that the state must not be too large. -He believed that the greatness of a state was not determined by the -size of its territory or the number of its population, but that -though a certain size and certain numbers helped to make a state -dignified and noble, unless these were combined with good law and -order, the state was not great. States, he said, were like animals -and plants or things made by human art which, if they are too large, -lose their true nature and are spoilt for use. But how is one to -know when the limit in size and population has been reached? Is -there any test by which it can be discovered whether a state has -grown or is in danger of growing too large? - -{73} - -Aristotle answered this question by saying that the state must be -large enough to include opportunities for all the variety and -richness of what he called the "good life," but not so large that the -citizens could not see it or think of it in their minds as one whole -of which they knew all the parts. He also thought it necessary that -the character of all citizens should be well-known, an impossibility -in too large a community, but how else, he asked, could men elect -their magistrates wisely? - -The duty of the State was, then, to ensure the possibility of a "good -life" to all its citizens. What was the Greek ideal of citizenship? -First of all, every citizen was expected to take a direct and -personal share in all the affairs of the State. To the Greek there -was no separation between private and public life, all things -concerning the State were his affairs, and it was expected that -everyone should have an opinion of his own, that he should think -clearly on all matters of common interest and not allow himself to be -swayed by his feelings without honestly thinking the matter out, and -to a Greek, thinking meant straight thinking, the power to know right -from wrong, to judge justly without prejudices or passion, to -separate the important from the unimportant, and to follow undismayed -wherever the truth might lead. - -This belief in the duty of the citizen to be personally active in the -affairs of the State tended to keep the State small, for if every -citizen was to attend the meetings of the Assembly, the latter must -be of such a size that everyone could be heard if he desired to {74} -speak, and it was necessary that a very short journey should bring -the country-dweller into the city to attend to the State business, -for frequent journeys and long absences from his farm or his flocks -would be impossible for the countryman. - -Further, the Greek believed that wealth was allowed to a man only as -a trust. Certain privileges and rights came to him because of its -possession, but they were privileges and rights that required of -their owner distinct duties. The more a man had, the more did the -State require of him; he had to give his time to the making of laws, -his wealth built ships, bore the expense of public festivals, adorned -the city with beautiful buildings, it was spent not on himself alone, -but shared with his fellow-citizens, and given to that which was -their common interest. This resulted in a passionate devotion of -every Greek to his city, for every individual had a definite share in -some way or other in the making of it, and by the sacrifice of his -life in times of danger, he proved again and again that he was in -very truth ready to die for it. - -The ideal city demanded very high standards of her citizens, and no -Greek State attained these perfectly. But in their search for what -they conceived to be the highest perfection, the Greeks found out -truths both concerning government and the real meaning of citizenship -that have remained one of the priceless possessions of mankind. - - - -[1] _The Politics of Aristotle_. See p. 384. - - - - -{75} - -CHAPTER V - -SPARTA[1] - -Of all the city-states in Greece, two stand out from the others as -having played the leading part in Greek history. These two are -Athens, which most nearly approached the ideal city-state, and -Sparta, the foremost military state in Greece. - -Sparta was the chief city in the peninsula in the south of Greece -called the Peloponnesus, or the Land of Pelops, one of the ancient -mythical heroes of that land. During the period of the Greek -migrations, the Peloponnesus was probably the last district to be -settled, and the tribes which came down into it were called the -Dorians. They invaded Laconia, of which the chief city was Sparta, -and settled it and the surrounding country. Only the citizens of the -city itself were called Spartans; those who owed allegiance to the -city, but who lived in the country outside were known as -Lacedaemonians. - -Unlike most other Greek cities, which were well fortified and -defended by a citadel built on high ground, Sparta, "low-lying among -the caverned hills," had grown out of a group of villages and had -{76} no walls. But if she had no outward signs of security from her -foes, she had the mightiest warriors in Greece ready to defend her to -the utmost. Lycurgus, the wise man of Sparta, was once consulted as -to whether it would not be a wise thing to build a wall round the -city, and he answered those who came to him with the words: "The city -is well fortified which hath a wall of men instead of brick." - -The Spartans were always afraid of attack from their slaves. These -had been the former inhabitants of the land and had been conquered -and made slaves by the Spartans. These slaves were called Helots; -they were severely and often cruelly treated by their masters, and -were always ready to revolt when opportunity came. This was one of -the reasons that made the Spartans spend more time than other Greeks -in military training. This common danger also had the result of -drawing all Spartans very closely together, and of making them -subordinate all other interests to the supreme duty of protecting the -state. - - - -I. THE GOVERNMENT OF SPARTA: LAWS OF LYCURGUS - -The Spartans always held Lycurgus to have been their great lawgiver, -though they never agreed as to when he lived. It is probable that -the laws were not made by one single lawgiver, but that many wise -men, whose names were unknown to later generations, had helped to -create the laws over a long period of time. As Lycurgus was the wise -man whose name was known to the Spartans, they came to look {77} back -to him as their only lawgiver, because it was by the government he -was supposed to have established and the laws he made that Sparta -became so great a state. He was the brother of a King of Sparta who -died leaving a child as his heir. Everyone thought that Lycurgus -would take the opportunity to seize the throne and make himself King, -but he declared that he would only rule until his nephew should be -old enough to become King. Some people, however, would not believe -this, and plots were made against his life. This decided Lycurgus to -leave Sparta for a time and to visit some other countries with the -intention of learning things from them that might be of use to his -own land. He went first to Crete, where, - - - having considered their several forms of government, and got an - acquaintance with the principal men amongst them, some of their - laws he very much approved of and resolved to make use of them in - his own country. From Crete he sailed to Asia, with design, as - is said, to examine the difference betwixt the manners and rules - of life of the Cretans who were very sober and temperate, and - those of the Ionians, a people of sumptuous and delicate habits, - and so to form a judgment. Lycurgus was much missed at Sparta, - and often sent for, "for kings indeed we have," the people said, - "who wear the masks and assume the titles of royalty, but as for - the qualities of their minds, they have nothing by which they are - to be distinguished from their subjects." - - -Lycurgus only, they said, knew both how to rule and how to make the -people obey him. - -{78} So Lycurgus returned, but on his way he went to Delphi to -consult Apollo, and the oracle called him "beloved of God," and said -to him: - - - Lo, thou art come, O Lycurgus, to this rich shrine of my temple, - Beloved thou by Zeus and by all who possess the abodes of - Olympus. Whether to call thee a god, I doubt, in my voices - prophetic, God or a man, but rather a god I think, O Lycurgus.[2] - - -The oracle then went on to say "that his prayers were heard, that his -laws should be the best, and the commonwealth which observed them the -most famous in the world." - -On his return to Sparta, the first thing Lycurgus did was to reform -the government. This was now to consist of three parts: the Kings, -the Senate or Council, and the Assembly. Sparta had always had two -Kings at a time, who succeeded each other from father to son. It was -they who had the right of commanding the army in war, they were -always accompanied by a bodyguard of specially picked men, at the -public sacrifices and games they had special seats of honour, and at -all banquets and feasts double portions of everything were served to -them. When it was necessary for the State to consult the Oracle, it -was one of the Kings who decided on the messenger to be sent. - -The Senate or Council consisted of the two Kings who were members by -right of their birth, and of twenty-eight other men who were elected -as Senators {79} for life. Every candidate had to be sixty years -old, for Lycurgus believed that until a man had reached that age, he -was not wise enough nor fit enough to be - - - entrusted with the supreme authority over the lives and highest - interests of all his countrymen. The manner of their election - was as follows: the people being called together, some selected - persons were locked up in a room near the place of election, so - contrived that they could neither see nor be seen, but could only - hear the noise of the assembly without; for they decided this, as - most other affairs of moment, by the shouts of the people. This - done, the competitors were not brought in and presented all - together, but one after another by lot, and passed in order - through the assembly without speaking a word. Those who were - locked up had writing tables with them, in which they recorded - and marked each shout by its loudness, without knowing in favour - of which candidate each of them was made, but merely that they - came first, second, third, and so forth. He who was found to - have the most and loudest acclamations was declared senator duly - elected. Upon this he had a garland set upon his head, and went - in procession to all the temples to give thanks to the gods. - - -The duties of the Senate were to prepare all the laws and matters of -public interest which were to be brought before the general Assembly; -it acted as a court of justice for criminal cases, and its -deliberations carried great weight. - -Every Spartan citizen over thirty years of age was a member of the -Assembly. It was the duty of the Spartans in the Assembly to give or -withhold {80} approval of all the matters brought before them by the -Senate. It was they who elected the Senators and all other -magistrates, and they declared war and made peace. In spite of this -Assembly of citizens, the government of Sparta was really in the -hands of the Senate, for the members of the Assembly might not -discuss the laws submitted for their approval, but only ratify or -reject them. At no time were the ordinary citizens given much -opportunity to speak at length in public. The Spartans did not like -long speeches, and Lycurgus believed that no one should be allowed to -talk much unless he could say a great deal that was useful and to the -point in a few words. This way of talking became so characteristic -of the men of Laconia, that it was called by their name, and even -today speech that is short and sharp and to the point is called -_laconic_. Many stories are told of this Spartan manner of speech. -King Leonidas said once to a man who was speaking about some -important matter, but at the wrong time and place, "Much to the -purpose, Sir, elsewhere"; and one who kept pressing for an answer to -the question "Who is the best man in Lacedaemon?" received as his -answer: "He, Sir, that is least like you." - -Long after the death of Lycurgus, another special body of men was -elected to help in the government. These men were called Ephors, and -there were five of them. It was their business to watch the conduct -of the Kings, to see that the laws were all carried out and that -order and discipline were maintained in the state. Probably no other -Greek state would have submitted to such oversight, but the Spartans -were {81} well-disciplined and did not look upon such an office as -one that interfered in any way with their personal freedom. Plato, -writing long after of their authority, said that it was, "exceedingly -like that of a tyrant." - - - -II. CUSTOMS IN SPARTA - -Having established the government, Lycurgus next set himself to -introduce what he considered good customs amongst the Spartans. The -first thing he did was to re-distribute the land amongst the -citizens. He found that some were very rich and others poor, and he -determined that they should all live together sharing in everything -alike. So he divided the land into lots and distributed it equally -amongst all the citizens. After this had been done, and the time of -harvest had come, Lycurgus, "seeing all the stacks standing equal and -alike, smiled, and said to those about him, 'methinks all Laconia -looks like one family estate just divided among a number of -brothers.'" - -During his travels in other parts of the world, Lycurgus had had -opportunities to compare rich states with poor ones, and he had -concluded that the richest were not always the best governed, and -that wealth did not always bring happiness. He was determined that -the Spartans should become good soldiers and that they should be -great in war, for he believed that simple habits and simplicity of -living were more easily acquired by a nation of warriors than by one -devoted only to peace. To this end he {82} wanted to have neither -rich nor poor in Sparta, but that all should be alike. Lycurgus, -however, was wise enough to know that some people would always manage -to make more money or to save more than others, so instead of -dividing up all the money in the state equally between everyone, he - - - commanded that all gold and silver coin should be called in, and - that only a sort of money made of iron should be current, a great - weight and quantity of which was but very little worth; so that - to lay up twenty or thirty pounds there was required a pretty - large closet, and, to remove it, nothing less than a yoke of oxen. - - -Not only did this prevent any one man from becoming too rich, but it -lessened the crime of theft in Sparta, for no one would want to steal -what was of no value. - -This lack of money also resulted in doing away with luxuries; for - - - there was no more means of purchasing foreign goods; merchants - sent no shiploads into Laconian ports; no gold or silversmith, - engraver or jeweller set foot in a country which had no money, so - that luxury wasted to nothing and died away of itself. - - -Everything needed in their houses had to be made by the Spartans -themselves, with only the simplest tools, and the houses were roughly -built. The law required that the - - - ceilings of their houses should only be wrought by the axe, and - their gates and doors smoothed only by the {83} saw, and as no - man would furnish such plain and common rooms with silver-footed - couches and purple coverlets and gold and silver plate, - - -all Spartans grew accustomed to the plainest and simplest -surroundings. - - - It is reported that one of their Kings was so little used to the - sight of any other kind of work, that being entertained at - Corinth in a stately room, he was much surprised to see the - timber and ceiling so finely carved and panelled, and asked his - host whether the trees grew so in his country. - - -The last law made by Lycurgus to ensure simplicity of living was that -all Spartan men and youths should eat at common dining-tables, and -they were only allowed to eat such food as was permitted by the law. -Each table seated about fifteen men, who shared in providing the -food; each of them was "bound to bring in monthly a bushel of meal, -eight gallons of wine, five pounds of cheese, two and a half pounds -of figs and some very small sum of money to buy flesh and fish with." -All the food was prepared in a very simple manner, but "their most -famous dish was the black broth, which was so much valued that the -elderly men fed only upon that, leaving what flesh there was to the -younger." Other Greeks, however, thought this black broth very -disagreeable. - -It was the custom that at any one table, only those should sit who -were friendly to each other. When a newcomer wanted to join a -certain table, all those already seated at it voted as to whether -they would {84} have him or not. An urn was passed round the table -and everyone present dropped into it a small ball of bread. Those -who voted for the newcomer dropped their balls without altering their -shape, those who voted against him flattened the ball with their -fingers before placing it in the urn. One flat ball was enough to -exclude a man from the table. - -When dinner was over, "every man went to his home without lights, for -the use of them was on all occasions forbidden, to the end that they -might accustom themselves to march boldly in the dark." - - - -III. SPARTAN EDUCATION - -Lycurgus was determined that every Spartan should be so trained that -he might become a good soldier, and some of his most important laws -concerned the education of children. As soon as a child was born, he -was carried to - - - the elders of the tribe to which he belonged; their business it - was carefully to view the infant, and if they found it stout and - well-made, they gave order for its rearing, but if they found it - puny and ill-shaped, ordered it to be taken to a cavern on Mount - Taygetus, where it was left to perish, for they thought it - neither for the good of the child itself, nor for the public - interest that it should be brought up, if it did not, from the - very outset, appear made to be healthy and vigorous. - - -There was a belief in Sparta that wine was more strengthening than -water for a bath, and so the first bath a baby had was always in wine. - -{85} - - - There was much care and art, too, used by the nurses; the - children grew up free and unconstrained in limb and form, and not - dainty and fanciful about their food; not afraid in the dark, or - of being left alone; without any peevishness or ill-humour. Upon - this account, Spartan nurses were often hired by people of other - countries. - - -At the age of seven, Spartan boys left their homes and their mothers, -and the State took charge of the rest of their education. - - - As soon as they were seven years old they were to be enrolled in - certain companies and classes, where they all lived under the - same order and discipline, doing their exercises and taking their - play together. Of these, he who showed the most conduct and - courage was made captain; they had their eyes always upon him, - obeyed his orders, and underwent patiently whatsoever punishment - he inflicted; so that the whole course of their education was one - continued exercise of a ready and perfect obedience. Reading and - writing they gave them, just enough to serve their turn; their - chief care was to make them good subjects, and to teach them to - endure pain and conquer in battle. - - -As they grew older, Spartan boys were taught to undergo all kinds of -hardships. They wore very little clothing, even in the cold of -winter, and one coat had to serve them for a year. - - - After they were twelve years old they lodged together in little - bands upon beds made of the rushes which grew by the banks of the - river Eurotas, which they were to break off with their hands - without a knife. The old {86} men had an eye upon them at this - time, coming often to the grounds to hear and see them contend - either in wit or strength with one another, and this seriously - and with much concern; so that there scarcely was any time or - place without someone present to put them in mind of their duty, - and punish them if they had neglected it. - - Besides all this, there was always one of the best and honestest - men in the city appointed to undertake the charge and governance - of them; he again arranged them into their several bands, and set - over each of them for the captain the most temperate and boldest - of those they called Irens, who were usually twenty years old. - This young man, therefore, was their captain when they fought, - and their master at home, using them for the offices of his - house; sending the oldest of them to fetch wood, and the weaker - and less able, to gather salads and herbs and these they must - either go without or steal; which they did by creeping into the - gardens, or conveying themselves cunningly and closely into the - eating-houses; if they were taken in the act, they were whipped - without mercy, for thieving so ill and awkwardly. They stole, - too, all other meat they could lay their hands on, looking out - and watching all opportunities, when people were asleep or more - careless than usual. - - -If they were caught, they were not only punished with whipping, but -hunger too, for they were then reduced to their ordinary allowance, -which was purposely kept very small, in order to force them to use -cunning and skill if they wanted to add to it. "So seriously did the -Lacedaemonian children go about their stealing, that a youth having -stolen a young fox, and hid it under his coat, suffered it so to tear -{87} with its teeth and claws, that he died rather than let it be -seen." - -In every way the Spartan youths as they grew up were severely -disciplined. Every year the older boys were whipped in public before -the altar of Artemis, in order to teach them to endure pain without -crying out, and it is said that some boys died under this whipping -rather than utter a complaint. - - - The Iren used to stay a little with them after supper, at which - time he would bid one of them sing a song, to another he put a - question which required an advised and deliberate answer; for - example, Who was the best man in the city? What he thought of - such an action of such a man? They accustomed them thus early to - pass a right judgment upon persons and things, and to inform - themselves of the abilities or defects of their countrymen. - Besides this, they were to give a good reason for what they said, - and in as few words as might be; he that failed of this, or - answered not to the purpose, had his thumb bit by his master. - Sometimes the Iren, did this in the presence of the old men and - magistrates, that they might see whether he punished justly or - not; and when he did amiss, they would not reprove him before the - boys, but, when they were gone, he was called to account, and - underwent correction, if he had run far into either of the - extremes of indulgence or severity. - - Furthermore, in his desire firmly to implant in their youthful - souls a root of modesty Lycurgus imposed upon these bigger boys a - special rule. In the very streets they were to keep their two - hands within the folds of the cloak; they were to walk in silence - and without turning their heads to gaze, now here now there, but - rather to keep their eyes fixed upon the ground before them. And - {88} you might sooner expect a stone image to find a voice than - one of those Spartan youths; to divert the eyes of some bronze - statue were less difficult.[3] - - -Not very much time was spent by the boys in learning to read and -write; most of their education was given to their gymnastic training, -to running, jumping, boxing and wrestling, and to every kind of -exercise that would fit them to be brave and hardy soldiers. They -learnt some music, chiefly singing, but they only sang such songs as -would put life and spirit into them, and their battle songs were sung -with great enthusiasm. - -During a war, the Spartan young men were treated a little less -severely than when in training at home. They were allowed to curl -and adorn their hair, to have costly arms and fine clothes. They had -better clothes, too, and their officers were not so strict with them. -They marched out to battle to the sound of music. "It was at once a -magnificent and terrible sight to see them march on to the tune of -their flutes, without any disorder in their ranks, any discomposure -in their minds or change in their countenance, calmly and cheerfully -moving with the music to the deadly fight." - -Spartan discipline did not end when the boys and youths had become -men. - - - Their discipline continued still after they were grown men. No - one was allowed to live after his own fancy; but the city was a - sort of camp, in which every man had {89} his share of provisions - and business set out, and looked upon himself not so much born to - serve his own ends as the interest of his country. - - -[Illustration: A GIRL RACER. Early 5th Century B.C Vatican, Rome.] - -The girls were educated at home, but, like the boys, they were given -a gymnastic training, and they learned to run and wrestle, to throw -the quoit and dart, and to be as strong and brave as their brothers. -As the Spartan boys were trained to become good soldiers, ready to -die for Sparta, so were the girls trained to become good wives and -mothers of Spartan men, and if they could not themselves die for -their country, to be willing to sacrifice those whom they loved the -best. Every Spartan when he went to war, carried a shield that was -so heavy that if he fled from the enemy, he would have to throw it -away, so it was considered a great disgrace to return home without -one's shield; if he died in battle the Spartan was carried home upon -it. The Spartan mothers knew this, and when they said farewell to -their sons who were setting out to war, they bade them return home -with their shields or upon them. - -The Spartans held their women in great honour; they listened to their -counsel and often acted upon it. A lady of another city once said to -a Spartan, "You are the only women in the world who can rule men." -"With good reason," was the answer, "for we are the only women who -bring forth men." - -Having established all these laws and customs, Lycurgus forbade the -Spartans to travel, for he was afraid that contact with foreign -people would teach them bad habits and make them discontented with -{90} their simple way of living. "He was as careful to save his city -from the infection of foreign bad habits, as men usually are to -prevent the introduction of a pestilence." - -At last the time came when Lycurgus felt that his laws and customs -were firmly established, and that they were all familiar to the -people, but he was afraid that after his death they might be changed. -So he thought of a plan whereby he might make them last forever. He -called a special Assembly of the people together and told them that -everything was well-established, but that there was still one matter -on which he would like to consult the Oracle. Before he departed on -this journey, he made the two Kings, the Senate and the whole -Assembly take a solemn oath that they would observe his laws without -the least alteration until his return. "This done, he set out for -Delphi, and having first offered a sacrifice to Apollo, he asked the -god whether his laws were good and sufficient for the happiness and -virtue of his people." The Oracle answered that the laws were -excellent, and that the state which kept them should be greatly -renowned. Lycurgus sent this oracle in writing to Sparta, and then -having once more offered a solemn sacrifice, he took leave of his -friends, and in order not to release the Spartans from the oath they -had taken, he put an end to his own life, thus binding them to keep -his laws for ever. Nor was he deceived in his hopes, for Sparta -continued to be one of the greatest of the Greek states, so Plutarch -tells us, as long as she kept the laws of Lycurgus. - - - -[1] Except where noted otherwise, all the quotations in this chapter -are from Plutarch: _Life of Lycurgus_. - -[2] Herodotus, I. - -[3] Xenophon: _Constitution of the Lacedaemonians_. - - - - -{91} - -CHAPTER VI - -THE GROWTH OF ATHENS - - -I. EARLIEST ATHENS - -Athens was the most beautiful city in Greece. It grew up at the foot -of the high rock known as the Acropolis, which in the earliest times -was the citadel that defended the city. The Acropolis had very -strong walls, and the main entrance was guarded by nine gates, which -must have made it almost impossible for an enemy to take, and there -was a well within the fortress, so that there was always water for -those who defended it. But history has told us almost nothing about -the mighty lords who built this fortress or about the life of the -people over whom they ruled. - -But if history is silent, legend has much to say. The earliest -rulers of Athens were Kings, and of these one of the first was -Cecrops. All kinds of stories gathered round his name, and it was -believed that he was not altogether human, but a being who had grown -out of the earth and was half-man and half-serpent. It was when he -was King that the contest took place as to whether Athena, the {92} -grey-eyed Goddess of Wisdom, or Poseidon, Lord of the Sea, should be -the special guardian of the city. The victory was awarded to Athena, -who, taking her spear, thrust it into the ground, whereupon an olive -tree marvellously appeared. Poseidon gave the horse as his gift to -Athens, and legend adds that, striking the rock with his trident, he -brought forth clear salt water, which he also gave to the Athenians. -For all time the olive was associated not only with Athena, but with -Attica and Athens her city, and to the Athenian, the sea became -almost like a second home. - -The ancient kings claimed descent from the gods. They were not only -the lawgivers, but they acted as judges, as chief priests, and in -time of war as generals. All who were oppressed had the right to -appeal to the judgment seat of the King and his decisions were final. -Though the King was the supreme ruler, there were assemblies of the -chief men, always called the Elders, and of the People, who met -whenever the King called them together. These gatherings are -important, not because of any real power they possessed in early -times, for they only met to hear what the King intended to do and -never to discuss, but because it was from these assemblies that the -power of the people to govern themselves developed. - -The greatest of the early Kings was Theseus, he who slew the Minotaur -and freed Athens from paying tribute to Minos the Sea-King of Crete. -His greatest claim to be held in the remembrance of his countrymen -was that it was believed to have been Theseus {93} who united all -Attica under the leadership of Athens. Before this time all the -towns and villages in Attica had been independent, but he "gathered -together all the inhabitants of Attica into one town, and made them -people of one city ... and gave the name of Athens to the whole -state."[1] Legend tells of him that he was good and merciful to all -who were in need, and a protector of all who were oppressed, but he -offended the gods in some way, and died in exile far from Athens. -Long centuries after, Cimon, an Athenian general, took possession of -the island in which it was said that Theseus had been buried. Cimon - - - had a great ambition to find out the place where Theseus was - buried and by chance spied an eagle on a rising ground, when on a - sudden it came into his mind, as it were by some divine - inspiration, to dig there, and search for the bones of Theseus. - There were found in that place a coffin of a man of more than - ordinary size, and a brazen spear-head, and a sword lying by it, - all of which he took aboard his galley and brought with him to - Athens. Upon which the Athenians, greatly delighted, went out to - meet and receive the relics with splendid processions and with - sacrifices, as if it were Theseus himself returning alive to the - city. His tomb became a sanctuary and refuge for slaves, and of - all those of mean condition that fly from the persecution of men - in power, in memory that Theseus while he lived was an assister - and protector of the distressed, and never refused the petitions - of the afflicted that fled to him.[2] - - - {94} - - II. THE RULE OF THE FEW: THE OLIGARCHY - - It is not known with any certainty how long the rule of the Kings - lasted in Athens, but they seem to have slowly lost their power - and at last other magistrates were appointed to help them rule. - The earliest Kings had been hereditary rulers; when they became - less powerful, though they were no longer the sole rulers of - Athens, these hereditary Kings still kept their office for life. - Later they ruled for life but were elected; the next change made - was to elect a new king every ten years, and at last the greatest - change of all took place when the old office of King was done - away with, and the power that had once been in the hands of one - man was entrusted to three: the Archon, a Greek title meaning - _ruler_, who was the chief representative of the State and who - gave his name to the year, the King-Archon, who was the chief - priest and who had authority over all the sacrifices offered by - the State, and the Polemarch, or War-Archon, who was the chief - general. Six other archons were also elected whose duty it was - to assist the others and to see that the laws of the State were - obeyed. - - Not everyone could be an Archon; only men from noble families - could be elected, and so the power passed into the hands of a few - men. The rule of a few is called an _oligarchy_, and it was the - second step the Athenians took on their way to be a - self-governing community. - - At first this rule was good, for by experience the nobles learnt - a great deal about the art of governing; {95} they realised that - order was better than disorder in a state, and they set high - standards of devotion to public duty. But the nobles all - belonged to one class of people, they were the best educated and - the more wealthy, and instead of using their advantages of - position and education and wealth as a trust for the good of the - whole state (the ideal developed in later years by the - Athenians), they grew to consider these things their own - exclusive property and they became very narrow and intolerant. - They considered themselves in every way superior to the common - people, and began to make laws which benefited themselves alone, - ignoring the rights of others, especially those of the poor. - - Now the nobles had acquired their power because of their - opposition to the rule of one man, but when the authority had - been placed in their hands, they proved themselves equally unable - to be just towards all, and their rule became as intolerant as - that of the Kings. Then it was that their authority was - questioned in its turn, and the people began to ask each other - questions. What is the difference, they asked, between rich and - poor, between the noble and the plain man, between the freeman - and the slave? Who, they asked, are citizens, and what does it - mean to be a citizen? The more the people questioned, the - greater grew the oppression and injustice of the nobles, and - conditions in Athens grew very bad. Many things helped to create - this spirit of discontent: there had been wars, the harvests had - been bad and famine had resulted, and there were very harsh laws - which allowed debtors who could not pay their {96} debts to sell - themselves as slaves. Quarrels arose, and more and more the - people questioned as to the justice of all this. They said: - - But ye who have store of land, who are sated and overflow, - Restrain your swelling soul, and still it and keep it low; - Let the heart that is great within you be trained a lowlier way; - Ye shall not have all at your will, we will not forever obey.[3] - - - - III. SOLON, THE WISE MAN OF ATHENS AND THE RULE OF THE MANY[4] - - It was at this time of confusion and distress that Solon, one of - the Seven Wise Men of Greece, appeared. By birth he was a noble, - but he was a poor man and in the early part of his life he had - been a merchant. There came a time later when the merchant was - not looked upon as the equal of the noble, for Plutarch, in - writing the life of Solon about seven hundred years after his - death, makes an apology for his having been engaged in trade. - - - In his time, as Hesiod says, "Work was a shame to none," nor was - any distinction made with respect to trade, but merchandise was a - noble calling, which brought home the good things which the - barbarous {97} nations enjoyed, was the occasion of friendship - with their kings, and a great source of experience. - - -Solon enjoyed the experience of travelling and seeing new things, a -delight that remained with him even to the days of his old age, for -when he was old he would say that he - - - Each day grew older, and learnt something new. - - -Just before this time Athens had been at war with Megara, a -neighbouring state, over the possession of Salamis, which had -formerly belonged to Athens, an island so near the Athenian harbour -that it was absolutely necessary that it should belong to Athens. -But the war had been long and unsuccessful, and no victory had been -gained by either side. The Athenians were so "tired with this -tedious and difficult war that they made a law that it should be -death for any man, by writing or speaking, to assert that the city -ought to endeavour to recover the island." Solon felt this to be a -great disgrace, and knowing that thousands of Athenians would follow, -if only one man were brave enough to lead, he composed some fiery -verses which he recited in the market place. - - I come as a herald, self-sent, from Salamis, beautiful island, - And the message I bring to your ears, I have turned it into a song. - - Country and name would I change, rather than all men should say, - Pointing in scorn, "There goes one of the cowardly, lazy Athenians, - -{98} - - Who let Salamis slip through their fingers, when it was - theirs for a blow!" - - On then to Salamis, brothers! Let us fight for the - beautiful island, - Flinging afar from us, ever, the weight of unbearable shame.[5] - - -Only parts of these verses have come down to us, but they so inspired -the Athenians that it was determined to make one more effort to -regain Salamis, and this time they were successful. Salamis was -recovered, but conditions in Athens remained as unhappy as before. -Solon was now held in such high honour that we are told, "the wisest -of the Athenians pressed him to succour the commonwealth." He -consented, and was elected Archon in 594 B.C. - -The first thing Solon did was to relieve the debtors. He did this by -cancelling all debts and by setting free all who were slaves for -debt, and by forbidding by law any Athenian to pledge himself, his -wife or his children as a security for debt. This brought such -relief to the state that the act was celebrated by a festival called -the "Casting off of Burdens." - -Solon wanted to bring order into the distracted city he loved, for he -held that order was one of the greatest blessings a state could have, -so he set to work to reform the government of the state, to reduce -the power of the nobles and to give justice to the people. "First, -he repealed all Draco's laws," (Draco had been an earlier lawgiver in -Athens), "because they were too severe, and the punishments too {99} -great; for death was appointed for almost all offences, so that in -after times it was said that Draco's laws were written not with ink, -but blood." - -Solon reformed the government of the state in such a way, that even -the poorest citizens had political rights. They could not all be -Archons, but Athens, like Sparta and other Greek states, had her -general Assembly of the people, and they could all vote at this, and -they could all take part in electing the magistrates. Whilst -recognizing the rights of the poorer citizens, Solon believed in -preserving a certain part of the power of the nobles, and he arranged -the taxation and public service to the state in such a way that the -greater the wealth of a man and the higher his position, the more the -state demanded of him, both in service and money. Solon himself said -of these laws: - - I gave to the mass of the people such rank as befitted their need, - I took not away their honour, and I granted nought to their greed; - While those who were rich in power, who in wealth were glorious - and great, - I bethought me that naught should befall them unworthy their - splendour and state; - So I stood with my shield outstretched, and both were safe - in its sight, - And I would not that either should triumph, when the triumph - was not with the right.[6] - -{100} - -Solon did not please everyone with his laws, and when - - - some came to him every day, to commend or dispraise them, and to - advise, if possible, to leave out, or put in something, and - desired him to explain, and tell the meaning of such and such a - passage, he, knowing that it was useless, and not to do it would - get him ill will, it being so hard a thing, as he himself says, - in great affairs to satisfy all sides, bought a trading vessel, - and having obtained leave for ten years' absence, departed, - hoping that by that time his laws would have become familiar. - - -He stayed away the ten years and then returned to Athens. He took no -further part in public affairs, but was reverenced by all and -honoured until his death. - -During his travels, Plutarch tells us that he visited Croesus, the -rich King of Lydia. This visit could never have taken place, for -Solon died in Athens just as Croesus came to the throne. As a matter -of fact, Plutarch knew that quite well, but he says that he must tell -so famous a story, even if it were not true, because it was so -characteristic of Solon and so worthy of his wisdom and greatness of -mind, and that it would be foolish to omit it because it did not -agree with certain dates about which in any case everybody differed! - - - They say that Solon, coming to Croesus at his request, was in the - same condition as an inland man when first he goes to see the - sea; for as he fancies every river he {101} meets with to be the - ocean, so Solon, as he passed through the court, and saw a great - many nobles richly dressed, and proudly attended with a multitude - of guards and footboys, thought everyone had been the king, till - he was brought to Croesus, who was decked with every possible - rarity and curiosity, in ornaments of jewels, purple and gold, - that could make a grand and gorgeous spectacle of him. Now when - Solon came before him and seemed not at all surprised, he - commanded them to open all his treasure-houses and carry him to - see his sumptuous furniture and luxuries, though he did not wish - it; and when he returned from viewing all, Croesus asked him if - ever he had known a happier man than he. And when Solon answered - that he had known one Tellus, a fellow-citizen of his own, and - told him that this Tellus had been an honest man, had had good - children, a competent estate, and died bravely in battle for his - country, Croesus took him for an ill-bred fellow and a fool. He - asked him, however, again, if besides Tellus, he knew any other - man more happy. And Solon replying, Yes, two men who were loving - brothers and extremely dutiful sons to their mother, and when the - oxen delayed her, harnessed themselves to the waggon and drew her - to Hera's temple, her neighbours all calling her happy, and she - herself rejoicing; then, after sacrificing and feasting, they - went to rest, and never rose again, but died in the midst of - their honour a painless and tranquil death. "What," said Croesus - angrily, "and dost thou not reckon us amongst the happy men at - all?" Solon, unwilling either to flatter or exasperate him more, - replied, "The gods, O King, have given the Greeks all other gifts - in moderate degree, and so our wisdom, too, is a cheerful and - homely, not a noble and kingly wisdom, and him only to whom the - divinity has continued happiness unto the end, we call happy." - - {102} - - This story is not only characteristic of Solon, but of the Greek - spirit. That spirit did not like the extreme of extravagance and - luxury and display, and it believed that there was glory that - money could not buy. The Greek who had been rewarded by a wreath - of olive leaves had achieved the greatest success known in - Greece. This was once told to a noble who had come with the - Persian King to invade Greece, and when he heard it, he exclaimed - to the King: "What kind of men are these against whom thou hast - brought us to fight, who make their contest not for money but for - honour!" That was the spirit of Greece. - - - - IV. THE TYRANTS - - Athens did not attain her political freedom without a struggle. - She passed from the rule of One man, the King, to the rule of the - Few, the oligarchy, and then through the legislation of Solon to - the rule of the Many, the people. But during this period of - change, attempts were made from time to time by powerful leaders - to get the rule entirely into their own hands. These leaders who - wanted to seize the power and rule alone were called by the - Greeks _Tyrants_. There was always the danger that such a ruler, - with no authority in the state to control him, would become - harsh, and oppressive, but this was not always the case. Though - the rule of one man alone is never the best kind of rule, some of - the Greek Tyrants made a real contribution to the states they - governed. They were generally well-educated men, {103} who - encouraged art and literature; they were always ambitious men, - and they often dreamed of extending their power beyond the limits - of their own state, and though it was a purely personal and - selfish ambition, the efforts at realizing it brought the Greeks - into contact with things which had hitherto lain beyond their - horizon, for in the Age of the Tyrants, no Greek had yet dreamed - dreams or seen visions of empire. - - A man was not always successful in his efforts to become a - Tyrant. About forty years before Solon was made Archon, Cylon, a - rich Athenian, of good family and popular as a winner at Olympia, - tried to seize the power. He consulted the Oracle, which told - him to make the attempt at the time of the great festival of - Zeus. He took this, as all Greeks would, as meaning the Olympic - Games, so he waited until the time came for them, and then he and - his friends attacked the Acropolis and actually took possession - of the citadel. But it seemed that the Oracle, giving one of - those answers of which the meaning was uncertain, had referred to - the festival held in honour of Zeus near Athens and not to that - at Olympia, and Cylon's attempt was unsuccessful. Some of the - conspirators fled, and others took refuge in the Temple of - Athena. Here they were safe, for no one would dare touch anyone - who had placed himself under the protection of the goddess in her - sanctuary. But there was no food or drink in the temple, and as - nobody brought them any, some of them died of hunger, and Cylon - was forced to escape secretly. Then the Archon told the - remainder that if they {104} would surrender, their lives should - be spared. They consented, but not quite trusting the Archon, - they fastened a long rope to the Statue of Athena and held it as - they descended the hill, so that they might still be secure under - the protection of the goddess. Half-way down the hill, however, - the rope broke, and the Archon, declaring that this showed that - Athena had withdrawn her protection, had the men put to death. - This was looked upon as a great crime by the Athenians, for they - considered it not only treachery, but also sacrilege, and it made - the Archon many enemies. These declared that as a punishment for - this act a curse would rest on him and on all his descendants. - His family was descended from Alcmaeon, and so the curse was - spoken of as the curse on the Alcmaeonids, and the enemies of - this family always attributed to it any calamities that happened - to the city. - - The most famous Tyrant in Athens was Peisistratus. Whilst Solon - was away on his travels, quarrels broke out again, and when he - returned, though he took no active part in affairs, he tried by - privately talking with the leaders of the various factions to - restore peace, but he was unsuccessful. "Now Peisistratus was - extremely smooth and engaging in his language, a great friend to - the poor and moderate in his resentments, so that he was trusted - more than the other leaders."[7] In this way he became very - popular, and he deceived people into thinking that he was only - desirous of serving the state, when in reality he was doing all - in his power to further his own {105} ambition and to become sole - ruler of Athens. In order to gain supporters, he appeared one - day in the market place in his chariot, which was sprinkled with - blood, and he himself appeared to be wounded. On being asked - what was the matter, he said his enemies had inflicted these - injuries upon him. One of his friends then declared that the - Athenians should not permit such a thing to happen, and advised - that a bodyguard of fifty men should accompany him to protect him - from any further assault. This was done, whereupon with their - help, Peisistratus took possession of the Acropolis. But his - power was not great enough to hold it, and he and his followers - were driven out of Athens. - - Peisistratus soon returned, however, having thought of a curious - plot by which he might deceive the Athenians into believing it to - be the will of the gods that he should rule. During a festival, - accompanied by a large number of youths, he entered Athens in his - chariot, and at his side stood a tall and beautiful woman, - dressed as Athena herself and carrying a shield and spear. The - people shouted that the goddess herself had come from Olympus to - show her favour to Peisistratus, and he was received as Tyrant. - But again he was driven out by his enemies. He stayed away ten - years, and then once more he collected an army and advanced on - Athens. Once more he was successful and entered the city. This - time no one opposed him, he became sole ruler and remained so - until his death some ten years later. - - Peisistratus showed himself to be a wise ruler; he improved the - city and brought water into it by an {106} aqueduct, and he built - new roads. Along these roads, especially in places near springs - and fountains, were placed small statues of Hermes, and on the - pedestals under some of them verses were engraved, perhaps - similar to the following lines, to cheer the traveller on his way: - - I, Hermes, by the grey sea-shore - Set where the three roads meet, - Outside the wind-swept garden, - Give rest to weary feet; - The waters of my fountain - Are clear and cool and sweet.[8] - - - It was Peisistratus who made the law that men wounded in battle - and the families of those who were killed should be cared for by - the state. He built a new Temple to Athena and made her festival - more splendid, and he had the ancient poems of Homer collected - and written down, so that they might be more carefully preserved. - But good ruler as he was, he was still a Tyrant, and during his - rule the people were deprived of their right to govern - themselves, but so long as he lived, no one opposed him. - - After his death, his sons Hippias and Hipparchus succeeded him, - but they forgot that, after all, they could only remain Tyrants - if the people permitted it, and they grew insolent, harsh and - overbearing. Two young Athenians formed a plot to assassinate - these oppressors at the next festival. The day came, and - Hipparchus was slain, though Hippias escaped. The {107} - conspirators were instantly seized and put to death, and Hippias - continued to rule alone. He became more and more cruel and the - Athenians were bowed down under his oppression. At last the - Spartans came to their help. They came, because for some time - whenever they sent to Delphi to ask any advice of the Oracle, the - answer always came, "First set Athens free." With this help, - Hippias was driven out and sent into exile. - - Athens was free. The rule of the Tyrants was over, and Athens - was once more able to rule herself, to become that state of - which, when it was asked "what shepherd rules and lords it o'er - their people?" the answer could be given, "Of no man are they - called the slaves or subjects."[9] - - - - [1] Plutarch: _Life of Theseus_. - - [2] Ibid. - - [3] Poem of Solon, from _Aristotle on the Athenian Constitution_, - translated by P. G. Kenyon. (By permission of Messrs. G. Bell - and Sons). - - [4] Except where otherwise noted, the quotations in this section - are from Plutarch: _Life of Solon_. - - [5] Poem of Solon, translated by Leslie White Hopkinson. - - [6] Poem of Solon, from Aristotle on the Athenian Constitution, - translated by P. G. Kenyon. (By permission of Messrs. G. Bell - and Sons). - - [7] Plutarch: _Life of Solon_. - - [8] Written by Anyte, a poetess, probably in the 4th century - B.C., translated by Sir Rennell Rodd in _Love, Worship and Death_. - - [9] Aeschylus: _The Persians_. - - - - - {108} - - CHAPTER VII - - GREEK COLONIES - - - I. THE FOUNDING OF A COLONY - - The Greeks were a sea-faring people, and they were an adventurous - people. Their own land was small, but the islands of the Aegean - formed stepping-stones, as it were, to the coast of Asia Minor, - and the Aegean world was very familiar to the Greek sailor. - Greek galleys were found in most ports, and the Greek trader - became a formidable rival of the Phoenician. - - As they sailed from island to island and on to the mainland, the - Greeks came to realize that some of these places would make - suitable homes, and by degrees they began to colonize them; that - is to say, parties of settlers went from their mother-cities to - found new homes overseas. Pioneers, adventurous explorers, had - always gone out first and brought back reports of the new land. - A suitable site required a good water supply, and fertile land - where corn could be grown, and the vine and the olive cultivated. - The settlers needed timber from which they could build their - ships, and of course a good harbour was {109} necessary. They - also hoped to find friendly natives who would help them in their - farm-work and who would in no way oppose them or interfere with - their plans. The natives must have looked with eyes of wonder - upon the newly arrived Greeks. Most of them had never seen men - of this kind before. The only foreign traders they knew were the - Phoenicians, and they came only to trade, to exploit the people - and to exhaust the resources of the place in order to gain gold. - They knew only these "greedy merchant men with countless gauds in - black ships."[1] But these newcomers were different. A Greek - poet has described this Greek adventure over the sea, and the - wonder of those who received the strangers: - - A flash of the foam, a flash of the foam, - A wave on the oarblade welling, - And out they passed to the heart of the blue: - A chariot shell that the wild waves drew. - Is it for passion of gold they come, - Or pride to make great their dwelling?[2] - - - All kinds of considerations took the Greeks over the sea to found - new homes for themselves: some of them were discontented with - their government and wanted to go where they could establish a - new one; owing to the increasing population their home-cities - became over crowded which created difficulties in the supply of - food, and many thought a new land would give them greater and - better opportunities; others {110} found that the trade of the - colonies was a source of wealth; and others went just for the - love of adventure. Whenever a body of men decided to sail away - and found a colony, they first consulted the Oracle at Delphi as - to whether they would be successful, and whether Apollo approved - of the place they had chosen and would bless their enterprise. - They then chose a leader, whose name was always held in honour - and handed down as the founder of the colony. On leaving the - mother-city, the colonists went in procession to the Town Hall - and there they received fire from the sacred hearth, which they - took with them, and from which they kindled the fire on their own - sacred hearth in their new home. - - These colonies were quite independent of the mother-city as far - as government was concerned, but the colonists looked back to the - home from which their race had sprung with great affection; - wherever they went they were still Greeks, they spoke the Greek - language and they worshipped the Greek gods. - - Colonies were founded not only in the islands of the Aegean, but - along the coasts of the Black Sea, which the Greeks called the - Euxine. These latter colonies, of which Byzantium (the ancient - name for Constantinople) was the greatest, became very important - to the Greeks, for they supplied them with grain which grew - abundantly on the northern shores, and with iron from the Hittite - land in the South-East. - - The greatest of all the colonies in the East were the Ionian - colonies, those in the eastern part of the {111} Aegean and on - the coast of Asia Minor. The Greeks who colonized them were - descended from the Ionian tribes who had settled in Greece, and - so this whole region became known as Ionia. Herodotus tells us - that the "Ionians had the fortune to build their cities in the - most favourable position for climate and seasons of any men whom - we know." Miletus was the greatest of the Ionian cities, and it - developed a very rich civilization some time before the great - days of Athens. - - Great thinkers came out of Ionia. Thales, one of the Seven Wise - Men of Greece, the philosopher and man of science, studied the - heavens, and he foretold an eclipse of the sun in a certain year, - which came to pass. The Babylonians before him had made similar - studies, but he carried on their work and made greater advances. - He questioned in his mind what his discoveries might mean, and - for the first time in the world he declared that the movements of - the sun and moon and stars were determined by laws, and that the - eclipse of the sun was due to certain movements of the heavenly - bodies, and had nothing to do with the anger of the Sun-God. - This was the first step in the freeing of men's minds from - superstition, and though man had a long way to go and many things - to learn before he could take the second step, it was Thales of - Miletus and other Ionian philosophers in the sixth century B.C. - who first set men to thinking about the real meaning of the - things they saw about them in the world of nature. What we - to-day call science was born in Ionia more than two thousand - years ago. Many {112} wise sayings of Thales have been - preserved. It was he who said: "God is the most ancient of all - things, for He has no birth: the world is the most beautiful of - all things, for it is the work of God: ... time is the wisest of - all things, for it finds out everything."[3] - - Another wise man of science who lived in Miletus was Anaximander. - He was one of the earliest mapmakers, and he and Hecataeus, who - wrote a Geography as a "text to Anaximander's map," were amongst - the first thinkers who developed the science of Geography. - - [Illustration: TEMPLE OF POSEIDON AT PAESTUM. End of 6th Century - B.C. Paestum, the ancient Poseidonia, was a flourishing Greek - Colony in Italy. The colony was founded early in the 6th Century - B.C. and in ancient times it was famous for its roses. The - temple is one of the best preserved Greek temples out of Attica] - - The Ionian colonies could claim poets as well as men of science. - Chios is said to have been the birthplace of Homer, and Lesbos, - one of the largest of the island colonies, was famous as the home - of Sappho, not only the first woman whose poetry has come down to - us, but one of the great poetesses of the world. Unfortunately - we have only a few fragments of her poems. - - THE GIFTS OF EVENING - - Thou, Hesper, bringest homeward all - That radiant dawn sped far and wide, - The sheep to fold, the goat to stall, - The children to their mother's side.[4] - - - The face of Greece was turned towards the East, but adventurous - spirits have always turned towards the unknown West; the - Phoenicians had already explored western regions and the Greeks - soon followed. {113} The Elysian Fields lay to the west and what - might man not discover if he sailed in that direction? The - Greeks did not find the Elysian Fields, but they did what proved - to be of the most momentous importance in the history of the - civilization of the world. They founded colonies in the south of - Italy, and these became so flourishing that the whole region was - known as Magna Graecia. These Greeks brought their writing, - their art, and their poetry and planted them securely in the land - that was one day to be ruled by a city, which was then only a - little settlement at the foot of seven hills. Rome became - mightier than Greece in the art of governing a great empire, and - the day was to come when she would rule Greece herself, but in - the development of her civilization Rome acknowledged the Greeks - as her teachers. - - Other Greek colonies were founded at Syracuse in Sicily, and - along the north coast of the Mediterranean to what is now - Marseilles, and in the south a few were established along the - shores of Africa to Naucratis in Egypt. The colonies in the - south of Spain and along the north coast of Africa from the - Pillars of Hercules to Carthage were in the hands of the - Phoenicians, but by the end of the sixth century B.C. the - prevailing civilization in the Mediterranean was Greek. - - - - II. IONIA AND LYDIA - - The Ionian colonies occupied the coast land of Asia Minor, but - the mainland behind them was the {114} Kingdom of Lydia. For a - long time the Ionians lived in peace, developing their science, - thinking out their ideas, and growing in power. But at the - beginning of the sixth century B.C. a new race of kings came to - the Lydian throne. They were vigorous and ambitious, and did not - approve of the important coast towns with good harbours being in - the hands of Greeks. So they attacked them, beginning with - Miletus which was besieged. The siege lasted eleven years, but - the city did not surrender. At last the Lydians realized that - Miletus was being saved by her harbour, and though it could get - no food or supplies of any kind by land, everything needed was - brought to the city by water. So the King of Lydia gave up the - idea of conquering Miletus, and he made a treaty of peace with - her. - - It was probably not only the impossibility of conquering a - seaport that made the King of Lydia give up the siege of Miletus, - but the knowledge that a war cloud had arisen in the east which - was steadily drawing nearer his land. This was the army of the - Medes, a nation which had already helped to destroy Assyria, and - whose army was now coming towards Lydia. Several battles took - place with no very decisive result, but at length the two armies - met in a battle - - - in which it happened, when the fight had begun, that suddenly the - day became night. And this change of the day Thales the Milesian - had foretold to the Ionians. The Lydians, however, and the - Medes, when they saw that it had become night instead of day, - ceased from {115} their fighting and were much more eager both of - them that peace should be made between them.[5] - - -So peace was made, and soon after the King of Lydia died, and Croesus -succeeded him. - -Now the Ionian cities, when they saw their independence threatened, -ought to have combined together and made a joint stand against their -enemies, but each separate city so prized its independence and so -feared anything that might even seem to lessen it, that they stood -alone, and when Croesus, being at peace with the Medes, determined to -get possession of these Ionian cities, he was able to attack them one -by one and to overpower them. He allowed them to keep their own -independent government, but he required them to pay him a regular -yearly tribute. This was the first time in Greek history that Greeks -had paid a tribute to anybody; before the reign of Croesus, all -Greeks everywhere had been free. Croesus left a certain amount of -independence to the Ionian cities, because of his admiration for the -Greeks and their civilization. He sent rich and splendid gifts to -Apollo, and in return was made a citizen of Delphi, and at the -Pythian Games his envoys were given special seats of honour. - -By this time Cyrus, the Mede, had become King of Persia, and Croesus -watched his increasing power with great anxiety. He saw that war was -bound to come, so he sent a message to the Oracle at Delphi asking if -he should march against the Persians. What Herodotus called a -"deceitful" answer came {116} back, that if he crossed the river -Halys a great empire would be destroyed. Thinking, of course, that -this meant the destruction of the Persian empire, Croesus crossed the -river and met Cyrus in battle. Now the Lydians were famous for their -horses, and horsemen were an important part of their army. Cyrus -knew this, so he thought of a plan whereby he might defeat them. He -ordered all the camels which were in the rear of his army carrying -the provisions and baggage, to be unloaded and the camels brought to -the front, and there well-armed men were mounted on them. He did -this "because the horse has a fear of the camel and cannot endure -either to see his form or to scent his smell; and so soon as the -horses scented the camels and saw them, they galloped away to the -rear, and the hopes of Croesus were at once brought to nought."[6] - -The Lydians were defeated and withdrew into Sardis, the capital. But -after a short siege Cyrus took the city, and Croesus lost his -kingdom. He did not want to fall into the hands of the Persians, so -he had a great pyre erected, and after pouring out a libation to the -gods, he mounted it and bade his slaves set it on fire that he might -perish in the flames, rather than fall alive into the hands of his -conqueror. But suddenly clouds arose in the sky and rain fell, -extinguishing the flames. It was thought that this must be the doing -of Apollo, to whom Croesus had always shown much honour, and hearing -of it, Cyrus commanded that he should be taken down from the pyre and -brought into his presence. "Croesus," he {117} asked him, "what man -was it who persuaded thee to march upon my land and so to become an -enemy to me instead of a friend?" And Croesus answered, - - - O King, that I did this was to your gain and my loss, and the - fault lies with the god of the Hellenes who led me to march - against you with my army. For no one is so senseless as to - choose of his own will war rather than peace, since in peace the - sons bury their fathers, but in war the fathers bury their sons. - It was the will, I suppose, of the gods that these things should - come to pass thus.[7] - - -Lydia was now added to the Persian Empire and only the Ionian cities -were still independent. But even in the face of the great danger -from Persia, they did not unite, and one by one Cyrus conquered them -until Ionia had been reduced to subjection, and when the cities on -the mainland had been conquered, then the Ionians in the islands, -being struck with fear by these things, gave themselves to Cyrus, who -passing over the upper parts of Asia, subdued every nation, passing -over none.[8] - -And thus it came about, that the Greeks who lived in Asia lost their -independence, and became subject to the Great King of Persia. - - - -[1] Odyssey, XV. - -[2] Euripides: _Iphigenia in Tauris_, translated by Gilbert Murray. - -[3] Diogenes Laertius. - -[4] Poem of Sappho, translated by Sir Rennell Rodd in _Love, Worship -and Death_. - -[5] Herodotus, I. - -[6] Herodotus, I. - -[7] Herodotus, I. - -[8] Ibid. - - - - -{118} - -CHAPTER VIII - -THE BEGINNING OF THE PERSIAN WARS[1] - - -I. DARIUS AND THE IONIAN REVOLT - -The rule of the Lydian Kings over the Ionian cities in Asia Minor had -not been a hard one, but that of the Persians was different, for they -established tyrants in all the Greek cities, and required the -assistance of their soldiers and sailors in their wars, things which -were very bitter to the freedom-loving Greeks. - -When Darius had become King, he determined, like the Great Kings -before him, to add yet more lands to his empire, and so made ready an -army which was to invade Scythia, the region north of the Black Sea. -As the Persians themselves were not naturally sailors, the Greeks in -the Ionian cities were forced to send a large number of ships to the -help of this expedition. - -Darius and his army set out, and, arriving at the River Ister (now -known as the Danube), were joined by the Ionian ships. Here Darius -commanded that a bridge of boats should be built, and then taking a -{119} cord in which he tied sixty knots, he called the Ionian leaders -together and said to them: - - - Men of Ionia, do ye now keep this rope and do as I shall say:--So - soon as ye shall have seen me go forward against the Scythians, - from that time begin, and untie a knot on each day: and if within - this time I am not here, and ye find that the days marked by the - knots have passed by, then sail away to your own lands. Till - then, guard the floating bridge, showing all diligence to keep it - safe and to guard it. And thus acting, ye will do for me a very - acceptable service. - - -Having said this Darius hastened forward on his march. - - -Scythia was a land totally unknown to the Persians, and strange tales -were told in after years of the adventures of the King and his army. -The Scythians were a nomad people, and they believed themselves to be -invincible. When they heard that Darius was in their land with the -intention of conquering it, they "planned not to fight a pitched -battle openly, but to retire before the Persians and to drive away -their cattle from before them, choking up with earth the wells and -the springs of water by which they passed and destroying the grass -from off the ground." For some time Darius pursued this mysterious -people, but he could never come up with them. - - - Now as this went on for a long time and did not cease, Darius - sent a horseman to the King of the Scythians and said as follows: - "Thou most wondrous man, why dost thou fly for ever, when thou - mightest do of these two {120} things one?--if thou thinkest - thyself able to make opposition to my power, stand thou still and - cease from wandering abroad, and fight; but if thou dost - acknowledge thyself too weak, cease then in that case also from - thy course, and come to speech with thy master, bringing to him - gifts of earth and of water." To this the King of the Scythians - made reply: "My case, O Persian, stands thus: Never yet did I fly - because I was afraid, either before this time from any other man, - or now from thee; nor have I done anything different now from - that which I was wont to do also in time of peace: and as to the - cause why I do not fight with thee at once, this also I will - declare unto thee. We have neither cities nor land sown with - crops, about which we should fear lest they be captured or laid - waste, and so join battle more speedily with you; but know this - that we have sepulchres in which our fathers are buried; - therefore come now, find out these and attempt to destroy them, - and ye shall know then whether we shall fight with you for the - sepulchres or whether we shall not fight. Before that, however, - we shall not join battle with thee. About fighting let so much - as has been said suffice; but as to masters, I acknowledge none - over me but Zeus my ancestor and Hestia the Queen of the - Scythians. To thee then in place of gifts of earth and water I - shall send such things as it is fitting that thou shouldest - receive; and in return for thy saying that thou art my master, - for that I say, woe betide thee." - - -The King of Scythia sent gifts to Darius as he had promised, strange -and mysterious gifts. He sent him a bird, a mouse, a frog and five -arrows. At first the Persian could not imagine what these gifts -might mean, but one of his wise men interpreted them as {121} meaning -that "unless ye become birds and fly up to the heaven, or become mice -and sink down under the earth, or become frogs and leap into the -lakes, ye shall not return back home, but shall be smitten by these -arrows." - -The Scythians continued to lead the Persians from place to place in -this strange campaign, until at last they brought them back again to -the Ister where the Ionians were guarding the bridge of boats. The -Scythians arrived first, and they tried to persuade the Ionians to -break up the bridge, so that Darius would find no means of escape and -would then fall into their hands. Some of the Greeks were in favour -of doing this, but the Tyrant of Miletus, who wanted to keep on good -terms with Darius, advised against such treachery and his word -prevailed. In order to get the Scythians away, they pretended, by -moving a few of the boats,, that they were going to destroy the -bridge, but when Darius came, after a moment's fear that he had been -deserted, he found the bridge still there, and he crossed safely and -returned to his own land. - -When Darius learned that it was owing to the advice of the Tyrant of -Miletus that the bridge had been saved, he sent for him and praised -him highly for what he had done, telling him he knew him to be a man -of understanding and well-disposed towards him, and that in -consequence he wished him to go with him to Susa, to eat at his table -and to be his counsellor. Darius did this because in reality he -distrusted him and preferred that he should be near him in Susa, -where his movements could be watched. - -{122} - -In the meanwhile a kinsman of this Tyrant had been left in his place -at Miletus, and when a rebellion broke out in Naxos, he undertook to -put it down, hoping that this would bring him favour from the King. -Unfortunately for him, he was unsuccessful, and as he very much -feared the wrath of the King, he decided that as he could not put -down the rebellion, he would himself join it. The Greeks in Miletus -were more than willing to revolt from the Persian yoke and they were -joined by other Ionian cities. But they did not feel strong enough -to stand alone against Persia, so they sent ambassadors to Greece -asking for help from their kinsmen there. Sparta was asked first. -The ambassador appealed to the King and told him that the Ionians -felt it was a disgrace not only to themselves but also to the -Spartans, who were looked upon as the leaders of all men of Greek -birth, that they should be slaves instead of freemen. "Now -therefore," he said, "I entreat you by the gods of Hellas to rescue -from slavery the Ionians who are your own kinsmen." He then went on -to describe the Persians whom he might conquer, the wealth of their -land and all the benefits that would come to him if he would help the -Ionians to become free. The King told him he would think it over and -give him an answer on a day following. When the day came, the King -asked the ambassador from Miletus how many days' journey it was from -the sea of the Ionians to the residence of the King. Now it must be -remembered that no part of Greece was far from the coast, and that no -Greek, not even a Spartan who was a soldier rather than a sailor, was -{123} happy if he felt out of reach of the sea. So the feelings of -the Spartan King can be understood, when he was told that to reach -the city of the King of Persia was a journey of three months from the -sea. His mind was quickly made up. "Guest-friend from Miletus," he -said, "get thee away from Sparta before the sun has set; for thou -speakest a word which sounds not well in the ears of the -Lacedaemonians, desiring to take them a journey of three months away -from the sea." - -The ambassador then went to Athens, where he was more successful. -The Athenians sent twenty ships to help the Ionians, and the -Eretrians, out of gratitude for help once received from Miletus when -they were in need, added five. With this assistance, the Greeks -marched to Sardis and seized it. But a house accidentally caught -fire, and the fire began to spread over the whole town. This gave -the Persians time to rally from the surprise of the attack and they -drove out the Greeks, who scattered in dismay. Some were overtaken -and slain, and the rest retreated to their ships. - -Darius was in Susa at this time, and the news of the burning of -Sardis was taken to him there. He did not take much account of the -Ionians who had taken part, - - - because he knew that they at all events would not escape - unpunished for their revolt, but he enquired who the Athenians - were; and when he had been informed, he asked for his bow, and - having received it and placed an arrow upon the string, he - discharged it upwards towards {124} heaven, and as he shot into - the air he said: "Zeus, that it may be granted me to take - vengeance upon the Athenians!" Having so said he charged one of - his attendants, that when dinner was set before the King he - should say always three times: "Master, remember the Athenians." - - -Darius remembered the Athenians, but he had first to punish the -Ionian cities for their share in the revolt. One by one he attacked -them, and they fell before him, until at last only Miletus was left. -Her only hope of safety lay in her sea-defences, and all the ships -the Ionians could collect were gathered at Lade, an island just -outside the harbour of Miletus. Now the Ionians had copied many of -the customs of their Lydian neighbours, and they were more luxurious -and led softer lives than their kinsmen on the mainland. Efforts -were made by one of the Greek leaders to make the Ionians drill and -exercise themselves every day, that they might all be in good -condition when the day of battle should come. For a time they -submitted, but they were lazy and unaccustomed to such toil, and the -hard work and exercise so exhausted them, that they declared they -would prefer slavery to such hard work as was being forced upon them. -So they refused to drill any more, and "they pitched their tents in -the island like an army, and kept in the shade, and would not go on -board their ships or practise any exercises." - -There could only be one result to this. The Persians gave battle and -the Ionians were defeated, some of them even disgraced themselves by -sailing away {125} without fighting at all. The men of Chios refused -to play the coward and fought to the end, but there were too few of -them to turn the tide of battle and the Persians overcame them -completely. Miletus was taken by storm, the city was destroyed by -fire, the men were all put to death, and the women and children sent -as slaves to Susa. - -The news of the fall of Miletus was a terrible blow to the Greek -world. Up to that time she had been the greatest of the Greek -cities. She was rich, not only in material wealth, but in all that -concerned the intellectual life, and now she had fallen! It was, -above all, a blow to the Athenians, for Athens and Miletus were -closely bound by ties of kinship, and when an Athenian dramatist - - - composed a drama called the "Capture of Miletus," and put it on - the stage, the body of spectators fell to weeping, and the - Athenians moreover fined the poet heavily on the ground that he - had reminded them of their own calamities; and they ordered also - that no one in future should represent this drama. - - -Thus it came about that again the Ionians became the subjects of the -Persian King. They had been punished to the utmost for daring to -revolt from his power, and there was no fear that they would do it -again. Darius was now free to remember the Athenians. - - - -II. MARATHON - -In 492 B.C. Darius sent Mardonius, a general who was high in his -favour, across the Hellespont with {126} orders to march through -Thrace and Macedonia, and having firmly secured their allegiance, to -march on to Greece, where Athens and Eretria were to be severely -punished for their share in the burning of Sardis. Darius had -several reasons for this expedition: the punishment of Athens and -Eretria was the one about which most was said, but as it never -entered his mind that he could be defeated, Darius probably intended -so to destroy the cities on the mainland that the Greeks in Ionia -would see that it would be useless to rely on the help of their -kinsmen should they ever think of another revolt, and so to punish -the European Greeks that they would never dare to interfere again in -the affairs of the Persian Empire. But underneath all these reasons -were dreams of conquest. The Great King had visions of subduing the -whole of Greece and of extending his empire into Europe. - -Preparations were made and Mardonius set out. A fleet was to sail -close to the coast and to keep in constant touch with the army. All -went well until Mount Athos was reached and here a great storm arose. - - - The north wind handled them very roughly, casting away very many - of their ships. It is said that the number of ships destroyed - was three hundred, and more than twenty thousand men; for as this - sea which is about Athos is very full of sea monsters, some were - seized by these and so perished, while others were dashed against - the rocks; and some of them did not know how to swim and perished - for that cause, others again by reason of cold. - - -{127} - -The army fared little better, for it was attacked by some Thracian -tribesmen, and though Mardonius forced them to submit to him, he -suffered so much loss in the fighting, that as his fleet also had -been almost entirely destroyed, he was obliged to depart back to Asia -having gained no honour in this undertaking. - -Two years went by, and then another expedition was planned. Before -it started, Darius sent messengers to Athens and Sparta and other -Greek states demanding of them earth and water, the symbols of -submission to the Great King. Some states agreed to the demand, -either because they were struck dumb with terror at the mere thought -that the Great King might invade their land, or because they thought -that he was certain to conquer and that by submitting at once they -would secure themselves and their land from destruction. Athens and -Sparta, however, refused uncompromisingly. The messengers were -thrown by the Athenians into a pit, and by the Spartans into a well, -and told that if they wanted earth and water they could get them for -themselves. On hearing what had happened to his messengers, Darius -gave orders to the generals to set out at once for Greece, and to -punish every state which had refused submission by enslaving all the -inhabitants and bringing them bound to Susa. In particular, Athens -and Eretria, for their other misdeeds, were to receive the severest -treatment. So the expedition started. - -Remembering the disaster at Mount Athos, the fleet sailed this time -across the Aegean, touching at Naxos, the first of the Ionian cities -that had revolted, {128} and which now received its punishment by -being burnt and its people enslaved. Then the Persians went on to -Delos, where they offered sacrifices to Apollo, and from there they -sailed to Eretria which they immediately attacked. The city held out -for six days and then traitors within the walls opened the gates to -the Persians who entered and took the city. They burnt it to the -ground and carried off all the inhabitants into slavery. And so -Eretria was punished for her share in daring to burn a city of the -Great King. - -News of these movements of the Persians had, of course, reached -Athens, but up to this time the Athenians had not considered them as -having any dangerous consequences to themselves. But Eretria was not -very far from Athens, and when the news of the utter destruction of -this city arrived, the Athenians realized the full extent of their -peril. Now Hippias, the exiled Tyrant, had taken refuge with the -Persians, but he had never given up hope of one day returning to -Athens. He was at this very time plotting with friends in the city, -and the Persians, knowing this, hoped for their aid in taking Athens. -So the Athenians were threatened with dangers both from within and -without. - -It is easy to imagine the dismay of the Athenians when they heard -that Eretria had been destroyed, and that the Persians, the -conquerors of the world, were even then on their way to Athens. How -could they hope, with their small army, to stand against the great -empire? Help must be had, and that quickly. To whom should they -turn, if not to {129} Sparta, the foremost military state in Greece, -and which, should Athens fall, would be the next state attacked? -Self-defence, if no other reason, would surely bring them with speed -to Athens. So the Athenians sent Pheidippides, a swift runner, with -a message imploring help. The distance from Athens to Sparta is a -hundred and fifty miles, and the hours must have seemed very long to -the Athenians as they waited for his return with the answer. But so -swiftly did he run that he was back before they had dared expect him. -How had he done it? For two days and nights he had raced "over the -hills, under the dales, down pits and up peaks," and in less than -forty-eight hours he had reached Sparta. He rushed into the midst of -their Assembly with but scant ceremony, and passionately entreated -them to come to the help of Athens. - -But to this cry for help the Spartans gave but a cool answer. They -would come, certainly, but must wait five days until the moon was -full when it was their custom to sacrifice to Apollo, and to break -this custom would be to slight the god. When the full moon had come, -then they would send help to the Athenians. Pheidippides only waited -long enough to receive the answer, and then with despair in his -heart, he started back to Athens. Over the hills and the plains, -through woods and across streams he raced, appealing in his heart to -the gods to whom Athens had ever shown honour, yet who seemed to have -deserted her in her utmost need. Was there no help? Suddenly he -stopped; whom did he see, sitting in a cleft of a rock? It was Pan, -the Goat-God. - -{130} - -"Stop, Pheidippides," he cried, and stop he did. Graciously and -kindly did the god then speak to him, asking him why it was that -Athens alone in Greece had built him no temple, yet he had always -been and would forever be her friend. And now in her peril, he would -come to her aid. He bade Pheidippides go home and tell Athens to -take heart, for Pan was on her side. - -If Pheidippides had run swiftly before, now he ran as if wings had -been given to him. He hardly touched the earth but seemed to race -through the air, and burst upon the waiting Athenians who had not -dared expect him so soon, with the news that Sparta indeed had failed -them, but that Pan, mighty to save, would fight for them! - -But now grave news was brought: the Persians were landing in Attica. -It was September of the year 490 B.C., and the hot summer days had -not yet passed away. The Athenians could not wait for the Spartans, -they must go out alone and meet the foe. They marched twenty-four -miles in the heat over a rough and rugged road, until they reached -the plain of Marathon. There they found the Persians. - -Now the Persians had probably never intended to fight at Marathon. -They hoped that the friends of Hippias in Athens would in the end -betray the city to them, and their plan in landing where they did was -to bring the Athenian army away from the city, and if possible to -keep it away, until they should have received the expected signal -from the traitors. The plain of Marathon is surrounded by hills -except where it slopes down to the sea. The Athenians {131} occupied -the stronger and higher positions, the Persians were encamped near -the sea, and their ships were anchored close to the coast. For -several days the armies watched each other and waited. The Athenians -counted the days until the moon should be full, when there was hope -that the Spartans might come; the Persians knew that every added day -gave the conspirators more time to do their treacherous work in the -city. And so both sides waited. - -Suddenly help came to the Athenians from an unexpected quarter, help -which cheered and inspirited them. Through a cloud of dust on one of -the roads leading down into the plain, they saw the gleam of spears -and helmets. It could not be the Spartans, for they would not come -from that direction. As the men drew nearer, they were found to be -an army from Plataea, a little city in Boeotia, to which, when some -years before Thebes had threatened her independence, Athens had sent -succour. Now, though not thought of by the Athenians as an ally, -because she was small and not powerful, she had remembered those who -had befriended her in the hour of need, and had come down with all -her fighting men to help Athens in her peril. - -Miltiades was the Athenian general at Marathon. He knew why the -Persians were waiting, and when messengers brought him word that they -were embarking some of their men, knowing that this meant their -intention to sail round to Athens, because the conspirators in the -city were ready to act, he gave the signal to attack. There were -probably two {132} Persians to every Greek, so the Greek army had -been arranged in the best way to face these odds. The centre line -was thin, but the wings were very strong. On the first onslaught -from the Persians this centre gave way, but the wings immediately -wheeled round and attacked the Persians with such force that these -gave way before them and fled down to the shore. The Greeks pursued, -and there was terrific fighting and slaughter. Seven of the Persian -ships were destroyed by fire, but the others escaped. The Persians -fled to these remaining ships, leaving over six thousand dead on the -plain and quantities of rich plunder. They set sail for Athens, and -knowing that the Athenian army was still on the plain of Marathon, -they hoped to find the city undefended and that the traitors would -open the gates to them. But the Athenians who had won at Marathon -were not going to let their city fall into the hands of the enemy, so -when they saw the Persian ships setting sail, wearied as they were -with the strain of battle, they marched over the twenty-four miles of -rough road to the defence of their beloved city, leaving only a small -force behind to guard the bodies of the slain and to prevent thieves -from carrying off the plunder. - -On his return from Sparta, Pheidippides had been asked what reward -should be given him for the race he had run. All he asked was to be -allowed to fight for Athens, and when the Persians had been driven -away, then to wed the maid he loved and to dwell in his own home. It -was given him as he asked. He fought in the fight at Marathon, but -when the victory {133} had been gained, one more race was asked of -him. Over the rough road he ran to Athens to shout in the ears of -the waiting Athenians: "Athens is saved!" But his heart could not -contain such great joy, and having delivered his message, he died. - -The Athenian army reached Athens before the enemy, and when in the -moonlight the Persian ships sailed into the bay near Athens, there, -ready to meet them, were the same men who had defeated them at -Marathon earlier in the day. The Persians were not willing to meet -them again so soon; they realized that they had indeed suffered -grievous defeat, and commands were given for the broken army and -crippled fleet to set sail for Asia. - -The Spartans came as they had promised, but too late to take any part -in the battle. - - - There came to Athens two thousand of them after the full moon, - making great haste to be in time, so that they arrived in Athens - on the third day after leaving Sparta: and though they had come - too late for the battle, yet they desired to behold the Medes; - and accordingly they went on to Marathon and looked at the bodies - of the slain; and afterwards they departed home, commending the - Athenians and the work which they had done. - - -But no part of the honour of Marathon belonged to Sparta. - -The Athenians lost about two hundred men in the battle. They were -buried where they had fallen, a great mound was erected over their -graves, and their names were inscribed on tall pillars near by. Much -rich plunder was left by the Persians on the plain, {134} some of -which was offered to Apollo as a thank-offering for the victory. The -Athenians built a beautiful little temple, known as the Treasury of -the Athenians, at Delphi, and Pan was not forgotten. A grotto on the -side of the Acropolis was dedicated to him, where sacrifices were -offered in memory of his help and encouragement when both had been -sorely needed. - -The Greeks who had fought at Marathon had many tales to tell of the -battle, and many a wondrous deed was said to have been performed. It -was thought that the gods themselves and the ancient heroes of Athens -had taken part. Pan, they said, had struck such fear into the hearts -of the Persians that they had fled in disorder and terror, a terror -ever after known as a panic. Some even said that Theseus and other -heroes had been seen, and for a long time the spirits of those who -had been slain were thought to haunt the battlefield. - -The battle of Marathon was one of the great events in history. For -the first time the East and the West had met in conflict, and the -West had prevailed. The Athenians were the "first of all the -Hellenes who endured to face the Median garments and the men who wore -them, whereas up to this time the very name of the Medes was to the -Hellenes a terror to hear." Never before had a little state faced -the world empire of the Persians and conquered. The Greek soldiers -had shown themselves capable of facing the Persians, long looked upon -as the conquerors of the world, and of prevailing against them. The -civilization of the East had met with a check on {135} the very -threshold of Europe, and Athens had saved Greece. But the Great -Kings of Persia were not accustomed to defeat; would they accept -this, and was Greece and, through Greece, Europe, safe, or would the -Persians come again? - - - -[1] Chapter VIII is taken chiefly from the _History_ of Herodotus. - - - - -{136} - -CHAPTER IX - -THE GREAT PERSIAN INVASION UNDER XERXES[1] - - -I. THE PREPARATIONS - -(a) _The Persians_ - - -The Persians came again. When the report came to Darius of the -battle which was fought at Marathon, the King, who even before this -had been greatly exasperated with the Athenians on account of the -attack made upon Sardis, then far more than before displayed -indignation, and was still more determined to make a campaign against -Hellas. He at once sent messengers to the various cities of the -Empire and ordered that they should get ready their forces. Each -city or community was called upon to send more men than at the former -time, and to send also ships of war, and horses, provisions and -transport vessels. When these commands had been carried all round, -all Asia was moved for three years, for all the best men were being -enlisted for the expedition against Hellas, and were making -preparations. {137} But before the expedition was ready, a rebellion -broke out in Egypt, and soon after Darius died, and "thus he did not -succeed in taking vengeance upon the Athenians." - -Darius was succeeded by his son Xerxes. The first thing he did was -to crush Egypt, and then he turned his attention to Greece. -Mardonius, the general who had been forced to retire from Thrace -after the wreck of the fleet off Mount Athos, was anxious to persuade -the King to undertake another invasion. He probably wanted to -retrieve the reputation he had lost on the former occasion, and hoped -that if Greece became a Persian province, he would be made governor. -"Master," he would say to the King, "it is not fitting that the -Athenians, after having done to the Persians very great evil, should -not pay the penalty for that which they have done," and he would add -that Greece was "a very fair land and bore all kinds of trees that -are cultivated for fruit and that the King alone of all mortals was -worthy to possess it." - -Xerxes did not need much persuasion. He came of a race of kings -whose word was the law of the Medes and Persians that changeth not, -and his wrath was great against the states that had not only refused -to submit to the Persian King, but had actually defeated his army in -battle. He would wreak his vengeance upon them for what they had -done, and he declared that he would march an army through Europe -against Greece, in order, as he said, "that I may take vengeance on -the Athenians for all the things which they have done both to the -Persians {138} and to my father. I will not cease until I have -conquered Athens and burnt it with fire." - -Our knowledge of the preparations made for this invasion by Xerxes -comes from Herodotus.[2] He may have exaggerated some things in his -account, but his history was written for the Greeks of his own time -and he wanted to make clear to them how great was the difference -between the East and the West; how much better their freedom and -independence were than the slavery endured by states which were ruled -by the Great King. For these states had no voice in the affairs of -the Empire; if the King went to war, they had to follow him and lay -down their lives for causes in which they had no concern, and which -generally only ministered to the greed and avarice of their rulers. - -Having decided on the invasion of Greece, Xerxes sent heralds -throughout the Empire proclaiming the war and bidding all fighting -men make ready and join the King at Sardis. There the troops were -mustered, and in the spring of 480 B.C. ten years after the battle of -Marathon, Xerxes and his army were ready to set out. They were to -march to the Hellespont, and then, by way of Thrace and Macedonia, to -descend into Greece. The fleet was to join the army at the -Hellespont, and by sailing close to the shore, to keep in constant -touch with the army on land. - -At last all was ready and the day came for the army to leave Sardis. -First the baggage-bearers led the way together with their horses, and -after these, {139} half the infantry of all the nations who followed -the Great King. Then a space was left, after which came the King -himself. Before him went first a thousand horsemen, chosen from -amongst the noblest Persians, and then a thousand spearmen; these -were followed by ten sacred horses with rich trappings, and behind -the horses came the sacred chariot of the great Persian god, drawn by -eight horses, with the reins held by a charioteer on foot, for no -human creature might mount upon the seat of that chariot. Then -followed Xerxes himself, attended by spearmen chosen from the best -and most noble of all the Persians. They were in turn followed by a -body of men known as the Immortals, of which there were always ten -thousand. They bore this name, because if any one of them made the -number incomplete, either by death or illness, another man filled his -place, and there were never either more or fewer than ten thousand. -These were the very flower of the Persian army; nine thousand of them -carried spears ending with silver pomegranates, and the spears of the -thousand who guarded the front and rear were ornamented with -pomegranates of gold. - -Now of all the nations, the Persians showed the greatest splendour of -ornament and were themselves the best men, and they were conspicuous -for the great quantity of gold they used. The Medes and Persians -wore tunics and trousers, for which the Greeks always felt the -greatest contempt because they were worn by the Barbarian and not the -Greek, and soft felt caps on their heads. They carried {140} wicker -shields and had short spears and daggers and bows and arrows. -Besides these a host of nations followed the Great King: there were -Assyrians, famous throughout all ancient history as a great fighting -race, with bronze helmets, linen breastplates, and wooden clubs -studded with iron; there were Bactrians with bows of reed and short -spears; Scythians with their pointed sheepskin caps, and their battle -axes; there were Caspians dressed in skins and wielding short swords; -there were men of strange and savage appearance, some wearing dyed -garments, with high boots, others dressed in skins, and all bearing -bows and arrows, daggers and short spears. Arabians came too, with -their loose robes caught up ready for action and long bows in their -hands; and dark Ethiopians, fearful to look upon in their garments -made of the skins of the leopard and the lion; these fought with long -bows with sharp pointed arrows, and with spears and clubs, and when -they went in to battle, each man painted half his body white and half -of it red. And other Ethiopians there were, who wore upon their -heads horses' scalps with the ears and manes still attached. Many -more nations and tribes were represented in this mighty army. Some -carried small shields and small spears and daggers, others wore -bronze helmets to which the ears and horns of an ox were attached. - -All these and many more made up the army of the Great King; they came -from North and South, from East and West, and from the islands of the -sea, and they marched in magnificent array from Sardis to the shores -of the Hellespont, where the fleet was to {141} meet them. When -Xerxes reached the strait, he had a throne of white marble built for -him and there he took his seat and gazed upon his army and his ships. -Now Xerxes had given orders that a bridge should be built across the -Hellespont over which his army should pass into Europe. But when the -strait had been bridged over, a great storm arose which destroyed the -bridge. When Xerxes heard of it, he was exceedingly enraged and bade -his soldiers scourge the Hellespont with three hundred strokes of the -lash, and he let down into the sea a pair of fetters. Whilst this -was being done, the sea was thus addressed: - - - Thou bitter water, thy master lays on thee this penalty, because - thou didst wrong him, though never having suffered any wrong from - him; and Xerxes the King will pass over thee, whether thou be - willing or no. - - -The sea was punished in this way, and command was given to cut off -the heads of those who had had charge of building the bridge. Not -with impunity was the Great King disobeyed. A new bridge was then -built, stronger and more secure than the first, and over this the -army passed in safety. - -In order that no accidents might happen, honour was paid to the gods, -and incense and fragrant perfumes were burnt upon the bridge and the -road was strewn with branches of myrtle. The crossing was to take -place early in the morning, and all were ready before the dawn broke. -As the sun was rising, Xerxes poured a libation from a golden cup -into the {142} sea, and prayed to the Sun that no accident might -befall him till he had conquered Europe, even to its furthest limits. -Having prayed, he cast the cup into the Hellespont and with it a -golden mixing bowl and a Persian sword, as gifts to the powers of the -sea. When Xerxes had done this, the great army passed over the -bridge in brilliant array. It took seven days and seven nights -without any pause for the whole army to pass over and it is said that -at the end, a man who dwelt on that coast and who had watched the -crossing, exclaimed: - - - Why, O Zeus, in the likeness of a Persian man and taking for - thyself the name of Xerxes instead of Zeus, hast thou brought all - the nations of men to subdue Hellas? Was it not possible for - thee to do it without the help of these?" - - -When the whole army had crossed over safely, Xerxes inspected it. He -drove through all the ranks in his chariot, and scribes who -accompanied him wrote down for him the names of all the nations who -were represented. When he had done this, the ships were drawn down -into the sea, and Xerxes, changing from his chariot to a ship of -Sidon, sat down under a golden canopy and sailed along by the prows -of the ships and inspected his fleet. The ships then set sail, and -were to go along the coast to Therma where the land army was to meet -them again. - -Xerxes and the army then proceeded on their march through Thrace and -Macedonia. Messengers {143} had been sent on ahead some time before -to make arrangements for provisioning this great host. All the towns -through which the Persians passed were compelled to provide food and -drink for the men and the animals with them. It was a tremendous -undertaking, and scarcity and want were left behind as the invaders -passed on. The inhabitants had to provide great quantities of wheat -and barley, they were made to give up the best of the fatted cattle, -their birds and fowls, and to provide everything in the way of gold -and silver needed for the service of the table. All this was a great -hardship to the people of the land, and in one place they went in a -body to their temple and entreated the gods that for the future they -would keep them from such evil. Nevertheless they offered up a -thanksgiving to the gods for all the mercies they had shown to them -in the past, and especially for having granted that Xerxes, whilst in -their city had only thought good to take food once in each day, for -it would have been altogether impossible for them to have provided -him with breakfast in the same manner as dinner. - -The fleet sailed safely to Therma and was joined there by the army as -had been arranged. So far all had gone well for the Persians. They -had succeeded in a great achievement, for apparently without any -serious mishaps, this tremendous army had been transported from -Sardis right round the Aegean and had been fed and cared for on the -way. The difficulties must have been very great, and only splendid -organization could have done it successfully. But it had been done, -and now Xerxes, in order to wreak {144} his vengeance on one Greek -city, stood with his army composed of the fighting men of forty-six -nations on the very threshold of Greece. From Therma he could look -across to the mountains of Thessaly, he could see snow-topped -Olympus, the home of the gods who watched over the fortunes of the -freedom-loving Greeks. The Athenians had withstood the Persians at -Marathon, but now the whole of the eastern world was marching against -them. Could they withstand that mighty host, or would they be forced -to submit? - - -(b) _The Greeks_ - -Ten years had passed between the battle of Marathon and the arrival -of Xerxes on the borders of Greece. In the years preceding 490 B.C. -the Persian power had been a terror to the Greek. Not content with -subduing Asia even to the dim borders of India, the Great Kings had -pushed their way to the Aegean and had even conquered the Greeks who -dwelt along its eastern coasts. Then, like an ominous war-cloud, -this mighty power had crossed the sea to Greece itself. But there -the unexpected had happened. At Marathon the Persians had sustained -at the hands of a small state, till then comparatively unknown, the -first great defeat they had ever met with. The Plataeans had helped, -it is true, but their numbers had been small and it was the Athenians -who had really defeated the Persians. Since then the Athenians had -enjoyed a great reputation for their military power. Myths and -legends had woven {145} themselves round the name of Marathon with -the result that the power of the Athenians was reputed greater than -perhaps it actually was, and that of Persia was certainly -depreciated. If she had been as formidable as had always been -supposed, how could the Athenians have defeated her almost unaided? -So for a number of years the Greeks had felt less terror at the name -of Persia, and they had been enjoying a certain feeling of security -little realizing how false it was. - -But suddenly they were shaken out of their calm. Rumours of the -Persian preparations for an invasion of Greece reached them, rumours -which were doubtless exaggerated, but which nevertheless had much -truth in them. It is amazing how in spite of slow and difficult -communication news was swiftly carried in those days from place to -place. So the Greeks were fairly well-informed as to what the -Persians were doing. At this crisis the Athenians took the lead, and - - - if anyone should say that the Athenians proved to be the saviours - of Hellas, he would not fail to hit the truth; these were they - who, preferring that Hellas should continue to exist in freedom, - roused up all of Hellas. Nor did fearful oracles which came from - Delphi and cast them into dread, induce them to leave Hellas. - - -The first thing the Greeks did was to hold a conference at Corinth, -which was attended by envoys from all the leading states except Argos -and Thebes, which stood aloof. At this conference the Greeks {146} -made three important decisions. They resolved that they would -reconcile all their own differences and bring to an end the wars they -had with one another; as Hellenes they would unite against the common -foe. Then they determined to send spies to Asia, who should bring -back accurate reports of the preparations and power of Xerxes. And -lastly, they would send messengers to the colonies in Sicily, Corcyra -and Crete asking for assistance. - -Three spies set out, but they were captured in Sardis and condemned -to death. When Xerxes, however, heard what had happened, he sent for -the spies, who were brought into his presence. To their surprise, -instead of being led out to immediate execution, Xerxes commanded -that they should be led round and shown the whole army, both foot and -horse, and when they had seen everything, they were to be set free to -return home. He did this, because he said that - - - if the spies had been put to death, the Hellenes would not have - been informed of his power, how far beyond any description it - was; while on the other hand by putting to death three men, they - would not very greatly damage the enemy; but when these returned - back to Hellas, he thought it likely that the Hellenes, hearing - of his power, would deliver up their freedom to him themselves, - before the expedition took place, and thus there would be no need - for them to have the labour of marching an army against them. - - -Little did Xerxes know the kind of freedom-loving people with whom he -had to deal. So the {147} spies looked at everything and then -returned to Greece. - -Meanwhile the messengers to the colonies returned. The answers to -the appeal for support were very disappointing. Neither Sicily, -Corcyra nor Crete would help. They either refused outright or made -uncertain answers. They seem to have thought more of their own -preservation than of the safety of Greece as a whole; they thought -the Persian would probably win, and they preferred either to be on -the winning side, or to be in such a position that they could make -good terms with the Persian, did he conquer. - -The Greeks now made ready to go out with their armies to meet the -Persian foe. The chief command was given to Sparta, the greatest -military state in Greece, and they marched to the Vale of Tempe in -the north of Thessaly, where they hoped to meet Xerxes and prevent -him from coming into Greece. When they got there, however, they -found that it would not be possible to hold the pass against the -enemy, for it was so situated that the Persians could attack them by -sea as well as by land, and there was another path over the mountains -by which the Persians could attack them in the rear. So the Greeks -withdrew to Corinth, in order to deliberate further where they would -meet the enemy. This retreat from Thessaly took place while Xerxes -and his army were crossing the Hellespont, and it had important -consequences for the Persians, for the Thessalians, hitherto never -very loyal to Greece, seeing the other Greeks leave their land, "took -the side of the Medes {148} with a good will and no longer -half-heartedly, so that in the course of events they proved very -serviceable to the King." - -The Greeks now decided on making a stand much further south at -Thermopylae. This was a narrow pass and easier to defend, so they -resolved - - - to guard it and not permit the Barbarian to go by into Hellas, - and they resolved that the fleet should sail to Artemisium, for - these points are near to one another, so that each division of - their forces could have information of what was happening to the - other. - - -At Thermopylae the Greeks awaited the Persians. - - - -II. THERMOPYLAE - -It was midsummer in the year 480 B.C. when the Persian host left -Therma and marched down through Thessaly to the Pass of Thermopylae. -The Persians encamped before the Pass and a scout was sent forward to -bring back information as to what the Greeks were doing. Only a -small force of Greeks was defending the Pass, the main part of the -Greek army was kept back further to the south to defend the Isthmus. -A small body of about three hundred Spartans had been sent under -their King Leonidas to defend the Pass of Thermopylae, and, if -possible, to prevent the Persians from advancing further into Greece. -These three hundred men were the picked body-guard of the King, a -force in which only fathers of sons might serve, so that their -families might not die out of Sparta. - -{149} - -The Persian scout went cautiously forward, and to his great surprise -saw some of the Spartans practising athletic exercises and others -combing their long hair. He could not see the rest, as an ancient -wall built across the Pass hid them from sight. He returned to -Xerxes and reported on what he had seen. The King sent for a Greek -who was in his camp and asked him what this behaviour of the Spartans -might mean. He told him that they were following an ancient Spartan -custom, for "whenever they are about to put their lives in peril, -then they attend to the arrangement of their hair." The Spartans -knew against what odds they had to fight, but their duty had placed -them where they were, and no Spartan ever retreated or turned his -back upon his foe. - -The Great King intended to attack at the same moment both by land and -by sea. The fleets were at Artemisium, and there were four times as -many Persian ships as Greek. A hot and sultry summer's day had -passed, and the signal to attack was expected in the morning. But at -early dawn the sea began to be violently agitated and a strong east -wind arose, thunder rumbled in the distance, and soon a terrible -storm broke. The Greek ships were in safety, but a large number of -Persian ships were wrecked and great treasure was lost. For three -days the storm continued, and for three days Xerxes had to wait -before he could attack the Pass. When on the fourth day the storm -died down, the sea fight began. Three times over the Greeks attacked -the Persian ships, and each time they prevailed against them. {150} -After the third fight, news was brought to Themistocles, the Athenian -admiral, that two hundred Persian ships, sailing to the Greek rear, -had been lost in the storm, so that there was nothing more to fear -from an attack in that direction. The Greeks succeeded in throwing -the Persian ships into confusion and so crippled the fleet, that they -finally won the battle. It was then that Xerxes gave the order to -his army to attack the Pass. - -For the whole of a hot summer's day the Persians attacked. First the -Medes tried to force the Pass, but it was narrow, and as they met the -Spartan spears, down they went, man after man. Hour after hour this -continued, but every attack was repulsed and hardly a Spartan fell. -Then the Medes withdrew and the Immortals took their place. They -were fresh and greatly superior to the Spartans in numbers, but -neither could they prevail against them. At times the Spartans would -make a pretence of turning to flight, but when the Barbarians -followed after them with shouting and clashing of arms, then they -turned and faced the Barbarians and slew large numbers of them. The -Spartans lost a few men, but at the end of the day the Persians drew -back, exhausted and defeated, and the Spartans still held the Pass. - -The next day, the same thing happened. So great was the slaughter of -the Persians on this day that three times Xerxes leapt up from the -seat from which he was watching the fight, in deadly fear for his -army. But by the end of the day the Pass had not been taken, and -again the Persians withdrew, {151} exhausted and driven back, leaving -large numbers of their companions lying dead before the Pass. - -Xerxes was in great straits as to what he should do next, when he was -told that a man desired audience of him. He was a Greek who lived in -that region, and he offered, if the Persian would reward him with -enough gold, to lead his army by a path known to him, but of which -the Spartans were ignorant, over the mountain to a spot from which -the Pass might be attacked in the rear. It was a long and difficult -path, but the traitor knew it well and would guide them surely. The -reward was promised, and about the time when the lamps were lit in -the camp, the Immortals with their commander set out under the -guidance of the traitor. All through the long black night they -climbed by a steep and rocky path, and when dawn appeared they had -reached the summit of the mountain. In this region a thousand men of -Phocis were stationed to protect their own country and the path which -led down to the valley below. They could not see the Persians as -they climbed, for the sides of the mountain were covered with oak -trees, but in the great silence which falls upon nature just before -the dawn, suddenly these men heard an unexpected sound. It was the -Persians stepping on the dried oak leaves which lay thickly on the -ground beneath their feet. The Greeks started up and when the -Persians, coming suddenly upon them, discharged their arrows at them, -they retreated to a higher position close at hand, where they waited -for the expected attack. To their surprise, however, the enemy -turned away {152} and left them. On went the traitor followed by the -Persians, until they were on the road in the rear of Leonidas. - -While it was yet night, scouts came down from the mountains where -they had been keeping watch, and told Leonidas that the Pass was -turned, and that the enemy was approaching it from the rear. -Leonidas knew what that meant, the end had come, but he commanded -Spartans and he knew that whilst one remained alive, the Pass would -not be taken. - -At sunrise, according to the arrangement made with the traitor, -Xerxes attacked. The Spartans, knowing that they were going forth to -death, now advanced further out into the broader space in front of -the Pass, where there was more room. And then followed a fight which -will never be forgotten. The Barbarians made attack after attack, -and the Spartans slew them and drove them back every time. Many were -driven into the sea and perished, and many more were trodden down -while still alive and trampled to death, and there was no reckoning -of the number that perished. Two brothers of Xerxes fell fighting, -and then Leonidas fell. The Spartans fought for the body of their -King; most of their spears were by this time broken, so they fought -and slew the Persians with their swords. Four times the Persians had -almost taken the body of the King, and four times they were driven -back by the Spartans, when word came that the Immortals were -attacking the Pass in the rear. Then the remaining Spartans placed -themselves with the body of Leonidas behind {153} the wall, and there -they made their last defence. On this spot those who still had them -defended themselves with daggers, and those who had no weapons left, -fought with their hands and teeth, until, overwhelmed by the -Barbarians who were now assailing them both in the front and in the -rear, they were surrounded and cut down, until not a Spartan was left -alive. - -And so the Persians took the Pass, and the road to Athens lay clear -before them. - -The Spartans were buried where they fell, and a pillar was erected to -the memory of those who had died so great a death in defending the -Pass. On it was inscribed the simple words: - - - Stranger, bear word to the Spartans that we lie here obedient to - their charge. - - - -III. THEMISTOCLES - -The Persians had taken the Pass of Thermopylae; Thebes, the chief -city in Boeotia, was anxious to be on the winning side and was a -_medizing_ state; there was nothing to save Athens from the -conquering Persian army. - -But in this dark hour, a statesman arose in Athens who was to restore -her confidence and to make her place secure among the free nations of -the world. This man was Themistocles, already known to the Athenians -as the admiral who had defeated the Persians at Artemisium. He came -of a humble family, but the laws made by Solon and later law-givers -{154} made it possible for him, in spite of his birth, to rise to the -highest position in the state. - - - From his youth Themistocles had been of a vehement and impetuous - nature, of a quick intelligence, and a strong and aspiring bent - for action and great affairs. The holidays and intervals in his - studies he did not spend in play or idleness, as other children, - but would be always inventing or arranging some oration or speech - to himself, so that his master would often say to him: "You, my - boy, will be nothing small, but great one way or other, for good - or else for bad." He received reluctantly and carelessly - instructions given him to improve his manners and behaviour, or - to teach him any pleasing or graceful accomplishment, but - whatever was said to improve him in sagacity or in management of - affairs, he would give attention to beyond one of his years. And - when in company he was obliged to defend himself because he could - not play on any stringed instrument,[3] he would retort that - though he could not do that, yet were a small and obscure city - put into his hands, he would make it great and glorious. It is - said that Themistocles was so transported with the thoughts of - glory, and so inflamed with the passion for great actions, that - though he was still young when the battle of Marathon was fought, - upon the skilful conduct of the general Miltiades being - everywhere talked about, he was observed to be thoughtful, and - reserved, alone by himself; he passed the nights without sleep, - and avoided all his usual places of recreation, and to those who - wondered at the change, and inquired the reason of it, he gave - the answer that "the trophy of Miltiades would not let him - sleep."[4] - - -{155} - -This was the man who was now to help Athens, and he possessed the -very qualities most needed in the serious position in which she found -herself. - - - For Themistocles was a man whose natural force was unmistakable; - this was the quality for which he was distinguished above all - other men; from his own native acuteness, and without any study - either before or at the time, he was the ablest judge of the - course to be pursued in a sudden emergency, and could best divine - what was likely to happen in the remotest future. Whatever he - had in hand he had the power of explaining to others, and even - where he had no experience he was quite competent to form a - sufficient judgment; no one could foresee with equal clearness - the good or evil intent which was hidden in the future. - - -This foresight was shown in the belief held by Themistocles, who -"when others were of opinion that the battle of Marathon would be an -end to the war, thought it was but the beginning of far greater -conflicts,"[5] and because of this belief he did his best to -encourage the Athenians to be ready for whatever might happen. - -Themistocles believed that the chief thing necessary for Athens was a -fleet, and he persuaded the Athenians, though with great difficulty -for they could not at first see the necessity, to build ships. There -was not very much money in Athens just then, and without money ships -could not be built. But at this critical time, an unexpectedly large -sum of money was paid into the public treasury. This was {156} the -revenue from the silver mines at Laurium in the south of Attica, -which the Athenians were intending to divide amongst themselves. -"Then Themistocles persuaded them to give up this plan of division -and to make for themselves with this money two hundred ships." This -they did, and they also improved the harbour of Athens, and - - - henceforward, little by little, turning and drawing the city down - towards the sea in the belief that with their ships they might be - able to repel the Persians and command Greece, Themistocles, so - Plato tells us, turned the Athenians from steady soldiers into - mariners and seamen and gave occasion for the reproach against - him, that he took away from them the spear and the shield and - bound them to the bench and the oar.[6] - - -Themistocles did not accomplish this without opposition. He had a -rival in Athens, Aristeides, a man who had grown up with him and -played with him as a boy, but who had always taken the opposite sides -in whatever they were doing. Unlike Themistocles, Aristeides -belonged to a noble family, and whenever Themistocles took the side -of the people, Aristeides favoured the nobles. Even as boys they - - - were at variance with each other, and they soon made proof of - their natural inclinations; the one being ready, adventurous and - subtle, engaging readily and eagerly in everything; the other of - a staid and settled temper, intent on the exercise of justice, - not admitting any degree of falsity or trickery, no not so much - as at his play.[7] - - -{157} - -Of all his virtues, it was the _justice_ of Aristeides which most -appealed to the people; it never failed under any circumstances, and -so they gave him the surname of the _Just_. - -Now Aristeides believed that the building of a navy for Athens was -too great a change from the former policy of the city. The Athenians -had won the battle of Marathon and had thereby secured their -reputation as soldiers, and he thought it very ill-advised and -dangerous to depart from the old traditions and to put all their -strength into war ships. Themistocles thought otherwise, and the two -leaders came into violent conflict with each other. - -There was at Athens a custom known as Ostracism. This was a law -which once a year allowed the Athenians to banish for ten years any -citizen who had, as they thought, assumed too much power or had -become too popular. They were always afraid that such power might -lead to a return of the Tyranny, and in their passionate desire to -prevent that, they were often led to banish those who deserved a -better reward for their services. In times of national danger, those -who had been ostracized were sometimes recalled before their term of -exile was over; otherwise they were not allowed to return until ten -years had passed. The sentence of ostracism could not be passed -unless at least six thousand votes were cast. Each vote was written -on a piece of broken pottery, called an ostrakon and then placed in -an urn set up in a special place for the purpose. The conflict -between Themistocles and Aristeides grew so {158} great that the -Athenians decided that one or the other of them must give way and -leave Athens, and they decided to hold an ostracism. This resulted -in the banishment of Aristeides, and Themistocles was left to carry -out his aims for Athens without opposition. It is said that during -the voting, - - - an illiterate fellow, meeting Aristeides and not recognizing him, - gave him his sherd and begged him to write Aristeides upon it; - and he being surprised, asked if Aristeides had ever done him any - injury. "None at all," said he, "neither know I the man: but I - am tired of hearing him everywhere called the Just." Aristeides, - hearing this, is said to have made no reply, but returned the - sherd with his own name inscribed.[8] - - -Aristeides was a noble and a conservative, and opposed to the changes -which Themistocles felt to be so necessary if Athens was to keep her -freedom, but he was a man whose honour has never been called in -question, who gave of his best to his country without ever asking for -reward, and who, when he was later recalled to power and his great -rival was falling into disgrace, never, as far as is known, by word -or deed, treated him in any way that was mean-spirited or ungenerous. - -Thanks to Themistocles, the Athenians now had a navy and a good -harbour, but that would not protect them from the army of Xerxes -which was advancing through Boeotia towards Attica. In their alarm, -they sent messengers to Delphi to ask the {159} advice of the Oracle, -but the answer they received filled them with despair. They were -told to leave their home, for all was doomed to destruction, that -fire and the War-God were about to bring ruin upon them, that there -was no hope for them, but that they would steep their souls in -sorrow. The Athenians could not believe that such a fate awaited -them, and they sent again to the Oracle, entreating Apollo to look -upon them with favour. At last they received the following answer, -with which they returned to Athens: - - - Pallas cannot prevail to soften Zeus the Olympian, - Though she assail him with words and ply him with counsels of wisdom, - Yet will I give thee afresh an answer firm and unchanging: - Conquered must lie the land where stands the fortress Cecropian, - Conquered the peaceful mead of sacred Cithaeron; but thenceforth - Zeus, wide-gazing, permits to keep in honour of Pallas - Walls of wood unshaken to shelter thee and thy children. - Wait not for horse nor for foot that come to ruin thy country, - Out of the mainland afar; but rather yield to the foeman, - Turning thy back in flight, for yet shalt thou meet him in battle. - O divine Salamis! how many children of women - Shalt thou slay at the sowing of corn or the ripening of harvest![9] - - -{160} - -With this answer the Athenians returned home, and there great -discussion arose as to the meaning of the Oracle. Some interpreted -it as meaning that they should build a fence of wood round the city, -others that the "walls of wood" could only mean ships, and that they -should leave everything and betake themselves to their fleet. Then -there were some who thought that the last lines foretold a terrible -defeat for Athens, but Themistocles rose up in the Assembly and -declared that had the god meant that, he would have said "Salamis the -cruel or the merciless," but since he had said "Salamis the divine," -the slaughter must refer to the enemy and not to the Athenians. -Themistocles was also on the side of those who held that the wooden -walls were the ships, and he persuaded the Athenians to remove to a -place of safety out of Attica their wives and children, and as much -of their property as they could. This they did, and then leaving -only a few men to guard the Acropolis, the fighting men betook -themselves to their ships and anchored near the island of Salamis. - -All this was done none too soon, for - - - the Barbarians had now arrived in Attica and all the land was - being laid waste with fire. They reached Athens, and took the - lower city, and then finding that there were still a few of the - Athenians left in the temple, they took their post upon the - rising ground opposite the Acropolis and besieged them. The - Athenians continued to defend themselves although they had come - to the extremity of distress, so for a long time Xerxes was not - able to capture them. But at length, finding a place {161} where - no one was keeping guard, because no one would have supposed that - any man could ascend that way, the Persians forced their way up - to the Acropolis, and after entering the gates they slew all the - defenders, plundered the temple and set fire to the whole of the - Acropolis. - - -And so Athens fell into the hands of the Barbarians. - - - -IV. SALAMIS TO THE END - -Athens was burnt, her walls had been destroyed, but the Athenian men -had not yet been defeated; they were with the fleet at Salamis, and -ready to fight to the death for the freedom of their state. They -were joined there by ships from the other Greek states, but when the -news of the burning of Athens reached the Greek commanders, those who -came from the Peloponnesus, especially the Spartans, were unwilling -to remain at Salamis any longer, but wanted to sail to their homes, -and should the enemy pursue them, make their last stand there. -Themistocles opposed this policy with all his might, and a hot -discussion followed. The Corinthian admiral taunted Themistocles -with wishing to stay and fight at Salamis, because he had now no -native land, to which he replied that where there were Athenian ships -and Athenian men, there was Athens, and that moreover it was a larger -land than Corinth, seeing that the Athenians had sent two hundred -ships, more than the ships of all the other Greeks put together. In -spite of his passionate appeal, the {162} commanders of the other -Greek ships decided to set sail and leave the Athenians to fight the -Barbarians alone. - -In these desperate straits, Themistocles thought of a stratagem by -which he might force a battle, before his allies had time to desert -him. He sent a secret messenger, whom he could trust, in a boat to -the encampment of the Barbarians and charged him to give this message -to Xerxes: - - - The commander of the Athenians sent me privately without the - knowledge of the other Hellenes, (for, as it chances, he is - disposed to the cause of the King, and desires rather that your - side should gain the victory than that of the Hellenes), to - inform you that the Hellenes are planning to take flight, having - been struck with dismay; and now it is possible for you to win a - great victory, if you do not permit them to flee away: for they - are not of one mind with one another and they will not stand - against you in fight, but ye shall see them fighting a battle by - sea with one another, those who are disposed to your side against - those who are not. - - -Xerxes received this message with joy and immediately acted upon it, -and began to surround the Greeks so that not one might escape. -Whilst this was being done, Aristeides, the banished rival of -Themistocles, whose sentence had been lifted in this hour of peril -when Athens needed all her sons, suddenly returned from Aegina to the -Athenian fleet, with the news that it was impossible for any of the -Greeks to sail away because they were even then surrounded by the -enemy. Aristeides gave this {163} news first to Themistocles, saying -to him that if at other times they had been rivals, there was only -one kind of rivalry in which they could now engage, a rivalry as to -which should do more service to his country. The news he brought was -true, and the Greeks could not now escape a battle. - -The sea-fight began as the day dawned. Xerxes had erected a great -throne for himself from which he could watch the events of the day; -"and full in view of all the host the throne stood on a high knoll -hard beside the sea." - -Aeschylus, a great Athenian poet, who was himself present at the -battle, wrote a play called the _Persians_ in which a messenger takes -the news of Salamis to the mother of Xerxes, waiting at Susa for the -return of her son. Never before had he been defeated, but now she -must listen to a tale of woe: - - 'Twas this began all our disaster, Queen: - A demon or fell fiend rose--who knows whence?-- - For from the Athenian host a Hellene came, - And to thy son, to Xerxes, told this tale, - That when the mirk of black night should be come, - The Greeks would not abide, but, leaping straight - Upon the galley thwarts, this way and that - In stealthy flight would seek to save their lives. - Soon as he heard, discerning neither guile - In that Greek, nor the jealousy of heaven, - This word to all his captains he proclaims, - That, when the sun should cease to scorch the earth, - And gloom should fill the hallowed space of sky, - In three lines should they range their throng of ships - To guard each pass, each sea-ward surging strait; -{164} - And others should enring all Aias' Isle: - Since, if the Greeks should yet escape fell doom, - And find their ships some privy path of flight, - Doomed to the headsman all these captains were. - Thus spake he, in spirit over-confident, - Knowing not what the gods would bring to pass. - With hearts obedient, in no disarray, - Then supped our crews, and every mariner - To the well-rounded rowlock lashed his oar. - But when the splendour faded of the sun, - And night came on, each master of the oar - A-shipboard went, and every man-at-arms. - Then rank to rank of long ships passed the word: - And, as was each appointed, so they sailed. - So all night long the captains of the ships - Kept all the sea-host sailing to and fro. - And night passed by, yet did the Hellene host - Essay in no wise any secret flight. - But when the day by white steeds chariot-borne, - Radiant to see, flooded all earth with light, - First from the Hellenes did a clamorous shout - Ring for a triumphant chant; and wild and high - Pealed from the island rock the answering cheer - Of Echo. Thrilled through all our folks dismay - Of baffled expectation; for the Greeks - Not as for flight that holy paean sang, - But straining battleward with heroic hearts. - The trumpet's blare set all their lines aflame. - Straightway with chiming dip of dashing oars - They smote the loud brine to the timing cry, - And suddenly flashed they all full into view. - Foremost their right wing seemly-ordered led - In fair array; next, all their armament - Battleward swept on. Therewithal was heard - A great shout--"On, ye sons of Hellas, on! -{165} - Win for the home-land freedom!--freedom win - For sons, wives, temples of ancestral gods, - And old sires' graves! this day are all at stake!" - Yea, and from us low thunder of Persian cheers - Answered--no time it was for dallying! - Then straightway galley dashed her beak of bronze - On galley. 'Twas a Hellene ship began - The onset, and shore all the figure-head - From a Phoenician: captain charged on captain. - At first the Persian navy's torrent-flood - Withstood them; but when our vast fleet was cramped - In strait-space--friend could lend no aid to friend,-- - Then ours by fangs of allies' beaks of bronze - Were struck, and shattered all their oar-array; - While with shrewd strategy the Hellene ships - Swept round, and rammed us, and upturned were hulls - Of ships;--no more could one discern the sea, - Clogged all with wrecks and limbs of slaughtered men: - The shores, the rock-reefs, were with corpses strewn. - Then rowed each bark in fleeing disarray, - Yea, every keel of our barbarian host, - They with oar-fragments and with shards of wrecks - Smote, hacked, as men smite tunnies or a draught - Of fishes; and a moaning, all confused - With shrieking, hovered wide o'er that sea-brine - Till night's dark presence blotted out the horror. - That swarm of woes, yea, though for ten days' space - I should rehearse could I not tell in full. - Yet know this well, that never in one day - Died such a host, such tale untold, of men.[10] - - -Xerxes, the Great King, was defeated, and his one desire now was to -return home to Asia. He left his {166} general, Mardonius, in -Thessaly with a picked body of men, who should carry on the war in -the spring, but he himself, with what was left of his army, marched -back through Macedonia and Thrace, to the Hellespont and so back to -his own land. It was a very different march from the triumphant one -he had made earlier in the year. The inhabitants of the lands -through which they had passed had no fear of a defeated King, and it -was difficult to obtain provisions. The Persians seized what crops -there were, - - - and if they found no crops, then they took the grass which was - growing up from the earth, and stripped off the bark from the - trees and plucked down the leaves, and devoured them. Then - plague seized upon the army and some of them who were sick the - King left behind. - - -In such manner did Xerxes return home. - -In the meanwhile, Mardonius and his army spent the winter in -Thessaly. When the spring came, (this was the spring of 479 B.C.), -he sent a messenger to the Athenians who spoke these words to them: - - - Athenians, there has come a message from the King which speaks in - this manner: I remit to you all the offences which were committed - against me, and this I say: I will give you back your own land - and any other in addition, and you shall remain independent; and - I will rebuild all your temples, provided you will make a treaty - with me. - - -The Spartans heard that this message had come, and they sent -messengers to Athens imploring the {167} Athenians to make no terms -with the Barbarian, for they feared that if Athens became subject to -Persia, there would be no safety left for them. They offered to send -supplies to Athens to make up for the loss of their harvest, -destroyed by the Persians, to support the families of those Athenians -who had been slain, to do almost anything, in fact, if only the -Athenians would stand firm. - -The Spartans need not have feared. The freedom-loving Athenians were -not likely to submit to a barbarian foe. They sent back to the -Persian this answer: - - - So long as the sun goes on the same course by which he goes now, - we will never make an agreement with Xerxes, but trusting to the - gods and heroes as allies, we will go forth to defend ourselves - against him. - - -To the Spartans they said: - - - It was natural, no doubt, that you should be afraid lest we - should make a treaty with the Barbarian; but it was an unworthy - fear for men who knew so well the spirit of the Athenians, namely - that there is neither so great quantity of gold anywhere upon the - earth, nor any land so beautiful, that we should be willing to - accept it and enslave Hellas by taking the side of the Medes. Be - assured of this, that so long as one of the Athenians remains - alive, we will never make an agreement with Xerxes. We are - grateful for your thought toward us, but we shall continue to - endure as we may, and not be a trouble in any way to you. But - send out an army as speedily as you may, for the Barbarian will - be here invading our land at no far distant time. Therefore - {168} before he arrives here in Attica come to our rescue quickly - in Boeotia. - - -Thus the Athenians made answer, and upon that the envoys went away -back to Sparta. - -When the messengers returned to Mardonius with the answer from -Athens, the Persian general marched out of Thessaly down through -Boeotia into Attica, and for the second time the Barbarian burnt -Athens. Xerxes had left but little to burn, Mardonius left nothing. -He then marched back into Boeotia and set up his camp in the region -between Thebes and Plataea. Here he waited for the Greeks. There -was some delay before they came, for the Spartans made various -excuses for not setting out, but at length under their King, -Pausanias, they marched out and joined the Athenians. And then at -Plataea was fought the last great battle in this great war. All day -long it raged, and at first it seemed as if the Persians were -gaining, but whilst the outcome of the battle was still in doubt, -Mardonius was killed, and with him fled all the hopes of the -Persians. They took to flight, but were pursued and overtaken by the -Greeks and very few were left alive. The Greeks then entered the -camp of the Persians, and they gazed in astonishment at the riches -they found there. There were "tents furnished with gold and silver, -and beds overlaid with gold and silver, and mixing bowls of gold, and -cups and other drinking vessels." One tenth of this rich plunder was -sent to Delphi and the rest divided amongst those who had fought the -battle. A bronze statue of Zeus was sent as an {169} offering to -Olympia, and one of Poseidon was sent to the Isthmus. It was further -resolved that the land belonging to Plataea should be held sacred for -ever, and that never again should fighting take place on it. - -After the Persians had taken the Pass of Thermopylae, the body of -Leonidas had been taken and cruelly used in revenge for his having -dared to withstand the Great King, and to slaughter so many of his -Persian soldiers. It was suggested to Pausanias that he should take -vengeance for this barbarous act by mutilating the body of Mardonius -who had fallen in the battle. - - - Stranger [he answered], thou holdest me as nought by advising me - to do such a thing. These things it is more fitting for - Barbarians to do than for Hellenes, and even with them we find - fault for doing so. I do not desire in any such manner as this - to please those who like such things. As for Leonidas, he has - been greatly avenged already by the unnumbered lives which have - been taken of these men. As for thee, come not again to me with - such a proposal, nor give me such advice; and be thankful, - moreover, that thou hast no punishment for it now. - - -In the Persian camp, the Greeks found the tent of Xerxes himself, -which he had left for Mardonius, not wishing to be cumbered with too -much baggage in his flight from Greece. When Pausanias saw it, he, - - - seeing the furniture of Mardonius furnished with gold and silver - and hangings of different colours, ordered the {170} bakers and - the cooks to prepare a meal as they were used to do for - Mardonius. Then when they did this as they had been commanded, - it is said that Pausanias seeing the couches of gold and of - silver with luxurious coverings, and the tables of gold and - silver, and the magnificent apparatus of the feast, was - astonished at the good things set before him, and for sport he - ordered his own servants to prepare a Laconian meal; and as, when - the banquet was served, the difference between the two was great, - Pausanias laughed and sent for the commanders of the Hellenes; - and when these had come together, Pausanias said, pointing to the - preparation of the two meals severally: "Hellenes, for this - reason I assembled you together, because I desired to show you - the senselessness of this leader of the Medes, who having such - fare as this, came to us who have such sorry fare as ye see here, - in order to take it away from us." Thus it is said that - Pausanias spoke to the commanders of the Hellenes. - - -After the battle of Salamis, the Persian ships had withdrawn to -Samos, and those of the Greeks to Delos, where they had spent the -winter. In the spring, when the armies were marching out to meet at -Plataea, the fleets moved slowly towards the Ionian coast, and on the -same day as the battle of Plataea, so Herodotus tells us, they met in -a fierce sea-fight, in which the Persians were completely routed. -Thus on the same day, by land and sea, the Barbarian was defeated and -Greece was free. She had proved that right was greater than might, -and that in the cause of freedom the weaker might stand against the -stronger and prevail. - - - -[1] Except where otherwise noted, Chapter IX is taken or adapted from -the _History of Herodotus_. - -[2] See p. 385. - -[3] See p. 227. - -[4] Plutarch: _Life of Themistocles_. - -[5] Thucydides, I. - -[6] Plutarch: _Life of Themistocles_. - -[7] Plutarch: _Life of Aristeides_. - -[8] Plutarch: _Life of Aristeides_. - -[9] From the translation in _Greek History for Young Readers_ by -Alice Zimmern. - -[10] Aeschylus: The Persians, translated by A. S. Way. - - - - -{171} - -CHAPTER X - -THE ATHENIAN EMPIRE - - -I. THE FORTIFICATIONS OF ATHENS - -The Persian had been defeated, and Greece was free. The Athenians -had suffered more than any other state, for they had been forced to -leave their city to be occupied by the enemy, and twice it had been -burnt to the ground. Now, however, they were free to return. The -city was utterly destroyed, but a great hope for the future filled -their hearts when they found that the sacred olive tree on the -Acropolis, which had been burnt by the Persians, was not dead after -all, but had sent up fresh green shoots. Athena had not deserted -them. - -Themistocles was now the acknowledged leader of Athens, and the hero -of all Greece. - - - At the next Olympic Games, when he entered the course, the - spectators took no further heed of those who were contesting for - the prizes, but spent the whole day in looking at him, showing - him to the strangers, admiring him, and applauding him by - clapping their hands, and other expressions of joy, so that he - himself, much {172} gratified, confessed to his friends that he - then reaped the fruit of all his labours for the Greeks.[1] - - -He was by nature a great lover of honours and glory, and he liked to -appear superior to other people. After the battle of Salamis when -numbers of the Persian dead were washed ashore, "he perceived -bracelets and necklaces of gold about them, yet passed on, only -showing them to a friend that followed him, saying, 'Take you these -things, for you are not Themistocles.'"[2] - -It was this man who had given Athens her navy by means of which she -had defeated the Barbarian, and he now realized that if she was to -keep her independence, the city must be well fortified. The -Athenians were more than willing to follow his advice, and everyone -in the city, men, women and even children worked hard to rebuild the -walls. Now the Spartans were becoming more and more jealous of the -increasing power of the Athenians, and when they heard of the new -walls that were rising all round Athens, they sent envoys there to -tell the Athenians that they held any such fortification of their -city unnecessary. They thought it wiser that there should be no -strongly-walled city in Attica, for should an enemy ever capture it, -the citadel could be used as a base from which the enemy would go out -and conquer other places. If war should come again, and the -Athenians should feel insecure in their city, Sparta would gladly -welcome them in the {173} Peloponnesus. Themistocles suggested that -he should go to Sparta and talk everything over with the Spartan -leaders, and he set out accordingly. He left instructions that -during his absence the work on the walls should go on with all -possible speed and that messengers were to be sent to tell him when -the work was finished. But the Spartans were not satisfied with the -excuses and explanations given them by Themistocles, so he suggested -that they should send messengers to Athens to find out the truth for -themselves. They had hardly started when the Athenian messengers -arrived with the news that the walls were built. Themistocles then -told the whole truth to the Spartans, telling them that Athens was in -every way the equal of Sparta and would take no orders from her as to -what she should do or not do in her own land. The Spartans were -angry, but they did not show it at that time, and Themistocles -returned home to Athens. - -Themistocles next set to work to fortify the harbour of the Peiraeus. -Athens is a few miles inland from the sea, and the Peiraeus is her -harbour. It is a peninsula with a deep bay on one side, in which -ships can lie safely at anchor. A strong wall was built all round -this peninsula, and the narrow entrance to the harbour was made -secure by chains which could easily be drawn across in such a way as -to prevent, whenever necessary, the entrance of any ships. The city -and the harbour were then connected by Long Walls, which practically -formed a fortified road down to the sea. This gave Athens all the -advantages of a seaport, and an enemy would {174} find it as -difficult to take Athens as it had been to take Miletus. - -The Persians had been defeated in Greece, but the Ionian Greeks in -Asia Minor were still subject to the Great King. Now that the war -was over, these Greeks appealed to the states on the mainland to help -them. Athens took a special interest in these Ionian colonies as -they had been settled by men of close kinship to the Athenians. So -the - - - Hellenes deliberated about removing the inhabitants of Ionia, and - considered where they ought to settle them in those parts of - Hellas of which they had command, leaving Ionia to the - Barbarians: for it was evident to them that it was impossible on - the one hand for them to be always stationed as guards to protect - the Ionians, and, on the other hand, if they were not stationed - to protect them, they had no hope that the Ionians would escape - from the Persians. Therefore it seemed good to these of the - Peloponnesians who were in authority that they should remove the - inhabitants of the trading ports which belonged to those peoples - of Hellas who had taken the side of the Medes, and give that land - to the Ionians to dwell in; but the Athenians did not think it - good that the inhabitants of Ionia should be removed at all, nor - that the Peloponnesians should consult about Athenian colonies; - and as these vehemently resisted the proposal, the Peloponnesians - gave way.[3] - - -The Spartans not only gave way, but when an Athenian fleet set sail -for the Hellespont, the Spartans sent twenty ships with Pausanias, -the general who had commanded at Plataea, to join the {175} -expedition. The combined fleets took Sestos and then in the -following year Byzantium. Pausanias was left in command at -Byzantium, and soon after a strange change was observed in him. His -manner became overbearing and proud, and he gave up his Spartan -habits of simple living, and adopted Persian ways, even dressing as a -Persian. All this was so suspicious that he was recalled to Sparta, -but as nothing was proved against him, he returned to Byzantium. -Here he entered into correspondence with Xerxes and offered, in -return for gold and the Great King's daughter as his bride, to betray -Greece to the Persians. Though this was not known in Sparta till -later, his conduct became sufficiently suspicious for the Spartans to -recall him a second time, but at first they could find no definite -proofs of his treachery. At last one of his slaves gave evidence -against him. For some time Pausanias had been sending messengers to -Asia Minor, and this particular slave had noticed that none of these -messengers ever returned. When in time it became his turn to be -sent, instead of bearing the message to the East, he took it to one -of the Ephors, who opened it and found in it proofs of treachery and -betrayal of Greece to the Barbarian, with instructions to kill the -slave who brought the message. The news that his messenger had been -intercepted reached Pausanias, who immediately fled from his house -and took refuge in a chamber adjoining the shrine in one of the -temples. Here he was secure, but the Ephors, in order to prevent his -escape, gave orders that the doorway should be blocked up, and, -imprisoned in the little chamber, {176} Pausanias slowly starved to -death. He was only taken out when he was just at the point of death, -in order that the body of a traitor might not profane the temple. - -Whilst these things had been taking place in Sparta, Themistocles had -been at the head of affairs in Athens. He had many enemies amongst -the Athenians, and they accused him of many wrong acts. These were -never definitely proved against him, and the records of the end of -his career are so scanty that it is difficult to know how much truth -there was in the accusations, but there were undoubtedly a number of -suspicious facts of which his enemies made use. Amongst other things -he was accused of taking bribes. He denied it, yet when he left -Athens, he possessed a strangely large fortune, the sources of which -were never explained. Themistocles had a very biting tongue, and -when his enemies attacked him, he would remind them, much oftener -than was necessary, of the great services he had performed for Greece -and for Athens in particular, and this arrogant boasting made him -hated by many people who might otherwise have been his friends. A -last serious accusation brought against him was that he was in -communication with the Persians and was about to play the traitor. -There was no proof of this, but Themistocles believed in the policy -of making peace with the Persians. There was no fear that they would -again attack the Greeks, and Themistocles saw that wealth and -prosperity would most surely come to Athens through her trade, and so -he advocated peaceful relations with {177} the great empire of the -East, in order that Athenian merchants might go safely in and out of -her trading ports, and so add to the wealth and importance of Athens. -But this was a very unpopular policy to hold in Athens, and feeling -grew more and more bitter against Themistocles, until at last he was -ostracized. He left Athens and wandered from place to place. No -city would give him a welcome, partly because he was feared, and -partly because Athens was now a powerful state, and no one wanted to -offend her by giving shelter to one of her exiles. Sometimes he was -forced to flee for his life, and once the only way in which he could -safely be sent out of a city was to hide him in a litter which was -placed in a closed carriage in the manner in which ladies usually -travelled, and so "he was carried on his journey, and those who met -or spoke with the driver upon the road were told that he was -conveying a young Greek woman out of Ionia to a nobleman at court."[4] - -After this and similar adventures, homeless, a wanderer from city to -city, Themistocles the man who had saved Greece, who had laid the -foundations of the greatness of Athens, who had been the bitterest -and most relentless enemy of the Persians, this man came to Susa, and -prostrating himself before Artaxerxes, who had succeeded Xerxes as -King, he said to him: - - - "O King, I am Themistocles the Athenian, driven into banishment - by the Greeks. The evils that I have done {178} to the Persians - are numerous, but I come with a mind suited to my present - calamities; prepared alike for favours or for anger. If you save - me, you will save your suppliant; if otherwise, you will destroy - an enemy of the Greeks."[5] - - -The King rejoiced greatly over the arrival of Themistocles, and he -"was so well pleased, that in the night, in the middle of his sleep, -he cried out for joy three times, 'I have Themistocles the -Athenian.'"[6] The courtiers around the King were less pleased, and -they spoke of Themistocles as "a subtle Greek serpent." - -At the end of a year Themistocles was able to speak the Persian -language quite easily and he became very intimate with the King, who -honoured him above all strangers who came to the court. - -There are no records to tell us of all the many things that must have -passed through the heart and mind of Themistocles, exiled from Greece -and living with the Persian, but tradition has handed down to us the -hope that at the end his ancient love and loyalty to Athens -triumphed, for it is said that the Great King summoned him to help -the Persians in an expedition against Greece, but that Themistocles, -rather than sink to such a depth of shame, drank poison, and so put -an end to his own life. It was a tragic end to a great man, who had -done great deeds for his country. But his character was not strong -{179} enough to stand the strain of the continued accusations, -insults and injustices of his enemies, and in the hour of testing he -failed and turned his back upon his country. Though almost certainly -innocent of the worst of that of which he was accused while still in -Athens, his later actions place him, if not with those who became -actual traitors to their country, at least with those whose loyalty -and honour have been indelibly stained. - -This flaw in the character of Themistocles was one that was very -common in Greece. The Greeks were not a grateful people. They, and -the Athenians in particular, were always afraid that too much power -in the hands of one man would lead them back to a Tyranny, and so -they frequently failed to recognize or reward in a way that was -fitting or lasting those who had done great deeds for them. The -Greek patriot loved his state passionately, yet it was a love that -not uncommonly turned to hate, if it was met by ingratitude, and the -saddest pages in Greek history are those on which are recorded the -names of Greek traitors. - -Athens could never have become the great state she did, but for the -work of Themistocles, and in spite of all that he did in the closing -years of his life, one would like to believe that the story preserved -by Plutarch is true. He tells us that long years after the death of -Themistocles, there was a tomb near the haven of Peiraeus, where the -sea is always calm, which was reputed to be that of the great -Athenian statesman, and that it was said of it: - -{180} - - Thy tomb is fairly placed upon the strand, - Where merchants still shall greet it with the land; - Still in and out 'twill see them come and go, - And watch the galleys as they race below.[7] - - -Was it, perhaps, possible that the Athenians of a later generation, -recognizing what Themistocles had done for Athens, forgave him, and -brought his body home to rest near the great harbour which he himself -had made? - - - -II. THE CONFEDERACY OF DELOS - -The recall of Pausanias from Byzantium left the Spartans in Asia -Minor with no commander. Sparta had never been very much in earnest -about freeing the Ionians, and the Ionians, very naturally, felt more -confidence in a sea-power than in one whose strength lay chiefly in -her army, and so they turned to Athens for leadership. - -Themistocles was in exile, and his old rival Aristeides was now the -most powerful leader in Athens. He believed that it was the duty of -the Athenians to do all in their power to free their kinsmen in the -Ionian cities from the Persian rule, and to this end, he and the -Ionian leaders formed a league, known as the Confederacy or League of -Delos. It took its name from the island of Delos where the meetings -were held, and where the treasury of the League was kept. Delos was -chosen because it could easily be reached by all the members of the -League, and also because it was a place specially honoured by Apollo, -{181} for legend said he had been born there, and before Delphi had -become so important, his chief sanctuary had been in his island -birthplace. - -The object of the League was the freeing of all Hellenes in Asia -Minor and the islands of the Aegean from the Persians, and, having -secured their liberty to help them maintain their independence. For -this purpose money and ships were needed. "By the good will of the -allies, the Athenians obtained the leadership. They immediately -fixed which of the cities should supply money and which of them ships -for the war against the Barbarians,"[8] and as they were - - - desirous to be rated city by city in their due proportion, they - gave Aristeides command to survey the countries and to assess - everyone according to their ability and what they were worth; and - he laid the tax not only without corruption and injustice but to - the satisfaction and convenience of all. Aristeides, moreover, - made all the people of Greece swear to keep the league, and - himself took the oath in the name of the Athenians, flinging - wedges of red-hot iron into the sea, after curses against such as - should break their vow.[9] - - -The contributions were collected every spring by ten specially -appointed men, called Hellenic Stewards, who brought the money to -Delos where it was placed in the treasury of the League. The League -began its work at once, and one by one the Greek cities in Asia Minor -and the islands in the Aegean were set free, until at length not one -was left under the rule of Persia. As each city became independent, -{182} it joined the League, which grew in strength and importance as -its numbers increased. Athens was its acknowledged leader; not only -did she determine the amount each member should contribute, but the -Hellenic Stewards were all Athenians, and affairs of the League were -governed by Athenian law. Slowly the relationship of Athens to the -other members of the League changed. At first the states had -regarded themselves as allies of each other and of Athens, but as the -power of Athens grew, she began to look upon these Greek states less -as allies than as subjects who were bound to follow her lead and do -her bidding. At length this relationship was so well-recognized that -in some states Athens exacted this oath of allegiance from those who -enjoyed her protection as members of the Delian League: - - - I will not revolt from the people of the Athenians in any way or - shape, in word or deed, or be an accomplice in revolt. If any - one revolts I will inform the Athenians. I will pay the - Athenians the tribute, and I will be a faithful and true ally to - the utmost of my power. I will help and assist the Athenian - people if anyone injures them; and I will obey their commands.[10] - - -In name, Athens together with all the island states in the Aegean and -the Ionian cities in Asia Minor, were allies and independent. Their -envoys still met at Delos, supposedly to take counsel with each -other, but in fact they were subject to Athens and obeyed her -commands. The League had been formed in 477 B.C. and for -twenty-three years Delos was its {183} headquarters. Then it was -suggested that the treasury should be moved to Athens, and that the -meetings should in future be held there. No longer was Athens merely -the leading state amongst her allies. The removal of the treasury -from Delos to Athens made her in name as well as in fact not simply -the leading state of a Confederation, but the Athenian Empire. - - - -III. THE ATHENIAN EMPIRE UNDER PERICLES - -Athens was now an Empire and was recognized as such. The island -states in the Aegean as well as the Ionian cities on the mainland of -Asia Minor were bound to her by ties of allegiance. The heart of the -Empire was Athens, and settlers from many different places were -welcomed there, if they brought with them something that contributed -to the welfare of the city: the sculptor, the worker in gold, silver -or other metals, the potter, the dyer, the leather-worker, and the -merchant who brought costly wares from distant lands, all these and -many more were welcomed. - -[Illustration: PERICLES. British Museum.] - - -Themistocles had been exiled, Aristeides was dead, and a statesman -named Pericles now took the leading part in Athenian affairs. His -boyhood had been spent during some of the most thrilling years of -Athenian history. As a child he had become a hero-worshipper of the -men who had fought at Marathon; he must have been amongst the older -children who were forced to flee from Athens on the approach of -Xerxes; and though not old enough to {184} fight, he was old enough -to understand how much hung upon the outcome of the battle of -Salamis, and he probably spent that great day in sound, if not also -in sight, of the conflict between the two hostile fleets. His father -was the commander of the fleet which in the following year defeated -the Persian on the same day on which was fought the battle of Plataea -and one can imagine the youth, returning to his beloved Athens, -glorying in the deeds of his father and his countrymen, and resolved -to take his part in making Athens a great and glorious city. - -Pericles belonged to a noble family, and he had been educated by some -of the great philosophers of his day. Like Thales of Miletus, these -men believed that nature was governed by laws that had nothing to do -with the good-will or anger of the gods, and one of them, though -still believing in the existence of many gods, held the belief that -the world had been created by one Mind alone, and he taught Pericles -to share this belief. This helped to free the mind of Pericles from -superstition, and on several occasions he tried to free others from -the fears which superstition brings. He was once on board his ship -when an eclipse of the sun took place. The darkness filled everyone -with terror, and it was looked upon as a sign of the wrath of the -gods. - - - Pericles, therefore, perceiving the steersman seized with fear - and at a loss what to do, took his cloak and held it up before - the man's face, and, screening him with it so that he could not - see, asked him whether he imagined there was great hurt, or the - sign of any great hurt in this, {185} and he answering no, - "What," said he, "does that differ from this, only that which has - caused that darkness there, is something greater than a - cloak."[11] - - -Although by birth belonging to the nobles, Pericles took the side of -the people in Athens, partly, at first, because he did not want to do -anything that might make it even seem that he was aiming at the sole -power of a Tyrant. He soon became the acknowledged leader, and he -then - - - entered on quite a new course and management of his time. For he - was never seen to walk in any street but that which led to the - market-place and the council hall, and he avoided invitations of - friends to supper, and all friendly visiting and intercourse - whatever. He also presented himself at intervals only, not - coming at all times into the Assembly, but reserving himself for - great occasions.[12] - - -In many ways Pericles showed himself superior to the men around him, -and because of this superiority and for his great power in public -affairs he was given the surname of the Olympian. Like Zeus, he was -said to speak with - - - thundering and lightning, and to wield a dreadful thunderbolt in - his tongue. Pericles, however, was very careful what and how he - was to speak, insomuch that whenever he was to speak in the - Assembly, he prayed the gods that no one word might unawares slip - from him unsuitable to the matter and the occasion.[13] - - {186} - - Under the leadership of Pericles, Athens rose to be a great - state. The Age of Pericles was a short one, lasting only for - about fifty years in the last part of the fifth century B.C., but - it was a period which was great not only in material prosperity, - but also in every form of intellectual and artistic beauty. The - work of Pericles - - - which gave most pleasure and ornament to the city of Athens, and - the greatest admiration and even astonishment to all strangers, - and that which is now Greece's only evidence that the power she - boasted of and her ancient wealth are no romance or idle story, - was his construction of the public and sacred buildings.[14] - - -The story of these buildings will be told in its own place; for more -than two thousand years they have testified to the greatness of the -people who built them. - -By the laws Pericles made it became possible for every free-born -Athenian citizen, no matter how poor he was, to take an active part -in the government of the State, thus completing the work of the -earlier lawgivers and making Athens a democracy, a state ruled by the -many. - -It was the custom in Athens, that the bodies of Athenians who had -been slain in battle should be brought home, and buried in special -tombs which were situated in a very beautiful spot outside the walls. -Only after the battle of Marathon were the dead, in recognition of -their great valour against the Barbarian, buried on the field. All -others were {187} brought home and given a public funeral. There was -always buried with them an empty coffin, as a symbol of all those -whose bodies were missing and could not be recovered after the -battle. It was believed that this wish to do honour to the dead and -to give them fitting burial would ensure their happiness in the life -after death, which every Greek believed to be imperilled if there was -lack of proper burial. At the close of the funeral ceremonies, some -great orator was always asked to deliver a suitable oration. On one -such occasion, Pericles was the orator, and in the great Funeral -Speech he made, he set forth to the Athenians what he considered -Athens stood for in the world. There are no better words in which to -describe the greatness of Athens at this time and the ideals at which -she aimed, so listen to the words of Pericles, describing the city he -loved: - - - Our form of government does not enter into rivalry with the - institutions of others. We do not copy our neighbours, but are - an example to them. It is true that we are called a democracy, - for the administration is in the hands of the many and not of the - few. But while the law secures equal justice to all alike in - their private disputes, the claim of excellence is also - recognized; and when a citizen is in any way distinguished, he is - preferred to the public service, not as a matter of privilege, - but as the reward of merit. Neither is poverty a bar, but a man - may benefit his country whatever the obscurity of his - condition.... A spirit of reverence pervades our public acts; we - are prevented from doing wrong by respect for authority and for - the laws, having {188} an especial regard to those which are - ordained for the protection of the injured as well as to those - unwritten laws which bring upon the transgressor of them the - reprobation of the general sentiment. - - And we have not forgotten to provide for our weary spirits many - relaxations from toil; we have regular games and sacrifices - throughout the year; at home the style of our life is refined; - and the delight which we daily feel in all these things helps to - banish melancholy. Because of the greatness of our city the - fruits of the whole earth flow in upon us; so that we may enjoy - the goods of other countries as freely as of our own.... We are - lovers of the beautiful, yet simple in our tastes, and we - cultivate the mind without loss of manliness. Wealth we employ, - not for talk and ostentation, but when there is a real use for - it. To avow poverty with us is no disgrace; the true disgrace is - in doing nothing to avoid it. An Athenian citizen does not - neglect the state because he takes care of his own household; and - even those of us who are engaged in business have a very fair - idea of politics. We alone regard a man who takes no interest in - public affairs, not as a harmless, but as a useless character; - and if few of us are originators, we are all sound judges of a - policy.... In doing good, again, we are unlike others; we make - our friends by conferring, not by receiving favours.... To sum - up, I say that Athens is the school of Hellas ... for in the hour - of trial Athens alone among her contemporaries is superior to the - report of her.... We have compelled every land and every sea to - open a path for our valour, and have everywhere planted eternal - memorials of our friendship and of our enmity. Such is the city - for whose sake these men nobly fought and died; they could not - bear the thought that she might be taken from them; and every one - of us who survives should gladly toil on her {189} behalf.... - Day by day fix your eyes on the greatness of Athens, until you - become filled with the love of her; and when you are impressed by - the spectacle of her glory, reflect that this empire has been - acquired by men who knew their duty and had the courage to do - it.... - - And now, when you have duly lamented, everyone his own dead, you - may depart.[15] - - - - [1] Plutarch: _Life of Themistocles_. - - [2] Ibid. - - [3] Herodotus, IX. - - [4] Plutarch: _Life of Themistocles_. - - [5] Plutarch: _Life of Themistocles_. - - [6] Ibid. - - [7] Plutarch: _Life of Themistocles_. - - [8] Thucydides, I. - - [9] Plutarch: _Life of Aristeides_. - - [10] From W. Warde Fowler: _City-State of the Greeks and Romans_. - - [11] Plutarch: _Life of Pericles_. - - [12] Ibid. - - [13] Ibid. - - [14] Plutarch: _Life of Pericles_. - - [15] Thucydides, II. - - - - - {190} - - CHAPTER XI - - LIFE IN ANCIENT ATHENS IN THE TIME OF PERICLES - - - I. A WALK IN ANCIENT ATHENS - - Almost in the centre of Attica lies a plain surrounded in the - distance by hills: towards the East, Mount Hymettus, the home of - goats, purple with thyme and filled with the murmur of bees; and - to the North, Mount Pentelicus, famous for its shining white - marble, that gleamed a rosy-red when the sun went down. Rising - straight out of the plain is a great oval-shaped rock, the famous - Acropolis of Athens, once its citadel and fortress, but - transformed by Pericles into a great shrine for Athena. From - this rock the land sloped gently to the sea. The plain was - watered by the Cephisus, the only stream in Attica which did not - run dry in the summer, and along its banks were olive groves, - adding their touch of dark grey-green to the landscape. In the - centre of this plain, at the foot of the Acropolis, was Athens. - - [Illustration: ATHENS, WITH THE ACROPOLIS.] - - Roads from all directions led to Athens, but the Greeks, unlike - the Romans, were not great road-makers, and except for those used - for processions {191} on festivals, such as the Sacred Way that - led to Eleusis, the roads in Attica were not in good repair, and - foot-passengers when they went on a journey generally preferred - the shorter paths over the hills. In the early morning, the - roads outside the city were thronged with people coming in from - the country on various kinds of business. Chief of these were - the farmers, bringing their fruit and vegetables and other - produce to sell in the market, but merchants from distant lands - were also to be seen bringing their wares along the road from the - Peiraeus. The city was entered by gates in the great wall which - had been built by Themistocles after the Persian Wars, and from - the gates, the streets all led to the Market Place, or Agora, as - it was called by the Greeks. The streets were narrow, crooked - and dark, and were not paved, and the houses on each side - presented a very dull appearance, for the windows rarely faced - the street. The streets were dirty, too, for all kinds of refuse - were thrown into them. This absence of light and air did not - make for health, and so very often pictures of Apollo, the - Bringer of Health, were painted on the walls. The Athenians - spent their wealth on their great public buildings, and there was - very little to distinguish one private house from another. - Demosthenes, writing at a later time, said of the Athenians of - the age of Pericles: - - - The public buildings they constructed for us; the number and - beauty of the temples, and of the offerings they contained, are - such that their successors can never {192} surpass them; but in - private life they practised so great a moderation, that even if - any of you knew which was the house of Aristeides or Miltiades or - any of the famous men of old, you would find it no more - pretentious than those of its neighbours. - - -The water in Athens came from wells and springs and fountains, many -of which were at the street corners, and it was the task of the slave -maidens to draw the water from the fountain and to carry it home in -vessels which they carried on their heads. - -It is evident that Athens was a city very different from a -well-equipped modern city, and that it lacked a great deal of what we -consider necessary. But the Athenian of the fifth century B.C. had -extraordinarily little use for _things_, and he laid no stress on -comfort. He was content to have houses without drains, beds without -sheets or springs, and rooms as cold or as hot as the open air. He -could tell the time without a clock, cross the sea without a compass, -fasten his clothes (or rather his two pieces of cloth) with two pins -instead of rows of buttons, and wear sandals without stockings or -even go barefoot. He warmed himself over a pot of ashes, judged -law-suits in the open air on a cold winter's morning, studied poetry -without books, learned geography without maps, and politics without a -newspaper. The Athenians were civilized without being -comfortable.[1] Of course much of this simple life was possible -because of the climate, and modern {193} standards of cleanliness -need in no way conflict with a simple life; nevertheless it is the -glory of the Athenians that they not only believed but practised the -belief, that the things of the mind and spirit are greater than those -of the body. - -The daily life of Athens centred in the Agora. If the streets -approaching it were mean and dirty, the Agora itself, the centre of -public life, was wide and spacious and surrounded by dignified and -beautiful buildings. In shape it was a great open square, two sides -of which were taken up with public buildings and temples. On the -remaining sides were the Stoas or Porches. These consisted of a roof -supported by a row of columns in front and a wall at the back. Each -stoa was a covered walk, protected from the glare of the sun, the -biting of the cold wind, and from the rain, and whatever the weather -might be, the Athenian could always find a pleasant sheltered place -where he could walk and talk with his friends. One of these Porches -was known as the King's Porch. It was used as one of the law-courts, -and on the wall at the back were inscribed the laws of Solon, and it -was here that every archon had to take his oath of office. The most -frequented of the stoas was the _Painted Porch_, so called because -its wall was decorated with frescoes, one of which was a great -painting of the battle of Marathon. - -The centre of the Agora was a great open space, part of it free for -the public to walk in, and part of it full of booths and stalls where -was sold everything needed by the Athenians. - -{194} - -There were three classes of people in Athens: the citizens, who were -all free-born Athenians; the foreign residents who were called -metics; and the slaves. In outward appearance there was often very -little difference between them, but only the citizens might vote, and -they alone had any privileges. The metics were generally well-to-do; -they were merchants and bankers and helped very largely to create the -wealth which made Athens great. - -The morning life of Athens centred in the Agora, but when the -afternoon came, this was gradually deserted, and the Athenians who -had gathered there earlier in the day went along the roads that led -out of the city to the different Gymnasia. These were originally -places devoted to the games practised by all Athenians, but they -gradually became used more as parks, where the young men played games -and the older men watched and talked. The Academy was the greatest -of the gymnasia, and philosophers used to frequent it, and with their -pupils discuss all the many things in which the keen and adventurous -minds of the Athenians were interested. Plato, one of the greatest -of the philosophers, was a well-known figure at the Academy. - -Rising above the city, watching over it and guarding it, was the -Acropolis, crowned by temples and statues. A great statue of Athena -looked down upon the city at her feet, at the busy Agora and the -public buildings in which the government of the state was carried on, -at the narrow streets lined with the houses of the citizens, and, -beyond the {195} walls, at the pleasant roads leading, on one side, -out to the gymnasia and the country beyond, and, on the other, down -to the harbour busy with the trade of Athens and where the galleys -went in and out on their voyages all over the Mediterranean world. - - - -II. ATHENIAN DRESS - -A visitor to the Agora in the morning would have found Athenians of -all kinds going about their daily business and he would have had -opportunity to see how they dressed. The morning crowd in the Agora -consisted almost entirely of men; to see Athenian women a stranger -would have to be invited to their houses, a rare privilege but seldom -accorded, or to have visited Athens during a festival, when women -were allowed to take part in the great processions which went up to -the shrine of Athena on the Acropolis. But men of all classes could -be seen every day in the Agora: the working-man going to his work, -the countryman selling the produce of his farm, slaves doing the -daily marketing for the household, and men of leisure walking about -and talking to their friends. - -The chief garment worn by all these men was the _chiton_ or tunic. -It was made by taking an oblong piece of cloth, cutting it the -required length and then folding it round the body, so that it hung -from the neck to the knees. It was fastened at the neck with a pin, -sometimes beautifully wrought in gold, in such a way that arm-holes -were made, and one {196} side was always left open. A girdle kept -the folds of the chiton in place, and it was generally tight enough -to disguise the fact that one side was open. A man's chiton seldom -came below his knees, but the wearer could always regulate the -length, and workmen and all those engaged in active occupations were -generally _well-girded_, that is, they pulled up the chiton, so that -it was short, with part of it hanging over the girdle. Older men -usually allowed the chiton to hang to its full length. - -In the house, the chiton was the only garment required, and workmen -and all young men engaged in active pursuits seldom wore anything -else out of doors, but out of the house, the older men generally -added a mantle known as the _himation_. This was another oblong -piece of cloth, but larger than that used for the chiton, which was -thrown over the left shoulder, brought round under the right arm to -the front of the body, and then thrown again over the left shoulder. -The himation was not, as a rule, pinned and so it had to be very -carefully adjusted in order that its folds might hang well. It was a -very difficult thing to put on a himation gracefully, and it was -often the work of a special slave to arrange it before his master -went out of doors. The folds had to hang well, and it had to be of -the right length, for if it was too short, the Athenian thought the -wearer looked like a rustic come to the city for the first time, and -to wear it too long was a sign of ostentation and needless display. - -The only other garment sometimes worn by men was the _chlamys_, a -short cloak worn by the {197} young men. It was circular, gathered -round the neck and fastened by a pin or clasp, and hung over the back -and left shoulder reaching to the waist. The chlamys was generally -of a bright colour; the chiton and himation were more often white, -though sometimes colours were used, but beautifully designed borders -were frequently embroidered in colours on both the chiton and -himation, and an Athenian crowd presented a bright and gay scene. - -Athenian men seldom wore anything on their heads, unless they were -travelling, when they wore a close-fitting cap, either with or -without a brim, but they generally wore sandals on their feet, though -this was not considered absolutely necessary. - -The dress of the Athenian women consisted, like that of the men, of a -chiton and himation, but the woman's chiton was longer; it reached to -her feet and was fuller, and it often had short sleeves. No Athenian -woman could ever appear out of doors without her himation, and this -was often so arranged that it was drawn over her head, forming a -hood. This was generally the only form of head covering worn by -Athenian women, though if they went out in the sun they sometimes -took parasols. - -Athenian women probably used more colours in their dress than the -men; a particularly beautiful saffron-yellow was a favourite colour, -especially for their bridal dresses, and on such occasions their -dress was enriched by gold ornaments, necklaces, bracelets and rings. -Ornaments of various kinds were freely used by the Athenian women in -their dress, but the Greeks disliked anything that had no {198} -purpose but show, and their jewels were so arranged as to enrich -their appearance without taking away from its simple dignity and -beauty. - - - -III. THE ATHENIAN HOUSE - -"I do not spend my days indoors," said an Athenian once, "my wife is -quite capable of managing our domestic affairs without my aid."[2] -This probably expressed the feeling of most Athenian men, for they -gave very little time to their houses. These were the places where -the women of the family spent nearly all their hours, but where the -men did little more than sleep and have their meals. In the summer -time an Athenian house was probably a pleasant place, though we -should have found it lacking in nearly everything that we consider -necessary, but in the winter it would have been uncomfortably chilly -and draughty. - -It has already been noticed that an Athenian house usually presented -a blank wall to the street, for it was built round a court on to -which all the rooms opened. The houses were generally of one story -only, though a few occasionally had more, and the rooms drew all -their light and air from the court. Socrates once said that a -perfect house should be one that was cool in summer and warm in -winter, and of such a convenient size that the owner could keep all -his possessions in it with ease and security. - -The front door was always kept carefully shut and {199} bolted, but a -knocker, often in the form of a ring in a lion's mouth, announced the -visitor, who was admitted by the porter, a slave who sat in a small -room just inside the door. The door opened into a courtyard, which -in a good-sized house would be fairly large, but badly paved. This -was the men's court. A row of columns all round the sides supported -a roof which made a kind of verandah, from which small rooms opened. -These rooms do not seem to have had any light or air except that -which entered from the court, and they must have been dark and -uncomfortable. They were used only by the grown sons of the family -and by the male slaves. - -In the middle of the court stood an altar to Zeus the Protector of -the Home, on which fragrant incense always burned, and fresh garlands -of flowers and leaves would be placed on it every day. - -Leading out of the men's court was the dining-hall. There would be -no table, for the guest did not go to the table, but the table, a low -one, was brought to him as he sat or reclined on a beautifully carved -couch. The most sacred spot in the house was in this room, the altar -of Hestia, on which burned the sacred fire of the family hearth. -There might be a row of large vases against one wall, and if one of -them bore the inscription, "I am from the Games at Athens," the -family would take care to preserve it as one of their greatest -treasures, for the words meant that the vase had been a prize won by -some member of the family in the Athenian Games. - -A door opposite that which led from the men's {200} court into the -dining room, opened into another court, that of the women. This was -similar to the men's court, but more often planted with flowers and -shrubs. The women's rooms, nearly as small and dark and -uncomfortable as those of the men, opened from the women's court, and -the kitchen was probably at the back of it. On one side of this -court there was a large chamber, the best furnished in the house, -where the master and mistress slept. - -All the furniture in these rooms was simple, but of beautiful design. -The chief things used were couches, footstools, low chairs and tables -and chests. The latter took the place of closets and cupboards. -There were lamps and bronze candelabra, and large numbers of cases -used by the Athenians as ordinary water-jugs, wine jars and drinking -cups, all of the most graceful shapes and forms and beautifully -painted. - -The life of the Athenian house centred in the women's court, though -during the daytime when the men of the house were absent, the women -used the men's court almost as much as their own. The moment, -however, they heard the sound of the knocker on the front door, they -fled to their own part of the house, lest they should be caught -unawares by a male visitor. - -Such was probably the house of a well-to-do Athenian, a very much -more comfortable and well-furnished house than that of the Spartan, -yet lacking in almost everything that we associate with the idea of -comfort. But the Athenian succeeded in being civilized without being -comfortable; his {201} well-being was in no way dependent on -_things_, and believing that his wealth was something to be used for -the good of the whole community, he spent it on the temples and -public buildings of the city rather than on his own private dwelling. -It may be true that the little use the Athenian made of his own house -made him less interested in it than in the other buildings of the -city, but whether he carried it to an extreme or not, it was his -public-spirited point of view that gave him that greater interest in -the public welfare than in his own private affairs. - - - -IV. ATHENIAN TRADE - -The earlier Greeks believed that a state should be self-supporting, -that the farmers should produce enough food, and the craftsmen -everything needed in daily life. But from the time of Solon onwards -this became increasingly difficult in Athens, for owing to the -arrival of settlers who came from many different places, attracted by -the possibilities of work in the growing state, the population -increased, and it became impossible to produce enough food. This had -a very important influence on Athens, for instead of being -self-sufficing and secure within her own walls, she became dependent -for her life on the food supplies, and especially on the corn, that -came to her from Egypt and the Black Sea colonies, and in the time of -war it was absolutely necessary that the routes to these places -should be kept open. Very strict laws were passed to regulate the -corn trade and to make sure that enough would always {202} be brought -to Athens. No Athenian merchant might take corn to any other harbour -than the Peiraeus, and none might leave Egypt or the Black Sea ports -unless he had a certain amount of corn on board his ship. - -The fact that the Athenian merchant had to go to distant places for -corn increased his trade in other articles. He was at home on the -sea, and his many-oared ship passed swiftly over the waters of the -Aegean, stopping at many places: at the ports of Ionian colonies, -where he found his kinsfolk, eager to hear the latest news from the -mainland and especially from Athens; at the ports of the Barbarians, -where he rejoiced that he was a Greek and did not dwell amongst these -strangers. The Athenian merchant sailed in his own ship, and beyond -his final destination, generally had no definite route in mind. He -was guided by the favourable winds, or by rumours of suitable trading -ports where he would find good opportunities for exchanging his -goods. He left Athens with oil, honey from Hymettus, and the -far-famed Athenian pottery, the chief exports, and he exchanged these -for the corn and fish of the Black Sea ports, the wool of Miletus, -the perfumes and spices of Syria, the linen and papyrus and the -all-important corn of Egypt, the wine of Chios, the cypress wood of -Crete, the dates of Phoenicia, the rugs and cushions of Carthage; -while in such ports as Carthage and Miletus he found articles which -had reached these places by caravans from still more distant lands. -In Carthage he obtained ivory and ebony from Africa, {203} and in -Miletus richly woven carpets and rugs from Babylon. - -All this trade brought wealth to Athens, and it taught the quick -Athenian mind, always alert and interested in any new thing, "new -ways of enjoying life." - - - -V. ATHENIAN POTTERY - -Most of the industries carried on in any large city were to be found -in Athens, but the industry for which she was best known throughout -the Mediterranean world was that of the potter, and Athenian vases -were exported in very large quantities. But these vases were not -mere ornaments; each had its own particular use as a household -utensil, an offering to a god, or as an offering at a tomb. - -Vases for different purposes were made of different shapes; each was -beautiful in form, but with its beauty it combined usefulness. The -handles on the water jars are placed just where they are most needed, -the oil pours out of the narrow neck of the oil jug drop by drop so -that the quantity could be easily regulated, and the drinking cup has -a slight curve to the rim, so that one can drink out of it quite -easily without spilling the liquid. - -There are certain well known forms of these vases: the Amphora is a -large two-handled vase which was used for storing oil and other -liquids; the Hydria has three handles and was used for carrying -water; the Krater is a large vase in which wine and water were mixed; -the Lekythos is a jug {204} with a narrow neck used for pouring out -oil slowly in small quantities; and the Kylix is a wide and shallow -drinking cup. A large amphora, often full of oil, was given as a -prize for some of the athletic contests at the Panathenaic games held -in Athens. Such an amphora can always be recognized, as it bears on -one side the figure of Athena with the inscription: "I am from the -Games at Athens," and on the other a painting depicting the contest -for which the vase was a prize. - -The quarter in Athens given up to the potters was known as the -Cerameicus, and here there were a number of workshops owned by -different vase-makers. At the head of each establishment was the -master; but he was a craftsman as well as manager and was able to do -everything connected with the industry: he could not only make the -vase, but also design and paint it. His workmen, however, did most -of the turning, shaping and polishing of the vases. When the vase -had been made, it was given to the artist who painted the design on -it, after which it had to be dried, baked and glazed. The black -glaze that was used in Athens was one of the great discoveries of the -ancient potters' art. Time never spoiled it, and it seems as fresh -today as when it was first put on the vases. In some cases it has -peeled off in small flakes, but that only happens when the clay -beneath is damp; otherwise it remains unchanged. - -[Illustration: GREEK VASES. Courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of -Art.] - -The earlier vases were painted in black on the red background of the -clay; later, the artist sketched his design on the red clay and gave -the vase back to {205} the workman, who painted in the background in -black and then returned it to the artist, who retouched his design -and in some cases added here and there a touch of colour. - -Besides the rooms for the workmen and artists, and the court where -the ovens were placed, a potter's workshop required storerooms where -the finished vases were kept, and a room where the master received -his customers and sold his pottery. - -The subjects of the paintings on the vases were always carefully -chosen and were suited to the use to which the vase was to be put. -The large vases had graver and more serious subjects, the kylix had -more animated scenes. This cup was used at banquets and on festive -occasions, and so the artists painted gay and merry scenes on it, and -as they tried to attract buyers by the novelty of their designs, the -kylix paintings show a great deal of originality. The subjects were -taken from mythology, or showed battle scenes, or subjects connected -with daily life. If all our other sources of knowledge of life in -Athens were suddenly lost to us, the vases would still be a rich mine -of information, as in one way or another they represent all the -varied experiences of human life. - -In all their art the Greeks were chiefly interested in representing -the human form. They themselves did not realize that in doing this -they were taking a step onward in man's great adventure of learning -how to live, but in all the many ways in which they represented man, -they showed him going forth into the outside world of nature, -conscious that he had {206} the power to make of it a world in which -he felt at home. Part of the greatness of the Greeks came from the -fact that they did this unconsciously. The craftsmen and -vase-painters themselves were in no way regarded as the equals of the -great sculptors. The Athenians regarded them as quite lowly workers, -but they were artists nevertheless, proved so by the fact that though -there was often copying of a general design, the artist never copied -mechanically, but put into his work something that was his own. In -all the great quantity of Greek vases in the world today no two have -been found exactly alike, and so the craftsmen, though they were -unconscious of how later ages would regard their work, knew the -satisfaction that comes from creating beauty in any form, and they -said of their work that "there is no sweeter solace in life for human -ills than craftsmanship; for the mind, absorbed in its study, sails -past all troubles and forgets them."[3] - - - -[1] A. E. Zimmern: _The Greek Commonwealth_. - -[2] Xenophon: _The Economist_. - -[3] Amphis: quoted by G. M. A. Richter in _The Craft of Athenian -Pottery_. - - - - -{207} - -CHAPTER XII - -A DAY WITH AN ATHENIAN - - -I. THE ATHENIAN GENTLEMAN - -The day began early in Athens, and as soon as the sun was up everyone -was stirring: the workman was off to his work, the schoolboy to -school, and every booth and stall in the Agora was laden with -articles to attract the buyers who were expected in the market. - -Before leaving his house, the Athenian gentleman had his breakfast, a -little bread soaked in wine, after which one of his house-slaves saw -that his himation hung in graceful folds, and then, accompanied by -one or more slaves carrying baskets, he set forth for the Agora. -Here the morning marketing was done, but unless he was giving a very -important banquet in the evening, the gentleman did not himself -attend to the household marketing; his slaves did that for him and -took the purchases home. Their master, in the meantime, would walk -up and down the Agora, or take a turn or two in one of the Porches, -where he would meet some of his friends, or go to the barber's shop, -where he would be sure to hear {208} the latest news of the day: -Pericles had proposed to build another temple, and there was much -discussion as to whether the state could afford it; the Spartan army -was said to be stronger than ever, and Sparta had always been jealous -of Athens; was she secretly getting ready for a war, and if so should -not Athens be prepared, or were those right who believed that the -greatness of Greece lay in a policy of peace with Sparta? Perhaps -the Olympic Games were being held and the news had just come and -spread like wildfire through the city, that the Athenians had covered -themselves with glory, especially in the chariot race, and that the -victors were even then on their way home, so all must be in readiness -to receive them. Or was it known that a galley had just returned -from a trading voyage on the Aegean, and that the sailors were -reporting that there was a good deal of discontent in some of the -islands, and that threats were being made of withholding some of the -tribute money unless the islanders were allowed greater independence? -These and many more burning questions of the day were made known and -discussed without the use of newspapers. - -But the Athenian gentleman did not spend all his morning in talk. If -he were wealthy, he would have definite duties required of him by the -State: he had to fit out and keep in good order one or more triremes -for the navy, and there would be interviews with the captain as to -the number of men he required and how much they should be paid; there -were estimates for repairs to be gone over, and {209} designs for a -new and splendid figure-head on the prow of the ship to be approved. -Or perhaps it was his turn to provide for one of the choruses in the -coming dramatic festival, and he must see to it that this chorus was -well-trained and that no expense was spared in making it better than -any of the others, so that he might win the prize. - -Then there were other duties towards the State that were demanded of -every free-born citizen. He must sit on the jury and judge law-suits -whenever he was called upon to do so, and as the Athenians were very -fond of such suits the demand came very often. Aristophanes, a -dramatist who wrote a number of plays in which he made fun of a great -many of the Athenian characteristics, said of the juryman: - - He is a law-court lover, no man like him. - Judging is what he dotes on, and he weeps - Unless he sits on the front bench of all.[1] - - -In some way or other every Athenian citizen took part in the actual -government of the state, and in the time of Pericles about nine -thousand men held, during the year, some kind of state position. -These officials were chosen by the people and were seldom re-elected, -so that not only was everybody in turn responsible for certain -functions, but everyone was capable of intelligently discussing the -affairs of the state, and this was done at great length every day -whenever Athenian citizens met together. - -{210} - -About once every ten days, the Agora was deserted in the morning, and -every free-born Athenian citizen over thirty years of age, both rich -and poor, was expected to go to the Pnyx, the meeting place of the -Assembly. In times of war, or when some very important question in -which everyone was interested had to be settled, no one stayed away, -and there would be great hurrying in the early morning in order to -get a good place. - -The Pnyx was a great open-air place of assembly, west of the -Acropolis and not far from the city wall. In shape it was a sloping -semi-circle, part of which was supported by a wall. There were no -seats, and the citizens had to make themselves as comfortable as they -could on the bare ground. Facing the slope was a rock cut in the -form of a platform and mounted by steps on each side. This was -called the Bema, and here the orators stood when they addressed the -Assembly. In front of the Bema was the altar on which was offered -the sacrifice that always opened the Assembly, and behind it on a -rock were seats for the state officials who had charge of the meeting. - -There were doubtless many days when the business in hand was not very -interesting, but there were times when excitement ran high and no one -was absent. It is not difficult to imagine the scene. Not far off -rose the rock of the Acropolis, symbol of the strength and glory of -Athens and of the guardianship of Athena; in the dim distance was the -sea, the great bond of union between Athens and the islands of the -Aegean and the East, and a symbol {211} of the protecting power of -Poseidon; overhead stretched the blue Greek sky; and there below in -the Pnyx was the densely packed crowd of Athenians, deliberating on -matters on which hung their very life or death. It was there that -the decision was made to march to Marathon and to face the unnumbered -Persian foe; that Themistocles pleaded passionately for a navy; that -the messengers from Delphi brought back the answer about the "wooden -walls"; that Aristeides persuaded the Athenians to free the Ionians -from their Persian masters and to form the Delian League which led -Athens to become an Empire; and it was there, too, that Pericles in -stately and measured tones urged the Athenians to beautify their city -as no other city in the world had ever been beautified before. - -These and similar occupations took up the morning of the Athenian -gentleman. After a light meal in the middle of the day, he would go -to the Academy or one of the other gymnasia, where he would spend the -cool of the day in exercising himself, or in watching the youths at -their games; in walking in the pleasant groves talking over the -events of the day with his friends; or in discussing with some -philosopher all kinds of questions concerning new interpretations of -old beliefs and new ideas about man, whence he comes and whither he -goes. Some of these were questions which were discussed for the -first time in the history of the world, and never before and but -seldom since has there been such an eager desire to know the truth -about all things, as there was in this Athens of the fifth century -B.C. - -{212} - -But as the evening drew on and it grew dusk, the Athenians left the -gymnasia and returned to the city. All day long they had been in -company, and in the evening the most was made of every opportunity to -meet again, for they held that "to eat your dinner alone was not -dining but feeding," so it was very likely that the day would end by -a banquet. If that were so, the guests would all have been invited -in the morning, either by the host himself when he met them, or by a -message carried by a slave. Preparations were usually made for more -than the invited number of guests, as it was a common custom for -guests to bring some additional friends of their own, and uninvited -guests would often come without any special bidding. Since leaving -the gymnasia, all the guests would have been at their homes. There -they would have bathed and clad themselves in fresh chitons and -mantles, and slaves would accompany them to the house of their host. - -At a banquet the guests reclined on couches, and the food was brought -to them on low tables. The evening meal was the chief meal of the -day in Athens. It began with fish or meat and vegetables, and when -this course was over, the tables were removed, water was poured over -the hands of the guests, and garlands were often passed round. Then -came the second course of fruits, confectionery and various kinds of -sweetmeats, after which the tables were again removed, and replaced -by smaller ones on which stood beautifully shaped drinking cups. The -guests were given more garlands and wreaths, and {213} the slaves -brought in the large kraters, in which the wine and water were mixed, -and the after-dinner entertainment of the evening began. - -This entertainment was called the Symposium, and it began with the -pouring out of three libations: to the Olympian gods, to the Heroes, -and to Zeus. Then the health of the hosts and of his guests was -drunk; after which began the entertainment. This consisted of -conversation, singing, listening to music, watching dancers, in -playing games, telling stories or passing round jests. Just what was -done at the Symposium depended on the kind of guests present. "When -the company are real gentlemen and men of education," said Plato, you -will see no flute-girls, nor dancing girls, nor harp girls; they will -have no nonsense or games, but will be content with one another's -conversation." More often, however, the guests were less serious. -They enjoyed the music of the flute and other instruments, they -played games, and watched dancing, they "chatted and talked pleasant -nonsense to one another." - -When the party came to an end, a libation was offered to Hermes, the -slaves were called, who attended their masters home, lighting their -way with torches or lamps. The older men would go sedately home, the -younger would keep up their merriment and go noisily and boisterously -through the streets until, having knocked at the doors of their -houses, the sleepy porter would wake up and let them in, and silence -would at length reign in the streets of the city. - - -{214} - -II. THE ATHENIAN LADY - -What, in the meantime, was the Athenian lady doing? She was at home, -managing all the household affairs and bringing up the children. She -educated her sons until they were seven years old, when they went to -school, and her daughters until they were about fifteen, when they -were considered old enough to be married. - -The Greek writer Xenophon wrote an account of what were considered -the duties of an ideal Athenian wife. He imagines the husband of a -young bride telling her what he expected of her, and in what way he -hoped the household affairs would be managed. - - - You will need to stay indoors, despatching to their toils - without, such of your domestics whose work lies there. Over - those whose appointed tasks are indoors it will be your duty to - preside, yours to receive the stuffs brought in, yours to - apportion part for daily use, and to make provision for the rest, - to guard and garner it so that the outgoings destined for a year - may not be expended in a month. It will be your duty when the - wools are brought in to see that clothing is made for those who - have need. Your duty also to see that the dried corn is made fit - and serviceable for food. Then, too, if any of the household - fall sick, it will be your care to tend them to the recovery of - their health. - - But there are other cares and occupations which are yours by - right. This, for instance, to take some maiden who knows nothing - of carding wool, and to make her skilful in the art, doubling her - usefulness; or to receive another quite ignorant of housekeeping - or of service, {215} and to render her skilful, loyal, - serviceable, till she is worth her weight in gold. But the - greatest joy of all will be to prove yourself my better; to make - me your faithful follower; knowing no dread lest as the years - advance you should decline in honour in your household, but - rather trusting that though your hair turn gray, yet in - proportion as you come to be a better helpmate to myself and to - the children, a better guardian of our home, so will your honour - increase throughout the household as mistress, wife and mother, - daily more dearly prized.[2] - - -Some further good advice was then given, and the husband concluded by -recommending exercise as the best means of preserving both health and -beauty. He said: - - - I counsel you to oversee the baking woman as she makes the bread, - to stand beside the housekeeper as she measures out her stores; - to go on tours of inspection to see if all things are in order as - they should be. For, as it seems to me, this will be at once - walking exercise and supervision. And as an excellent gymnastic, - I urge you to knead the dough, and roll the paste; to shake the - coverlets and make the beds; and if you train yourself in - exercise of this sort you will enjoy your food, grow vigorous in - health, and your complexion will in very truth be lovelier.[3] - - -Added to all these occupations was the education of the children. -The Athenian lady had nurses for them, Spartan slave-women, if they -were to be had, for their discipline was sterner than that of other -Greeks, and the Spartan nurses had the {216} reputation of being able -to keep their young charges in particularly good order. All kinds of -toys were provided for the children, hoops and balls, spinning-tops -and go-carts, dolls and toy animals. The Athenian mother learnt to -be a good story-teller, for it was in these early days that the -children wanted stories told them, and many a tale would she relate -of the gods and heroes of old, of the nymphs and spirits of the -forests and mountains, of the sea and of the air. And when night -came and the children must go to bed, then she would sing them to -sleep with a slumber song: - - Sleep children mine, a light luxurious sleep, - Brother with brother: sleep, my boys, my life: - Blest in your slumber, in your waking blest.[4] - - -The girls had to be trained to all the duties of an Athenian wife, -and there was much to learn in the short years of their girlhood. It -was a domestic training that they were given; of other things they -learned as much or as little as their mother knew herself and was -able to teach them, probably not more than a little reading and -writing. A girl was not encouraged to take up any kind of -intellectual pursuits, and during her life before her marriage she -was generally "most carefully trained to see and hear as little as -possible, and to ask the fewest questions."[5] - -{217} - -But it was not all work for the maiden, and many a time did she sit -in the swing in the courtyard and idle away a warm afternoon gently -swinging to and fro, and many a merry game of ball did she have with -her companions. It was she who made the fresh garlands and wreaths -for the altars or the house, and who, when the moon was full, laid -offerings on the tomb of her grandparents, and, most glorious of all -her girlhood privileges, it was she who helped to weave the robe -taken to the temple of Athena at the time of the great Panathenaic -festival and who bore baskets of offerings to the goddess in the -great procession. - -When the Athenian maiden married, all this life came to an end, and -she took upon her young shoulders the training of her own household, -even as she had seen her mother do. Her marriage had usually been -arranged for her, and she often knew but little of her future -husband. Before the marriage day, she offered all her girlhood -treasures to Artemis, the goddess who had watched over her childhood. - - - Her tambourines and pretty ball, and the net that confined her - hair, and her dolls and dolls' dresses, Timareta dedicates before - her marriage to Artemis, a maiden to a maiden as is fit; do thou, - daughter of Leto, laying thine hand over the girl Timareta, - preserve her purely in her purity.[6] - - -When these symbols of her youth had passed from her keeping into that -of the goddess, the {218} maiden was dressed in beautiful raiment, -crowned with a wreath and covered with the bridal veil for the -marriage ceremony. This took place in the evening on a day when the -moon was full, and when she was ready, the bride was led by her -attendant maidens to the court where the bridegroom and her parents -and the invited guests awaited her. The marriage took place in the -court, a sacrifice was offered and a libation poured out to the gods, -and then the marriage feast followed, at which cakes of sesame were -always eaten. This was the only occasion on which women were allowed -to be present at a feast, but through it all the bride remained -closely veiled. When the feast was over, the bridal chariot was -driven up to the door, and the bride took her seat in it beside her -husband, her mother walked behind it bearing the marriage torch with -which the fire on the hearth of her new home would be lighted, the -guests surrounded it and with flute-playing and singing escorted the -bride to her new home. - -If the bridegroom lived in a distant place, the bridal procession -broke up at the gates of the city, but if he lived in Athens, he and -his bride were escorted to the door of his house, where they were met -by his mother, and then, to the music of a marriage song, the bride -was led into her new home. - -Did the Athenian lady have no amusements or recreations? Did she -leave all that was gay behind her when she became a wife? The -Athenian lady seldom left the house, and never unless attended by a -female slave. She had practically no society {219} but that of her -slaves. The peasant woman in the fields and the few women who sold -in the market had the society of their friends, but such -companionship was denied to the well-born lady. She saw no men, -except those of her own family. If her husband dined at home alone, -she shared his meal, but if he had guests she was unseen. From time -to time she took part in the great religious festivals and -processions, and occasionally she was permitted to be present in the -theatre when a tragedy was performed, but she was never permitted to -see a comedy for the wit and humour were often coarse and were -considered unfitting for her ears. - -In many ways it was a strange life that the Athenian lady lived, one -that seems as if it were in contradiction to all that the Athenians -held of the highest importance, for the - - - Athenian lady lived in the house among a people that lived out of - doors. Among a people who gave great importance to physical - training she was advised to take her exercise in bedmaking. At a - time when the human spirit was at its freest she was enclosed on - all sides. Art and thought and letters were reaching the highest - development they were ever to know, but for her they hardly - existed. - - -But whatever was the actual life of the Athenian lady, the Athenian -ideal of womanhood was very high. In the wondrous temple that stood -high above the city, looking down upon it and guarding it, was the -figure that symbolized to the Athenians all that was good and -beautiful and true, and it was {220} the figure of a woman. It was -always the figure of a woman that represented Victory, and nearly all -the great Greek dramas deal with the fate of a woman, who was -generally the wife or daughter of a King. The Sacred Mysteries of -Eleusis, mysteries of such deep meaning that it was said that -"partakers in them had better hopes concerning death and all -eternity," centred round the story of the love and sorrow of a woman. -A race that could produce such great figures as these must have -thought nobly of womanhood.[7] - -And so, in spite of her subordinate position in the background, the -Athenian woman was of real influence in Athens. She reigned supreme -in the household, and as her sons grew up, they recognized in her -those qualities which every Greek and especially the Athenian, was -taught to value so highly: that quiet courage which by its very -steadfastness overcomes all the little anxieties and annoyances of -daily life; and that self-control and self-mastery which, putting -self in the background, sets free the individual for service to -others. The Athenian ideal of service was that the man should give -it wholly to the state, and the woman wholly to her home, but narrow -as was her horizon, limited as were her opportunities, the Athenian -woman exercised an influence in Athens, that helped to strengthen and -preserve some of the noblest Athenian qualities. - - - -[1] Aristophanes: _The Wasps_, translated by B. B. Rogers. (By -permission of Messrs. G. Bell and Sons.) - -[2] Xenophon: _The Economist_. - -[3] Ibid. - -[4] Theocritus: From _Idyll_, XXIV, translated by S. C. Calverley. -(By permission of Messrs. G. Bell and Sons.) - -[5] Xenophon: _The Economist_. - -[6] Author Unknown: From _Select Epigrams from the Greek Anthology_, -translated by J. W. Mackail. - -[7] See Emily James Putnam: _The Lady_. - - - - -{221} - -CHAPTER XIII - -THE ATHENIAN SCHOOLBOY - -The chief aim of Athenian education was the building of character. -The Athenians were more concerned that their sons should grow up to -be good citizens, loving what was beautiful and hating all that was -ugly, than that they should know any great number of facts. The -object of any education is to teach a child how to live, and a system -of education is good or bad according as it fulfils this aim. As -different states and countries, at different periods, have had -different ideals as to what is meant by _living_, so they will all -have had different kinds of education, each thought out in such a way -as best to train the child for that conception of life believed in by -his state or country. For example, the Spartan conception of life -was that every citizen should be a good soldier, able to defend his -country and to go out and fight her wars. Whether the Spartan ideal -was a good one or not, may be questioned, but it cannot be denied -that Spartan education was an excellent preparation for such a life. - -The Athenians had a much wider ideal than the {222} Spartans. They, -too, believed in the training of the body, and in making patriotic -citizens who would count it a glory to die in defence of their city, -but they also believed that it was a glory to live for their city, -and to this end they trained the mind and the imagination as well as -the body. To an Athenian a good man was a good citizen, one who, -being physically perfect, would be able to defend his city in time of -war, who, being able to think, would be capable of governing, and -loving all that was beautiful would set high standards of taste in -art, in letters, and in conduct. Praxiteles gave outward form to -this ideal in his statue of Hermes, and though the Athenian ideal was -not complete, Athenian education produced a warrior like Miltiades, -statesmen like Themistocles and Pericles, a poet like Sophocles, -artists like Pheidias and Praxiteles, philosophers like Socrates and -Plato, and a historian like Thucydides. - -[Illustration: THE FLUTE LESSON, THE WRITING LESSON. (ABOVE A -WRITING-ROLL, A FOLDED TABLET, A RULING SQUARE, ETC.) From the Kylix -of Douris, now at Berlin (No. 2285). Monumenti dell' Institute, ix. -Plate 54.] - -The Athenians believed that training which aimed only at -money-making, or bodily strength, or mere cleverness apart from -intelligence, was mean and vulgar and did not deserve to be called -education. True education, they held, made a child long to be a good -citizen and taught him both how to rule and to obey. It must not be -supposed that the Athenians despised wealth or the power of wealth. -Only a wealthy state could have built the Parthenon or celebrated the -great Panathenaic Festival, but the Athenians despised mere -money-making, and they believed that a man's success was not to be -measured by the amount of money he had made, {223} but by the use to -which he put it, and they believed that an education which taught a -boy to be industrious and thrifty, to despise self-indulgence and -luxury, to think straight and see clearly, would make him a better -citizen than one which aimed only at making him a successful man of -business. So they aimed at giving every boy a good education. - - - First among things, [said one of their teachers], I reckon human - education. For if you begin anything whatever in the right way, - the end will probably be right also. The nature of the harvest - depends upon the seeds you sow. If you plant good education in a - young body, it bears leaves and fruit the whole life long, and no - rain or drought can destroy it.[1] - - -The Athenian boy went to school when he was seven years old. At this -age he was placed in the charge of a pedagogue, a trusted slave who -accompanied him when he went to school, carried his books for him, -and helped him, when necessary, with his lessons. The pedagogue was -also expected to keep him in good order, to teach him good manners, -to answer all his many questions, and to punish him whenever he -thought fit, which was probably very often. - -Schools opened early, so early that Solon made a law forbidding -schoolmasters to open their schools before sunrise and requiring them -to be closed before sunset, so that the boys should not have to walk -about the dark and empty streets. The Athenian {224} boy, then, had -to be early astir. "He gets up at dawn, washes the sleep from his -eyes, and puts on his cloak. Then he goes out from his father's -house with his eyes fixed upon the ground, not looking at anyone who -meets him." (A modest and unassuming appearance in public was -required of every boy.) "Behind him follow attendants and -pedagogues, bearing in their hands the implements of virtue, -writing-tablets or books containing the great deeds of old, or, if he -is going to a music-school, his well-tuned lyre."[2] - -Arrived at the school, the pedagogue remained in an ante-room, where -he waited with all the other pedagogues until morning school was -over. The boy entered a larger room beyond, where he settled down to -his lessons. The boys sat on low benches with their writing-tablets -on their knees, and the master sat on a higher chair in front of -them. Lyres and other musical instruments, a book-roll or two, or -perhaps some drinking-cups hung on the walls. - -Athenian boys were taught three main subjects: letters, music and -gymnastics. The first thing connected with letters was to be able to -read and write. The first writing lessons were given on wooden -tablets covered with wax, and for a pen a stylus with a sharp metal -point was used. With this stylus the letters were scratched on the -wax. When a boy had learnt to write better, he was allowed to write -on papyrus with a reed dipped in a kind of sticky substance which -took the place of ink. - -{225} - - - When the boy has learned his letters [we are told], and is - beginning to understand what is written, as before he understood - only what was spoken, they put into his hands the works of great - poets, which he reads sitting on a bench at school; in these are - contained many admonitions, and many tales, and praises of - ancient famous men, which he is required to learn by heart, in - order that he may imitate them and desire to become like them.[3] - - -Athenian boys had no books for children--they began by reading great -poetry and literature. Much of the literature they learnt by heart, -standing in front of the master who recited it to them, and they -learnt it by repeating it after him line by line. In this way they -mastered passages from the Iliad and the Odyssey, and though it must -have been unusual, it was not an unknown feat for a boy to be able to -recite the whole of those poems by heart. "My father," said one man -speaking of his school days, "in his pains to make me a good man, -compelled me to learn the whole of Homer's poems, and even now I can -repeat the Iliad and the Odyssey by heart."[4] Reciting poetry in an -Athenian school was by no means a dull affair, for the boys acted as -they recited. The art of reciting poetry was held in high esteem not -only in Athens, but all over Greece, and in all places where the -Greek tongue was spoken and where Greek ideals prevailed. During the -disastrous war that Athens waged against Sparta at the end of the -fifth century B.C. an Athenian {226} expedition was sent to Sicily. -After a terrible fight in the harbour of Syracuse, the Athenians were -utterly defeated, and all those who survived the battle were taken as -prisoners and confined in the stone quarries near the city.[5] They -were exposed to the sun and the rain and almost starved to death. -But any man who could recite a chorus or one of the scenes from a -play of Euripides, the great Athenian poet, was given his freedom and -allowed to return home. - -A certain amount of arithmetic was also taught, for it was considered -a good training for the mind. - - - "No branch of education is considered so valuable a preparation - for household management and politics, and all arts and crafts, - sciences and professions, as arithmetic; best of all by some - divine art, it arouses the dull and sleepy brain, and makes it - studious, mindful and sharp," - - -and it was said of arithmetic that "those who are born with a talent -for it are quick at all learning, while even those who are slow at -it, have their general intelligence much increased by studying -it."[6] But Athenian children, like others, sometimes found it -difficult to learn, and "I am pretty sure," said an Athenian, "that -you will not easily find many sciences that give the learner and -student so much trouble and toil as arithmetic."[7] - -[Illustration: THE LYRE LESSON, AND THE POETRY LESSON. (ABOVE IS AN -ORNAMENTAL MANUSCRIPT BASKET.) From a Kylix by Douris, now in Berlin -(No. 2285). Monumenti dell' Instituto, ix. Plate 54.] - -Part of the day was given to the study of letters, {227} and then the -boys went to the music school, where they learnt to play the lyre and -to sing. A song accompanied by the music of the lyre was a favourite -part of the entertainment after a banquet, and every Athenian -gentleman was expected to be able to sing and play whenever he was -called upon. So much was it the mark of a gentleman, that "He who -doesn't know the way to play the lyre" became a proverbial expression -for an uneducated person. - -Very little is known about Greek music, but it was considered very -necessary that the music taught should be of an ennobling and -inspiring kind. The Lydian melodies were held to be altogether too -soft and sentimental, and the Athenians preferred those known as -Dorian, because they were simpler and sterner and of a kind to -inspire men to noble and manly deeds. Aristotle who wrote so much -about the ideal state, wrote also about the education an ideal state -should give to its children. He held that "music is neither a -necessary nor a useful accomplishment in the sense in which letters -are useful, but it provides a noble and worthy means of occupying -leisure time," and Aristotle, like all Athenians, believed that it -was the part of a good education to teach not only how to work well, -but also how to use leisure well. The Athenians thought music was a -good medicine for all ills. One philosopher, when his temper had -been ruffled and he felt irritated and tired, used to take up his -harp and play, saying, "I am calming myself." - -In the afternoon the boys were taken by their pedagogues to the -palaestra or wrestling-school, {228} where they learned gymnastics. -It was as important that the boy should have a well-trained, graceful -body, as that he should have a clear and well-furnished mind, and so -he spent a good part of each day running, jumping, wrestling, and -throwing the discus under a special master. - -According to Plato, this education turned the Athenian boy from being -"the most unmanageable of animals" into "the most amiable and divine -of living beings." This change had not taken place without many a -punishment of the boy, and it was a proverb that "he that is not -flogged cannot be taught." Not long ago an old Greek papyrus was -discovered which gives a vivid account of the discipline that was -thought necessary by both parents and teachers, for the schoolboy who -preferred, as he probably often did, to play games instead of -learning his lessons. A mother brought her truant boy, Cottalus, to -his schoolmaster, Lampriscus, to receive a flogging for his misdeeds, -and she said: - -_Mother_. - - Flog him Lampriscus, - Across the shoulders, till his wicked soul - Is all but out of him. He's spent my all - In playing odd and even; knuckle bones - Are nothing to him. Why, he hardly knows - The door of the Letter School. And yet the thirtieth - Comes round and I must pay--tears no excuse. - His writing tablet which I take the trouble -{229} - To wax anew each month lies unregarded - In the corner. If by chance he deigns to touch it - He scowls like Hades, then puts nothing right - But smears it out and out. He doesn't know - A letter till you scream it twenty times. - * * * * - Yet he knows - The seventh and the twentieth of the month, - Whole holidays, as if he reads the stars, - He lies awake o' nights dreaming of them. - But, so may yonder Muses prosper you, - Give him in stripes no less than-- - -_Lampriscus_ (briskly). - - Right you are. - Here, boys, hoist him - Upon your backs. I like your goings on, - My boy! I'll teach you manners! Where's my strap, - With the stinging cow's tail? - -_Cottalus_ (_in terror_). - - By the Muses, Sir,--Not with the stinger. - -_Lampriscus_. - - Then you shouldn't be so naughty. - -_Cott._ - - O how many will you give me? - -_Lamp._ - - Your mother fixes that. - -_Cott._ - - How many, mother? - -_Mother._ - - As many as your wicked hide can bear - - (_They proceed with the flogging_). - -_Cott._ - - Stop!--That's enough! Stop! - -_Lamp._ - - You should stop your ways. - -_Cott._ - - I'll never do it more, I promise you. - -_Lamp._ - - Don't talk so much, or else I'll bring a gag. - -_Cott._ - - I won't talk,--only do not kill me,--please. - -{230} - -_Lamp._ (_at length relenting_). - - Let him down, boys. - -_Mother._ - - No, leather him till sunset. - -_Lamp._ - - Why, he's as mottled as a water snake. - -_Mother._ - - Well, when he's done his reading, good or bad, - Give him a trifle more, say twenty strokes.[8] - - -Children were not always well behaved in other ways, it seems, and -complaints were made by their parents that the children contradicted -them and did not always rise when their elders came into the room, -that they chattered too much before company, crossed their legs when -they sat down, and completely tyrannized over their pedagogues. - -But in spite of all his misdemeanours and punishments, in letters, -music and gymnastics, the Athenian boy was educated until he was -eighteen years old. The stories of the ancient heroes who had fought -at Troy, and those of more recent times who had defeated the Persians -filled him with enthusiasm for his race and a love of freedom for his -city. Having to learn many things without the aid of books, his mind -grew quick, alert and observant, and his music and gymnastics taught -him the beauty of self-control and dignified restraint. - -[Illustration: MUSIC SCHOOL SCENES. From a Hydria in the British -Museum. (E 171.)] - -At eighteen, the Athenian youth left school. The state did not give -him the full rights of a citizen until a few years later, and until -then he was required to perform certain military duties, but he was -no longer a boy, and he was considered old enough to understand the -meaning of citizenship, {231} and to know what were its duties and -privileges. So it was then, at the time of leaving his boyhood -behind, and entering upon the richer and fuller life before him, that -the youth took the oath of the Ephebi or young men. He was given the -shield and spear of the warrior, and then in the temple, before Zeus, -the Lord of Heaven, and in the presence of the highest Athenian -magistrates, he swore: - - - "Never to disgrace his holy arms, never to forsake his comrade in - the ranks, but to fight for the holy temples, alone or with - others: to leave his country, not in a worse, but in a better - state than he found it; to obey the magistrates and the laws, and - defend them against attack; finally to hold in honour the - religion of his country." - - - -[1] From _The Schools of Hellas_, by Kenneth J. Freeman. - -[2] Lucian, translated by Kenneth J. Freeman, in _The Schools of -Hellas_. - -[3] Plato: _Protagoras_, translated by Jowett. - -[4] Xenophon: _Banquet_. - -[5] See p. 312. - -[6] Plato: _Laws_. - -[7] Plato: _Republic_, translated by Davies and Vaughan. - -[8] Herodas: _Mime_, III, translated by Kenneth J. Freeman in _The -Schools of Hellas_. - - - - -{232} - -CHAPTER XIV - -THE GREEK THEATRE - -The Greek drama began as a religious observance in honour of -Dionysus. To the Greeks this god personified both the spring and the -vintage, the latter a very important time of year in a vine-growing -country, and he was a symbol to them of that power there is in man of -rising out of himself, of being impelled onwards by a joy within him -that he cannot explain, but which makes him go forward, walking, as -it were, on the wings of the wind, of the spirit that fills him with -a deep sense of worship. We call this power _enthusiasm_, a Greek -word which simply means _the god within us_. - -From very early times, stories of his life were recited at the -religious festivals held in honour of Dionysus, and then stories of -the other gods and of the ancient heroes were told as well. It was -from these beginnings that the drama came. Originally, the story was -told in the form of a song, chanted at first by everyone taking part -in the festival, and later by a chorus of about fifty performers, and -at intervals in the song the leader would recite part of the story by -himself. By degrees the recitation {233} became of greater -importance than the song; it grew longer, and after a time two people -took part in it and then three; at the same time the chorus became -smaller and of less importance in the action of the drama, until at -last it could consist of only fifteen performers. - -A Greek drama was in many ways much simpler than a modern drama. -There were fewer characters, and usually only three speaking actors -were allowed on the stage at once. There was only one story told and -there was nothing to take the attention of the audience away from -this. The Chorus, though it no longer told the story, was very -important, for it set the atmosphere of the play, and lyrics of -haunting loveliness hinted at the tragedy that could not be averted, -because of terrible deeds done in the past, or if, indeed, there -might be any help, the imagination was carried forward on wings of -hope. The Chorus also served another purpose. In a modern drama, -when the tragedy of a situation becomes almost too great for the -audience to bear, relief is often found in some comic, or partly -comic, episode which is introduced to slacken the tension. -Shakespeare does this constantly. But comic episodes were felt to be -out of place in a Greek drama, and therefore when a tragic scene had -taken place, the Chorus followed it by a song of purest poetry. In -one play of Euripides, a terrible scene of tragedy was followed by a -song in which the Chorus prayed for escape from such sorrows on the -wings of a bird to a land where all was peace and beauty. They sang: - -{234} - - Could I take me to some cavern for mine hiding, - In the hill-tops where the Sun scarce hath trod; - Or a cloud make the home of mine abiding, - As a bird among the bird-droves of God. - -And the song goes on to carry the imagination to a spot - - Where a voice of living waters never ceaseth - In God's quiet garden by the sea, - And Earth, the ancient life-giver, increaseth - Joy among the meadows, like a tree.[1] - - -In the great Greek dramas, the Chorus is a constant reminder that, -though they cannot understand or explain them, there are other powers -in the world than the wild passions of men. - -The great dramatic festival in Athens was held in the spring in the -theatre of Dionysus, to the south-east of the Acropolis. The theatre -in Athens never became an everyday amusement, as it is today, but was -always directly connected with the worship of Dionysus, and the -performances were always preceded by a sacrifice. The festival was -only held once a year, and whilst it lasted the whole city kept -holiday. Originally, admission to the theatre was free, but the -crowds became so great and there was such confusion and sometimes -fighting in the rush for good seats, that the state decided to charge -an admission fee and tickets had to be bought beforehand. But even -then there were no reserved seats, except for certain officials who -sat in the front row. In the time of Pericles, complaints were made -that the {235} poorer citizens could not afford to buy tickets, and -so important was the drama then considered, that it was ordered that -tickets should be given free to all who applied for them. - -[Illustration: THEATRE AT EPIDAURUS] - -An Athenian audience was very critical, and shouts and applause, or -groans and hisses showed its approval or disapproval of the play -being acted. Several plays were given in one day, and a prize was -awarded to the best, so the audience was obliged to start at dawn and -would probably remain in the theatre until sunset. Let us go with an -Athenian audience and see a play which was first performed in the -latter half of the fifth century B.C. - -The theatre is a great semi-circle on the slope of the Acropolis, -with rows of stone seats on which about eighteen thousand spectators -can sit. The front row consists of marble chairs, the only seats in -the theatre which have backs, and these are reserved for the priests -of Dionysus and the chief magistrates. Beyond the front row, is a -circular space called the orchestra, where the Chorus sings, and in -the centre of which stands the altar of Dionysus. Behind the -orchestra, is the stage on which the actors will act, at the back of -which is a building painted to look like the front of a temple or a -palace, to which the actors retire when they are not wanted on the -stage or have to change their costumes. That is the whole theatre -and all its stage scenery. Overhead is the deep blue sky, the -Acropolis rises up behind, and the olive-laden hills are seen in the -distance. Much will have to be left to the imagination, but the very -simplicity {236} of the outward surroundings will make the audience -give all their attention to the play and the acting. - -When the play begins, there will only be three actors on the stage at -once. They will wear very elaborate costumes, and a strange-looking -wooden sole called a cothurnus or buskin, about six inches high, on -their shoes, to make them look taller and more impressive, and over -their faces a curious mask with a wide mouth, so that everyone in -that vast audience will hear them. There will be no curtain and the -play is not divided into different acts. When there is a pause in -the action, the Chorus will fill up the time with their song. If it -is tragedy, we shall not see the final catastrophe on the stage, but -a messenger will appear who will give us an account of what has -happened. All this is very different from the way in which a modern -play is given, but some of the greatest dramas the world possesses -were written by Athenian dramatists and acted on this Athenian stage -more than two thousand years ago. - -On this occasion the play we are to see is "Iphigenia in Tauris," -written by Euripides, one of the greatest of the Athenian dramatists. - -The legends and traditions from which most of the Greek plays took -their plots were, of course, well known to the Athenians. They were -stories commemorating some great event, or explaining some religious -observance, but naturally these legends were differently treated by -different dramatists, each of whom brought out a different side of -the story to enforce some particular lesson which {237} he wished to -bring home to the people, and this is especially true of the legends -like that of Iphigenia connected with the Fall of Troy. - -In the opening speech of this play, Iphigenia very briefly tells her -story up to the moment when the play begins. Just as the Greeks had -been ready to sail for Troy, they were wind-bound at Aulis. The wise -men were consulted as to the meaning of this, and how the gods who -must in some way have been offended, might be appeased, so that fair -winds might send them on their way. Calchas, the seer, told them -that Artemis demanded the sacrifice of Iphigenia, daughter of -Agamemnon, King of Argos, the great leader of the host, and her -father sent for her accordingly. The maiden was at home with her -mother, and the messenger who was sent to Argos to bring her was -charged to say that her father desired to wed her to the hero -Achilles. She came and the sacrifice was offered, but at the supreme -moment, Artemis carried Iphigenia away and placed her in the land of -the Tauri, a wild and barbarous tribe, as their priestess. These -Tauri had an image of Artemis in a temple, to which they sacrificed -all strangers who were cast on their shores, and it was the duty of -the priestess to consecrate each victim before he was slain. Here, -performing this rite, had Iphigenia lived for more than ten years, -but never yet had a Greek come to this wild land. She knew, of -course, nothing of what had happened at Troy or afterwards; she did -not know that on his return home her father had been slain by -Clytemnestra his wife, or that Orestes, her {238} brother, had -avenged that death by slaughtering his own mother, after which deed -he had wandered from place to place pursued by the relentless torment -of the Furies. Bitter against the Greeks for having willed her -sacrifice at Aulis, Iphigenia says of herself that she is "turned to -stone, and has no pity left in her," and she half hopes that the day -will come when a Greek shall be brought to her to be offered in his -turn to the goddess. - -In the meantime, Orestes, tormented beyond endurance by the Furies, -had gone to the Oracle of Apollo, to ask how he might be purified -from his sin, and Apollo had told him to go to the land of the Tauri -and bring back to Attica the image of Artemis his sister, so that it -might no longer be stained by the blood of the human sacrifices. And -so it comes about that Orestes is the first Greek who will be brought -to Iphigenia for sacrifice to Artemis. It is at this moment that the -play opens.[2] - - -CHARACTERS OF THE PLAY - - IPHIGENIA. - ORESTES, her brother. - PYLADES, friend to Orestes. - THOAS, King of Tauris. - A HERDSMAN. - A MESSENGER. - -CHORUS of captive Greek Women, handmaids to Iphigenia. - -THE GODDESS, PALLAS ATHENA. - -{239} - -The scene shows a great and barbaric Temple on a desolate sea-coast. -An altar is visible stained with blood. There are spoils of slain -men hanging from the roof. Iphigenia, in the dress of a priestess, -comes out of the Temple, and in a speech that serves really as a -Prologue to the play, she tells her story. At the end of her speech, -which is haunted throughout by a sense of exile and homesickness, she -describes a strange dream she has just had, which she interprets as -meaning that Orestes, her brother, is dead. She then goes into the -Temple. - -_Voice._ - - Did some one cross the pathway? Guard thee well. - -_Another Voice._ - - I am watching. Every side I turn my eye. - -(_Enter Orestes and Pylades. Their dress shows they are travellers. -Orestes is shaken and distraught._) - -_Orestes._ - - How, brother? And is this the sanctuary - At last, for which we sailed from Argos? - -_Pylades._ - - For sure, Orestes. Seest thou not it is? - -_Orestes._ - - The altar, too, where Hellene blood is shed. - -_Pylades._ - - How like long hair those blood-stains, tawny red! - -_Orestes._ - - And spoils of slaughtered men--there by the thatch. - -_Pylades._ - - Aye, first-fruits of the harvest, when they catch - Their strangers!--'Tis a place to search with care. - -(_He searches while Orestes sits._) - -During this search, Orestes, in a speech addressed to Apollo, -explains why they are there, and expresses hopelessness {240} at -their ever accomplishing the will of the god, and even suggests their -turning back. But Pylades encourages him and bids him take courage, -for, he says, - - Danger gleams - Like sunshine to a brave man's eyes, and fear - Of what may be is no help anywhere. - -_Orestes._ - - Aye, we have never braved these leagues of way - To falter at the end. See, I obey - Thy words. They are ever wise. Let us go mark - Some cavern, to lie hid till fall of dark. - God will not suffer that bad things be stirred - To mar us now, and bring to naught the word - Himself hath spoke. Aye, and no peril brings - Pardon for turning back to sons of kings. - -(_They go out towards the shore._) - -After they are gone, enter gradually the women of the Chorus. These -are Greek women who have been taken captive in war by King Thoas, and -so they are friendly to the exiled and lonely Iphigenia, for they are -just as homesick as she is. They come now in obedience to a call -from her to assist in mourning for Orestes, who, she is convinced by -her dream, is dead. - -{241} - -_Chorus._ - - Peace! Peace upon all who dwell - By the Sister Rocks that clash in the swell - Of the Friendless Seas. - - * * * * - - From Hellas that once was ours, - We come before thy gate, - From the land of the western seas, - The horses and the towers, - The wells and the garden trees, - And the seats where our fathers sate. - -_Leader._ - - What tidings, ho? With what intent - Hast called me to thy shrine and thee, - O child of him who crossed the sea - To Troy with that great armament, - The thousand prows, the myriad swords? - I come, O child of Atreid Lords. - -(_Iphigenia, followed by attendants, comes from the Temple._) - -_Iphigenia._ - - Alas! O maidens mine, - I am filled full of tears: - My heart filled with the beat - Of tears, as of dancing feet, - A lyreless, joyless line, - And music meet for the dead. - - For a whisper is in mine ears, - By visions borne on the breath - Of the Night that now is fled, -{242} - Of a brother gone to death. - Oh sorrow and weeping sore, - For the house that no more is, - For the dead that were kings of yore - And the labour of Argolis! - -Iphigenia and the Chorus then lament together over the ruin and loss -that has befallen the House of Agamemnon. Suddenly the Leader of the -Chorus stops them. - -_Leader._ - - Stay, yonder from some headland of the sea - There comes, methinks a herdsman, seeking thee. - -(_Enter a Herdsman. Iphigenia is still on her knees._) - -_Herdsman._ - - Daughter of Clytemnestra and her King, - Give ear! I bear news of a wondrous thing. - -_Iphigenia._ - - What news, that so should mar my obsequies? - -_Herdsman._ - - A ship hath passed the blue Symplegades, - And here upon our coast two men are thrown, - Young, bold, good slaughter for the altar-stone - Of Artemis. - -(_She rises._) - - Make all the speed ye may; - 'Tis not too much. The blood-bowl and the spray! - -{243} - -_Iphigenia._ - - Men of what nation? Doth their habit show? - -_Herdsman._ - - Hellenes for sure, but that is all we know. - -_Iphigenia._ - - No name? No other clue thine ear could seize? - -_Herdsman._ - - We heard one call his comrade "Pylades." - -_Iphigenia._ - - Yes. And the man who spoke--his name was what? - -_Herdsman._ - - None of us heard. I think they spoke it not. - -_Iphigenia._ - - How did ye see them first, how make them fast? - -_Herdsman._ - - Down by the sea, just where the surge is cast,-- - -_Iphigenia._ - - The sea? What is the sea to thee and thine? - -_Herdsman._ - - We came to wash our cattle in the brine. - -_Iphigenia._ - - Go back, and tell how they were taken; show - The fashion of it, for I fain would know - All.--'Tis so long a time, and never yet, - Never, hath Greek blood made this altar wet. - -The herdsman tells his tale of how the men were taken prisoners. -Iphigenia hears in silence and at the end of it says: - - 'Tis well. Let thy hand bring them, and mine own - Shall falter not till here God's will be done. - -(_Exit Herdsman._) - -{244} - -Iphigenia then gives way to her feelings. There are strangers to be -sacrificed; to that she is accustomed, but these men are Greeks. Yet -she herself suffered bitter things at the hands of the Greeks; should -she not avenge these? By degrees, however, as she thinks of her -youth, of her home, she melts, and at length withdraws into the -Temple, raging against the cruel deed that she must do, and not at -all sure that she can nerve herself to do it. - -The coming of these Greeks has brought Greece vividly back to the -thoughts of the Chorus. All Greeks loved the sea and were seafarers, -and the arrival of these two adventurous men reminds these exiled -women of their home, and in their imagination they see the ship cross -the sea, until it touches the Friendless and cruel shore. - -_Chorus._ - - But who be these, from where the rushes blow - On pale Eurotas, from pure Dirces, - That turn not neither falter, - Seeking Her land, where no man breaketh bread, - Her without pity, round whose virgin head - Blood on the pillars rusts from long ago, - Blood on the ancient altar. - - A flash of the foam, a flash of the foam, - A wave on the oar-blade welling, -{245} - And out they passed to the heart of the blue; - A chariot shell that the wild waves drew. - Is it for passion of gold they come, - Or pride to make great their dwelling? - - * * * * * - - Through the Clashing Rocks they burst: - They passed by the Cape unsleeping - Of Phineus' sons accurst: - They ran by the star-lit bay - Upon magic surges sweeping, - Where folk on the waves astray - Have seen, through the gleaming grey, - Ring behind ring, men say, - The dance of the old Sea's daughters. - - The guiding oar abaft - It rippled and it dinned, - And now the west wind laughed - And now the south west wind; - And the sail was full in flight, - And they passed by the Island White: - - Birds, birds, everywhere, - White as the foam, light as the air; - And ghostly Achilles raceth there, - Far in the Friendless Waters. - - A sail, a sail from Greece, - Fearless to cross the sea, - With ransom and with peace - To my sick captivity. - O home, to see thee still, - And the old walls on the hill! - -{246} - - Dreams, dreams, gather to me! - Bear me on wings over the sea; - O joy of the night, to slave and free, - One good thing that abideth! - -_Leader._ - - But lo, the twain whom Thoas sends, - Their arms in bondage grasped sore - Strange offering this, to lay before - The Goddess! Hold your peace, O friends. - - Onward, still onward to this shrine - They lead the first-fruits of the Greek. - 'Twas true, the tale he came to speak, - That watcher of the mountain kine. - - O holy one, if it afford - Thee joy, what these men bring to thee, - Take thou their sacrifice, which we, - By law of Hellas, hold abhorred. - -(_Enter Orestes and Pylades, bound, and guarded by Taurians. -Re-enter Iphigenia._) - -_Iphigenia._ - - So be it. - My foremost care must be that nothing harms - The temple's holy rule.--Untie their arms. - That which is hallowed may no more be bound. - You, to the shrine within! Let all be found - As the law bids, and as we need this day. - -(_Orestes and Pylades are set free; some Attendants go into the -Temple._) - -{247} - - Ah me! - What mother then was yours, O strangers, say, - And father? And your sister, if you have - A sister: both at once, so young and brave - To leave her brotherless! Who knows when heaven - May send that fortune? For to none is given - To know the coming nor the end of woe; - So dark is God, and to great darkness go - His paths, by blind chance mazed from our ken. - Whence are ye come, O most unhappy men? - From some far home, methinks, ye have found this shore - And far shall stay from home for evermore. - -Orestes asks Iphigenia not to make their fate worse by dwelling on -it, nor to pity them. They know where they are and the cruel custom -of the land. - -_Iphigenia._ - - Say first--which is it men call Pylades? - -_Orestes._ - - 'Tis this man's name, if that will give thee ease. - -_Iphigenia._ - - From what walled town of Hellas cometh he? - -_Orestes._ - - Enough!--How would the knowledge profit thee? - -_Iphigenia._ - - Are ye two brothers of one mother born? - -_Orestes._ - - No, not in blood. In love we are brothers sworn. - -{248} - -_Iphigenia._ - - Thou also hast a name: tell me thereof. - -_Orestes._ - - Call me Unfortunate. 'Tis name enough. - -_Iphigenia._ - - I asked not that. Let that with Fortune lie. - -_Orestes._ - - Fools cannot laugh at them that nameless die. - -_Iphigenia._ - - Why grudge me this? Hast thou such mighty fame? - -_Orestes._ - - My body, if thou wilt, but not my name. - -_Iphigenia._ - - Nor yet the land of Greece where thou wast bred? - -_Orestes._ - - What gain to have told it thee, when I am dead? - -_Iphigenia._ - - Nay: why shouldst thou deny so small a grace? - -_Orestes._ - - Know then, great Argos was my native place. - -_Iphigenia._ - - Stranger! The truth!--From Argos art thou come? - -_Orestes._ - - Mycenae, once a rich land, was my home. - -_Iphigenia._ - - 'Tis banishment that brings thee here--or what? - -_Orestes._ - - A kind of banishment, half forced, half sought. - -_Iphigenia._ - - Wouldst thou but tell me all I need of thee! - -_Orestes._ - - 'Twere not much added to my misery. - -_Iphigenia._ - - From Argos!--Oh, how sweet to see thee here! - -_Orestes._ - - Enjoy it then. To me 'tis sorry cheer. - -_Iphigenia._ - - Thou knowest the name of Troy? Far doth it flit. - -{249} - -_Orestes._ - - Would God I had not; nay, nor dreamed of it. - -_Iphigenia._ - - Men fable it is fallen beneath the sword? - -_Orestes._ - - Fallen it is. Thou hast heard no idle word. - -_Iphigenia._ - - Fallen! At last!--And Helen taken too? - -_Orestes._ - - Aye; on an evil day for one I knew. - -_Iphigenia._ - - Where is she? I too have some anger stored-- - -_Orestes._ - - In Sparta! Once more happy with her lord! - -_Iphigenia._ - - Oh, hated of all Greece, not only me! - -_Orestes._ - - I too have tasted of her wizardry. - -_Iphigenia._ - - And came the armies home, as the tales run? - -_Orestes._ - - To answer that were many tales in one. - -_Iphigenia._ - - Oh, give me this hour full! Thou soon wilt die. - -_Orestes._ - - Ask, if such longing holds thee. I will try. - -_Iphigenia._ - - A seer called Calchas! Did he ever come? - -_Orestes._ - - Calchas is dead, as the news went at home. - -_Iphigenia._ - - Good news, ye gods!--Odysseus, what of him? - -_Orestes._ - - Not home yet, but still living, as men deem. - -_Iphigenia._ - - Curse him! And may he see his home no more. - -_Orestes._ - - Why curse him? All his house is stricken sore. - -_Iphigenia._ - - How hath the Nereid's son, Achilles, sped? - -_Orestes._ - - Small help his bridal brought him! He is dead. - -_Iphigenia._ - - A fierce bridal, so the sufferers tell! - -{250} - -_Orestes._ - - Who art thou, questioning of Greece so well? - -_Iphigenia._ - - I was a Greek. Evil caught me long ago. - -_Orestes._ - - Small wonder, then, thou hast such wish to know. - -_Iphigenia._ - - That war-lord, whom they call so high in bliss-- - -_Orestes._ - - None such is known to me. What name was his? - -_Iphigenia._ - - They called him Agamemnon, Atreus' son. - -_Orestes._ - - I know not. Cease,--My questioning is done. - -_Iphigenia._ - - 'Twill be such joy to me! How fares he? Tell! - -_Orestes._ - - Dead. And hath wrecked another's life as well. - -_Iphigenia._ - - Dead? By what dreadful fortune? Woe is me! - -_Orestes._ - - Why sighest thou? Had he any link with thee? - -_Iphigenia._ - - I did but think of his old joy and pride. - -_Orestes._ - - His own wife foully stabbed him, and he died. - -_Iphigenia._ - - O God! - I pity her that slew--and him that slew. - -_Orestes._ - - Now cease thy questions. Add no word thereto. - -_Iphigenia._ - - But one word. Lives she still, that hapless wife? - -_Orestes._ - - No. Her own son, her first-born, took her life. - -{251} - -_Iphigenia._ - - O shipwrecked house! What thought was in his brain? - -_Orestes._ - - Justice on her, to avenge his father slain. - -_Iphigenia._ - - Alas! - A bad false duty bravely hath he wrought. - -_Orestes._ - - Yet God, for all his duty, helps him not. - -_Iphigenia._ - - And not one branch of Atreus' tree lives on? - -_Orestes._ - - Electra lives, unmated and alone. - -_Iphigenia._ - - The child they slaughtered--is there word of her? - -_Orestes._ - - Why, no, save that she died in Aulis there. - -_Iphigenia._ - - Poor child! Poor father, too, who killed and lied. - -_Orestes._ - - For a bad woman's worthless sake she died. - -_Iphigenia._ - - The dead King's son, lives he in Argos still? - -_Orestes._ - - He lives, now here, now nowhere, bent with ill. - -_Iphigenia._ - - O dreams, light dreams, farewell! Ye too were lies. - -* * * * * - -_Leader._ - - We too have kinsmen dear, but, being low, - None heedeth, live they still or live they not. - -_Iphigenia._ (_With sudden impulse._) - - Listen! For I am fallen upon a thought, - Strangers, of some good use to you and me. - * * * * * - Stranger, if I can save thee, wilt thou bear - To Argos and the friends who loved my youth -{252} - Some word? There is a tablet which, in ruth - For me and mine ill works, a prisoner wrote, - Ta'en by the king in war. He knew 'twas not - My will that craved for blood, but One on high - Who holds it righteous her due prey shall die. - And since that day no Greek hath ever come - Whom I could save and send to Argos home - With prayer to any friend: but thou, - I think, dost loathe me not; and thou dost know - Mycenae and the names that fill my heart. - Help me! Be saved! Thou also hast thy part, - Thy life for one light letter-- - -(_Orestes looks at Pylades._) - - For thy friend, - The law compelleth. He must bear the end - By Artemis ordained, apart from thee. - -_Orestes._ - - Strange woman, as thou biddest let it be, - Save one thing. 'Twere for me a heavy weight - Should this man die. 'Tis I and mine own fate - That steer our goings. He but sails with me - Because I suffer much. It must not be - That by his ruin I should 'scape mine own, - And win thy grace withal. 'Tis simply done. - Give him the tablet. He with faithful will - Shall all thy hest in Argolis fulfil. -{253} - And I--who cares may kill me. Vile is he - Who leaves a friend in peril and goes free - Himself. And, as it chances, this is one - Right dear to me; his life is as my own. - -_Iphigenia._ - - O royal heart! Surely from some great seed - This branch is born, that can so love indeed. - God grant the one yet living of my race - Be such as thou! For not quite brotherless - Am even I, save that I see him not, - Strangers--Howbeit, thy pleasures shall be wrought. - This man shall bear the message, and thou go - To death. So greatly thou wilt have it so. - -Orestes then asks somewhat of the ritual by which Iphigenia will -consecrate the victim, and where he will be buried. Iphigenia -promises that he shall be duly buried according to the Greek customs, -and then she goes into the temple to get the tablet. During her -absence Orestes and Pylades have a long argument as to which shall -bear the tablet to Argos, and which remain in the island to be -sacrificed. It is finally decided that Pylades shall go back to -Greece and Orestes shall remain. - -(_Enter Iphigenia from the Temple._) - -_Iphigenia._ - - Go ye within; and have all things of need - In order set for them that do the deed. - There wait my word. - -(_Attendants go in._) - -{254} - - Ye strangers, here I hold - The many-lettered tablet, fold on fold. - Yet--one thing still. - -Iphigenia then tells Pylades that she is afraid that, once safe and -free, he will forget the promise made when he was in danger of his -life, and so she makes him swear in the name of Zeus, that he will -faithfully bear the message. She, on her side, in the name of -Artemis, swears that she will in very truth set him free. Pylades -then reminds her that he might be shipwrecked and so lose the tablet, -and asks that in that case he may be relieved from his vow. But -Iphigenia, in her desperate longing for deliverance refuses this, and -instead, says that she will tell him what is written in the tablet. -If it should be lost, he must then bear the message by word of mouth. - -_Pylades._ - - For thy sake and for mine 'tis fairer so. - Now let me hear his name to whom I go - In Argolis, and how my words should run. - -_Iphigenia._ (_Repeating the words by heart._) - - Say: "To Orestes, Agamemnon's son - She that was slain in Aulis, dead to Greece - Yet quick, Iphigenia sendeth peace:" - -_Orestes._ - - Iphigenia! Where? Back from the dead? - -_Iphigenia._ - - 'Tis I. But speak not, lest thou break my thread.-- - "Take me to Argos, brother, ere I die, -{255} - Back from the Friendless Peoples and the high - Altar of Her whose bloody rites I wreak." - -_Orestes._ (_aside._) - - Where am I Pylades? How shall I speak? - -_Iphigenia._ - - "Else one in grief forsaken shall, like shame - Haunt thee." - -_Pylades._ (_aside._) - - Orestes! - -_Iphigenia._ (_overhearing him._) - - Yes: that is the name. - Ye gods above! - -_Pylades._ - - Why callest thou on God - For words of mine? - 'Tis nothing. 'Twas a road - My thoughts had turned. Speak on.--No need for us - To question; we shall hear things marvellous. - -_Iphigenia._ - - Tell him that Artemis my soul did save, - I wot not how, and to the altar gave - A fawn instead; the which my father slew, - Not seeing, deeming that the sword he drew - Struck me. But she had borne me far away - And left me in this land.--I charge thee, say - So much. It is all written on the scroll. - -_Pylades._ - - An easy charge thou layest on my soul, - A glad oath on thine own. I wait no more, - But here fulfil the service that I swore. - Orestes, take this tablet which I bear - To thine own hand, thy sister's messenger. - -_Orestes._ - - I take it, but I reck not of its scrip - Nor message. Too much joy is at my lip. -{256} - Sister! Beloved! Wildered though I - My arms believe not, yet they crave for thee. - Now, filled with wonder, give me my delight! - -(_He goes to embrace her. She stands speechless._) - -_Leader._ - - Stranger, forbear! No living man hath right - To touch that robe. The Goddess were defiled! - -_Orestes._ - - O sister mine, O my dead father's child, - Agamemnon's child; take me and have no fear, - Beyond all dreams 'tis I thy brother here. - -_Iphigenia._ - - My brother? Thou?--Peace! Mock at me no more. - Argos is bright with him and Nauplia's shore. - -_Orestes._ - - Unhappy one! Thou hast no brother there. - -_Iphigenia._ - - Orestes--thou? Whom Clytemnestra bare? - -_Orestes._ - - To Atreus' firstborn son, thy sire and mine. - -_Iphigenia._ - - Thou sayest it: Oh, give me some proof, some sign! - -Old things of home are remembered between the two, and at length -Iphigenia is convinced. - -_Iphigenia._ (_falling into his arms_) - - Beloved! Oh, no other, for indeed - Beloved art thou! In mine arms at last, - Orestes far away. - -Then follows a scene in which Iphigenia {257} gives herself up to one -emotion after another, and when Orestes reminds her that they are not -yet safe, she suggests one wild plan after another. - -_Iphigenia._ - - And now, what end cometh? - Shall Chance yet comfort me, - Finding a way for thee - Back from the Friendless Strand, - Back from the place of death-- - Ere yet the slayers come - And thy blood sink in the sand-- - Home unto Argos, home? - Hard heart so swift to slay - Is there to life no way?-- - No ship!--And how by land?-- - A rush of feet - Out to the waste alone. - Nay: 'twere to meet - Death, amid tribes unknown - And trackless ways of the waste-- - Surely the sea were best. - Back by the narrow bar - To the Dark Blue Gate!-- - Ah God, too far, too far!-- - Desolate! Desolate! - What god or man, what unimagined flame, - Can cleave this road where no road is, and bring - To us last wrecks of Agamemnon's name - Peace from long suffering? - -But Iphigenia has not yet learnt all, and at length Orestes tells her -why he is there. He repeats the words of Apollo: - -{258} - - "Go seek the Taurian citadel: - Seize there the carven Artemis that fell - From heaven, and stablish it on Attic soil. - So comes thy freedom," - -And he continues: - - "Sister, in this toil - Help us!--If once that image I may win - That day shall end my madness and my sin: - And thou, to Argos o'er the sundering foam - My many-oared barque shall bear thee home. - O sister, loved and lost, O pitying face, - Help my great peril; help our father's race. - For lost am I and perished all the powers - Of Pelops, save that heavenly thing be ours!" - -This news somewhat sobers Iphigenia. She is confronted now with a -very different thing from saving her brother's life. That had just -now seemed almost impossible, but compared to this new demand, it -seemed almost easy. This is an act of madness; it will be considered -a most fearful act of sacrilege to steal the image of Artemis, yet -Orestes asks for her help to do it. And then there is herself and -her own hopes! She might perhaps succeed in saving his life and -fleeing with him, but to steal the statue and then go with him is a -task beyond any hope of accomplishment. What shall {259} she do? -She deliberately decides that she will save his life and give him the -statue, and then she herself will confront the angry King and give -her life for her brother. - -_Iphigenia._ - - I must wait then and be slain: - Thou shalt walk free in Argolis again, - And all life smile on thee.--Dearest, we need - Not shrink from that. I shall by mine own deed - Have saved thee. And a man gone from the earth - Is wept for. Women are but little worth. - -But Orestes refuses to accept the sacrifice. - -_Orestes._ - - I stand with thee - One-hearted here, be it for life or death, - And either bear thee, if God favoureth, - With me to Greece and home, or else lie here - Dead at thy side. - -* * * * * - -_Iphigenia._ - - To steal for thee the image, yet not die - Myself! 'Tis that we need. - -They then begin to discuss every possible means of escape, and at -last an idea comes to Iphigenia. She will tell the King that Orestes -has come from Greece with his mother's blood upon him, and that -therefore it would be a great offence to sacrifice him to the {260} -goddess. Before he is sacrificed, he must be cleansed in the waves -of the sea. But his very presence has denied the image of the -goddess, and so that, too, must be taken to the shore and purified. -Pylades shares in the guilt of his friend and will accompany him to -the shore, and Iphigenia will go down with the image. The rest must -be the work of Orestes, and he must arrange that they are taken on -board his ship and so escape. It is a dangerous and a daring plan, -but there is no hope anywhere else. - -Iphigenia, Orestes and Pylades will thus be saved, if saving be -possible, but what of the Chorus, of these Greek women, companions of -the exile and loneliness of Iphigenia? They are indeed "true of -heart and faithful found," for with no hope of going home themselves, -ignored even by Iphigenia in this tremendous moment of her own hope, -they loyally promise secrecy about all that concerns the plot. Yet -they, too, crave for home and they give voice to their longings. -They see in imagination the Greek land. Once again the misery of -their capture and enslavement comes before them, but they rise above -their sorrow as they sing of what it will mean to Iphigenia to cross -the sea, to behold her home once again, and to reach the land of -freedom. - -{261} - -_Chorus._ - - Bird of the sea rocks, of the bursting spray, - O halcyon bird, - That wheelest crying, crying, on thy way; - Who knoweth grief can read the tale of thee: - One love long lost, one song for ever heard - And wings that sweep the sea. - - Sister, I too beside the sea complain, - A bird that hath no wing. - Oh, for a kind Greek market-place again, - For Artemis that healeth woman's pain; - Here I stand hungering. - Give me the little hill above the sea, - The palm of Delos fringed delicately, - The young sweet laurel and the olive-tree - Grey-leaved and glimmering; - - * * * * * - - Ah, the old tears, the old and blinding tears - I gave God then, - When my town fell, and noise was in mine ears - Of crashing towers, and forth they guided me - Through spears and lifted oars and angry men - Out to an unknown sea. - They bought my flesh with gold, and sore afraid - I came to this dark East - To serve, in thrall to Agamemnon's maid, - This Huntress Artemis, to whom is paid - The blood of no slain beast; -{262} - Yet all is bloody where I dwell, Ah, me! - Envying, envying that misery - That through all life hath endured changelessly. - For hard things borne from birth - Make iron of man's heart, and hurt the less. - 'Tis change that paineth; and the bitterness - Of life's decay when joy hath ceased to be - That makes all dark the earth. - - Behold, - Two score and ten there be - Rowers that row for thee, - And a wild hill air, as if Pan were there, - Shall sound on the Argive sea, - Piping to set thee free. - - Or is it the stricken string - Of Apollo's lyre doth sing - Joyously, as he guideth thee - To Athens, the land of spring; - While I wait wearying? - - Oh, the wind and the oar, - When the great sail swells before, - With sheets astrain, like a horse on the rein; - And on through the race and roar, - She feels for the farther shore. - Ah me, - To rise upon wings and hold - Straight on up the steeps of gold - Where the joyous Sun in fire doth run, - Till the wings should faint and fold - O'er the house that was mine of old. -{263} - Or watch where the glade below - With a marriage dance doth glow, - And a child will glide from her mother's side - Out, out, where the dancers flow: - As I did, long ago. - - Oh, battles of gold and rare - Raiment and starred hair, - And bright veils crossed amid tresses tossed - In a dusk of dancing air! - O Youth and the days that were! - -(_Enter King Thoas, with Soldiers._) - -_Thoas._ - - Where is the warden of this sacred gate, - The Greek woman? Is her work ended yet - With these two strangers? Do their bodies lie - Aflame now in the rock-cleft sanctuary? - -_Leader._ - - Here is herself, O King, to give thee word. - -(_Enter, from the Temple, Iphigenia, carrying the Image on high._) - -_Thoas._ - - How, child of Agamemnon! Hast thou stirred - From her eternal base, and to the sun - Bearest in thine own arms, the Holy One? - -_Iphigenia._ - - Back, Lord! No step beyond the pillared way. - -_Thoas._ - - But how? Some rule is broken? - -_Iphigenia._ - - I unsay - That word. Be all unspoken and unwrought! - -{264} - -_Thoas._ - - What means this greeting strange? Disclose thy thought. - -_Iphigenia._ - - Unclean the prey was that ye caught, O King. - -_Thoas._ - - Who showed thee so? Thine own imagining? - -_Iphigenia._ - - The Image stirred and shuddered from its seat. - -_Thoas._ - - Itself?--Some shock of earthquake loosened it. - -_Iphigenia._ - - Itself. And the eyes closed one breathing space. - -_Thoas._ - - But why? For those two men's blood-guiltiness? - -_Iphigenia._ - - That, nothing else. For, oh! their guilt is sore. - -_Thoas._ - - They killed some of my herdsmen on the shore? - -_Iphigenia._ - - Their sin was brought from home, not gathered here. - -_Thoas._ - - What? I must know this.--Make thy story clear. - -_Iphigenia._ (_She puts down the Image and moves nearer to Thoas._) - - The men have slain their mother. - -_Thoas._ - - God! And these - Be Greeks! - -_Iphigenia._ - - They both are hunted out of Greece. - -_Thoas._ - - For this thou hast brought the Image to the sun? - -_Iphigenia._ - - The fire of heaven can cleanse all malison. - -{265} - -_Thoas._ - - How didst thou first hear of their deed of shame? - -_Iphigenia._ - - When the Image hid its eyes, I questioned them. - -_Thoas._ - - Good. Greece hath taught thee many a subtle art. - -_Iphigenia._ - - Ah, they too had sweet words to move my heart. - -_Thoas._ - - Sweet words? How, did they bring some news of Greece? - -_Iphigenia._ - - Orestes, my one brother, lives in peace. - -_Thoas._ - - Surely! Good news to make thee spare their lives-- - -_Iphigenia._ - - My father too in Argos lives and thrives. - -_Thoas._ - - While thou didst think but of the goddess' laws! - -_Iphigenia._ - - Do I not hate all Greeks? Have I not cause? - -_Thoas._ - - Good cause. But now--What service should be paid? - -_Iphigenia._ - - The Law of long years needs must be obeyed. - -_Thoas._ - - To work then, with thy sword and hand-washing! - -_Iphigenia._ - - First I must shrive them with some cleansing thing. - -_Thoas._ - - What? Running water, or the sea's salt spray? - -_Iphigenia._ - - The sea doth wash all the world's ills away. - -_Thoas._ - - For sure. 'Twill make them cleaner for the knife. - -{266} - -_Iphigenia._ - - And my hand, too, cleaner for all my life. - -_Thoas._ - - Well, the waves lap close by the temple floor. - -_Iphigenia._ - - We need a secret place. I must do more. - -_Thoas._ - - Some rite unseen? 'Tis well. Go where thou wilt. - -_Iphigenia._ - - The Image likewise must be purged of guilt. - -_Thoas._ - - The stain hath touched it of that mother's blood? - -_Iphigenia._ - - I durst not move it else, from where it stood. - -_Thoas._ - - How good thy godliness and forethought! Aye, - Small wonder all our people holds thee high. - -_Iphigenia._ - - Dost know then what I fain would have? - -_Thoas._ - - 'Tis thine to speak and it shall be. - -_Iphigenia._ - - Put bondage on the strangers both.-- - -_Thoas._ - - Why bondage? Whither can they flee? - -_Iphigenia._ - - Put not thy trust in any Greek. - -_Thoas._ (_To attendants_) - - Ho, men! Some thongs and fetters, go! - -_Iphigenia._ - - Stay; let them lead the strangers here, outside the shrine-- - -_Thoas._ - - It shall be so. - -_Iphigenia._ - - And lay dark raiment on their heads-- - -_Thoas._ - - To veil them, lest the Sun should see. - -_Iphigenia._ - - And lend me some of thine own spears. - -_Thoas._ - - This company shall go with thee. - -_Iphigenia._ - - Next, send through all the city streets a herald-- - -_Thoas._ - - Aye; and what to say? - -_Iphigenia._ - - That no man living stir abroad. - -{267} - -_Thoas._ - - The stain of blood might cross their way. - -_Iphigenia._ - - Aye, sin like theirs doth spread contagion. - -_Thoas._ (_To an attendant_) - - Forth, and publish my command-- - -_Iphigenia._ - - That none stir forth--nor look-- - -_Thoas._ - - Nor look. How well thou carest for the land! - -_Iphigenia._ - - For one whom I am bound to love. - -_Thoas._ - - Indeed, I think thou hat'st me not. - -_Iphigenia._ - - And thou meanwhile, here at the temple, wait, O King, and-- - -_Thoas._ - - Wait for what? - -_Iphigenia._ - - Purge all the shrine with fire. - -_Thoas._ - - 'Twill all be clean before you come again. - -_Iphigenia._ - - And while the strangers pass thee close, seeking the sea-- - -_Thoas._ - - What wouldst thou then? - -_Iphigenia._ - - Put darkness on thine eyes. - -_Thoas._ - - Mine eyes might drink the evil of their crime? - -_Iphigenia._ - - And, should I seem to stay too long-- - -_Thoas._ - - Too long? How shall I judge the time? - -_Iphigenia._ - - Be not dismayed. - -_Thoas._ - - Perform thy rite all duly. We have time to spare. - -_Iphigenia._ - - And God grant this cleansing end as I desire! - -_Thoas._ - - I join thy prayer. - -_Iphigenia._ - - The door doth open. - -* * * * * - -{268} - -(_She takes up the Image again._) - - There passeth here a holy thing; begone, - I charge thee, from the road. - * * * * * - Begone and tremble from this road: fly - swiftly, lest ye be defiled. - O Queen and Virgin, Leto-born, have pity! - Let me cleanse this stain, - And pray to thee where pray I would: a - clean house shall be thine again, - And we at last win happiness. Behold, I - speak but as I dare; - The rest--Oh, God is wise, and thou, my - Mistress, thou canst read my prayer. - -(_The procession passes out. Thoas and the bystanders veiled; -Attendants in front, then Iphigenia with the Image, then veiled -soldiers, then Orestes and Pylades bound, the bonds held by other -veiled soldiers following them. Thoas goes into the Temple._) - -Here follows a song from the Chorus which fills the interval during -which the cleansing ceremonies are supposed to be taking place. At -the end of the song there enters a messenger running. - -_Messenger._ - - Ho, watchers of the fane! Ho, altar-guard, - Where is King Thoas gone? Undo the barred - Portals, and call the King! The King I seek. - -_Leader._ - - What tidings--if unbidden I may speak? - -{269} - -_Messenger._ - - The strangers both are gone, and we beguiled, - By some dark plot of Agamemnon's child: - Fled from the land! And on a barque of Greece - They bear the heaven-sent shape of Artemis. - -_Leader._ - - Thy tale is past belief.--Go, swiftly on, - And find the King. He is but newly gone. - -_Messenger._ - - Where went he? He must know of what has passed! - -_Leader._ - - I know not where he went. But follow fast - And seek him. Thou wilt light on him ere long. - -_Messenger._ - - See there! The treason of a woman's tongue! - Ye are all in the plot, I warrant ye! - -_Leader._ - - Thy words are mad! What are the men to me? - Go to the palace, go! - -_Messenger._ (_Seeing the great knocker on the Temple door._) - - I will not stir - Till word be come by this good messenger - If Thoas be within these gates or no.-- - (_Thundering at the door._) - Ho, loose the portals! Ye within! What ho! - Open, and tell our master one doth stand - Without here, with strange evil in his hand. - (_Enter Thoas from the Temple._) - -_Thoas._ - - Who dares before this portal consecrate - Make uproar and lewd battering of the gate? - Thy noise hath broke the Altar's ancient peace. - -{270} - -_Messenger._ - - Ye gods! They swore to me--and bade me cease - My search--the King was gone. And all the while-- - -_Thoas._ - - These women? How? What sought they by such guile? - -_Messenger._ - - Of them hereafter! Give me first thine ear - For greater things. The virgin minister - That served our altar, she hath fled from this - And stolen the dread Shape of Artemis, - With those two Greeks. The cleansing was a lie. - -_Thoas._ - - She fled? What wild hope whispered her to fly? - -_Messenger._ - - The hope to save Orestes. Wonder on! - -_Thoas._ - - Orestes--how? Not Clytemnestra's son? - -_Messenger._ - - And our pledged altar-offering. 'Tis the same. - -_Thoas._ - - O marvel beyond marvel! By what name - More rich in wonder can I name thee right? - -_Messenger._ - - Give not thy mind to that. Let ear and sight - Be mine awhile; and when thou hast heard the whole - Devise how best to trap them ere the goal. - -_Thoas._ - - Aye, tell thy tale. Our Tauric seas stretch far, - Where no man may escape my wand of war. - -The Messenger gives Thoas an excited account of what has happened, -ending by saying that if he send out pursuers {271} immediately, he -may even yet seize the fugitives. Thoas gives his orders. - -_Thoas._ - - Ho, all ye dwellers of my savage town - Set saddle on your steeds, and gallop down - To watch the heads, and gather what is cast - Alive from this Greek wreck. We shall make fast, - By God's help, the blasphemers.--Send a corps - Out in good boats a furlong from the shore; - So we shall either snare them on the seas - Or ride them down by land, and at our ease - Fling them down gulfs of rock, or pale them high - On stakes in the sun, to feed our birds and die. - Women: you knew this plot. Each one of you - Shall know, before the work I have to do - Is done, what torment is.--Enough! A clear - Task is afoot. I must not linger here. - -While Thoas is moving off, his men shouting and running before and -behind him, there comes a sudden blasting light and thunder-roll, and -Athena is seen in the air confronting them. This sudden appearance -of a god to solve a problem at the end of a play is known as the -_deus ex machina_, and there was actually some kind of machine by -which the god appeared as if suspended in the air. - -{272} - -_Athena._ - - Ho, whither now, so hot upon the prey, - King Thoas? It is I that bid thee stay, - Athena, child of Zeus. Turn back this flood - Of wrathful men, and get thee temperate blood. - Apollo's word and Fate's ordained path - Have led Orestes here, to escape the wrath - Of Them that hate. To Argos he must bring - His sister's life, and guide that Holy Thing - Which fell from heaven, in mine own land to dwell. - So shall his pain have rest, and all be well. - Thou hast heard my speech, O King. No death from thee - May snare Orestes between rocks and sea: - Poseidon for my love doth make the sore - Waves gentle, and set free his labouring oar. - - And thou, O far away--for, far or near - A goddess speaketh and thy heart must hear-- - Go on thy ways, Orestes, bearing home - The Image and thy sister. When ye come - To god-built Athens, lo, a land there is - Half hid on Attica's last boundaries, - A little land, hard by Karystus' Rock, - But sacred. It is called by Attic folk - Halae. Build there a temple, and bestow - Therein thine Image, that the world may know - The tale of Tauris and of thee, cast out - From pole to pole of Greece, a blood-hound rout -{273} - Of ill thoughts driving thee. So through the whole - Of time to Artemis the Tauropole - Shall men make hymns at Halae. And withal, - Give them this law. At each high festival, - A sword, in record of thy death undone, - Shall touch a man's throat, and the red blood run-- - One drop, for old religion's sake. In this - Shall live that old red rite of Artemis. - - And thou, Iphigenia, by the stair - Of Brauron in the rocks, the Key shall bear - Of Artemis. There shalt thou live and die, - And there have burial. - - * * * * * - - Ye last, O exiled women, true of heart - And faithful found, ye shall in peace depart, - Each to her home: behold Athena's will. - Orestes, - Begone. Lead forth thy sister from this shore - In peace; and thou Thoas, be wroth no more. - -_Thoas._ - - Most high Athena, he who bows not low - His head to God's word spoken, I scarce know - How such a one doth live. Orestes hath - Fled with mine Image hence.--I bear no wrath. - Nor yet against his sister. There is naught, - Methinks of honour in a battle fought -{274} - 'Gainst gods. The strength is theirs. Let those two fare - Forth to thy land and plant mine Image there. - I wish them well. - These bondwomen no less - I will send free to Greece and happiness, - And stay my galleys' oars, and bid this brand - Be sheathed again, Goddess, at thy command. - -_Athena._ - - 'Tis well, O King. For that which needs must be - Holdeth the high gods as it holdeth thee. - - Winds of the north, O winds that laugh and run, - Bear now to Athens Agamemnon's son; - Myself am with you, o'er long leagues of foam - Guiding my sister's hallowed Image home. - -(_She floats away._) - -_Chorus._ - -_Some women._ - - Go forth in bliss, O ye whose lot - God shieldeth, that ye perish not! - -_Others._ - - O great in our dull world of clay, - And great in heaven's undying gleam, - Pallas, thy bidding we obey: - And bless thee, for mine ears have heard - The joy and wonder of a word - Beyond my dream, beyond my dream. - -{275} - -The play is over, and the sun is setting, so we, with the rest of the -Athenians, must wend our way homewards. As we look up at the temples -on the Acropolis, bathed in the golden evening light, we feel no -surprise at the joy beyond their dreams of the lonely, exiled Greek -women, who had heard the joy and wonder of the word that bade them -return to a land of such surpassing loveliness. - - - -[1] Euripides: _Hippolytus_, translated by Gilbert Murray. - -[2] From the translation of _Iphigenia in Tauris_ by Gilbert Murray. - - - - -{276} - -CHAPTER XV - -THE TEMPLES OF ATHENS - - -I. GREEK TEMPLES - -A Greek temple was not a place where people met to worship, and it -was never intended to hold a very large number of people. The -religious ceremonies were carried on in the great spaces outside the -temples, and sacrifices were offered on the altars which were always -in the open air. The temple was the dwelling-place of the god and -the treasury where the gifts brought by the worshippers were kept. - -Greek temples varied in size, but they were all built on the same -general plan. The whole building was looked upon as the home of the -god, and so the chamber in which the statue was placed was the -central point, and all the other parts of the building were so -constructed that they harmonized with the main purpose of the temple. -Just as a Greek play had only one story in it and no other episodes -were allowed to distract the attention of the audience from the -working out of the plot, so a Greek temple expressed one thought and -nothing in the architecture was allowed to disturb it. - -{277} - -The earliest form of temple was the shrine, an oblong building with a -portico, which had at first only two pillars in front, but which were -later extended into a row of pillars across the whole front of the -building. Then a portico was built at both ends of the temple, and -lastly, in some temples a row of columns was built all round the -building, with a double row in the portico at each end. Above the -portico was a triangular gable called the pediment, which was usually -filled with sculpture. - -The Greeks used three kinds of columns in their buildings. The Doric -column was the simplest; it had no base and tapered very slightly up -to the capital which consisted of a thick slab of stone. The Doric -was the type most often used by the Greeks, and in its simplicity and -perfection of form it symbolized the finest Greek spirit. The Ionic -column stood on a base; it was more slender than the Doric, and the -capital consisted of two very graceful spirals. The Ionic was a -lighter type of column than the Doric and was used a great deal by -the Greeks in Asia Minor. A third type was introduced later, called -the Corinthian. The capitals of this column were richly carved in -the form of leaves, but the Greeks never liked it as much as the -simpler and more graceful types, and it was not very much used until -Roman times. All the columns were fluted. - -The Greeks never used ornament for the sake of ornament. The column -was used as a support and ornament was felt to be entirely out of -place on it, but the decoration on the capital served a purpose. As -the eye followed the fluting upwards to where {278} the vertical line -met the horizontal, the simple decoration of the capital served to -make the transition from one line to the other less abrupt. In Greek -architecture no part of a building that bore any strain was -ornamented, and wherever ornament was used it was always in harmony -with the general purposes of the building. - -These were the main characteristics of Greek temples. Hie greatest -Athenian temples were on the Acropolis, the ancient citadel of -Athens, which had been transformed by Pericles into a dwelling-place -for Athena. - - - -II. THE ACROPOLIS IN THE TIME OF PERICLES - - - The fittest place for a temple or altar was some site visible - from afar, and untrodden by foot of man, since it was a glad - thing for the worshipper to lift up his eyes afar off and offer - up his prayer. - - Socrates.[1] - - -The Acropolis was approached by a flight of steps leading to the -Propylaea or Entrance Porch. Six great Doric columns stood at the -entrance, and opening out to right and left of the main hall were -other porticoes, the walls of which were decorated with paintings -showing the deeds of ancient heroes. The roof was of white marble, -and standing at this entrance one could catch a glimpse of the sea in -the distance. Tradition held that it was on this spot that Aegeus -stood to watch for the ship that should being back Theseus, and that -it was from {279} this high rock that he cast himself down in despair -when he saw the ship returning with black sails, a sign, as he -thought, that his son was dead. - -To the right of the Propylaea, in the south-west corner of the -Acropolis, was the little temple of Athena Nike, Athena of Victory. -In this temple the goddess herself represented Victory, so she had no -wings, which were always given by the Greeks to statues of Victory, -and the temple came to be known as that of the Wingless Victory. A -wonderful view is to be had from this temple, and the site for it was -chosen, because from where it stands Salamis is in sight, and it was -to be forever a thank-offering to Athena for the victory gained there -over the barbarian foe. - -Passing through the Propylaea, one came out upon the Acropolis, where -rising up in majesty was the great bronze statue of Athena Promachos, -Athena the Warrior Queen, Foremost in Fight, who went out to war with -the armies of Athens and brought them home victorious. Pheidias, the -great Athenian sculptor who had made the image of Zeus in the temple -at Olympia, had made this statue, using for it the bronze which had -been found amongst the Persian spoils after the battle of Marathon. -The goddess stood upright, clad in armour and holding a spear in her -hand. The tip of this spear was gilded, and it was said that sailors -as they drew near the land could see it gleaming in the sunshine, and -when they saw it they knew that home was near. - -A little further, on the north side of the Acropolis, was the -Erechtheum, called after the mythical {280} King of Athens, -Erechtheus. It was a very beautiful temple, and one of the porches -has always been known as the Porch of the Maidens, because instead of -being supported by columns, it is supported by the figures of six -maidens. When the figure of a woman is used for this purpose, it is -called in architecture a Caryatid. - -A temple to Athena had always stood on this spot since memory began, -and it was hallowed by all kinds of associations. Near the temple -was the sacred olive tree of Athena, and within its walls was the old -and most holy wooden statue of Athena, said to have dropped from -heaven. It was in this temple that the goddess was worshipped in a -more intimate way, for this was Athena Polias, the Guardian of the -City and the Home. It was for this ancient wooden statue that -specially chosen Athenian maidens wove the beautiful robe called the -peplos, which was carried at the time of the festival held every four -years to the temple and presented to the goddess. - -[Illustration: THE PARTHENON, 5th Century B.C.] - -But greater than all else on the Acropolis was the Parthenon, created -by Ictinus the architect, and Pheidias the sculptor. This most -beautiful Greek temple in the world stood on the south side of the -Acropolis. It was a Doric building surrounded by forty-six great -pillars, and to the Athenian this building was the very soul of -Athens. Elsewhere on the Acropolis it was Athena the goddess who was -worshipped: Athena the Warrior, Athena the Guardian of the City, and -in one place, though without a temple, Athena the Inspirer of all -{281} Arts and Crafts. But here in the Parthenon Athena was more -than the goddess, she symbolized Athens itself, all the achievements -of Athens in war and peace, and the spirit that guided the Athenians. - -The sculpture on the east pediment represented the birth of Athena. -It was the old Homeric poem interpreted in stone. - - - Her did Zeus the counsellor himself beget from his holy head, all - armed for war in shining golden mail, while in awe did the other - gods behold it. Quickly did the goddess leap from the immortal - head, and stood before Zeus, shaking her sharp spear, and high - Olympus trembled in dread beneath the strength of the grey-eyed - Maiden, while Earth rang terribly around, and the sea was boiling - with dark waves, and suddenly brake forth the foam. Yes, and the - glorious son of Hyperion checked for long his swift steeds, till - the maiden took from her immortal shoulders her divine armour, - even Pallas Athena; and Zeus the counsellor rejoiced.[2] - - -Zeus rejoiced not only because Athena was born, but because she -symbolized the birth of Athens; as she sprang from the head of Zeus -arrayed in all the symbols of power, so surely was it the will of the -gods that Athens should be great and powerful. - -The sculpture on the west pediment represented the contest of Athena -with Poseidon for the possession of Athens. Poseidon represented -material prosperity. His gift to Athens was the sea, over which -sailed her ships, colonizing and trading and bringing wealth to the -state. But Athens was not {282} to be ruled by Poseidon; she was to -account the things of the mind and spirit of greater value than those -of material prosperity, and the victory was given to Athena. - -The pediments symbolized the will of the gods for Athens. All round -the building under the cornice were smaller groups of sculptures -called metopes, and these represented in stone the way in which -Athens had fulfilled the will of the gods for her. First, there were -battles between gods and giants, the conflict between order and -disorder, and in every case order had triumphed; then there followed -battles between the ancient heroes of legend and tradition and all -kinds of evil forces in nature, and in these battles Theseus, the -hero-king, fought for Athens and prevailed. - -The Parthenon was built after the Persians had been driven out of -Greece. The Greeks called all who were not of Greek blood -Barbarians, and they believed that it was the will of the gods that -in every conflict between Greek and Barbarian, the Greek should in -the end prevail. The Greek of the fifth century B.C. thought of all -history as the working out of the great drama of the victory of the -Greek spirit over that of the Barbarian, and the records of this -drama are seen in political history in the development of the -Athenian Empire, in literature, in the history of Herodotus, and in -art in the building of the Parthenon. - -But the Parthenon symbolized more than the history of Athens, it was -also the symbol of her religious life. On the outer wall, under the -colonnade, {283} was the great frieze symbolizing the Panathenaic -procession, that great procession which every four years wound its -way up to the Acropolis. This was the festival of Athena, and at the -east end of the building was a group of gods and goddesses waiting -for her coming. They were waiting for her in her own city, where she -would take the foremost place. In the solemn procession all classes -of Athenians were represented: noble maidens, bearing baskets with -offerings for the sacrifice; youths with offerings, and youths on -horseback; chariots; grave elders and priests; and cattle for the -sacrifice. Aliens, too, were there, for it was not only Athens that -was symbolized, but the Athenian Empire; symbol of what Athens hoped -would be a united Greece. It is very difficult to distinguish -between Athenian patriotism and religion. To the Athenian, the city -was Athena, and Athena the city, and the Parthenon was the crown of -both. - -The Parthenon was entered by the eastern porch. The light inside was -dim, but as the eye grew accustomed to the dimness, the statue of -Athena slowly became clearly visible. There she stood, a great -figure nearly forty feet high. She was clad in a sleeveless garment -that reached to her feet, bracelets in the form of serpents were on -her arms, the aegis with the head of Medusa covered her breast. In -her right hand the goddess bore an image of Victory, and her left -hand rested on a shield, inside of which was coiled a snake. The -statue was made of gold and ivory, and it was to the Athenians the -symbol of all that was best in the Athenian ideals. {284} Their -passionate desire for freedom, their unfaltering search for truth, -their great love of beauty were all personified for them in the calm -and queenly figure of her whose battles were won, of Athena -Parthenos. Having offered their sacrifices outside, they entered her -temple with awe, believing that "he who enters the incense-filled -temple must be holy; and holiness is to have a pure mind."[3] - - - -III. LATER HISTORY OF THE ACROPOLIS - -Such was the Acropolis of the fifth century B.C. But now the statues -and the altars have disappeared, the columns are broken, and the -temples stand in ruins. Is it just the lapse of time that has -wrought such destruction on those matchless buildings? When Plutarch -saw them, they had been standing for about five hundred years, and he -said that there was still a bloom of newness upon them that seemed to -preserve them from the touch of time, as if the hand that had wrought -such buildings gave them the spirit of eternal youth. - -At the beginning of the fifth century A.D. Alaric the Goth invaded -Greece, but he left Athens undisturbed. The great statue of Athena -Promachos was still standing, and the story was told later that as -the barbarian chieftain approached the Acropolis, the goddess Athena -appeared before him, clad in mail, with her spear outstretched in -defence of her city. He was so much awed by the {285} vision that he -withdrew and troubled Athens no more, and he sent messengers to the -Roman rulers of the city and made peace with them. - -Not long after, an edict was passed ordering all pagan temples in the -Roman Empire, for Greece then formed part of it, to be closed or else -converted into Christian churches, and from that time onwards nothing -has been heard of the statue of Athena Parthenos, though a small copy -of it was found later. The Parthenon itself was changed into a -Christian church, dedicated to the Virgin Mary, and it remained so -until Athens was captured by the Turks in 1458. They changed the -Christian church into a Turkish mosque and built a minaret at one -corner. No further changes took place until the end of the -seventeenth century, when during a war of the Turks with Venice, the -Venetians were bombarding the Acropolis. The Venetians were told -that powder was being stored in the Acropolis, and for several days -they directed their fire against it. At first there was no result, -even the guns, it was said, refusing to do such deadly work on so -glorious a building. But at length a shell was thrown into it, the -powder exploded, the roof crashed in and a part of the walls -collapsed. - -The Parthenon was nothing but a ruin, and for more than a hundred -years the sculptures of Pheidias lay neglected on the ground, broken -and defaced. But at the beginning of the nineteenth century the -attention of Lord Elgin, who was British Ambassador at -Constantinople, was called to the danger that threatened them from -the ignorance and {286} indifference of the Turks and the -unscrupulousness of travellers and visitors, who often defaced and -carried off pieces of sculpture, and he made arrangements by which -the British Government was allowed to buy the Parthenon sculptures -and remove them to the British Museum. - -Yet in spite of the ruin, the destruction and the loss, what is still -left of the ancient temples and statues is of such beauty, that those -who look upon it believe with the Greek poet that it will "live as a -song for all who love music, living and yet to be, as long as earth -or sun remain." - - - -[1] Xenophon: _Memorabilia_. - -[2] Homeric Hymn to Athena. - -[3] Author Unknown: From _Select Epigrams from the Greek Anthology_, -translated by J. W. Mackail. - - - - -{287} - -CHAPTER XVI - -THE DOWNFALL OF ATHENS - - -I. RIVALRY BETWEEN ATHENS AND SPARTA AND THE - BEGINNING OF THE PELOPONNESIAN WAR - -Athens in the middle of the fifth century B.C. was in very truth as -Pericles had said, the "school of Hellas." For half a century after -the Barbarian had been driven out of Greece, Athens went forward on -the wings of youth and hope and aspiration towards the fulfilment of -her great ideal, that of the perfect citizen in the perfect state. -Everything that was worth while in human life lay in that direction: -Freedom, Order and Progress; Truth and Beauty; Knowledge, Virtue and -Religion; and in the Greek world it was Athens who was the leader in -all these things.[1] - -And Athens realized this. The ideals set forth by Pericles in the -Funeral Speech placed her in the position of a chosen people in the -midst of a barbarian world, and it was to be her mission to save -civilization for the world. Athens was a democracy, and her freedom, -her thought and her art were not the special possession of a small -privileged {288} group but of the whole body of citizens. Yet there -was a flaw in the Athenian ideal of democracy; it was built upon -slavery. The result of this was that in some things the Athenians -were able to reach a point of perfection from which they could make -no further advance. Their greatest sculpture and architecture were -flawless in their simplicity and beauty. They have been copied and -imitated, but never surpassed. The Greek stage set certain -limitations to the drama, but within these limitations the dramas of -the great Athenian dramatists were well-nigh perfect. Other small -nations in the history of the world have fought for their freedom -just as passionately and with as much self-control, unbroken will and -self-sacrifice, and have obtained it, but it was Athens who first -showed the world that right is stronger than might and will -ultimately prevail. In their search for truth, the Athenian -philosophers went as far as it was possible for them to go, but the -very fact that they accepted the institution of slavery as a normal -condition of life, made any further advance in political thinking -impossible. The history of the world shows that progress in -political thought has always come from the struggle of an -unprivileged class to obtain its just rights, and this could not take -place in Athens, for the unprivileged were slaves, and slaves were -slaves and slaves they must always remain. - -Athens fell, but her fall did not only or even chiefly come about -because her democracy was founded upon slavery. In her great days -Athens had been the Liberator of all the enslaved Greeks. Sparta -{289} had never been interested in the fate of the Greeks who were -still under the Persian yoke, and it was Athens who had created the -Delian League, and who had delivered the Ionians from their foreign -rulers. But from being their Liberator, Athens gradually became -their Mistress, and little by little she used her position in the -League as a means to increase her own power. That which in the -beginning had been organized by the statesman who was called by his -fellow-citizens the Just, that which had symbolized the Athenian -ideal of freedom, became the instrument by which Athens became not -only an Empire, but a Tyrant. And Pericles permitted it to be so. - -Pericles had many opponents in Athens. Some disapproved of his -imperial policy, and others accused him of extravagance in spending -so much of the public money on temples. The most serious accusation -brought against him was that in beautifying Athens he was spending -not only money from the Athenian treasury, but also using that which -belonged to the Delian League. This latter accusation was true, and -the people called for an ostracism. But it resulted in the support -of Pericles by the majority of the Athenians, and in the banishment -of his opponent. - -Pericles knew what he was doing when he used the money from the -treasury of the Delian League. To Athens had been committed the -trust of defending the allied islands and cities from Persian -aggression and it was the money contributed by the allies for the -cost of this defence that was kept in the {290} treasury of the -League. Pericles maintained that the beautifying of Athens was a -symbol of her might and power, that the great buildings employed -labour and encouraged commerce, both of which added to her -prosperity, and that these outward signs of her wealth and might -added to her ability to protect her allies. He had won for Athens -the foremost position in Greece, and he was determined that she -should keep it. To this end he argued that Athens was justified in -using the money of the League, because the way in which it was being -spent added not only to the glory but also to the security of all. - -Pericles was also a great lover of all that was beautiful, and he was -honestly desirous that the youth of Athens should grow up in a city -that should be a joy for ever, that would make them good and useful -citizens, and inspire them with an abiding love for and pride in her. -But there is a flaw in the character of a man who holds that the end, -even if it is a great and glorious one, justifies any means. - -Now Attica was very small, and in the days of her prosperity the -population of Athens had increased so much that the state could no -longer produce enough food to support the people. The far-seeing -policy of Themistocles had made Athens stronger on sea than on land, -and by the time of Pericles, the salvation of Athens lay in her navy. -She was increasing her sea-power in all directions and establishing -herself as mistress all over the Aegean and on the shores of the -Euxine. This policy was not only dictated by the greed of power, but -by the {291} absolute necessity that if Athens were to live, she -should control all the trade routes by which corn reached Greece. -Without the corn from the shores of the Euxine, Athens would starve. - -Sparta was a great land power, and at first this increasing sea-power -of Athens did not touch her very closely, but it did affect Corinth, -the next sea-power in Greece after Athens. As long as Athens -confined her interests to the Aegean and the East, Corinth was not -alarmed, but when the Athenians turned to the West and showed their -intention of establishing their power there, the Corinthians became -seriously alarmed, for this threatened their interests in Sicily and -the South of Italy. Corinth had always been hostile to Athens, and -she now appealed to Sparta, asking for help to crush Athens. -Corinthian envoys went to Sparta, and in a powerful speech one of -them set forth the grievances of the Greek world against Athens, -representing her power, and entreating the Spartans to lay aside -their policy of inaction and to join with them in crushing the Tyrant -state. - - - "Time after time we have warned you of the mischief which the - Athenians would do to us, but instead of taking our words to - heart, you chose to suspect that we only spoke from interested - motives. If the crimes which the Athenians are committing - against Hellas were being done in a corner, then you might be - ignorant, and we should have to inform you of them: but now, what - need of many words? Some of us, as you see, have been already - enslaved; they are at this moment intriguing against others, - notably against allies of ours; {292} and long ago they had made - all their preparations in expectation of war.... And you have - never considered what manner of men are these Athenians with whom - you will have to fight, and how utterly unlike yourselves. They - are revolutionary, equally quick in the conception and in the - execution of every new plan; while you are conservative, careful - only to keep what you have, originating nothing, and not acting - even when action is most necessary. They are bold beyond their - strength; they run risks which prudence would condemn; and in the - midst of misfortune they are full of hope. Whereas it is your - nature, though strong, to act feebly; when your plans are most - prudent, to distrust them; and when calamities come upon you, to - think that you will never be delivered from them. They are - impetuous, and you are dilatory; they are always abroad, and you - are always at home. For they hope to gain something by leaving - their homes; but you are afraid that any new enterprise may - imperil what you have already. When conquerors, they pursue - their victory to the utmost; when defeated, they fall back the - least. Their bodies they devote to their country as though they - belonged to other men; their true self is their mind, which is - most truly their own when employed in her service. When they do - not carry out an intention which they have formed, they seem to - have sustained a personal bereavement; when an enterprise - succeeds, they have gained a mere instalment of what is to come; - but if they fail, they at once conceive new hopes and so fill up - the void. With them alone to hope is to have, for they lose not - a moment in the execution of an idea. This is the life-long - task, full of danger and toil, which they are always imposing - upon themselves. None enjoy their good things less, because they - are always seeking for more. To do their duty is their only - {293} holiday, and they deem the quiet of inaction to be as - disagreeable as the most tiresome business. If a man should say - of them, in a word, that they were born neither to have peace - themselves nor to allow peace to other men, he would simply speak - the truth. - - "In the face of such an enemy, Lacedaemonians, you persist in - doing nothing. But let your procrastination end. Do not allow - friends and kindred to fall into the hands of their worst - enemies; or drive us in despair to seek the alliance of others; - in taking such a course we should be doing nothing wrong either - before the Gods who are the witnesses of our oaths, or before men - whose eyes are upon us. For the true breakers of treaties are - not those who, when forsaken, turn to others, but those who - forsake allies whom they have sworn to defend. We will remain - your friends if you choose to bestir yourselves; for we should be - guilty of an impiety if we deserted you without cause; and we - shall not easily find allies equally congenial to us. Take heed - then; you have inherited from your fathers the leadership of - Peloponnesus; see that her greatness suffers no diminution at - your hands." - - Thus spake the Corinthians. Now there happened to be staying at - Lacedaemon an Athenian embassy which had come on other business, - and when the envoys had heard what the Corinthians had said, they - felt bound to go before the Lacedaemonian assembly, not with the - view of answering the accusations brought against them by the - cities, but they wanted to put before the Lacedaemonians the - whole question, and make them understand that they should take - time to deliberate and not be rash. They also desired to set - forth the greatness of their city, reminding the elder men of - what they knew, and informing the younger of what lay beyond - their experience. They thought that their words would sway {294} - the Lacedaemonians in the direction of peace. So they came and - said that, if they might be allowed, they too would like to - address the people.[2] - - -The Athenians were invited to speak, and they reminded the Spartans -of how Athens had done more than any other State to save Greece from -the Persian invader, and that Sparta herself owed her liberty to the -undismayed courage of Athens. - - - We maintain, [they said], that we rendered you a service at least - as great as you rendered us. The cities from which you came to - help us were still inhabited and you might hope to return to - them; your concern was for yourselves and not for us; at any rate - you remained at a distance while we had anything to lose. But we - went forth from a city which was no more, and fought for one of - which there was small hope; and yet we saved ourselves, and bore - our part in saving you. If, in order to preserve our land, like - other states, we had gone over to the Persians at first, or - afterwards had not ventured to embark because our ruin was - already complete, it would have been useless for you with your - weak navy to fight at sea, but everything would have gone quietly - just as the Persian desired.[3] - - -The Athenians then attempted to justify their imperial policy and to -point out that, had the situation been reversed, and had it been the -Lacedaemonians who had acquired an empire, they would have found it -just as necessary as had Athens to rule with a strong hand, and that -they would have {295} been even worse hated than was Athens. They -concluded with a passionate appeal for peace: - - - Do not then be hasty in deciding a question which is serious; and - do not, by listening to the misrepresentations and complaints of - others, bring trouble upon yourselves. Realize, while yet there - is time, the inscrutable nature of war; and how when protracted - it generally ends in becoming a mere matter of chance, over which - neither of us can have any control, the event being equally - unknown and equally hazardous to both. The misfortune is that in - their hurry to go to war, men begin with blows, and when a - reverse comes upon them, then have recourse to words. But - neither you, nor we, have as yet committed this mistake; and - therefore while both of us can still choose the prudent part, we - tell you not to break the peace or violate your oaths. Let our - differences be determined by arbitration according to the treaty. - If you refuse, we call to witness the Gods, by whom you have - sworn, that you are the authors of the war; and we will do our - best to strike in return.[4] - - -The Spartans did not heed the plea for peace, and in 431 B.C. the -long dreary war, known in history as the Peloponnesian War, began and -dragged itself out for nearly thirty years. Compared to modern -warfare the actual fighting was not on a very large scale, and we -seem to be reading of battles between what were, after all, only -rather small states. But though the states were small, the statesmen -who guided their policies and the men who fought for them were men of -human passions like ours; and {296} though the method of warfare has -changed, the effect of war on the minds and lives of men and women -living at the time has changed very little. The future is hidden -from the eyes of each generation of men, but the past lies open -before them; and to those who read the past with understanding comes -enlightenment when similar difficulties surround them, for the past -shows not only the beginning and the middle, but also the end of the -story. - -When the Peloponnesian War broke out, almost fifty years had gone by -since the Persian had been driven out of Greece, and the heroes of -Marathon, of Thermopylae and of Salamis had already passed into -history. That war had been between the Greek and the Barbarian, this -war was between Greek and Greek, and it rapidly spread over almost -the whole Greek world. The real cause was the rivalry between Athens -and Sparta, and it was fought to determine which should be supreme in -Greece. Athens was a great sea-power, Sparta a great land-power; -Athens was a freedom-loving democracy, Sparta was still governed by -an oligarchy; Athens was dependent for her life on the corn that came -from afar, Sparta was practically self-sufficing. When the war -began, each side was confident and sure of victory. How was it to -end? - - - -II. ATHENS DURING THE WAR - -During the first part of the war Athens was supreme at sea; and she -strengthened her hold on all the trade routes. But she did not dare -meet Sparta {297} in a great open pitched battle on land, for the -military power of the latter was no legend, but a most formidable -fact. - -Everything, however, did not go well with Athens during those first -few years. Every year the Spartans had invaded Attica and burnt and -plundered the land surrounding Athens. This had driven all the -country people into the city, where conditions became very congested -and intolerable. And then it was that a scourge fell upon Athens -from which she never recovered. For two long summers and two long -winters the Angel of Death stood over the city and darkened it with -his wings and smote the inhabitants, so that one out of every four -died. It was the Plague. The whole dreadful story can be read in -the pages of Thucydides: how it began in the Peiraeus and then spread -to Athens; of the sufferings of those who were seized with it, the -rapidity with which it spread and the impossibility of caring for the -sick or burying the dead; of the lawlessness in the disorganized -terror-stricken city; and of all the misery which came from seeing -the inhabitants of the city dying in such numbers and from knowing -that without the walls the country was being ravaged. - -When the horror had passed and Athens once more lifted up her head, -she was no longer the Athens of old. Her spirit was not only broken -but changed. The war and the plague together lay heavy upon the -Athenians, and they blamed Pericles because he had persuaded them to -go to war, declaring that he was the author of all their troubles. -Once again he {298} made a great speech to them, reminding them that -Athens had never yet yielded to misfortune, and that the greatest -states and the greatest men are those who, when misfortunes come, are -the least depressed in spirit and the most resolute in action. But -Pericles did not live to guide Athens through the troubled waters -which lay ahead of her. He had experienced the same misfortunes as -his fellow-citizens. His sister, his sons, and the friends who were -nearest to him had died of the plague, and he himself was ill. As he -lay dying, some of his friends who were still alive were sitting near -him, and they spoke together of his greatness, his power and the -number of his victories. They did not think he was conscious, but he -heard all that they said, and when they had finished, asked them why -they did not speak or make mention of that which was the most -excellent and greatest thing of all. "For," said he, "no Athenian, -through my means, ever wore mourning."[5] - -Pericles had been a good general; he had added to the power of Athens -both at home and abroad; and he had made her defences more secure by -completing the Long Walls which had been begun by Themistocles. As a -statesman, Pericles was an imperialist, and he believed that the -Athenian Empire, which had grown naturally out of the position of -Athens as Liberator of the Ionian Greeks, embodied the right -relationship between Athens and her allies. Like Themistocles, he -had a deep distrust of Sparta, and believing that sooner or later -{299} war with her was inevitable, he did all that lay in his power -to make Athens ready when that day should come. - -Though of noble birth, Pericles had always been on the side of the -people in Athens, and during his rule the powers of the people were -very much extended. Every office in the state was filled by popular -election each year, so that there was constant change amongst those -in authority and Athens could never be sure of any settled policy in -her affairs either at home or abroad. The supreme and final -authority lay in the Assembly, but like all popular assemblies, it -could be swayed and, at several critical moments in the history of -Athens, was swayed, by sudden bursts of passion, or by the fiery -eloquence of an unwise or an ambitious and self-seeking speaker. But -as long as Pericles lived, the dangers of the democracy he had -developed were not very apparent, for he was trusted absolutely, and -he kept a wise, firm and restraining hand on the passions of the -people. - -Pericles died in the year 429 B.C., and in the years following his -death the results of a long war began to be felt. Food became scarce -and prices were high; it was difficult to get servants, for in the -general disorganization of life that had come with the plague, slaves -had escaped in large numbers; the young men of Athens were no longer -to be seen in the Agora and other public places, for all men capable -of bearing arms were with the army. - -Four years after the death of Pericles, Sparta made {300} offers of -peace, but feeling ran very high in Athens and it was believed that a -peace then would not be lasting, so the offer was rejected and it was -determined to carry on the war to the bitter end. - -There is nothing that so well describes conditions in Athens during -these war years as the comedies of Aristophanes. They carry us back -to those exciting days and it is amazing to see how much freedom of -speech was allowed. The _Knights_, the _Clouds_, and the _Wasps_ -were all written in these years, and they are full of the excitement -of the time, and often of outspoken criticism of those responsible -for the carrying on of the war. But the war brought a lowering of -ideals, and even where there was victory, there was also sorrow and -loss and the ruin of homes. Euripides, one of the great dramatists -of the time, in the _Trojan Women_, a play written during the war, -stripped war of all its glamour and showed the misery that comes to -the conquered: - - And they whom Ares took, - Had never seen their children: no wife came - With gentle arms to shroud the limbs of them - For burial, in a strange and angry earth - Laid dead. And there, at home, the same long dearth - Women that lonely died, and aged men - Waiting for sons that ne'er should turn again, - Nor know their graves, nor pour drink-offerings, - To still the unslaked dust. These be the things - The conquering Greek hath won! - - * * * * * * * - -{301} - - Would ye be wise, ye Cities, fly from war! - Yet if war come, there is a crown in death - For her that striveth well and perisheth - Unstained: to die in evil were the stain![6] - - -Pericles was dead, and Cleon who had succeeded him as leader of the -people had no power to inspire the Athenians to be true to their -highest ideals, and as conditions grew more and more difficult, -Athens was forced at length to give herself up to a fight for her -life. Anger, suspicion and hatred took the place of the old ideals, -and it seemed as if her strength had turned to weakness and despair. -And then Athens sealed her own doom, for to save her own citizens -from heavy taxation in order to carry on the war, without asking -their consent she doubled the amount of the tribute paid to her by -her allies every year, and so she broke the Charter once made in good -faith between them. - -But the end had not yet come. For a time success lay with the -Athenians, and they forced a Spartan garrison to surrender to them at -Sphacteria on the west coast of the Peloponnesus, a victory which -greatly encouraged them. But the years dragged on and the war -continued and there seemed no end in sight. Then it was that -Brasidas, a Spartan general, marched North from the Peloponnesus -through Boeotia and Thessaly until he reached Amphipolis, an Athenian -colony on the borders of Thrace and Macedonia, which he besieged. -Cleon had gone to Amphipolis to help the Athenians and he was -expecting assistance from an Athenian general who {302} was marching -to the relief of the city. But he did not arrive in time, and -Amphipolis was taken by the Spartans. Both Cleon and Brasidas were -killed, and Athens exiled the general who had failed to arrive in -time. He devoted the period of his exile to gathering materials for -a history of the war, and though he may have been unsuccessful as a -general, he became one of the greatest historians, not only of -Greece, but of the world. His name was Thucydides.[7] - -The surrender of Amphipolis brought a lull in the war, and owing to -the efforts of the Athenian general, Nicias, in 421 B.C. a peace was -made, which was to last for fifty years. - - - -III. ALCIBIADES - -The Peace of Nicias did not last very long, however. Athens and -Sparta were both too jealous of each other to be really reconciled, -and neither kept to the terms of peace. There was a party in Athens -which favoured peace, but it was not so powerful nor so popular as -the war party, and its leader, Nicias, did not possess the qualities -of leadership which characterized the leader of the other side. This -leader was Alcibiades, a young man who had recently risen to power -and who was very popular. He was of noble birth, rich, very -good-looking and of great personal charm. He lisped when he spoke, -but it was said that this "became him well and gave a grace and -persuasiveness to his rapid speech." {303} When he began to study, he -obeyed all his other masters fairly well, but refused to learn to -play the flute, because he said it disfigured the face, and also -because it was not possible to speak or sing whilst playing it. -Alcibiades was a leader of fashion amongst the Athenian youths and as -soon as it became known that he despised the flute, playing on it -went out of fashion and became generally neglected. - -Alcibiades was sought out by many people who liked to be in his -company chiefly because of his great personal beauty, but it is -evident that at this time he must have shown many noble qualities and -a good disposition, for Socrates, the great philosopher, showed much -affection for him. Socrates saw that his wealth and position caused -him to be flattered and made so much of by all kinds of people that -he feared he would be corrupted by it, and he resolved, if possible, -that his good qualities should be preserved. On his side, Alcibiades -recognized the great worth of Socrates and listened willingly to his -teaching. - -Both Socrates and Alcibiades took part in one of the early campaigns -of the Peloponnesian War. They shared the same tent and stood next -to each other in battle, and in one sharp fight both behaved with -special bravery. This was the occasion on which Alcibiades was -wounded, but Socrates threw himself before him and protected him and -beyond any question saved his life. - -Alcibiades had great advantages for entering public life; his noble -birth, his riches, the personal {304} courage he had shown in many -battles and the multitude of his friends and dependents threw open -the doors for him. His popularity had also increased because of his -success at the Olympic games. He had spent great sums of money on -horses and chariots, and never did anyone else send so many as seven -chariots to the Games. And they were so well equipped that in one -race he carried off the first, second and fourth prizes, which far -outdid any distinction that ever was known or thought of in that -kind.[8] - -But Alcibiades did not follow the wise teaching of Socrates, and he -grew luxurious, dissipated and lawless in his way of living; he wore -long purple robes like a woman, which dragged after him as he went -through the market place; and he had a soft and luxurious bed -prepared for him on his galley. All this made him disliked by a -great number of Athenians and gradually raised up enemies for him; -yet such was his personal charm, his eloquence, his courage and his -beauty that the Athenians made excuses for his excesses, indulged him -in many things and gave soft names to his faults, attributing them to -his youth and good nature.[9] - -Such was the man, unstable, ambitious and unscrupulous to whom was -entrusted the guidance of affairs at Athens at this most critical -hour of her fortunes. - -Up to this time the relations of Athens with the Greeks beyond the -sea had been chiefly confined to those in Ionia, but there were rich -lands dwelt in by {305} Greeks to the West, especially in Sicily and -the South of Italy. Even in the life-time of Pericles the Athenians -had cast a longing eye upon Sicily, but they did not attempt anything -there till after his death. An opportunity for interference in -Sicilian affairs was given them in 415 B.C. when the Peace of Nicias -had brought a period of truce in the war with Sparta. The Greeks in -one of the cities in Sicily appealed to Athens for help against -Syracuse which was oppressing them, and Alcibiades seized upon this -as the first step in an Athenian conquest of Sicily. This was but -the beginning of his ambitious plan, for he dreamed not only of the -mastery of Sicily, but of nothing less than the conquest of Carthage -and of Athenian rule over the whole Mediterranean world. - -Alcibiades roused Athens to enthusiasm for an expedition to Sicily -and the young men, in particular, shared his hopes and ambitions and -listened to him when he talked of the wonders of the countries to -which they were going, so that great numbers of them might be seen -sitting in the wrestling grounds and public places, drawing on the -ground maps of Sicily and the situation of Carthage. Nicias, -conservative, experienced and loyal, saw that it was not the welfare -of Athens but his own personal ambition and love of glory that was -moving Alcibiades, and did everything in his power to dissuade the -people from following such a rash and ambitious policy. He told them -that even if they conquered Sicily they could not hope to keep it, -and that the course they were in favour of pursuing would only {306} -add to the hatred already felt for them by Sparta, and could only end -in disaster. - -But the Athenians were deaf to the pleas of Nicias, and it was voted -that the expedition should take place. - - - Then the preparations began. Lists for service were made up at - home and orders given to the allies. The city had newly - recovered from the plague and from the constant pressure of war; - a new population had grown up; there had been time for the - accumulation of money during the peace; so that there was - abundance of everything at command. - - While they were in the midst of their preparations, the Hermae or - square stone figures carved after the ancient Athenian fashion, - and standing everywhere at the doorways both of temples and - private houses, in one night had nearly all of them throughout - the city their faces mutilated. The offenders were not known, - but great rewards were publicly offered for their detection, and - a decree was passed that anyone, whether citizen, stranger, or - slave, might without fear of punishment disclose this or any - other profanation of which he was cognizant. The Athenians took - the matter greatly to heart; it seemed to them ominous of the - fate of the expedition; and they ascribed it to conspirators who - wanted to effect a revolution and to overthrow the democracy. - - Certain metics and servants gave information, not indeed about - the Hermae, but about the mutilation of other statues which had - shortly before been perpetrated by some young men in a drunken - frolic; and of this impiety they accused, among others, - Alcibiades. A party who were jealous of his influence over the - people {307} took up and exaggerated the charges against him, - clamorously insisting that he was at the bottom of the whole - affair. In proof they alleged the excesses of his ordinary life, - which were unbecoming in the citizen of a free state. - - He strove then and there to clear himself of the charges, and - also offered to be tried before he sailed (for all was now - ready), in order that, if he were guilty, he might be punished, - and if acquitted, might retain his command. But his enemies - feared that if the trial took place at once he would have the - support of the army, and that the people would be lenient. They - therefore exerted themselves to postpone the trial. To this end - they proposed that he should sail now and not delay the - expedition, but should return and stand his trial within a - certain number of days. Their intention was that he should be - recalled and tried when they had stirred up a stronger feeling - against him, which they could better do in his absence. So it - was decided that Alcibiades should sail. - - About the middle of summer the expedition started for Sicily. - Early in the morning of the day appointed for their departure, - the Athenians and such of their allies as had already joined them - went down to the Peiraeus and began to man the ships. The entire - population of Athens accompanied them, citizens and strangers - alike. The citizens came to take farewell, one of an - acquaintance, another of a kinsman, another of a son; the crowd - as they passed along were full of hope and full of tears; hope of - conquering Sicily, tears because they doubted whether they would - ever see their friends again, when they thought of the long - voyage on which they were sending them. At the moment of parting - the danger was nearer; and terrors which had never occurred to - them when they were voting the {308} expedition now entered into - their souls. Nevertheless their spirits revived at the sight of - the armament in all its strength and of the abundant provisions - which they had made. The strangers and the rest of the multitude - came out of curiosity, desiring to witness an enterprise of which - the greatness exceeded belief. - - No armament so magnificent or costly had ever been sent out by - any single Hellenic power. Never had a greater expedition been - sent to a foreign land; never was there an enterprise in which - the hope of future success seemed to be better justified by - actual power. - - When the ships were manned and everything required for the voyage - had been placed on board, silence was proclaimed by the sound of - the trumpet, and all with one voice before setting sail offered - up the customary prayers; these were recited, not in each ship, - but by a single herald, the whole fleet accompanying him. On - every deck both officers and men, mingling wine in bowls, made - libations from vessels of gold and silver. The multitude of - citizens and other well-wishers who were looking on from the land - joined in the prayer. The crews raised the Paean, and when the - libations were completed, put to sea.[10] - - -In due time they reached Sicily, where the generals in command held a -conference as to the best way of beginning the attack. - -In the meantime the enemies of Alcibiades in Athens took up the -charges of impiety which had been made against him and did not rest -until an order had been sent to Sicily ordering his return that he -might be brought to trial. - -{309} - - - From every quarter suspicion had gathered around Alcibiades, and - the Athenian people were determined to have him tried and - executed; so they sent a summons to him and to others against - whom information had been given. He was ordered to follow the - officers home and defend himself, but the latter were told not to - arrest him; for the Athenians, having regard to their interests - in Sicily, were anxious not to cause excitement in their own - camp, or to attract the attention of the enemy.[11] - - -So Alcibiades and those who were accused with him left Sicily. They -sailed in their own ship, but were escorted by the Athenian galley -sent for them. Before reaching Greece, both ships put in at a port -in Italy, and here Alcibiades and his companions left their ship and -disappeared, "fearing to return and stand their trial when the -prejudice against them was so violent. They were sought for, but the -crew of the galley could not find them and so they gave up the search -and returned home."[12] - -Before making plans for a further escape, Alcibiades lay concealed -for a short time in Italy. It seemed strange to one who was with him -that he had not enough faith in Athenian justice to return home and -face a trial, but when asked if he did not trust his own native -country, Alcibiades replied: "In everything else, yes; but in a -matter that touches my life, I would not trust even my own mother, -lest she might by mistake throw in the black ball instead of the -white."[13] As Alcibiades did not appear in Athens to answer the -charges against him, {310} the Assembly convicted him and his -companions of impiety, confiscated their property, sentenced them to -death, and pronounced a solemn curse on their names. When this news -reached him, all he said was: "I will make them feel that I am alive." - -Alcibiades kept his word. He crossed to the Peloponnesus and went -first to Argos. When he found there was no hope of his returning to -Athens, he sent a message to Sparta, asking for a safe-conduct to -that city, and assuring the Spartans that he would make them amends -by his future services for all the mischief he had done them while he -was their enemy. The Spartans gave him the security for which he -asked, and he went to them eagerly, and was well received. In return -for this, he betrayed the weak points of his native city to her -enemies and gave them valuable advice as to the best means of -conquering Athens. - -Now one characteristic of Alcibiades was the extraordinary ease with -which he could adapt himself to his surroundings. Whenever he saw -that it was to his own interest to adopt the habits and ways of those -with whom he came in contact, he did so with no hesitation. At -Sparta, he gave himself up to athletic exercises, he cut his hair -short, bathed in cold water and dined on black broth; in Ionia, he -was luxurious, gay and indolent; in Thrace, always drinking; in -Thessaly, ever on horseback; and when later he lived with the Persian -satrap, he exceeded the Persians themselves in magnificence and -pomp.[14] - -But though in Sparta Alcibiades lived as a {311} Spartan and appeared -devoted to their interests, he was, nevertheless, an Athenian, and -the Spartans did not trust him. The Greeks never wholly trusted each -other, and lack of sincerity in their political relations was one of -the weak points in their character. When Alcibiades found that he -was looked upon with suspicion in Sparta and that his life was -actually in danger, he fled to Ionia and took refuge with the Persian -satrap with whom he soon became a great favourite. And, indeed, the -charm of daily intercourse with this extraordinarily fascinating and -dangerous man was more than any one could resist. Even those who -feared and envied him could not but take delight, and feel a -friendliness towards him, when they saw him and were in his company. -It was only in his absence that his real character was recognized. - -And now followed a period of disloyal intrigue with the Persians. -Alcibiades advised them to interfere in the war between Athens and -Sparta, and sometimes to help one side and sometimes the other, until -both should be so exhausted that the Persian King could easily -overcome them. Thus, not content with betraying Greek to Greek, -Alcibiades descended to the shameful depths of betraying Greece to -the Barbarian. - - - -IV. THE DOWNFALL OF ATHENS AND THE SUPREMACY OF SPARTA - -Alcibiades had been summoned back to Athens at the very beginning of -the expedition to Sicily. {312} It was in the summer of 415 B.C. -that the Athenian fleet had set out with such magnificence and with -such high hopes. Two years later, news was brought to Athens which -at first the Athenians would not believe, so appalling was it. There -had been a fearful battle in the harbour at Syracuse, the Athenians -had been utterly vanquished, and great numbers had been imprisoned in -the quarries which were deep and narrow. - - - The sun by day was still scorching and suffocating, for they had - no roof over their heads, while the autumn nights were cold. - They were only allowed about half a pint of water and a pint of - food a day. Every kind of misery which could befall man in such - a place befell them. The Athenians had been utterly and at all - points defeated. Fleet and army had perished from the face of - the earth; nothing was saved, and of the many who went forth, few - returned home.[15] - - -The Athenians were at first in utter despair. - - - Whichever way they looked there was trouble; they were - overwhelmed by their calamity, and they were in fear and - consternation unutterable. The citizens mourned and the city - mourned; they had lost the flower of their youth, and there were - none to replace them. And when they saw an insufficient number - of ships in their docks, and no crews to man them, nor money in - the treasury, they despaired of deliverance. - - During the following winter all Hellas was stirred by the great - overthrow of the Athenians in Sicily. The states which had been - neutral determined that the {313} time had come when, invited or - not, they could no longer stand aloof from the war; they must of - their own accord attack the Athenians. They considered, one and - all, that if the Sicilian expedition had succeeded, they would - sooner or later have been attacked by them. The war would not - last long, and they might as well share in the glory of it. The - Lacedaemonian allies, animated by a common feeling, were more - eager than ever to make a speedy end of their protracted - hardships. But none showed greater alacrity than the subjects of - the Athenians, who were everywhere willing even beyond their - power to revolt; for they judged by their excited feelings, and - would not admit a possibility that the Athenians could survive - another summer.[16] - - -Athens was hated because from being the great deliverer of Greece, -she had become a tyrant and an oppressor, and the small states who -had been ruled by her were more than ready to transfer their -allegiance to Sparta who held out promises of freedom from oppression -if they would join her. Yet Sparta was at this very time bargaining -with the Persian King and promising that she would recognize his -right to rule over all that the Great Kings had formerly ruled, even -the Greeks who lived in Asia Minor, in return for money with which -Sparta could pay her sailors. Never had Athens sunk so low as that. -The end was not far off, but Athens, having recovered from her first -overwhelming despair, regained some of her old courage. She -economized in every way, so that new ships could be built, and {314} -she kept on the alert, lest she should be taken unawares by some -surprise attack. - -It was at this moment that Alcibiades began to intrigue and plot for -a return to Athens. Gradually his friends gained the upper hand, the -government of Athens had not been successful and it was overthrown. -It had been said that the feeling of the Athenians towards Alcibiades -was that "they love, they hate, but cannot do without him," and they -proved the truth of the saying by recalling him. As of old, when -once they came under the charm of his personality, the Athenians -yielded to their enthusiasm for him. - - - As soon as he was landed, the multitude who came out to meet him - scarcely seemed so much as to see any of the other captains, but - came in throngs about Alcibiades, and saluted him with loud - acclamations, and followed him; those who could press near him - crowned him with garlands, and they who could not come up so - close yet stayed to behold him afar off, and the old men pointed - him out, and showed him to the young ones.[17] - - -Yet there was bitterness mixed with this rejoicing, for the Athenians -remembered that it was by following the advice of this man that some -of their greatest disasters had fallen upon them. - -The story of all that followed may be read in the pages of Thucydides -and Xenophon. For a time Athens seemed to regain her old power and -she won so great a victory over the Spartans that these proposed a -peace, but it was to be a peace as between {315} equals, and Athens -would hear of no peace, unless she herself should dictate it. So the -war continued, until the ill-success of some ships in an engagement -with the Spartans caused the people to turn once more against -Alcibiades, and again he was exiled. After that the end came -quickly. In 405 B.C. one last great battle was fought in which the -Athenians were utterly defeated. The news of this disaster was taken -to Athens, and it was night when the messenger arrived. When the -tale was told - - - a bitter wail of woe broke forth. From Piraeus, following the - line of the Long Walls up to the heart of the city, it swept and - swelled, as each man to his neighbour passed on the news. On - that night no man slept. There was mourning and sorrow for those - that were lost, but the lamentation was merged in even greater - sorrow for themselves, as they pictured the evils they were about - to suffer. On the following day the public assembly met, and, - after debate, it was resolved to block up all the harbours save - one, to put the walls in a state of defence, to post guards at - various points, and to make all other necessary preparations for - a siege.[18] - - -The Spartans came and closed in upon Athens. A hundred and fifty -ships were moored off the Peiraeus, and a strict blockade was -established against all merchant ships entering the harbour. - - - The Athenians, finding themselves besieged by land and sea, were - in sore perplexity what to do. Without ships, without allies, - without provisions, the belief gained {316} hold upon them that - there was no way of escape. They must now, in their turn, suffer - what they had themselves inflicted upon others.[19] - - -At last, starved into submission, they surrendered, and terms were -made with Sparta. They were bitter and humiliating terms: - - - That the Long Walls and fortifications of Peiraeus should be - destroyed; that the Athenian fleet, with the exception of twelve - vessels, should be surrendered; that the exiles should be - restored; and lastly, that the Athenians should acknowledge the - headship of Sparta in peace and war, leaving to her the choice of - friends and foes, and following her lead by land and sea.[20] - - -The Athenians themselves were made to help in the destruction of the -walls, and as they did so, their enemies rejoiced to the music of the -flute, believing that with the fall of Athens would dawn a day of -liberty for Greece. - -For over thirty years Sparta ruled in Greece. At the beginning of -the Peloponnesian War, she had demanded of Athens that she should -restore the liberties of all the Greeks who were her allies. Athens -had refused, and now the Greek world waited anxiously to see what use -Sparta would make of her great victory. - -It soon became evident that the rule of Sparta was not to be a light -one. Military governors were placed in every city of the old Delian -League, and the citizens were forced to pay a heavy tribute to {317} -Sparta. Thirty men were set to rule in Athens, and for the eight -months that these Thirty were in power, Athens endured cruelty, -tyranny and lawlessness. The Spartan domination soon became so -unendurable that one by one a number of Athenians fled from the city -and took refuge in Thebes: in Thebes, who had hitherto been one of -the bitterest enemies of Athens, but who now realized that freedom -and justice were not to be found in the Spartan ideal of empire, for -it was nothing less than empire at which Sparta was aiming. At last -a sufficient number of exiles had gathered at Thebes for them to make -an attempt to drive out the Thirty from Athens. They were -successful, and the old Athenian form of government was restored. - -But there was no real peace, and for a few years fighting went on in -different places. Sometimes Sparta was successful, sometimes Athens, -but nothing decisive happened. At last Sparta began to intrigue with -Persia, and in 386 B.C., Artaxerxes the King interfered in the -affairs of Greece, and proposed terms of peace, known as the King's -Peace, which were accepted. The Greek cities in Asia Minor were to -belong once more to the Persians, and all the other Greek city-states -were to be independent, and the treaty concluded with the words: -"Should any refuse to accept this peace, I, Artaxerxes, will make war -upon them, with the help of those who are of my mind, both by land -and sea, with ships and with money." - -It was a betrayal of Greece to the ancient foe. The Greek states had -never been able to unite for {318} long at a time. Had they been -able to hold together, and especially had Athens and Sparta done so, -they could have prevailed against the Persian in Asia Minor and -maintained the independence of their kinsmen in Ionia. But their -jealous fears of anything that might limit their freedom as -independent states made any permanent alliance impossible, and the -long years of the Peloponnesian War, of all wars in history one of -the most humiliating, because so unnecessary and unjustifiable, had -bred hatreds and suspicion, greed and jealousy, from which Greece -never recovered. But though politically her power was gone, her work -for the world was not finished. - - - -V. THE MARCH OF THE TEN THOUSAND[21] - -Artaxerxes, the King of Persia, had a younger brother, Cyrus, who was -accused to him of plotting against his life. He had Cyrus seized and -would have put him to death, but his mother made intercession for him -and so his life was spared. This set Cyrus to thinking, not only how -he might avoid ever again being in his brother's power, but how, if -possible, he might become King in his stead. Now Cyrus was a man who -was much beloved. He was honourable, upright and chivalrous, and -marvellously skilled in horsemanship. He understood, not only how to -make friends, but also how to keep them, and any man who did him -willing service was sure to win his reward. For this reason, Cyrus -was always able to command men who were willing to follow {319} him -in any undertaking, no matter how dangerous it might be. - -In order to possess himself of the throne of his brother, it was -necessary for Cyrus to raise an army, and he sent trusted agents to -various places to collect as many men as would be willing to follow -him on a hazardous expedition. Amongst other men who joined his army -were a great many Greeks. Though the King's Peace was not made for -some years after this, the great battles of the Peloponnesian War -were over, and there were large numbers of men, who had spent so many -years in fighting that they were restless and unwilling to return to -their old settled life. About ten thousand Greeks joined the army of -Cyrus, and in 401 B.C. they set out. These Greeks had not been told -the real object of the expedition; they thought they were to fight -against some hill-tribes in Asia Minor, and they joined the rest of -the army in Sardis, not knowing the long march they were about to -begin. - -At first all seemed to be going well, but when they had gone for some -distance, the Greeks began to suspect that they were going further -than they had expected, and some of them wanted to turn back. But -Cyrus promised to give them more pay, and they continued their march. -On they went, until they reached the Euphrates. They crossed the -river, and for some days they continued their march along the -opposite bank until they reached Cunaxa, not far from Babylon. Here -at length Cyrus met the Persian army, which came against him under -the King, his brother. A fierce battle followed, in which {320} the -Greeks were victorious, but Cyrus was killed, and so the victory -availed them nothing. The Persians entrapped the Greek generals and -murdered them, and there was nothing left for the Greeks to do, but -in some way or other to return to Greece. But Greece was more than a -thousand miles off, and they did not know the way; they had no -leaders, they were in a strange land and surrounded by enemies, and -they had no means of procuring supplies by the way. Nevertheless, -they decided in spite of all these difficulties, to choose new -generals and to start. - -Chief of the new generals was a young Athenian called Xenophon, and -he advised the Greeks, there were ten thousand of them, to burn all -the baggage that they did not need and to set out and find their way -back as best they could to Greece. They followed his advice, and -Xenophon himself has given us the account of that March of the Ten -Thousand back to Greece. He called his story the _Anabasis_ or the -_March Up Country_ and he tells us how they went through strange and -unknown lands, and how they suffered from enemies, from the cold and -from hunger. They followed the Tigris for a time and passed the -ruins of Nineveh, but so complete had been the destruction of that -proud city that the retreating Greeks did not know that they were -treading her beneath their feet. - -Winter came on, and the cold was terrible. In one place they marched -through deep snow, with the north wind blowing in their teeth, -benumbing the men. They suffered from snow-blindness and {321} -frostbite, and some of them in despair refused to go on. But in -spite of all these hardships, the greater number went on, until at -length they reached a city where they were given a friendly -reception. The governor of the city gave them a guide, who promised -that within five days he would lead them to a place from which they -would see the sea, "and," he added, "if I fail of my word, you are -free to take my life." He kept his promise, and on the fifth day -they reached a mountain which the men in front immediately climbed. -From the top they caught sight of the sea, a symbol to the Greeks of -home and safety. A great cry arose and the shout grew louder and -louder, so that Xenophon feared that something extraordinary had -happened and he mounted his horse and galloped to the rescue. But as -he drew nearer, he heard the soldiers shouting and passing on to each -other the joyful cry: "Thalatta! Thalatta!" "The Sea! The Sea!" -When all had reached the summit, they fell to embracing one another, -generals and officers and all, and the tears flowed down their cheeks. - -The Sea was the Euxine, and without very great difficulty the Greeks -found ships which took them home. But before they left the spot from -whence they had first seen the sea, they erected a great pile of -stones, on which they laid all that was left to them of their scanty -possessions, some skins, and wicker shields and staves, and these -they dedicated to the Gods of Greece for having granted them so great -a deliverance. - - - -[1] See A. E. Zimmern: _The Greek Commonwealth_. - -[2] Thucydides, I. - -[3] Ibid. - -[4] Thucydides, I. - -[5] Plutarch: _Life of Pericles_. - -[6] Euripides: _The Trojan Women_, translated by Gilbert Murray. - -[7] See p. 386. - -[8] From Plutarch: _Life of Alcibiades_. - -[9] Ibid. - -[10] _Thucydides_, VI. - -[11] Thucydides, VI. - -[12] Ibid. - -[13] Plutarch: _Life of Alcibiades_. - -[14] From Plutarch: _Life of Alcibiades_. - -[15] Thucydides, VII. - -[16] Thucydides, VIII. - -[17] Plutarch: _Life of Alcibiades_. - -[18] Xenophon: Hellenica, II. - -[19] Xenophon: Hellenica II. - -[20] Ibid. - -[21] Based on Xenophon: _The Anabasis_. - - - - -{322} - -CHAPTER XVII - -THE GREAT DAYS OF THEBES - - -I. LEGENDS AND EARLY HISTORY OF THEBES - -Up to the end of the Peloponnesian War, the history of Greece had -been chiefly the history of Athens and Sparta. The end of the war -left Sparta supreme, but she did not know how to use her power. She -was stern and harsh, cared little for literature, and disliked -changes. She had not the imagination to put herself in the place of -Athens and to understand how she should rule such independent, -sea-faring, intellectually alert and artistic people. The short -period of her supremacy ended in failure, and then she was, in her -turn, overthrown by another Greek state. This state was Thebes, a -state which had not hitherto played a very honourable part in Greek -history. Always jealous of Athens, she had taken every opportunity -to side against her. She had treated the sturdy, independent little -city of Plataea with great cruelty; she had sided with the Barbarian -invader during the Persian Wars and with Sparta during the -Peloponnesian War, and it was only when the Spartan rule became {323} -intolerable to friends and enemies alike, that she offered a refuge -to the Athenian exiles. - -The city of Thebes lay in the rich plains of Boeotia, where meat and -corn and wine were to be had abundantly. The near by hills provided -excellent hunting, and the Thebans were a people known to their -neighbours as loving pleasure and all the good things of the world, -as being good fighters, but men who were intellectually dull. There -were some exceptions, however, for Thebes produced two men of genius: -Pindar, the poet, and Epaminondas, the mighty general. - -Pindar was born in the sixth century B.C. but he lived to be an old -man, and the Persians had been driven out of Greece before he died. -He was a noble, and his poems are the last lyrics that sing of an -order of society that was about to give way to the rule of the -people. Many of Pindar's lyrics were written in honour of the -winners at the Olympic Games, and in reading them one can almost see -the chariot racing along the course, and hear the people shouting, -and feel the joy of the victor as he receives his prize. Pindar was -very conservative; he belonged to a generation which had not yet -begun to question the existence of the gods, and all his poems are -filled with unquestioning faith in them and in their righteousness. -Especially did he delight to honour Apollo, and long after his death -it was believed that he was particularly dear to the god, for it was -said that every night at Delphi he was honoured by the summons: "Let -Pindar the poet come in to the supper of the god." - -{324} - -But if Thebes had had no honoured past in history, she was rich in -legend and story. Thebes had been founded by Cadmus in obedience to -the word of Apollo. On the spot where the city was to be built, he -had slain a fearful dragon, and taking the dragon's teeth he had sown -them in the ground as a sower sows his seed, and immediately a host -of armed men had sprung up from the ground, who became the first -citizens of the new city. With their help, Cadmus built a citadel -which was known through all the days of Theban history as the Cadmeia. - -Thebes was surrounded by strong walls and the city was entered by -seven gates. Another story told how the foundations of these walls -and gateways had been laid by Amphion, who then took his lyre and -played such divine music on it that the walls rose by magic as he -played, until they stood in such strength that they completely -protected the city, and later were able to endure a great siege. - -But the gods had not always smiled upon Thebes. Pindar tells us that -"for every good a mortal receives from the gods, he must likewise -receive two evils," and this seemed to be true of the royal house of -Thebes. Dark and tragic are the tales of the fate of these ancient -rulers. It was Oedipus, who having first guessed the answer to the -riddle of the Sphinx, then in ignorance killed his own father and -became King, only to learn in later years of what he had done, and to -be driven forth from his kingdom, blind and helpless. Other legends -tell of Antigone, the faithful daughter of Oedipus, who accompanied -him in his wanderings and tended him until his death. - - - -{325} - -II. EPAMINONDAS - -Epaminondas was born in Thebes late in the fifth century B.C. He -belonged to a very old family, one of the few which claimed to be -descended from the dragon's teeth sown by Cadmus. Though of an -ancient family, he was poor, but he was among the best educated among -the Thebans; he had been taught to play the harp and to sing to its -accompaniment, to play the flute and to dance. A wise philosopher -was his instructor, to whom he was so attached that, young as he was, -he preferred the society of the grave and stern old man to that of -companions of his own age. After he grew up and began to practise -gymnastics, he studied not so much to increase the strength as the -agility of his body; for he thought that strength suited the purposes -of wrestlers, but that agility made a man a better soldier, so he -spent most of his time in war-like exercises. - -Epaminondas, we are told, was - - - modest, prudent, grave, wisely availing himself of opportunities, - skilled in war, brave in action and of remarkable courage. He - was so great a lover of truth that he would not tell a falsehood, - even in jest; he was also master of his passions, and gentle in - disposition. He was a remarkable keeper of secrets, a quality no - less serviceable sometimes than ability to speak eloquently.[1] - - -Amongst the statesmen who helped to make Greece great, none were more -honourable or of {326} greater integrity than Epaminondas. It was -not possible to corrupt or bribe him and he was entirely free from -covetousness. This was shown when the envoy of King Artaxerxes the -Persian came to Thebes to bribe Epaminondas with a large sum of gold -(to get the Thebans to help the King), but Epaminondas said to him: - - - There is no need for money in this matter; for if the King - desires what is for the good of the Thebans, I am ready to do it - for nothing; if otherwise, he has not sufficient silver or gold - to move me, for I would not exchange the riches of the whole - world for my love for my country. I do not wonder that you have - tried me thus as you did not know me, seeing that you thought me - like yourself, and I forgive you; but get you away immediately - lest you corrupt others, though unable to corrupt me.[2] - - -Under Epaminondas, Thebes became the ruling power in Greece, but only -for a very short time. The Thebans were good soldiers only as long -as they had inspiring leaders, without a great leader they were -unable to hold what they had gained. One of the characteristics of a -great man is that he knows how to use his opportunities, and -Epaminondas had this gift. The story of his life is the story of a -great general. At his side was his friend Pelopidas, a man of -extraordinary courage, of great enthusiasm, and of utter devotion to -his leader. - -Epaminondas made the Theban army a very formidable fighting force, -and with this powerful army {327} he set himself to break the power -of Sparta and to put that of Thebes in its place. In 371 B.C. the -Spartans were defeated by the Thebans under Epaminondas in a great -battle at Leuctra, not far from Thebes, and this victory made Thebes -for the time the chief military power in Greece. For nine years she -kept her power, though fighting continued. Epaminondas wanted to -capture Sparta itself, and he marched four times down into the -Peloponnesus. In spite of the long marches his men were obliged to -make, they were in splendid condition. They had implicit faith in -their general and would follow him anywhere. "There was no labour -which they would shrink from, either by night or by day; there was no -danger they would flinch from; and with the scantiest provisions, -their discipline never failed them."[3] - -The Thebans had marched for the fourth time to the Peloponnesus, and -they were at Mantinea, and here in 362 B.C. Epaminondas fought his -last great battle against Sparta. Thebes was victorious, but she -bought her victory dearly, for Epaminondas was mortally wounded. As -he was carried from the field, he asked for the two captains who -stood nearest to him and would take his place. But he was told that -both had been killed. "Then make peace with the enemy," he murmured, -and drawing out the spear which had wounded him, he fell back dead. - -Epaminondas was dead, and there was no one to take his place. He had -broken the power of Sparta, and the Peloponnesus was now divided into -{328} a number of camps, each at war with the other, and confusion -reigned everywhere in Greece. Thebes had been no more able to unite -Greece than Sparta had been, but under Epaminondas the art of war had -been so developed and changed that in the hands of a commander of -genius, an army had become a more formidable weapon than had ever -before been deemed possible. - -Six years before the battle of Mantinea, a half-barbarian boy of -fifteen had been brought from Macedonia to Thebes as a hostage. This -boy was Philip of Macedon, and he spent three years in Thebes, -learning all that the greatest military state then in Greece could -teach him. He was destined himself to be a great commander, and the -father of one yet greater. There was now no Greek state powerful -enough to uphold Greek freedom. As a statesman, Epaminondas had -failed, for he left nothing but confusion behind him, but as a -general of genius, he was the teacher of Philip and Alexander of -Macedon, whose growing power was now to menace the freedom, not only -of Greece, but of the world. - - - -[1] Cornelius Nepos: _Life of Epaminondas_. - -[2] Cornelius Nepos: _Life of Epaminondas_. - -[3] Xenophon: Hellenica, VII. - - - - -{329} - -CHAPTER XVIII - -ALEXANDER THE GREAT - - -I. PHILIP OF MACEDON - -History is the story of the way in which man has learned how to live, -and in learning this, man has come from time to time to periods of -great change: periods when the old order of things has changed, -passing into the new. These times are always very difficult for -those who live in them, for so much of the old seems to be undergoing -destruction that the building of the new is not noticed, for those -who destroy generally make more noise than those who build. - -Greece was living through one of these periods of change when Philip -became King of Macedon. Not very much is known about the early -Macedonians. They were partly barbarian, and partly Greek, and when -they first appear in history were very disunited. In the plains -dwelt a number of tribes, who were said to be of Greek origin. They -were closely bound to the King and the chief of them were known as -his Companions. Scattered about the hills were numerous tribes, more -barbarian than Greek, who looked on the King of Macedonia as their -overlord, but who were a constant {330} source of danger to him, as -they were frequently struggling for independence. When a weak king -ruled, the story of Macedonia became that of petty warfare with these -hill-tribes, but strong kings were always trying to unite these -warring elements into a nation. - -In 359 B.C., Philip became King of Macedonia. He had spent three -years in Thebes, where he had seen the transformation that the -military genius of Epaminondas had effected in the Theban army, and -now at the age of twenty-four, he found himself ruler of Macedonia. -But his inheritance was one that might have daunted the stoutest -heart. He had no allies and no money; enemies surrounded him on all -sides, and there was no unity in his kingdom. But he had youth, a -few faithful friends, unbounded ambition, and a body fit to endure -any hardships. Philip never asked anything of his soldiers that he -was not ready to do himself, yet he was not a man whom they loved, -and he inspired fear rather than affection. - -Philip had three definite aims in his policy: to create a standing -army, one that would be ready to march and fight at all times, in -winter as well as summer; to unite all Macedonia into a real kingdom, -and then to unite all Greece under his rule. Having done that, he -intended to march into Asia against the Persian King. - -Philip created his army, he subdued and united Macedonia, and then he -was ready to turn to Greece. Athens, Sparta and Thebes were now all -weak. The power of the city-state was passing away and was {331} to -yield in time to the new idea of national unity, but it was not to -yield without a conflict. The struggle between Philip and the Greek -states was more than a struggle between a strong state and several -weak ones; it was a conflict of ideas. On the one side was Athens -and the states who sided with her, the last representatives of the -independent city-state who still jealously guarded their political -freedom; on the other side was Philip, who represented this new idea -of national unity. He determined to subdue most of Greece by force, -but he would have liked Athens to yield to him of her own free will. -The power of her fleet and her armies had been broken, but her -thought, her art and her culture remained. Could Philip have been -received by Athens with good-will, and been recognized by her as the -leader of all Greece; he would have held it of greater importance -than any military victory. He wrote letters to her statesmen, sent -special envoys to Athens to plead his cause, he tried to prove to her -that her fears of him were groundless, and he treated the very soil -of Attica as if it were sacred. It is a striking picture: Philip, -the warrior, at the head of a powerful army, lowering his sword -before the politically weak little state, because of the might of her -spirit. And that spirit was not dead. One more flash of the old -Athenian independence flamed out in the defiance she hurled at Philip. - -Philip advanced. He seized and held Thermopylae, the gateway into -Greece; he upheld the rights of Delphi against a neighbouring state -and was {332} recognized by the Oracle as the defender of Apollo. -Then he marched into Boeotia, where Athens and Thebes made a last -tremendous stand against him. In 338 B.C. one of the decisive -battles of the world was fought at Chaeronea. On one side was an -army of the last representatives of the old city-state, a confused -array of men, some of them citizen-soldiers serving without pay, some -of them hired mercenaries; and on the other side, the first great -army of one united nation. The battle was fought on a hot summer's -day, and it was fierce and long, but at length the Greeks gave way -and Philip was victorious. He had little mercy for Thebes, and she -drank the cup of bitterness to the dregs. Some of her leaders were -banished, others were put to death, a Macedonian garrison was placed -in the city and all Theban lands were confiscated. - -Athens was treated with greater mercy. On the day of the victory -over her, Philip - - - did not laugh at table, or mix any amusements with the - entertainment; he had no chaplets or perfumes; and as far as was - in his power, he conquered in such a way that nobody might think - of him as a conqueror. And neither did he call himself the King; - but the general of Greece. To the Athenians, who had been his - bitterest enemies, he sent back their prisoners without ransom, - and restored the bodies of those that were slain in battle for - burial, and he sent Alexander his son to make peace and an - alliance with them.[1] - - -Underlying all his ambition, all his reliance on military power, was -yet the feeling, partly unconscious yet there, that, after all, the -things of the spirit {333} were greater than those of pomp and power, -and he longed for recognition from Athens. But Athens, though forced -to recognize his supremacy, never accepted him willingly. - -Philip's next move was to organize an expedition into Asia, in order -to crush the power of Persia, and as such an expedition would take -Philip out of Greece, most of the Greek states agreed to join it. -But first he returned to Macedonia, where enemies were always to be -found stirring up hostility to him. A royal marriage gave a good -excuse for a great public festivity, and a procession was planned, in -which Philip, robed in white, was to walk in state. It must have -been a moment of great triumph. His ambitions were fulfilled. The -Macedonian army was the greatest in the world, he had united the -hostile elements in his kingdom and made of them a nation, he had -conquered Greece and been recognized as the chief general of all the -Greek armies, and now he was about to set forth to conquer Persia. -He was still young, and there seemed nothing to prevent the -fulfilment of every further ambition. But suddenly, as the stately -procession moved forward, a man darted out from the crowd of -spectators, buried his dagger deep in the heart of the King, and -Philip fell dead. - -He was succeeded by his son Alexander, who in a speech to the -Macedonians summed up the achievements of his father. He said to -them: - - - My father found you, vagabond and poor, most of you clad only in - skins, tending a few sheep on the {334} mountain sides, and to - protect them you had to fight against the border tribes, often - with small success. Instead of the skins, my father gave you - cloaks to wear and he led you down from the hills into the plains - and made you the equal in battle of the neighbouring barbarians, - so that your safety depended no longer on the inaccessibility of - your mountain strongholds, but on your own valour. He taught you - to live in cities, and he gave you good laws and customs, and - instead of being the slaves and subjects of those barbarians by - whom you and your possessions had long been harried, he made you - lords over them. He also added the greater part of Thrace to - Macedonia, and by seizing the most conveniently situated places - on the sea-coast, he threw open your country to commerce. He - made it possible for you to work your mines in safety. He made - you rulers over the Thessalonians, of whom you had formerly been - in mortal fear, and by humbling the Phocians he gave you, instead - of a narrow and difficult road into Greece, a broad and easy one. - To such a degree did he humble the Athenians and Thebans, who had - ever been ready to fall upon Macedonia, that instead of your - paying tribute to the former and being vassals to the latter, - both states turned to us for protection. He marched into the - Peloponnesus and after setting affairs there in order, he was - publicly declared commander-in-chief of the whole of Greece in - the expedition against the Persian. And he considered this great - distinction not as personal honour to himself, but as a glory for - Macedonia.[2] - - -The new King was only twenty years old. It seemed as if his father -had been cut off at the height of his career, and that his death -could mean nothing but disaster to the power of Macedonia. But what -seems like a tragedy and the failure of human hopes, is sometimes the -door through which an individual or a nation passes to greater -things. Philip had done {335} his work. He was a great soldier and -had made great conquests, but he inspired no love and he lacked the -imagination which would have made him see with the eyes of the -conquered, and so rule them that they would have become real parts of -a mighty whole. His son was young, but he had this gift, and so the -tragedy of his father's death was the beginning of new and greater -opportunities for him, and the door through which Greece was to pass -from the old order into the new. - - - -II. DEMOSTHENES - -Though forced to acknowledge the political supremacy of Philip, -Athens had never given him the real homage he so greatly desired, -that of the spirit. And that she persisted in her refusal was -largely due to the orator Demosthenes. - -Politically, Athens was now weak, and her constant wars were a great -strain on all her resources. But at this time, most of her fighting -was done at a distance from Athens and by hired mercenaries. A great -change had come over her since the days of Marathon and Salamis. No -longer was it the pride of the Athenians that her citizens themselves -defended her, and though the young men liked to boast that their -forefathers had fought at Marathon, they preferred a more -pleasure-loving life than was possible in a camp, and so they paid -other men to go out and fight for them. - -Demosthenes fought against this spirit, and when Philip made advances -to Athens and tried to {336} conclude an alliance with her, -Demosthenes made speech after speech against such a policy, imploring -the people not to make terms with the stranger, but to make ready for -war, and to give their own lives on the battle-field instead of -paying others to die for them. - -Demosthenes had been a delicate child, very shy and with a stammer in -his speech. He grew up, however, with a passion for oratory, and he -would go to hear the noted orators of his time and listen to every -word they said, going home afterwards to practise the art of speaking -himself. The first time he spoke in public, he met with -discouragement, for his style was awkward, his voice weak and he -stammered. He determined, however, that he would overcome all these -obstacles, and - - - he built himself a place to study in underground, and hither he - would come constantly every day to form his action, and to - exercise his voice; and here he would continue, oftentimes - without intermission, two or three months together, shaving one - half of his head, that so for shame he might not go abroad, - though he desired it ever so much.[3] - - -It was known that Demosthenes worked very hard over his speeches, and -that he never spoke in the Assembly unless he had thought over the -subject and prepared what he intended to say. It became a matter of -joke in Athens that instead of depending on inspiration, his speeches -"smelt of the lamp." In his old age, Demosthenes told some {337} of -his friends how he had overcome his defects of speech: - - - His inarticulate and stammering pronunciation he overcame and - rendered more distinct by speaking with pebbles in his mouth; his - voice he disciplined by declaiming and reciting speeches or - verses when he was out of breath, while running or going up steep - places; and that in his house he had a large looking-glass, - before which he would stand and go through his exercises.[4] - - -To cure a habit he had of raising his left shoulder while speaking, -he suspended a naked sword over it whenever he practised, and he -would stand on the sea-shore during a storm to declaim, so that he -might accustom himself to the uproar in a public assembly. - -Demosthenes has been called the greatest of orators. Opinions have -differed since, as to whether his policy was the wisest for Athens to -follow at that moment, but every word he uttered was inspired by a -passionate love for Athens, and he at all times entreated the -Athenians to be true to their own great spirit and their ancient -patriotism. - - - Never to this day, [he said on one occasion], has this People - been eager for the acquisition of money; but for honour it has - been eager as for nothing else in the world. It is a sign of - this that when Athens had money in greater abundance than any - other Hellenic people, she spent it all in the cause of honour; - her citizens contributed from their private resources, and she - never shrank from danger when glory was to be won. Therefore - {338} she has those eternal and abiding possessions, the memory - of her actions, and the beauty of the offerings dedicated in - honour of them, the Porticoes which you see, the Parthenon, the - Colonnades, the Dockyards. - - -The speeches of Demosthenes against the policy of making friends with -Philip are known as the _Philippics_, a word which has become part of -later language, and in the greatest of these, he shows the Athenians -how their lowered ideals have permitted political corruption and were -leading them to destruction. - - - What is the cause of these things? [he asked], for as it was not - without reason that the Hellenes in old days were so prompt for - freedom, so it is not without reason or cause that they are now - so prompt to be slaves. There was a spirit, men of Athens, a - spirit in the mind of the People in those days which is absent - today, the spirit which vanquished the wealth of Persia, which - led Hellas in the path of freedom, and never gave way in face of - battle by sea or land; a spirit whose extinction today has - brought universal ruin and turned Hellas upside down. What was - this spirit? It was nothing subtle or clever. It meant that - those who took money from those who aimed at dominion or at the - ruin of Hellas were execrated by all. Where are such sentiments - now? They have been sold in the market and are gone.[5] - - -In burning words Demosthenes pleaded with the Athenians to fight -themselves with their old spirit for their freedom. - - -{339} - - - I wonder that you, men of Athens, who once raised your hand - against Sparta in defence of the rights of the Hellenes ... who - spent your own fortunes in war contributions and always bore the - brunt of the dangers of the campaign, that you, I say, are now - shrinking from marching, and hesitating to make any contribution - to save your own possessions.... This is our own personal and - immediate duty; and I say that you must contribute funds, you - must go on service in person with a good will.... You must get - rid of all excuses and all deficiencies on your own part; you - cannot examine mercilessly the actions of others, unless you - yourselves have done all that your duty requires.[6] - - -Demosthenes possessed the power of appealing to both the reason and -the emotions of his hearers, and in the end Athens followed his -advice. But it resulted in disaster. Those who had opposed -Demosthenes, especially the statesman Aeschines, turned upon him in -anger, and accused him of sacrificing the lives of the young men, and -of spending their treasure for nothing. Athens had followed his -advice and had been beaten, and now Philip was her master. As -Aeschines and his opponents had been laying such stress on the -consequences of his policy, Demosthenes defended himself in what was, -perhaps, the greatest of his speeches. In one part of it he warned -the Athenians that what he had to say might startle them, but - - - let no one, [he said], in the name of Heaven, be amazed at the - length to which I go, but give a kindly {340} consideration to - what I say. Even if what was to come was plain to all - beforehand; even if all foreknew it; even if you, Aeschines, had - been crying with a loud voice in warning and protestation, you - who uttered not so much as a sound; even then, I say, it was not - right for the city to abandon her course, if she had any regard - for her fame, or for our forefathers, or for the ages to come. - As it is, she is thought, no doubt, to have failed to secure her - object, as happens to all alike, whenever God wills it: but then, - by abandoning in favour of Philip her claim to take the lead of - others, she must have incurred the blame of having betrayed them - all. Had she surrendered without a struggle those claims in - defence of which our forefathers faced every imaginable peril, - who would not have cast scorn upon you, Aeschines--upon you, I - say; not, I trust, upon Athens nor upon me? In God's name, with - what faces should we have looked upon those who came to visit the - city, if events had come round to the same conclusion as they now - have, if Philip had been chosen as commander and lord of all, and - we had stood apart, while others carried on the struggle to - prevent these things; and that, although the city had never yet - in time past preferred an inglorious security to the hazardous - vindication of a noble cause? What Hellene, what foreigner, does - not know that the Thebans, and the Spartans who were powerful - still earlier, and the Persian King would all gratefully and - gladly have allowed Athens to take and keep all that was her own, - if she would do the bidding of another, and let another take the - first place in Hellas? But this was not, it appears, the - tradition of the Athenians; it was not tolerable; it was not in - their nature. From the beginning of time no one had ever yet - succeeded in persuading the city to throw in her lot with those - who were strong, but {341} unrighteous in their dealings, and to - enjoy the security of servitude. Throughout all time she has - maintained her perilous struggle for pre-eminence, honour and - glory. And this policy you look upon as so lofty, so proper to - your own national character that, of your forefathers also, it is - those who have acted thus that you praise most highly. And - naturally, for who would not admire the courage of those men, who - did not fear to leave their land and their city, and to embark - upon their ships that they might not do the bidding of another; - who chose for their general Themistocles (who had counselled them - thus), and stoned Cyrsilus to death, when he gave his voice for - submission to a master's orders--and not him alone, for your - wives stoned his wife also to death. For the Athenians of that - day did not look for an orator or a general who would enable them - to live in happy servitude; they cared not to live at all, unless - they might live in freedom. For everyone of them felt that he - had come into being, not for his father and his mother alone, but - also for his country. And wherein lies the difference? He who - thinks he was born for his parents alone awaits the death which - destiny assigns him in the course of nature: but he who thinks - that he was born for his country also will be willing to die, - that he may not see her in bondage, and will look upon the - outrages and the indignities that he must needs bear in a city - that is in bondage as more to be dreaded than death. - - Now were I attempting to argue that _I_ had induced you to show a - spirit worthy of your forefathers, there is not a man who might - not rebuke me with good reason. But, in fact, I am declaring - that such principles as these are your own; I am showing that - _before_ my time the city displayed this spirit, though I claim - that I, too, have had some share, as your servant, in carrying - {342} out your policy in detail. But in denouncing the policy as - a whole, in bidding you be harsh with me, as one who has brought - terrors and dangers upon the city, the prosecutor, in his - eagerness to deprive me of my distinction at the present moment, - is trying to rob you of praises that will last throughout all - time. For if you condemn the defendant on the ground that my - policy was not for the best, men will think that your own - judgment has been wrong, and that it was not through the - unkindness of fortune that you suffered what befell you. But it - cannot, it cannot be that you were wrong, men of Athens, when you - took upon you the struggle for freedom and deliverance. No! by - those who at Marathon bore the brunt of the peril--our - forefathers. No! by those who at Plataea drew up their - battle-line, by those who at Salamis, by those who off Artemisium - fought the fight at sea, by the many who lie in the sepulchres - where the People laid them, brave men, all alike deemed worthy by - their country, Aeschines, of the same honour and the same - obsequies--not the successful or the victorious alone! And she - acted justly. For all these have done that which it was the duty - of brave men to do; but their fortune has been that which Heaven - assigned to each.[7] - - - -III. ALEXANDER THE GREAT - -At the age of twenty, Alexander succeeded to Philip's throne. He is -one of the personalities in history who have most appealed to the -imagination, not only of his contemporaries, but of all ages. He had -the beauty of a young Greek god, a brilliant mind and personal charm -which endeared him to his {343} companions. From his father he had -inherited great military genius, extraordinary powers of -organization, tireless energy and inordinate ambition; and from his -mother, a wild, half-barbarian princess, a passionate nature, given -to outbursts of fierce and uncontrolled anger, and a romantic -imagination. - -[Illustration: ALEXANDER THE GREAT. British Museum.] - -During the boyhood of Alexander, his father was constantly away at -war, but he saw to it that his son was well educated. His first -teachers accustomed him to a Spartan discipline, and so trained his -body that in later years he was able to undergo fatigue and endure -hardships that astonished all who were with him. - -When Alexander was twelve years old, an episode occurred which -convinced his father that he needed the best guidance that could be -found for him. A horse, Bucephalus by name, was offered to Philip -for the sum of thirteen talents, and the King, with the Prince and -many others, - - - went into the field to try him. But they found him so very - vicious and unmanageable that he reared up when they endeavoured - to mount him, and would not so much as endure the voice of any of - Philip's attendants. Upon which as they were leading him away as - wholly useless and untractable, Alexander, who stood by, said: - "What an excellent horse do they lose for want of address and - boldness to manage him!" Philip at first took no notice of what - he said; but when he heard him repeat the same thing several - times, and saw he was much vexed to see the horse sent away, "Do - you reproach," said he to him, "those who are older than - yourself, as if you knew more, and were better able to manage him - than they?" "I {344} could manage this horse," said he, "better - than others do." "And if you do not," said Philip, "what will - you forfeit for your rashness?" "I will pay," answered - Alexander, "the whole price of the horse." At this the whole - company fell a-laughing; and as soon as the wager was settled - amongst them, he immediately ran to the horse, and taking hold of - the bridle, turned him directly towards the sun, having, it - seems, observed that he was disturbed at and afraid of the motion - of his own shadow; then letting him go forward a little, still - keeping the reins in his hands and stroking him gently, when he - found him begin to grow eager and fiery, with one nimble leap he - securely mounted him, and when he was seated, by little and - little drew in the bridle, and curbed him without either striking - or spurring him. Presently, when he found him free from all - rebelliousness he let him go at full speed. Philip and his - friends looked on at first in silence and anxiety for the result; - till seeing him turn and come back rejoicing and triumphing for - what he had performed, they all burst out into acclamations of - applause; and his father, shedding tears, it is said, for joy, - kissed him as he came down from his horse, and in his transport - said: "O my son look thee out a kingdom equal to and worthy of - thyself, for Macedonia is too little for thee!"[8] - - -It was evident that Alexander would not submit to be controlled in -what he did, but that a steady guiding hand was needed to develop his -best nature, and so Philip sent for the philosopher Aristotle, who -was his tutor for four years. Aristotle taught him the best that -Greece could offer in literature, philosophy and natural science. -Alexander had no small {345} opinion of his own powers, and -considered himself quite the equal, if not the superior, of the best -minds of his time, and he wanted to be recognized as such. Later, -when Aristotle had published some of his writings, Alexander wrote to -him: "You have not done well to publish your books of oral doctrine; -for what is there now that we excel others in, if those things which -we have been particularly instructed in be laid open to all?"[9] -Alexander had been born with a love for study, and his education gave -him a real appreciation of all that was best in Greek thought. He -used to sleep with a copy of Homer under his pillow, and he told -Aristotle that he would "rather excel others in the knowledge of what -is excellent than in the extent of his power and dominion."[10] -Alexander grew to love his tutor greatly, and in after years he would -say that as from his father he had received life, so from Aristotle -had he learned to lead a good life. - -Such a personality soon made Alexander the idol of Macedonia, but, as -in the case of his father, that was not enough; Macedonian, and -therefore in the eyes of Greece a half-barbarian, he wanted to be -accepted by the Greeks as a Greek and to receive their hero-worship. -Like Philip, he was determined to march into Asia, subdue the Persian -King and become a world ruler, but it was necessary that he should -subdue Greece first. He did this very quickly, and in 335 B.C., one -year after he became King, he marched against Thebes, which had -organized a revolt against him. He came upon the city {346} with -almost magical swiftness, for in thirteen days he had transported his -army two hundred and fifty miles. A rumour had spread in Greece that -he was dead, but suddenly, there he was before the walls of Thebes. -In two days all was over. The city was razed to the ground, and the -inhabitants either slain or sold into slavery. Yet in the midst of -all the horror, Alexander gave an order which seized upon the Greek -imagination: the house of Pindar was to be left untouched for no war -was being waged against Greek civilization. - -Alexander went to Corinth, where he was elected General of the army -that was to invade Persia. He was surrounded by men who praised and -flattered him, but one man refused to take any notice of him -whatever. This was the cynical philosopher Diogenes. - - - Alexander found him in a cask by the roadside. When he saw so - much company near him, he raised himself a little, and vouchsafed - to look upon Alexander; and when Alexander kindly asked whether - he wanted anything. "Yes," said, he, "I would have you stand - from between me and the sun." Alexander was so struck at this - answer, and surprised at the greatness of the man, who had taken - so little notice of him, that as he went away he told his - followers, who were laughing at the moroseness of the - philosopher, that if he were not Alexander, he would choose to be - Diogenes.[11] - - -The time had now come when at the head of a mighty army, Alexander -could start for Asia. This {347} army was made up of Macedonians and -of men from all the most warlike states of Greece. It had been -thoroughly trained and disciplined, and it served under a general -only twenty-two years of age, it is true, but who had already shown -himself a military genius and who was adored by every soldier from -the highest to the lowest. It was an army that was never to know -defeat. - -Alexander did not hide his purpose from the Persian King, for he sent -him word that he considered himself lord of Asia: "I, Alexander, -consider the whole of thy treasure, and the whole of thy land to be -mine." To the Greeks this did not represent any over-weening pride, -for Alexander was but expressing the belief that was held by -Aristotle, the greatest Greek thinker of the age, that Greeks were -justified in enslaving the Barbarian. - -No story of conquest is more romantic than that of Alexander. On -first reaching Asia Minor he went to Ilium, where he dedicated his -armour to Athena, and took in its place some weapons which tradition -said had been used in the Trojan War, and he laid a wreath on the -tomb of Achilles. Then he started on his march. He came, whilst -passing through Asia Minor, to Gordium, where he saw the celebrated -Gordian knot, by which the yoke was fastened to the pole of an -ancient chariot. An old prophecy had been made that the man who -untied this knot would rule the world. Alexander tried to loosen it, -but losing patience, he took his sword and cut it. He meant to rule -the world, and he knew that his empire would only be won by the sword. - -{348} - -Alexander marched through Syria into Egypt, and when he was in Egypt, -he made a journey through the desert of Libya to consult the oracle, -Zeus Ammon. - - - Few men would have started upon so long and dangerous a journey - without misgivings, for there was likely to be scarcity of water, - and violent winds that would blow about the poisonous sand of the - desert and cause the death of those who inhaled it. But - Alexander was not to be turned from anything he was bent upon; - for hitherto fortune had helped him in all his plans, and the - boldness of his temper gave him a passion for overcoming - difficulties. In this journey the gods seemed to favour him as - usual, for plentiful rains fell, which not only relieved the - soldiers from fear of dying of thirst, but made the sand moist - and firm to travel on and purified the air. Besides, some ravens - kept up with them in their march, flying before them and waiting - for them if they fell behind; but the greatest miracle of all was - that if any of the company went astray in the night, the ravens - never ceased croaking until they were guided to the right path - again. - - Having passed through the wilderness, they came to the place - where the high-priest of Ammon bade Alexander welcome in the name - of the god, and called him son of Zeus. And being asked by the - King whether any of his father's murderers had escaped - punishment, the priest charged him to speak with more respect, - since his was not a mortal father. Then Alexander desired to - know of the oracle if any of those who murdered Philip were yet - unpunished, and further concerning dominion, whether the empire - of the world should be his? This, the god answered, he should - obtain, and that Philip's death {349} was fully revenged, which - gave him so much satisfaction that he made splendid offerings to - Zeus, and gave the priests very rich presents.[12] - - -Before leaving Egypt, Alexander founded the city of Alexandria, - - - which takes its name from him. The position seemed to him a very - fine one in which to found a city, and he thought it would become - a prosperous one. Therefore he was seized by an ardent desire to - undertake the enterprise, and he marked out the boundaries of the - city himself, pointing out where the market-place was to be - constructed, where the temples were to be built, stating how many - there were to be, and to what Greek gods they were to be - dedicated, and specially marking a spot for a temple to the - Egyptian Isis. He also pointed out where the wall was to be - carried out. The soothsayers, (pondering upon certain lucky - omens), told Alexander that the city would become prosperous in - every respect, but especially in regard to the fruits of the - earth.[13] - - -Before his death, Alexander founded many cities called by his name, -but the Alexandria of Egypt was the greatest, and the one that was to -survive even to the present day. For more than two thousand years it -has held its position as one of the chief ports in the Eastern part -of the Mediterranean. Alexander did not intend that it should become -the capital of Egypt, but he did intend that it should take the place -of Tyre, so that the trade coming {350} from the East should be in -the hands of Greeks and not of Phoenicians. - -The army worshipped Alexander, and he knew how to appeal to the -imagination of his followers and to gain their devotion. He was once -detained by a serious illness, caused by bathing in an ice-cold -river. One of his physicians had prepared medicine for him, but -before he had taken it, one of his commanders sent the King a letter -bidding him beware of Philip (the physician) who, he said, had been -bribed by Darius to poison him. Having read the letter, Alexander - - - put it under his pillow without showing it to anybody, and when - Philip came in with the potion, he took it with great - cheerfulness and assurance, giving him the letter to read. It - was well worth being present to see Alexander take the draught - and Philip read the letter at the same time.[14] - - -On one occasion - - - he had made a long and painful march of eleven days, during which - his soldiers suffered so much from want of water that they were - ready to give up. While they were in this distress it happened - that some Macedonians who had fetched water in skins upon their - mules from a river they had found out came about noon to the - place where Alexander was, and seeing him almost choked with - thirst, presently filled a helmet and offered it to him. He - asked them to whom they were carrying the water; they told him to - their children, adding that if his life were but saved, it was no - matter for them though {351} they all perished. Then he took the - helmet into his hands, and looking round about, when he saw all - those who were with him stretching their heads out and looking - earnestly after the drink, he returned it again with thanks - without taking a drop of it. "For," said he, "if I alone should - drink, the rest will be out of heart." When the soldiers heard - him speak in this way, they one and all cried out to him to lead - them forward boldly, and began whipping on their horses. For - whilst they had such a King they said they defied both weariness - and thirst, and looked upon themselves to be little less than - immortal.[15] - - -On another occasion the hardships endured by the army were so great -that the men were almost ready to refuse to follow Alexander any -further. But he called them together, and spoke to them, reminding -them that he asked no one to suffer what he himself did not suffer. - - - I often sit up at night to watch for you, [he said], that you may - be able to sleep. Who is there of you who knows that he has - endured greater toil for me than I have for him? I have been - wounded with the sword in close fight; I have been shot with - arrows; and though I have suffered these things for the sake of - your lives, your glory, and your wealth, I am still leading you - as conquerors over all the land and sea, all rivers, mountains - and plains.[16] - - -And the magic of his personality silenced all their murmuring and -banished all their discontent. - -{352} - -Followed by this devoted army, Alexander started on a marvellous -campaign which led him to the uttermost limit of the then known -world, even beyond the Indus into India. In battle after battle he -met those who opposed his path and conquered them. Alexander did not -know the meaning of the word _impossible_. He was told once that a -certain mountain pass was impracticable. For other men, it would -have been, but Alexander gave orders that his spearmen should cut -steps in the steep rock, and where before only the surest-footed -goats had climbed, Alexander and his men passed in safety. His men -followed him over snowy mountains in winter, and across thirsty -deserts in summer, up and down the lower ranges of the Himalaya -Mountains, where the best European armies of today can only go with -difficulty. They crossed the plains of India in the rainy season, -and even went through that country so unfit for human habitation that -Mohammedan conquerors of a later age declared it was a place fit only -to be dwelt in by the souls of the lost. - -Nothing stopped Alexander, not the mountain barrier, nor the deep -river, nor the burning sands. On he went, until he reached what he -believed to be the River Ocean that girdled the earth. - -Everywhere Alexander had been victorious, until even the Great King -of Persia himself was utterly defeated and Alexander was seated upon -his throne. He burnt the Persian palace at Persepolis in order "to -take vengeance on the Persians for their deeds in the invasion of -Greece, when they razed Athens to the ground and burnt down the -temples. He also {353} desired to punish the Persians for all the -other injuries they had done the Greeks."[17] - -When the news of the victories of Alexander over the Persians reached -Greece, great was the amazement. For centuries, the name of the -Great King had stood for all that was powerful and invincible. -Though he had been driven out of Greece, he was still believed to be -omnipotent in Asia. The general feeling was voiced by one of the -orators, speaking of what was happening in the Athenian Assembly: - - - What is there strange and unexpected that has not happened in our - time? We have not lived the life of ordinary men, and the things - we have seen will become a tale of wonder to posterity. Is not - the King of the Persians, he who channelled Athos, he who bridged - the Hellespont, he who demanded earth and water of the Greeks, he - who dared to write in his letters that he was lord of all men - from the rising of the sun unto its setting, is he not struggling - now, no longer for lordship over others, but already for his life? - - -Alexander had conquered the Great King and seated himself on the -royal throne of Persia under the canopy of gold. But now that he had -reached the summit of his ambition and was master of the greatest -empire in the world, a change came over him, and he began to indulge -his passions and to give himself up to all kinds of dissipation. He -dressed like a Persian, which deeply offended the {354} Greeks, who -became jealous of the increasing favour the King showed to the -Barbarian. - -Slowly the leaders of Alexander's army began to realize the change -that was taking place in their general, and though he gained in -popularity with the Persians, he began to lose some of the devotion -hitherto felt for him by the Greeks and Macedonians, and he was -becoming estranged from his old followers. At length they realized -that it was not a Greek conquest that would enslave Asia of which he -dreamed, but of a world empire, in which the Barbarian would live on -equal terms with the Greek. Alexander was far-seeing beyond his age, -and he had learned that men whose customs are alien to those in which -he had been brought up were not always to be despised, and that if he -dreamed of holding the world empire he had conquered, he could only -do so by treating all parts of it alike, and by encouraging -intercourse between the different races which composed it. However -wise this may have been, it is not difficult to understand the -feeling of the older Greeks who had been educated to feel a gulf -between them and the Barbarian that nothing could ever bridge. The -climax of the estrangement between Alexander and his old companions -came in a tragic scene at a banquet. Alexander and his friends had -been drinking fast and furiously, then songs had been sung, some of -which ridiculed the Macedonian officers who had recently been -unfortunate in a skirmish. The older men present were offended, but -Alexander laughed and had the song repeated. Clitus, who had been an -old and trusted friend of {355} the King, said angrily: "It is not -well to make a jest of Macedonians among their enemies, for, though -they have met with misfortunes, they are better men than those who -laugh at them." Angry words passed between him and the King, until, -unable to control his rage, Alexander snatched a spear from one of -his guards and ran it through the body of Clitus, who fell dead to -the ground. Dead silence followed this mad deed, and Alexander was -sobered by the sight of the man he had loved lying dead at his feet, -slain by his own hand. He drew the spear out of the body and would -have killed himself with it, had the guards not interfered and led -him by force to his chamber. All that night and the next day he wept -bitterly and would speak to no one. At length one of his friends -entered the room where he lay and said to him in a loud voice: - - - Is this the Alexander whom the whole world looks to, lying here - weeping like a slave for fear of what men will say? It is - Alexander himself who, by the right of his conquests, should be - the law to decide what is right and wrong. Do you not know, - Alexander, that Zeus is represented with Justice and Law on - either side of him, to show that all the deeds of a conqueror are - lawful and just?[18] - - -The King was soothed by these words, for he was only too ready to -believe, as his friend had said, that whatever he might choose to do -was right. But he was spoiled by such flattery which only increased -{356} his arrogance and made him yield more to his passions than -before. - -Having conquered and established an empire which extended from Greece -and Macedonia in Europe across Asia to India, and which included -Egypt and Libya, Alexander prepared to set out on yet another -expedition to the West and to enter Arabia. He was in Babylon, and -spent a long day attending to military duties. Towards evening, he -left his chair of state to take a little relaxation. During his -absence, a half-crazy man appeared, who, without any warning, sat -himself down on the King's seat. The attendants looked on in horror -at such an act, which seemed to them great impiety, but they did not -dare turn him out, for suddenly superstitious fears took hold of -them, and in frightened voices they whispered to each other that this -could foretell nothing but some great calamity. - -It was in the early summer of 323 B.C. that Alexander was ready to -start on his march, but the night before he was to leave Babylon, he -became ill of a fever. For a few days he was still able to attend to -some business from his bed, but he grew rapidly worse. Suddenly the -army realized that he was dying, and his old friends, forgetting -whatever estrangement had come between them, entreated to be allowed -to see him once more. They were admitted to the chamber where he -lay, and passed in silence before him. He was so weak that he "could -not speak, and only touched the right hand of each, and raised his -head a little, and signed with his eyes." The next day Alexander was -dead. {357} Deep and awe-struck silence fell upon the city and camp -for four days, and then, his generals having found amongst his papers -plans for the western campaign, they endeavoured to carry them out. -But they were not successful, and never again did the great army -fight under one leader. Having lost the almost magical inspiration -of Alexander's leadership, his successors were unable to keep the -empire which he had conquered. - -Almost from the moment of his death, Alexander was worshipped as a -god. He was the great hero of his age, and even in his life-time, it -was believed that he was half-divine. Dying so young, he was only -thirty-three, possessed of great strength and god-like beauty, -capable of rare generosity, brave almost to recklessness, planning -conquests so far-reaching that they appealed to the imagination of -everyone, given to outbursts of savage anger and vindictive rage, all -these characteristics were looked upon as more than human. For more -than two thousand years, the name of Alexander has been immortal in -the East. There is hardly an ancient city from Babylon almost to the -borders of China, that does not claim Alexander as its founder; his -name still clings to old traditions and legends; to this very day the -Parsees curse him for having caused the destruction of the ancient -sacred Persian writings when he captured Persepolis and burnt it. -Later generations of men have differed as to the lasting value of -some of his work, but the name of Alexander, and the story of his -hero-deeds have become a permanent possession of the imagination of -mankind. - - - -[1] From Justin. - -[2] Arrian: _Anabasis of Alexander_. - -[3] Plutarch: _Life of Demosthenes_. - -[4] Plutarch: _Life of Demosthenes_. - -[5] Third Philippic. - -[6] Second Olynthiac Oration. - -[7] On the Crown. - -[8] Plutarch: _Life of Alexander_. - -[9] Plutarch: _Life of Alexander_. - -[10] Ibid. - -[11] Plutarch: _Life of Alexander_. - -[12] Plutarch: _Life of Alexander_. - -[13] Arrian: _Anabasis of Alexander_. - -[14] Plutarch: _Life of Alexander_. - -[15] Plutarch: _Life of Alexander_. - -[16] Arrian: _Anabasis of Alexander_. - -[17] Arrian: _Anabasis of Alexander_. - -[18] From Plutarch: _Life of Alexander_. - - - - -{358} - -CHAPTER XIX - -THE GIFTS OF GREECE TO THE WORLD - - -I. THE GREEK SPIRIT - -What man achieves is, in regard to its permanent value, of less -importance than the spirit in which he achieves it; what one learns -is of less importance than how one learns; learning facts is of less -importance than developing certain qualities of mind. It is not -possible, and were it possible it would not be desirable, to -reproduce in modern life, the conditions of a past age, but certain -qualities of the mind and spirit are undying, and some of the -greatest of these qualities have come to us from the Greeks. - - - History is the story of the way in which man has learned and is - still learning, how to live: of how through long centuries he has - sought to satisfy the practical needs of his body, the - questioning of his mind, and the searching of his spirit.[1] - - -Mankind is still engaged upon the high adventure for this three-fold -quest, and not yet has any one civilization succeeded in bringing -into perfect accord the demands of the body, of the mind, and of -{359} the spirit. If, in the beginning of this story in the ancient -world, the Hebrews stand supreme amongst the teachers of those who -have sought to satisfy the searching of the spirit, so are the Greeks -the great teachers of those who have sought to satisfy the -questioning of the mind. The Greeks gave to the mind of man three -definite qualities: the love of Freedom, the love of Truth, and the -love of Beauty. These are practical qualities which show themselves -quite definitely in what the Greeks did, in what they thought and in -what they built, or in other words, in their political history, their -literature and their art. - -It must not be thought that the Greeks perfectly fulfilled their -great ideals. Greek history shows quite clearly that they did not. -If the story of the Greeks as it has been told in this book has -emphasized their ideals rather than their failure always to attain -these, it is because their ideals are the imperishable gifts they -have given to the world. But the Greeks were not dreamers; they were -practical men, keen and interested in all the practical affairs of -every day life. Their history shows how they failed in perfectly -carrying out their ideals because of certain weaknesses of character -and of certain conditions and limitations in their life from which -the men of to-day can learn many useful lessons. The greatness of -the Greeks lies, not in what they did not do or did imperfectly, but -in their spirit, that spirit which in their political history, their -literature and their art sought for Freedom, for Truth, and for -Beauty. - -{360} - -The Greeks showed the world the way to Freedom. They won their own -national freedom against almost overwhelming odds, for never before -had a small country maintained her independence in the face of a -great empire, and been victorious. They also maintained a political -freedom, which they carried too far, for the inability of Greek -states to form alliances and to unite was one of the sources of -weakness which finally led to their downfall. Nevertheless the -spirit of sturdy independence is one that has endured. The Greeks -carried their vision of freedom further than the political -independence of each state, and one of their chief characteristics -was their personal freedom. In a speech to the Athenian army before -the battle in the harbour at Syracuse, Nicias "reminded them that -they were the inhabitants of the freest country in the world, and how -in Athens there was no interference with the daily life of any -man."[2] Modern times are apt to pride themselves on the freedom of -speech allowed to all, but no modern state permits greater liberty of -speech (and some would not tolerate as much) than was allowed in -Athens in the fifth century B.C. when Aristophanes wrote his -satirical comedies. - -The Greeks loved Truth. By this is not meant truthfulness, for the -Greeks were insincere and never trusted even one another, but the -spirit which desired to see all things straight, "with an unclouded -clearness of mind"; the spirit which could distinguish clearly -between right and wrong, which {361} could judge without prejudice or -passion, above all the spirit which knew its own limitations and -which acknowledged what it did not know. Perhaps the greatest Greek -searcher for truth was Socrates, and some knowledge of his life and -teaching will show us what is our debt to Greece in the story of how -the mind of man has gained freedom in its search for truth. - - - -II. SOCRATES - -During the last years of the Peloponnesian War, a strange figure -might have been seen in Athens: a short, ugly, odd-looking man, -poorly-clad and utterly indifferent to criticism of his habits or -appearance, but a man to whom every one listened when he began to -speak. This was Socrates, the Greek philosopher. - -His father was a stone-cutter and a poor man, but he seems to have -given to his son the best education that was to be had in Athens, for -Socrates often quoted from Greek literature, especially from Homer, -and he speaks of having studied with his friends "the treasures which -the wise men of old have left us in their books." - -Very little is known of the early life of Socrates, but he passed his -youth and early manhood during the greatest years of Athenian -history. He was born ten years after the Persian had been defeated -at Plataea and driven out of Greece; as a boy, he had seen the Long -Walls being built; he had grown up in the Athens of Pericles, a -contemporary of {362} Sophocles, and Euripides, of Pheidias and of -Thucydides. When the clouds gathered over Athens and war came, he -served in the army as a common soldier; he had lived through the -short-lived triumphs and the tragic disasters which befell the city; -he had been hungry when food was scarce, he had seen Athens besieged -and taken; he had watched the Long Walls destroyed, and he had lived -through the Terror when the Thirty ruled Athens. It was a life lived -in very stirring times, and Socrates had taken his share in the -happenings. During the war, he served in one of the northern -campaigns, and he amazed everyone by his extraordinary power of -enduring hunger and thirst, and all the hardships of a cold Thracian -winter. One of his friends says of this time that - - - his fortitude in enduring cold was surprising. There was a - severe frost, for the winter in that region is really tremendous, - and everybody else either remained indoors, or if they went out - had on an amazing quantity of clothes, and were well shod, and - had their feet swathed in felt and fleeces: in the midst of this, - Socrates with his bare feet on the ice and in his ordinary dress - marched better than the other soldiers who had shoes, and they - looked daggers at him because he seemed to despise them. Another - tale of what he did on this expedition is worth hearing. One - morning, he was thinking about something which he could not - resolve; he would not give it up, but continued thinking from - early dawn until noon--there he stood fixed in thought; and at - noon attention was drawn to him and the remark ran through the - wondering crowd that {363} Socrates had been standing and - thinking about something ever since the break of day. At last in - the evening after supper, some Ionians out of curiosity (I should - explain that this was not in winter but in summer), brought out - their mats and slept in the open air that they might watch him - and see whether he would stand all night. There he stood until - the following morning, and with the return of light he offered up - a prayer to the Sun and went his way.[3] - - -At the close of the war Socrates was in Athens, a man now of over -sixty years of age. He held one or two offices of state, when he was -known for his fearless refusal to do what he thought was wrong. On -one occasion he refused to obey orders that were given him, because -he believed that obedience would involve him in doing what he thought -to be wrong. "I showed," he said, "not by mere words but by my -actions, that I did not care a straw for death: but that I did care -very much indeed about doing wrong." - -Socrates was very poor and as he would take no money for his -teaching, his means of livelihood were very scanty. He went about -barefoot and had only one cloak which he wore until it was so old -that it became a matter of joke amongst his friends. He not only had -no luxuries of any kind, but hardly the bare necessities of life, yet -he was quite content and used to say: "How many things there are -which I do not want." Socrates married Xanthippe, a woman of a most -violent temper. He used to say that one ought to live with a restive -woman, just {364} as horsemen manage violent-tempered horses; and "as -they," said he, "when they have once mastered them, are easily able -to manage all others; so I, after managing Xanthippe, can easily live -with anyone else whatever."[4] - -The Athenians had always been intellectually very alert and had tried -to solve all kinds of problems. They asked how it was that things -came into being, how they continued to exist, of what they were made -and similar questions. But when Athens had become an Empire and -ruled over many men and states, the questions began to change. -People were less interested in how things originated, than in -questions arising from their daily experience. They asked, what is a -state, what is a citizen, what is justice, what is temperance, -courage, cowardice and so on. In order to answer these questions, a -body of teachers had arisen in Athens who were called Sophists, or -_Wise Men_. They taught every kind of subject and established a -number of schools. The older Greek teachers did not like these -Sophists, partly because they took money for their teaching, and -hitherto, though Athenian philosophers had accepted presents, they -had never charged definite fees; partly because they taught so many -subjects that it was thought they could teach nothing thoroughly; -partly because they seemed to aim at teaching young men to argue in -order to get the better of their opponents rather than to seek for -Truth; and above all, because they were often sceptical as to the -existence of the gods. There {365} were some very good teachers -amongst the Sophists, and they opened up a great many new fields of -thought to the Athenians, but a weak side to their teaching was that -they only stated general principles, and often asserted as absolute -facts things that never had been definitely proved one way or the -other. They used words carelessly without stopping to think of their -real meaning, and they never suggested that there was anything they -did not know. - -Socrates saw that though the teaching of the Sophists might increase -_information_ it was fatal to real thinking, and he began to teach in -Athens in order to show what real thinking was. He taught in no -school, had no classes and took no pay. He was willing to talk to -any and everyone who would listen to him. He ever - - - lived in the public eye; at early morning he was to be seen - betaking himself to one of the promenades or wrestling grounds; - at noon he would appear with the gathering crowds in the - market-place; and as day declined, wherever the largest throng - might be encountered, there was he to be found, talking for the - most part, while anyone who chose might stop and listen.[5] - - -Socrates talked to and questioned everyone and tried to show people -what real knowledge was. He was filled with a passionate belief in -the importance of truth above all things. He said that to make -inaccurate statements and to use words with a wrong or careless -meaning was "not only a fault in itself, {366} it also created an -evil in the soul." He showed those who listened to him the evil that -came from pretending to know what one did not know, and the first -step in his teaching was to make them realize their ignorance. To -this end he questioned and cross-examined them, until they -contradicted themselves, or found no answer and generally ended in -hopeless difficulties, simply because they would not acknowledge at -the beginning that they did not know what he had asked. One of his -friends once said: "Indeed, Socrates, I no longer believe in my -answers; everything seems to me to be different from what it used to -seem," and another speaking of him said: "Socrates makes me -acknowledge my own worthlessness. I had best be silent for it seems -that I know nothing at all." - -Socrates believed that Virtue was Knowledge, that if a man knew a -thing was wrong, he would not do it, and that those who knew what was -right would always do it. In this Socrates was not wholly right; he -only saw a part of the truth, but his greatness lies in that he was -the first to teach the importance of having a reason for what we -believe, of learning accurate habits of mind, and that the search for -knowledge is one rich in imagination and beauty. - -Socrates was always arguing, talking, questioning, but he was never -rude or discourteous to those who disagreed with him, he never -brought his own personal feelings into his arguments, and he never -descended to expressions of wounded pride or irritation. - -{367} - -The teaching of Socrates opened the minds of those who listened to -him to the possibilities to which knowing the truth might lead them, -and he had great influence over numbers of young Athenians. It was -all new to them, they had never heard anything like it before. "Mere -fragments of you and your words," said one of them, "even at -second-hand, and however imperfectly repeated, amaze and possess the -soul of anyone who hears them," and he went on to say, - - - I have heard Pericles and other great orators and I thought that - they spoke well, but I never had any similar feeling; my soul was - not stirred by them, nor was I angry at the thought of my own - slavish state. But this Socrates has often brought me to such a - pass that I have felt as if I could hardly endure the life I am - leading. For he makes me confess that I ought not to live as I - do, neglecting the wants of my own soul. And he is the only - person who ever made me ashamed, and there is no one else who - does the same.[6] - - -But if Socrates gained friends, his method of exposing the ignorance -of others also gained him enemies. No one before had ever thought -such thoughts, and to ordinary Athenians his questioning was wicked. -But Xenophon, one of his friends, tells us that "no one ever heard -him say or saw him do anything impious or irreverent, and he was so -piously and devoutly religious that he would take no step apart from -the will of heaven." Yet his {368} enemies maintained that he -disbelieved in the gods. His teaching was all the more disturbing -because Athens, having been defeated by Sparta, had just lived -through the terrible months of the rule of the Thirty, and though -these had been driven out, (this was in the year 399 B.C.), Athens -was in a state of unrest, of fear and of suspicion. Anyone who -taught anything new was looked upon as a possible enemy to the state, -and the enemies of Socrates seized this opportunity to bring definite -accusations against him. They said: "Socrates is guilty, inasmuch as -he does not believe in the gods whom the city worships, but -introduces other strange deities; he is also guilty inasmuch as he -corrupts the young men, and the punishment he has incurred is -death."[7] - -A trial followed. In an Athenian trial, first the accusers made -their speeches, and then the accused was allowed to defend himself. -Plato, the great pupil of Socrates, has given us the speech made by -his master at his trial, a speech known as the _Apology of Socrates_. -In it, the philosopher, an old man now of over seventy, set forth the -principles which had guided him in his teaching. - -He began by saying that he had never taught men to disbelieve in the -gods, and that the accusation of impiety against him was false, but -he did say that it was fair to ask him just what he had been trying -to do which had given rise to these reports. He then told them the -story of how a friend of his had gone to Delphi, and had asked the -Oracle if there were {369} any man wiser than he, and that the Oracle -had answered that there was no man. - - - Now see why I tell you this. I am going to explain to you the - origin of my unpopularity. When I heard of the Oracle I began to - reflect. What can God mean by this dark saying? I know very - well that I am not wise, even in the smallest degree. Then what - can he mean by saying that I am the wisest of men? It cannot be - that he is speaking falsely, for he is a god and cannot lie. And - for a long time I was at a loss to understand his meaning: then, - very reluctantly, I turned to seek for it in this manner. I went - to a man who was reputed to be wise, thinking that there, if - anywhere, I should prove the answer wrong, and meaning to point - out to the Oracle its mistake, and to say, "You said that I was - the wisest of men, but this man is wiser than I am." - - -But Socrates went on to say that after talking to this man, who was a -politician, he found that he was not wise because he thought he knew -things that he did not know, and because he would not acknowledge his -ignorance. He tried to prove to him that he was not wise, but only -succeeded in making him his enemy. - - - Next, [said Socrates], I went to another who was reputed to be - still wiser than the last, with exactly the same result. And - there again I made him, and many other men, my enemies. - - By reason of this examination, Athenians, I have made many - enemies of a very fierce and bitter kind, who have spread abroad - a great number of calumnies about me, {370} and people say that I - am a "wise man." For the bystanders always think that I am wise - myself in any matter wherein I convict another man of ignorance. - But, my friends, I believe that only God is really wise: and that - by this oracle he meant that men's wisdom is worth little or - nothing. I do not think that he meant that Socrates was wise. - He only made use of my name, and took me as an example, as though - he would say to men: "He among you is the wisest, who, like - Socrates, knows that in very truth his wisdom is worth nothing at - all." And therefore I still go about testing and examining every - man whom I think wise, whether he be a citizen or a stranger, as - God has commanded me: and whenever I find that he is not wise, I - point out to him on the part of God that he is not wise. And I - am so busy in this pursuit that I have never had leisure to take - any part worth mentioning in public matters, or to look after my - private affairs. I am in very great poverty by reason of my - service to God.[8] - - -Socrates then went on to prove that nothing in his teaching could -corrupt the young men, as his enemies declared he was doing, and to -prove his belief in the gods. He knew that he was on trial for his -life, but no fear of death stopped him from speaking that which he -believed to be the truth. - - - My friends, [he said], if you think that a man of any worth at - all ought to reckon the chances of life and death when he acts, - or that he ought to think of anything but whether he is acting - rightly or wrongly, and as a good or bad man would act, you are - grievously mistaken. It would be very strange conduct on my - {371} part if I were to desert my post now from fear of death or - of any other thing, when God has commanded me, as I am persuaded - that he has done, to spend my life in searching for wisdom, and - in examining myself and others. That would indeed be a very - strange thing: and then certainly I might with justice be brought - to trial for not believing in the gods; for I should be - disobeying the Oracle, and fearing death, and thinking myself - wise when I was not wise. For to fear death, my friends, is only - to think ourselves wise, without being wise: for it is to think - that we know what we do not know. For anything that man can - tell, death may be the greatest good that can happen to them: but - they fear it as if they knew quite well that it was the greatest - of evils. And what is this but that shameful ignorance of - thinking that we know what we do not know? - - Athenians, if you put me to death, you will not easily find - another man to fill my place. God has sent me to attack the - city, as if it were a great and noble horse, to use a quaint - simile, which was rather sluggish for its size, and which needed - to be roused by a gadfly: and I think that I am that gadfly that - God has sent to the city to attack it; for I never cease from - settling upon you as it were at every point, and rousing and - exhorting, and reproaching each man of you all day long.[9] - - -Socrates then referred to the custom in Athens that when a man was on -trial for his life, his wife and children sometimes appeared in court -in order to appeal to the pity of the judges and so obtain a -favourable sentence, but he refused to do that, for knowing that the -judges had taken an oath to administer justice justly, he believed -that such an {372} act on his part would be an attempt to make them -break their oaths. - - - Were I to be successful and to prevail on you by my prayers to - break your oaths, I should be clearly teaching you to believe - that there are no gods; and I should be simply accusing myself by - my defence of not believing in them. But, Athenians, that is - very far from the truth. I do believe in the gods as no one of - my accusers believes in them: and to you and to God I commit my - cause to be decided as is best for you and for me. - - -Socrates was found guilty by 281 votes to 220, and the penalty to be -inflicted was death. He had the right under Athenian law to suggest -an alternative penalty. - - - What counter-penalty shall I propose to you Athenians? What I - deserve, of course, must I not? What is a suitable reward to be - given to a poor benefactor who requires leisure to exhort you? - There is no reward, Athenians, so suitable for him as a public - maintenance in the Prytaneum. It is a much more suitable reward - for him than for any of you who has won a victory at the Olympic - Games with his horse or his chariots. So if I am to propose the - penalty which I really deserve, I propose this--a public - maintenance in the Prytaneum. - - Or shall I propose imprisonment? And why should I pass the rest - of my days in prison, the slave of successive officials? Or - shall I propose a fine, with imprisonment until it is paid? I - have told you why I will not do that. I should have to continue - in prison, for I have no money to pay a fine with. Shall I then - propose exile? {373} Perhaps you would agree to that. Life - would indeed be very dear to me if I were unreasonable enough to - expect that strangers would cheerfully tolerate my discussions - and reasonings, when you who are my fellow-citizens cannot endure - them, and have found them so burdensome and odious to you that - you are seeking now to be released from them. No indeed, - Athenians, that is not likely. A fine life I should lead for an - old man, if I were to withdraw from Athens, and pass the rest of - my days in wandering from city to city, and continually being - expelled.[10] - - -The alternatives were not accepted, as indeed Socrates knew they -would not be, and he was condemned to die. He accepted the sentence -calmly, "and with infinite gentleness and manliness. No one within -the memory of man, it is said, ever bowed his head to death more -nobly."[11] But death offered no terrors to Socrates. - - - If death [he said to his judges] is a journey to another place, - and the common belief be true, that there are all who have died, - what good could be greater than this? Would a journey not be - worth taking, at the end of which, in the other world, we should - be released from the self-styled judges who are here, and should - find the true judges who are said to sit in judgment below? Or - what would you not give to converse with Orpheus and Homer? I am - willing to die many times if this be true. And above all, I - could spend my time in examining those who are there, as I - examine men here, and in finding out which of them thinks himself - {374} wise, when he is not wise. What would we not give, my - judges, to be able to examine the great leader of the expedition - against Troy, or Odysseus, or countless other men and women whom - we could name?. It would be an infinite happiness to converse - with them, and to live with them, and to examine them. Assuredly - there they do not put men to death for doing that. For besides - the other ways in which they are happier than we are, they are - immortal, at least if the common belief be true. - - But now the time has come, and we must go hence; I to die, and - you to live. Whether life or death is better is known to God, - and to God only.[12] - - -Socrates was taken to prison where he spent a month before his -sentence was carried out. The delay was caused by the voyage of the -sacred ship, said to be that of Theseus, which had only just set out -on its annual voyage to Delos, and no Athenian could be put to death -during its absence.[13] He spent this month talking to his friends, -especially to Crito, who was very devoted to him, and who entreated -him to escape from prison, an escape for which he could very easily -have arranged. But the brave old man, loyal to his principles to the -end, refused, and he reminded Crito how all his life he had taught -that the greatest misfortune that could befall a man was to do wrong, -and the greatest crime a man could commit against his state was to -break her laws. - -The last day arrived. The story of that day has been told by one who -was present: - -{375} - - - I will try to relate the whole story to you from the beginning. - On the previous days I and the others who had always met in the - morning at the court where the trial was held, which was close to - the prison; and then we had gone in to Socrates. We used to wait - each morning until the prison was opened, conversing: for it was - not opened early. When it was opened, we used to go in to - Socrates, and we generally spent the whole day with him. But on - that morning we met earlier than usual; for the evening before we - had learnt, on leaving the prison, that the ship had arrived from - Delos. So we arranged to be at the usual place as early as - possible. When we reached the prison, the porter, who generally - let us in, came out to us and bade us wait a little, and not to - go in until he summoned us himself; "for the Eleven," he said, - "are releasing Socrates from his fetters, and giving directions - for his death today." In no great while he returned and bade us - enter. So we went in and found Socrates just released, and - Xanthippe, you know her, sitting by him, holding his child in her - arms. When Xanthippe saw us, she wailed aloud, and cried, in her - woman's way, "This is the last time, Socrates, that you will talk - with your friends, or they with you." And Socrates glanced at - Crito, and said, "Crito, let her be taken home." So some of - Crito's servants led her away, weeping bitterly and beating her - breast.[14] - - -Once more Socrates and his friends conversed, and once more he -expressed his joy at "going to the place where he hoped to gain the -wisdom that he had passionately longed for all his life." They -talked together until later in the day, and then {376} he rose and -went into another room to bathe himself: - - - Crito went with him and told us to wait. So we waited, talking - of him and dwelling on the greatness of the calamity which had - fallen upon us: it seemed as if we were going to lose a father, - and to be orphans for the rest of our life. When he had bathed, - and his children had been brought to him, he had two sons quite - little, and one grown up, and the women of his family were come, - he spoke with them in Crito's presence and gave them his last - commands; then he sent the women and children away, and returned - to us. By that time it was near the hour of sunset, for he had - been a long while within. When he came back to us he sat down, - but not much was said after that. - - -Presently the gaoler came in and told him that the hour had come for -him to die: - - - I have found you, [he said], the noblest and best man that has - ever come here; and now I am sure that you will not be angry with - me, but with those who you know are to blame. And so, farewell, - and try to bear what must be as lightly as you can; you know why - I have come. - - -With that he turned away weeping and went out. - - - Then Crito made a sign to his slave who was standing by, and the - slave went out, and after some delay returned with the man who - was to give the poison, carrying it prepared in a cup. When - Socrates saw him, he asked, "You understand these things, my good - sir, what have I to do?" - - {377} - - "You have only to drink this," he replied, "and to walk about - until your legs feel heavy, and then lie down; and it will act of - itself." With that he handed the cup to Socrates, who took it - quite cheerfully, without trembling, and without any change of - colour or of feature, and looked up at the man with that fixed - glance of his, and asked, "What say you to making a libation of - this draught? May I, or not?" "We only prepare so much as we - think sufficient, Socrates," he answered. "I understand," said - Socrates. "But I suppose that I may, and must, pray to the gods - that my journey hence may be prosperous: that is my prayer; be it - so." With these words he put the cup to his lips and drank the - poison quite calmly and cheerfully. Till then most of us had - been able to control our grief fairly well; but when we saw him - drinking, and then the poison finished, we could do so no longer: - my tears came fast in spite of myself: it was not for him, but at - my own misfortune in losing such a friend. Even before that - Crito had been unable to restrain his tears, and had gone away, - and Apollodorus, who had never once ceased weeping the whole - time, burst into a loud cry, and made us one and all break down - by his sobbing and grief, except only Socrates himself. "What - are you doing, my friends?" he exclaimed. "I sent away the women - chiefly in order that they might not offend in this way; for I - have heard that a man should die in silence. So calm yourselves - and bear up." When we heard that we were ashamed, and we ceased - from weeping.[15] - - -Socrates then walked about a little, but soon lay down on the couch, -and slowly the numbness crept {378} over him. He knew that when it -reached his heart, he would die. Once more he spoke. "Crito," he -said, "I owe a cock to Aesculapius; do not forget to pay it." These -were his last words, for in a few minutes he was dead. - - - Such was the end [said the friend who was with him to the last] - of a man who, I think, was the wisest and justest, and the best - man that I have ever known. But I did not pity him, for he - seemed to me happy, both in his bearing and in his words, so - fearlessly and nobly did he die. I could not help thinking that - the gods would watch over him still on his journey to the other - world, and that when he arrived there it would be well with him, - if it was ever well with any man.[16] - - - - III. GREEK LITERATURE: THE PHILOSOPHERS - - The word _philosophy_ means the love of wisdom, and to the Greeks - this wisdom was the serious effort made to understand both the - world and man. To us _philosophy_ generally means a wise - understanding of the right way of living, but with the Greeks it - included a great deal of what we to-day call _science_. Greek - philosophy was concerned with finding out the origins of things, - and from that knowledge to build up a right way of life. We do - not to-day go to the Greeks to learn science: their answers to - the questions asked were, some of them, wrong, and some of them - inadequate. But modern science has been made possible by the - qualities of mind which {379} the Greeks brought to their - enquiries: their passionate desire to know the truth about - things, their power of going behind old superstitions, and of - seeing things as they really are, their open-mindedness and - willingness to accept new truths, their powers of patient study - and observation and of reaching the unknown from the known. - - The earliest Greek philosophers lived in Ionia in the sixth - century B.C., and the greatest of them were Thales of Miletus and - Pythagoras of Samos. Something has already been said about - Thales.[17] He went further than the Egyptians and Babylonians - had done, not so much because of the new discoveries he made, but - because he brought to those discoveries not only the desire to - know that they were facts, but the desire to go behind the facts - and find out the reason for their existence. - - Thales lived to be an old man, but neither age nor infirmities - lessened his zeal for learning, and - - - it is said that once he was led out of his house by an old woman - for the purpose of observing the stars, and he fell into a ditch - and bewailed himself, on which the old woman said to him: "Do - you, O Thales, who cannot see what is under your feet, think that - you shall understand what is in heaven?"[18] - - -Pythagoras of Samos lived later in the sixth century than Thales. He -was a great traveller and seems to have visited not only the mainland -of Greece, but also Egypt and Crete, where he had {380} many rare -experiences going into the innermost parts of temples where as a rule -no strangers were admitted. He also went to Italy where he founded a -school, and gathered about three hundred pupils round him. - -Though it was not believed by the world at large until nearly two -thousand years later, Pythagoras taught that the world was round, -and, as far as is known, he was the first thinker who made this -discovery. It was Pythagoras who laid the foundations for later -mathematical knowledge, especially in geometry and arithmetic, and -who taught that there was a science of numbers apart from their use -as a practical means of calculation. - -In the fifth century B.C., Athens had become an Empire and the -"school of Hellas," and the centre of Greek learning was found there -and no longer in Ionia. The story of Socrates has already been -told.[19] This great teacher did not write anything himself because -he believed that it was a greater thing for a man to live well than -to write well, and that his particular way of teaching and constant -intercourse with his fellow-men was the best way of teaching those -truths in which he believed. The account of his life and teaching, -however, was written down and given to the world by his pupil Plato, -who carried on his master's work. Plato was about twenty-eight years -old when Socrates was put to death, and for twelve years after that -time he travelled. Then he returned to Athens, bought a house and -garden (unlike Socrates he was well-off), and spent the {381} next -forty years of his life teaching in the Academy. Plato was an -idealist, and in addition to his writings about Socrates, he has left -us the _Republic_, the picture of what he thought an ideal state -should be, and some other works in which he discusses at great length -what things it is most worth while that men should pursue in life, -and why they should pursue them. He taught that goodness was worth -being sought after for its own sake and not for any material reward -that comes from pursuing it. In all his teaching he emphasizes the -fact that the greatest things in life and those which are eternal are -not always the things that can be seen, and that the soul of man does -not live on material things but on wisdom, beauty, truth and love. -The importance of Plato in this teaching was that he was the -forerunner of the great Christian writers who believed with St. Paul -that "the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which -are not seen are eternal."[20] - -As a young man, Plato had seen in Athens under the rule of the -Thirty, the lawlessness and confusion that arose from a tyrannously -ordered state, and the _Republic_ was an attempt to show what he -thought life in an ideal state might be. His vision is not a very -practical one, but Plato was not a practical statesman. The great -value of the _Republic_ to the world to-day is that just because its -ideals could never be wholly carried out, the questions which all -statesmen in all ages have had to settle, could be and were -fearlessly discussed, unhampered {382} by the compromises and -conventions which beset modern politics. - -Plato could write of other things besides politics and ideals. He -had a gift for poetry which comes out in many a fairy-tale that he -introduces here and there into his writings, knowing that sometimes a -great truth can be more easily driven home in such a form. Socrates -and a friend were once walking by the stream Ilissus. It was a hot -summer's day, and as they were barefoot, they cooled their feet in -the water and then sat down under the shade of a plane-tree to rest -and talk. And as they rested, Socrates told his friend the legend of -the grasshoppers. They were said to have been - - - human beings in an age before the Muses. And when the Muses came - and song appeared they were ravished with delight; and singing - always, never thought of eating and drinking, until at last in - their forgetfulness they died. And now they live again in the - grasshoppers; and this is the return which the Muses make to - them: they neither hunger nor thirst, but from the hour of their - birth they are always singing, and never eating or drinking; and - when they die they go and inform the Muses in heaven who honours - them on earth.[21] - - -When Philip of Macedon wanted the best Greek teacher known as a tutor -for his son Alexander, he sent for Aristotle. We know very little -about the life of Aristotle. He had been a pupil of Plato at the -Academy for twenty years and had learnt the best of all that great -philosopher could teach him. {383} On his return from Macedonia, he -founded a school of his own at Athens, the Lyceum, where he spent the -rest of his life teaching and studying. He died in 322 B.C., one -year after his pupil Alexander. But if little is known of the -details of his life, we know something of his character from things -that Alexander said about him, and the esteem in which he held him, -and something of the kindliness of his nature from his will which has -been preserved. He made provision for all who had faithfully served -him and gave many of his slaves their freedom. He had been twice -married, and his second wife "who behaved so well towards me," was so -provided for that she could marry again, and he made arrangements for -the marriage of his daughter. In reading of the life of the Athenian -man and the Athenian woman, their ways seem to lie far apart and the -wife to have had very little share in the interests of her husband. -In his will Aristotle gives us a glimpse of the place which the wife -sometimes, at least, held. He left directions that the bones of his -first wife, the wife of his youth, were to be taken from their -resting-place and buried with his, and this was to be done "as she -herself charged." - -The work of Aristotle is amazing, for he not only wrote on every -conceivable subject, but wrote as a master. For more than a thousand -years after his death, the books he wrote were studied in schools and -universities, and formed the foundation of all education. He wrote -on astronomy, mathematics, biology, botany and many other subjects, -and he has not only been called the _Father of Natural Science_, -{384} but his writings remained the standard authority on many -scientific subjects for centuries after his death. Aristotle was -more practical than Plato, though less inspiring as a writer. As we -have already seen, he, too, wrote about an ideal state in his -_Politics_.[22] Aristotle believed that the life of a state was like -that of an individual; that the aim of both should be noble living, -and that peace and justice between states was just as important as -between individuals. But he did more than describe an ideal state; -he described the education which such a state should give to its -youth, the result of which should be not that a man should boast that -his state was great and glorious, but that, being the citizen of such -a state, in all that he did he should strive to be worthy of her. - -Greek philosophy and science had begun in Ionia and then passed to -Athens. To the thinkers of the fourth century B.C. the fall of -Athens must have seemed a great disaster, but in reality it was of -the utmost service to the world. The Greek spirit was one of those -imperishable things that cannot die, and it was to go out from Athens -and spread over a wider world than it had hitherto known. It spread -first to Alexandria where, in the Hellenistic Age, the next great -group of philosophers and men of science were to be found. - - - -IV. GREEK LITERATURE: THE HISTORIANS - -The word _history_ is a Greek word and means an _enquiry_. The -Greeks were not the first people in {385} the world who wrote -history, but they wrote it as it had never been written before, and -some of the greatest history in the world is that which was written -by Greeks. These writers were not content with merely narrating -events that had taken place, they made what the word history means, -an enquiry. They possessed the imagination, not only to describe -events and scenes vividly, but to feel as the people about whom they -were writing felt, and to understand the passions that moved them at -great crises of their history. They were the first historians who -took the trouble to find out why nations and individuals acted as -they did, and to sift their evidence, finding out what was true and -what was false. - -The oldest of the Greek historians was Herodotus, the _Father of -History_, an Ionian born in Halicarnassus in 484 B.C. He spent a -good part of his life travelling, during which time he collected -materials which he afterwards used in his history. He was a man who -was intensely interested in everything he saw, a very credulous -traveller, for he seems to have believed almost everything that was -told him: old traditions, all kinds of miraculous occurrences, and -many things that it is evident could never have happened. Though he -undoubtedly believed a great deal that was not true, he did not -swallow all that was told him, for after narrating some marvel he -will say: "I am bound to report all that is said, but I am not bound -to believe it." - -Herodotus was a deeply religious man, and he lived before the -disturbing days when men began to {386} question the existence of the -gods. To him history was a great drama, the plot of which was the -triumph of the Greek over the Barbarian, which he saw as the will of -the gods, and to him, as to all devout Greeks of his day, all -wrong-doing, all disobedience to the will of the gods brought its own -punishment, its retribution, what the Greeks called its Nemesis. - -As a story-teller, Herodotus is unrivalled. He wrote his history in -order that "the great and wonderful deeds done by the Greeks and -Persians should not lack renown," and the earlier books which give an -account of all he had learnt in his travels in the East, of Egypt and -Babylonia, of Lydia and Persia, lead up to the great climax, the -invasion of Greece by the Persians.[23] In the pages of Herodotus we -live again, as we live nowhere else, through all the excitement and -thrill of the days when Greece fought the Barbarian and drove him out -of the land. - -The greatest of the Greek historians was Thucydides, great not only -among the Greek writers, but among the historians of the world. He -was born about 471 B.C., and he wrote the history of the -Peloponnesian War. Thucydides was an Athenian, a man of wealth and -good position, and was one of the few who had the plague and -recovered from it. As the war went on, he was anxious to fight and -help to bring it to a victorious close, but a far greater career was -in store for him. He was elected a general and sent at the head of -an army to relieve {387} Amphipolis and prevent its surrender to the -Spartans. But he arrived too late, the city had been taken, and he -was exiled in consequence.[24] To this exile we owe his history. - -Thucydides is one of the most accurate and impartial of historians. -He was filled with an abiding love for Athens, but, unlike some -Athenians, he felt no bitterness towards her for exiling him. The -only remark he makes about his banishment is that it gave him the -opportunity to write his history. He was scrupulously fair to both -sides, and he tells us himself of the care he took to be accurate and -to accept nothing on the evidence of mere tradition. - - - Men do not discriminate, [he said], and are too ready to receive - ancient traditions about their own as well as about other - countries; and so little trouble do they take in the search after - truth; so readily do they accept whatever comes first to hand. - Of the events of the war I have not ventured to speak from any - chance information, nor according to any notion of my own; I have - described nothing but what I either saw myself, or learned from - others of whom I made the most careful and particular enquiry. - The task was a laborious one, because eye-witnesses of the same - occurrences gave different accounts of them, as they remembered - or were interested in the actions of one side or the other. If - he who desires to have before his eyes a true picture of the - events which have happened, and of the like events which may be - expected to happen hereafter in the order of human things, shall - pronounce what I have written {388} to be useful, then I shall be - satisfied. My history is an everlasting possession, not a prize - composition which is heard and forgotten.[25] - - -Unlike Herodotus, Thucydides did not trace events to the will of the -gods, but he held that the deeds of men and the use or misuse they -made of their opportunities were responsible for them. He never -moralizes, but in the clear and reasoned order in which he narrates -events the story is carried down from the beginning to its inevitable -conclusion. - -Thucydides has preserved for all time the memory of what Athens was -in her greatest days, and the ideals of one of her great -statesmen.[26] But the claim of his book to be an "everlasting -possession" is justified not because of the actual history he -recorded, but because of the critical and scientific way in which he -made his enquiry which has become a model for all later historians. - -Thucydides left the story of the Peloponnesian War unfinished; he -never even finished the last sentence. The story was completed by -Xenophon. He was not a great historian like his predecessors, but he -has left us valuable information about the later events of the war in -the _Hellenica_, the romantic tale of adventure which tells how a -band of Ten Thousand Greeks found their way home from the heart of -Mesopotamia,[27] and the _Economist_, a delightful picture of a Greek -household.[28] - -{389} - -There is one other Greek writer, who, though he did not write -history, has left us much valuable historical information. This was -Plutarch (A.D. 46-120) who lived long after the great days of Greece -had passed. He was a Greek from Boeotia, a well-educated man who had -many friends with whom he was wont to discuss all kinds of subjects: -Philosophy, history, literature, or politics, and he was also a -writer. The great work for which his name is remembered is the -_Parallel Lives of the Greeks and Romans_. These are the -biographies, arranged in pairs of a Greek and a Roman, each pair -followed by a comparison between the two. Plutarch never imagined -that he was writing history, and in these _Lives_ there is no wide -view over a whole period, but in each life there is a vivid picture -of a personality and a character. Plutarch knew how to choose -picturesque details and anecdotes, and he was attracted by simple, -upright, honourable, patriotic characters, which makes his book a -storehouse of stories about such men. Few biographies in the world -have been read so widely or have achieved such immortality as have -the _Lives_ of Plutarch, and probably none have done more to -encourage manliness and the spirit of good sportsmanship. - - - -V. GREEK LITERATURE: THE DRAMATISTS - -A classic is a work of art or of literature that never dies, a book -that will be read forever, no matter when or by whom it was written. -We have said that when the history of a nation is recorded in {390} -language we call it literature, but by such literature is meant not -only historical writing, but whatever takes the form of letters. The -history of a nation is an enquiry into how that nation _thinks_ as -well as into what it _does_, and its philosophers, historians and -dramatists are as much a part of its history as its statesmen and men -of action. The great Greek dramatists were men living the life of -their time, and it was a time when stirring things were happening. -The dramas of Aeschylus, Sophocles and Euripides were written during -the period which began with the repulse of the Persians, which -included the golden days of Pericles, and which saw the tragic -changes which came over Athens during the long-drawn-out misery of -the Peloponnesian War. - -Now the great Greek dramas are among the classics of the world.[29] -There are various reasons for this, but one, and not the least, is -that they are the outward expression of that love of beauty and of -self-control that is one of the priceless gifts of Greece to the -world. To the Greek, beauty meant perfection in all that he did, the -association of beautiful words and forms with beautiful deeds and -scenes. To him _beauty_ was the same as _goodness_, and ugliness was -evil. And beauty meant self-control, the absence of all excess and -exaggeration. The Greek dramatists had no models to guide them, yet -they produced works that almost perfectly attained this Greek ideal -of Beauty. - -The oldest of these dramatists was Aeschylus. He took an active part -in the Persian Wars, and he {391} thought this of so much greater -importance than any literary success he had achieved, that his -epitaph, said to have been written by himself, saying nothing about -his poetry, states only that he fought the Persians. His name and -birthplace were inscribed and then that "the grove of Marathon can -bear witness to his good soldierhood, and the long-haired Mede who -felt it." One of the few Greek plays of which the plot was not taken -from ancient Greek legend was the _Persians_ of Aeschylus,[30] -interesting because it is the first historical play written by a poet -who took part himself in the events of which it tells. - -The greatest work of Aeschylus was a Trilogy, (i.e., three -consecutive plays bearing on the same subject): the _Agamemnon_, the -greatest of all his plays; the _Libation-Bearers_, and the _Furies_. -These tell the tale, so often told in the Greek drama, of the murder -by his wife of Agamemnon on his return from Troy, of Orestes who -avenged his father's death, of the Furies who followed him as a -result of his deed, and of how in the end he found release. These -plays are haunted throughout by the belief that over certain families -hangs a curse, that the sins of their fathers are visited on their -children, and that from this punishment there is no escape. -Aeschylus was filled with the realization of the power of the great -unseen forces that move the world, but he believed that if on one -side there were the Furies demanding blood for blood, on the other -were Apollo and Athena, symbols of the self-control that could -overcome the heritage of anger and of passion. - -{392} - -Sophocles lived through the great years of Athens. Only sixteen -years old when the battle of Salamis was fought, he must have been -filled with all the enthusiasm of youth over the victory. It was -said of Sophocles that he had "such charm of character that he was -loved by everybody wherever he went." Life seems to have been happy -and prosperous for him from the beginning. He won the first prize at -the festival with his first play, and when he was only twenty-eight -he won a prize over Aeschylus who was then nearly sixty. - -The greatest plays of Sophocles are those which tell of the ancient -legends of Thebes: of Oedipus as King, and then as Outcast, and of -_Antigone_, who in one play--_Oedipus at Colonus_--goes forth with -her exiled father, and in another, the great play that bears her -name, was faced with the terrible problem of having to break either -the laws of God or those of the state, and of deciding which she -would do. By all who understand the real greatness of the Greek -drama, Sophocles is accounted the greatest of the dramatists. He -represents in literature the spirit that Athena Parthenos represented -on the Acropolis: a spirit of reverence, of the serenity that comes -when the conflict is over and the victory won, and of triumphant -belief in all that is good and beautiful and true. - -[Illustration: SOPHOCLES. Lateran Museum, Rome] - -Very different from either Aeschylus or Sophocles was Euripides. -According to tradition, he was born in the island of Salamis on the -very day of the battle. As he grew up, he became a friend of -Socrates, but for the most part he lived a solitary {393} life, not -very much liked, and taking as little part in public life as he -could. He was essentially a student, and was one of the first -Athenians to collect a library. Euripides lived in Athens during the -Peloponnesian War, a period of restless questioning, of breaking away -from old traditions and beliefs, of lowering of the old ideals. The -war had brought a new spirit and Euripides represented it. He -criticized customs and beliefs which he thought were unworthy of the -best spirit in Athens, he questioned belief in the gods, and in one -great play, the _Trojan Women_,[31] he showed the misery brought by -war. He was the first poet to strip war of its glamour and to show -it as it affected the conquered. In the _Electra_ and in _Iphigenia -in Tauris_,[32] Euripides deals with the familiar tragedy of Orestes, -pursued by the Furies after the murder of his mother, and in the -_Alcestis_ he tells the old tale of how a noble woman was willing to -sacrifice her life for that of a selfish husband, and of how she was -brought back from the gates of Hades by Heracles. - -The strength of Euripides lies in his wonderful portrayal of -character. He judges his characters by the standards of the men and -women of his own day and not by those of the gods and heroes, and he -is a merciless critic. This makes his dramas most extraordinarily -vivid and human, but it also accounts for some of the criticism and -dislike he met with in his own day. - -Aristophanes wrote comedies.[33] His plays are based on the daily -life of his time, and, to {394} understand them, one must know what -were the political questions of his day, who were the leaders, who -were the writers, the gossip of the Agora and the barber's shop, the -likes and dislikes of the men amongst whom he lived. But to those -who know enough of these things to follow his allusions, the plays of -Aristophanes are full of interest, and we learn a great deal about -life in Athens from them. - -Aristophanes was younger than Euripides, but, unlike the older man, -he was very conservative, and he disliked the new ways by which the -Sophists were teaching the youths, for he believed that the new -methods would make them irreverent, good at idle talk but at nothing -else, shallow and effeminate. He constantly compared the young men -of his own day with those of the generation that had fought at -Marathon, and in comparing them he found them wanting, for to him the -heroes of the age of Marathon represented all that was best in -Athenian manhood. - - - -VI. GREEK ART - -The Greeks loved Beauty, especially the Athenians of the fifth -century B.C., but they did not spend all their time in a conscious -search for it. They were very busy about and interested in a great -many other things: the administration of the city, relations with -other states, often fighting, trading and travelling, building ships -and sending out colonies. We have already seen what the Greeks meant -by {395} Beauty,[34] and an appreciation of it touched all these -things. - -Now a great mistake has been made in modern times in that art has too -often been looked upon as a luxury, as something that the rich can -have but not the poor, something that has not very much to do with a -practical every-day life. But to believe that is to misunderstand -altogether what art is, for art is something that is _done_, not -something that is merely _looked at_. All men have within them a -vision of what kind of world they would make, if it was left to them -to order, and in its widest meaning art is the outward and concrete -expression of that vision. To confine art to architecture, sculpture -and painting, is to rob it of half its meaning. The forms of art are -as many and varied as are the interests of every-day life, and this -belief is one of the great gifts of Greece to the world. It was not -given to every Greek to be a great artist. Not every one could be an -Aeschylus and write the _Agamemnon_, a Sophocles and write the -_Antigone_, a Pheidias and create the _Parthenon_, or a Praxiteles -and model the _Hermes_, but every one could work in the spirit of -which these great works are the supreme examples. - -The history of a nation is an enquiry into how that nation expresses -itself in stone and marble, as well as into what it thinks and does; -and its architects, artists and sculptors stand beside its -historians, philosophers, dramatists and statesmen as the men who -have made its history. - -In its narrower, modern sense, art is the {396} outward sign of the -spirit of a nation as it is expressed in painting and in stone and -marble. Except for the vase-paintings, Greek painting has almost -entirely disappeared, but the achievements of the Greeks in -architecture and sculpture are amongst the greatest that the world -has ever seen. Something has already been said about Greek -architecture[35]; the same spirit expressed itself in Greek -sculpture. To know the Greeks and the real worth of what they have -given to the world, it is not enough to read _about_ them; one must -learn to know them at first-hand. To do that one must read what they -wrote (if not in Greek, then in translations), and look at what they -built and at their sculpture (if not at the originals, then by means -of casts and photographs), and when one does that, one begins to know -a little of what the spirit was that produced such things. The -Greeks considered that the human form was the most fitting subject -for representation in sculpture, yet they were not great portrait -makers; that was left for a later race to achieve. What they aimed -at doing was to give outward expression to those qualities of the -mind and spirit which they, as a people, prized so highly: Beauty, -Self-control, Harmony, Restraint. The greatest Greek sculpture was, -as it were, the answer, wrought in marble, to the prayer of Socrates -to Pan: "Beloved Pan, and all ye other gods who haunt this place, -give me beauty in the inward soul; and may the outward and the inward -man be at one."[36] - -{397} - -The Greeks lived at a time when so much was being done for the first -time, and to all their art they brought a spirit of Youth and of Joy -in creation, yet also a spirit of Patience in achieving results, for -they were never in a hurry, and they knew that there were no short -cuts to the perfection which was to them so important a part of -beauty. Their statues are very idealistic, but their idealism was -practical, and though, as we know, they did not always fulfil their -ideals, they knew that fulfilment was possible. Though the sculpture -of the Greeks represented man, not as he always was, but as they -believed he might be, did he but follow where his best instincts led, -it did sometimes result in something that to them was not only an -ideal, but something so real and life-like that they could say of a -sculptured figure of a Sleeping Ariadne: - - - Strangers, touch not the marble Ariadne, lest she even start up - on the quest of Theseus.[37] - - - -[1] _The Book of the Ancient World_. - -[2] Thucydides, VII. - -[3] Plato: _Symposium_, translated by Jowett. - -[4] Diogenes Laertius. - -[5] Xenophon: _Memorabilia_. - -[6] Plato: _Symposium_, translated by Jowett. - -[7] Diogenes Laertius. - -[8] Plato: _Apology_, translated by F. J. Church. - -[9] Plato: _Apology_, translated by F. J. Church. - -[10] Plato: _Apology_, translated by F. J. Church. - -[11] Xenophon: _Memorabilia_. - -[12] Plato: _Apology_, translated by F. J. Church. - -[13] See p. 9. - -[14] Plato: _Phaedo_, translated by F. J. Church. - -[15] Plato: _Phaedo_, translated by F. J. Church. - -[16] Plato: _Phaedo_, translated by F. J. Church. - -[17] See p. 111. - -[18] Diogenes Laertius. - -[19] See p. 361 ff. - -[20] II Corinthians IV, 18. - -[21] Plato: _Phaedrus_, translated by Jowett. - -[22] See p. 72. - -[23] See Chapters viii and ix. - -[24] See p. 302. - -[25] Thucydides, I. - -[26] See _The Funeral Speech_, p. 187. - -[27] See Chapter XVI, v. _The March of the Ten Thousand_. - -[28] See Chapter XII, ii. _The Athenian Lady_. - -[29] For the construction of a Greek drama, see Chapter XIV. - -[30]See p. 163. - -[31] See p. 300. - -[32] See Chapter XIV. - -[33] See p. 300. - -[34] See p. 390. - -[35] See Chapter XV. - -[36] See in this connection the reference to Praxiteles on p. 222. - -[37] Author Unknown: From _Select Epigrams from the Greek Anthology_, -translated by J. W. Mackail. - - - - -{398} - -CHAPTER XX - -THE HELLENISTIC AGE - - -I. THE EXTENT OF GREEK INFLUENCE - -Alexander was a great conqueror and he won for himself a mighty -empire. But that empire did not last, for his successors were unable -to hold it together. It would almost seem as if he had crowded into -his short reign of barely thirteen years, hero deeds and marvellous -exploits, which however much they may have done to enrich tradition -and to appeal to the imagination, were hardly of any great permanent -value. Alexander, however, did more than create a passing empire; he -did more than any other one man to spread the knowledge of Greek -civilization over the world. Wherever he passed with his conquering -army he founded cities, where he established colonies of Greeks: men -who spoke the Greek tongue, who worshipped the Greek gods, who read -and loved Greek literature, and who lived according to Greek ideals. -Such cities were founded in Egypt, in Asia Minor, in Syria, in -Babylonia, in Persia and even in the distant lands till then unknown, -further to the mysterious East. - -{399} - -But Alexander did yet more to spread Greek civilization than by the -founding of cities. All the great ports of the Eastern Mediterranean -were in his hands, which meant that Greek merchants were established -there, and that the whole commerce of that region was in the hand of -Greeks. - -The history of Greek civilization may be divided into two periods. -The first lasted until the days of Alexander; it included the early -experiments made by Greek states in the art of governing themselves, -the repulse of the Barbarian, the great days of Athens, the -disastrous Peloponnesian War. Through all this period Greece was -learning how to do things. She was in the making and was creating -what was to live as long as men should love what was great, but she -was living for herself. This period is called the _Hellenic Period_. - -Beginning with Alexander, Greek civilization stepped out into a new -age. Greece was no longer living for herself, she was living for the -world. Greek civilization had been far-flung over Asia; the -Barbarian was adopting Greek customs, Greece was the teacher of the -world, in science, in art, and in all that was meant by civilized -living. This period lasted from the time of Alexander until Greece -became part of the Roman Empire in 146 B.C., and is known as the -_Hellenistic Age_. The centre of Greek civilization was now no -longer in Athens, but in Alexandria, the city in Egypt founded by -Alexander, and which from its situation was the natural link between -the East and the West. - - -{400} - -II. ALEXANDRIA - -Alexandria had not been founded for very many years before she was -the rival of Carthage, that powerful commercial city founded by the -Phoenicians, as mistress of the Mediterranean, and in the Eastern -Mediterranean, known as the Levant, she held undisputed sway. From -that time to the present day Alexandria has been the door through -which the commerce of the East and the West has passed. - -In the Hellenistic Age, Alexandria developed into a very beautiful -city. Temples and all kinds of public buildings, great palaces and -gardens, docks and warehouses were built. At the entrance to the -harbour stood a great lighthouse, called the Pharos from the island -on which it stood, and which was considered so great a marvel that it -was numbered amongst the Seven Wonders of the ancient World. - -This period was in many ways like a more modern one. Greek -civilization had stepped out into a new world. The conquering armies -of Alexander, going out to the ends of the earth, had made -communication possible between places that had hitherto hardly known -of each other's existence. Science had made such remarkable strides -that man's power over nature had been enormously increased, and the -increase of scientific knowledge was affecting the old religious -beliefs in the gods. Nothing seemed to be quite the same as it had -hitherto been, and then, as at all such times, the minds of {401} men -were affected by the changes. Some became more conservative than -before and wanted nothing changed, because to them the old was -necessarily the best, and there was only evil in what was new. -Others went to the other extreme and wanted everything changed, -because to them the new must necessarily be better than the old. But -quietly in between these two extremes were the thinkers, those who -were keeping alive that Greek spirit which knew that the vision of -the whole truth had not yet been given to any man, and that the way -to progress was not by destroying the old, but by building upon it in -order to go on from a firm foundation to a fuller knowledge of the -truth. Not to Thales, nor to Socrates, nor to Aristotle, nor yet to -the men of the twentieth century has the complete vision of the truth -of all things been vouchsafed, but to those who follow the quest in -the spirit of the Greeks of old is granted to add a little to the -progress of human knowledge. - -It was in the Museum at Alexandria that the thinkers worked. This -Museum was founded by Ptolemy Soter, one of the rulers of Egypt after -the break-up of Alexander's empire, and very much developed by his -son, Ptolemy Philadelphus. This Museum, the Temple of the Muses, was -what today would be called a university. It had lecture halls where -mathematicians, astronomers, poets and philosophers taught; courts -and porches where men walked and talked, houses where the men of -learning lived. Above all, it had a Library, which contained several -thousand books. This library was {402} catalogued by Callimachus, -the first librarian of whom there is any record, and there were a -hundred and twenty books of his catalogue. Book, however, is a wrong -word to use for the collection in the Alexandrian Library, for there -were no _books_ then, as we know them. Rolls took the place of -books, and Callimachus soon found that the big rolls were very -inconvenient. It is said that he complained that "a big book is a -big nuisance," and that it was when he was librarian that the plan of -dividing the large rolls into a number of smaller ones was thought -of. These were easier to handle, but one work required a great many -of the smaller rolls, and thirty-six were required for the Iliad and -the Odyssey. - -As the fame of the Library spread, students from all over the Greek -world came to Alexandria, and there was a great demand for additional -copies of the works in the Library. For more than three centuries, -Alexandria was the great book-producing mart in the world. The -Museum possessed a good collection of the best known copies of the -works of the classic writers, and Ptolemy Philadelphus very much -enlarged this collection. He bought every copy of all existing Greek -works he could find, and as he paid very high prices for them, there -was a steady flow of books to Alexandria from all over the civilized -world. It is said that he refused to send food to the Athenians at a -time of famine unless they agreed to give him certain copies they -still possessed of the works of Aeschylus, Sophocles and Euripides. -He paid liberally for them, not {403} only in the promised shipment -of corn but also in silver. - -As more and more copies of the classic writers were wanted, a regular -publishing trade arose in Alexandria. Callimachus was not only the -Librarian of the Library, but a publisher of the works of classic -writers. Large numbers of copyists were employed whose business it -was to make careful and accurate copies of the works required. This -accounts for the fact that in certain works of ancient literature it -is sometimes difficult to know what is the really original form of -certain lines or passages, because in spite of their care, the -copyists made mistakes, and unfortunately many original copies of the -classics were lost in the great fire which destroyed the Library in -the last century B.C. The Alexandrian school of copyists was a very -famous one, and Alexandrian Editions of the classics were considered -the very best to be had. - -Not only were Greek works copied, but other literature was translated -into Greek and then copied. It was in Alexandria that the oldest -manuscript of the Old Testament we possess was transcribed. It was a -translation of the whole of the Old Testament from Hebrew into Greek, -made, according to tradition, by a group of seventy Jewish scholars, -whence comes its name, the Septuagint. These scholars were -encouraged to undertake this work by the King, who is said to have -provided the means for their support whilst they were engaged on the -translation, and who gave them a special quarter of the city in which -to live. - - -{404} - -III. SCIENCE IN THE HELLENISTIC AGE - -Greek science had been born in Ionia, and during the Hellenic Period -of Greek civilization, it had gone hand in hand with philosophy. The -earliest days of pure science came in the Hellenistic Age, and its -home was in Alexandria. Amongst the many names of men of this time -who contributed something of value to science, there are two which -must be remembered: those of Euclid and Archimedes. - -Euclid lived in Alexandria. He was a mathematician and wrote a great -work on geometry. No scientific work in the world has lived in quite -the same way as has this book of Euclid, for since the time that the -Elements of Euclid were written, it was used as a school text book -without interruption until a very few years ago. - -Archimedes was probably the greatest of the Greek scientific thinkers -of the third century B.C. He did not live in Alexandria; he was a -native of Syracuse in Sicily, but he was in close touch with all the -scientific work that was being done there. He was a great scientific -investigator, the inventor of many practical and ingenious devices -and discovered the principle of moving heavy bodies by means of -pulleys and levers. An extraordinarily large ship was made for the -King of Syracuse, a ship of marvel to that age. It contained a -gymnasium, gardens of most wonderful beauty and full of rich plants, -a temple to Aphrodite, a drawing-room with its walls and doors of -boxwood, having a bookcase in it, a bath-room with three brazen -vessels for {405} holding hot water, and a fish-pond. All the -furnishings were of the most exquisite craftsmanship, and all the -rooms had floors of mosaic, in which the whole story of the Iliad was -depicted in a most marvellous manner. There were doors of ivory, -beautiful couches, and it was full of pictures and statues, goblets -and vases of every form and shape imaginable. But the ship was so -large that no one could move it. Archimedes, however, we are told, -launched it by himself with the aid of only a few people. For having -prepared a helix (probably some mechanical contrivance with pulleys), -he drew this vessel, enormous as it was, down to the sea. And it was -said that Archimedes was the first person who ever invented this -helix.[1] - -Archimedes believed it possible to move greater bodies even than the -ship, and he is said to have boasted: "Give me a place to stand on, -and I will move the earth." - -This great inventor did other things which struck the imagination of -the men amongst whom he lived, for of some of them they had never -seen the like before. During the siege of Syracuse by the Romans, in -212 B.C., Archimedes invented marvellous war-engines: strange -grappling hooks which, it was said, could seize an enemy's ship and -overturn it in the sea, and he showed the Syracusans how to set up a -water pump in their ships, so that should water get into the hold, it -could be pumped out and the ship saved from sinking. He is also said -to have made some arrangement of mirrors and burning {406} glass by -means of which the Roman ships were set on fire. But in spite of all -these inventions, the Romans took the city, and Archimedes was -killed. He was found by a Roman soldier, sitting in his house and -paying no heed to any danger, but intent on drawing mathematical -diagrams on the ground. Looking up and seeing the enemy, all he said -was: "Stand away, fellow, from my diagram." The soldier, not knowing -who he was, killed him. - - - -IV. THE END OF GREEK INDEPENDENCE AND THE POWER FROM THE WEST - -It is said that on his deathbed Alexander bequeathed his empire "to -the strongest," but there was no one general able enough or strong -enough to succeed him, and for about fifty years after his death, his -empire was torn by strife and bloodshed. At last some kind of peace -and order was restored, but the one great empire of Alexander had -disappeared, and the civilized world was broken up into a number of -independent states, of which the most important were the Kingdoms of -Syria, Egypt and Macedonia. During the long wars which had preceded -this settlement, many battles had been fought on Greek soil. The -Greeks were not strong enough to prevent this and neither were they -able to maintain their independence when Macedonia became a kingdom. -She was too powerful and strong a neighbour and Greece fell under her -rule. Tyrants were established in the Greek cities, a deep -humiliation to the freedom-loving Greek. - -{407} - -But once more the old Greek spirit flared up and the tyrants were -driven out. From time to time in the history of Greece, states had -joined together in various leagues and alliances, but the inability -of the Greeks to combine for long, even when their very life demanded -it, had prevented such leagues from lasting any great length of time. -But in 281 B.C. when once again the independence of Greece was -threatened, one of these old leagues was revived, the Achaean League. -It lasted for nearly a century and is of the greatest interest to -modern times, for until the union of the American states, about two -thousand years later, there was nothing in the history of the world -like it again. - -The Achaean League was not an alliance, but a real federation of -states, with one central government. Each separate state kept its -own sovereign rights over all its domestic affairs, but questions of -war and peace, the support of the army, and all relations with -foreign states were controlled by the federal government. It was the -only experiment in ancient times of real federal government. - -The head of the League was called the General, and it was under the -general Aratus that it became very powerful. Almost all the more -important of the Greek states entered the League, with the exception -of Athens and Sparta. Neither by persuasion, nor by force, unless -she might be recognized as head of the League, would Sparta consent -to become a member, and so powerful was she in the Peloponnesus that -Aratus begged the aid of Macedonia to subdue her. Sparta was -conquered, but Macedonia {408} regained her supremacy in Greece, and -the power of the Achaean League was broken. - -The old Greece of history no longer existed. Greek civilization had -spread over the Mediterranean world, but the free and independent -city-state had disappeared and nothing lasting had taken its place. -Alexander himself, and still more his successors, had failed to -create an empire which gave to those who belonged to it any sense of -citizenship in it. The Hellenistic world was a Greek civilization, -but it failed to arouse in men of Greek birth that patriotism which -the city-state had inspired. - -The creation of a world state of which men were to be proud to call -themselves citizens and for which they would gladly die, was to be -the work of another great power, which even as the old Greece was -passing, was growing strong in the West. Rome was steadily -conquering the civilized world. Already she ruled over Italy and was -extending her power over the Eastern Mediterranean. She conquered -Macedonia, and one by one the old free states of Greece and those of -the Achaean League lost their independence, until in 146 B.C. -Corinth, rich, commercial, gay Corinth, was taken by Rome, and Greece -became a Roman province. The citizens of this great state, which was -to include, not only Greece and the Levant, but the whole -Mediterranean and lands far beyond its shores, were to be proud of -the name of Roman. Yet Rome, destined to be the Mistress of the -World, and in political power an empire, succeeding where Greece -{409} had failed, owed all that was most worth while in the things of -the higher intellectual life of the mind to Greece. The Greek spirit -was never to die. - - - -[1] From _Athenaeus_. - - - - -{410} - -SUGGESTIONS ABOUT BOOKS FOR FURTHER READING - -This book has been intended for those who were reading about Greece -for the first time. The following list is for those _older_ readers -of the book who would like to know more about this great -civilization. It only contains suggestions as to how to _begin_, and -is therefore not in any way a complete bibliography. - - -I. _Books about Greece_ - -GROTE. _History of Greece_. This book was written some time ago, -but it is still the most famous history of Greece. - -C. H. and H. B. HAWES. _Crete the Forerunner of Greece_. - -BAIKIE. _The Sea Kings of Crete_. - -R. W. LIVINGSTONE. The Greek Genius and its Meaning to Us. - -R. W. LIVINGSTONE. (Edited by) _The Pageant of Greece_. - -R. W. LIVINGSTONE. (Edited by) _The Legacy of Greece_. - -GILBERT MURRAY. _The Rise of the Greek Epic_. - -A. E. ZIMMERN. _The Greek Commonwealth_. - -E. N. GARDINER. _Greek Athletic Sports and Festivals_. - -ETHEL B. ABRAHAMS. _Greek Dress_. - -EMILY JAMES PUTNAM. _The Lady_. - -{411} - -E. POTTIER. _Douris and the Painters of Greek Vases_. - -G. M. A. RICHTER. _The Craft of Athenian Pottery_. - -G. M. A. RICHTER. _Handbook to the Classical Collection in the -Metropolitan Museum, New York_. An excellent introduction to the -study of Greek Art. - -KENNETH J. FREEMAN. _The Schools of Hellas_. - -A. E. HAIGH. _The Attic Theatre_. - -E. A. GARDNER. _A Handbook of Greek Sculpture_. - -D. G. HOGARTH. _Philip and Alexander_. - -PUTNAM. _Authors and their Public in Ancient Times_. - -MAHAFFY. _Social Life in Greece_. - -MAHAFFY. _Alexander's Empire_. - - - -II. _Greek Writers_ - -No reading _about_ Greece can take the place of reading what the -Greeks themselves wrote. References to Greek writers will have been -found all through this book and in the list of acknowledgments at the -beginning. The following list of the more important writers and -their works referred to in this book has been put together for the -purpose of easier reference. - - -HOMER. _The Iliad_, translated by Lang, Leaf and Myers. - -HOMER. _The Odyssey_, translated by Butcher and Lang. - -HOMER. _The Homeric Hymns_, translated by Andrew Lang. - -{412} - -AESCHYLUS. Translated by A. S. Way and also by E. M. Cookson. - -AESCHYLUS. _The Agamemnon_, translated by Gilbert Murray. - -SOPHOCLES. Translated by R. C. Jebb. - -SOPHOCLES. _Oedipus, King of Thebes_, translated by Gilbert Murray. - -EURIPIDES. Translated by Gilbert Murray. - -ARISTOPHANES. Translated by B. B. Rogers. - -_The Frogs_, translated by Gilbert Murray. - -PLATO. Translated by Benjamin Jowett. - -PLATO. _The Republic_, translated by Davies and Vaughan. - -PLATO. _Trial and Death of Socrates_, translated by F. J. Church. - -ARISTOTLE. _Politics_, translated by Benjamin Jowett and also by J. -E. C. Welldon. - -HERODOTUS. Translated by G. C. Macaulay. - -THUCYDIDES. Translated by Benjamin Jowett. - -XENOPHON. Translated by H. G. Dakyns. - -PLUTARCH. Translated by Dryden, revised by A. H. Clough. - -DEMOSTHENES. _Public Orations_, translated by A. W. -Pickard-Cambridge. - - -_The Claim of Antiquity_, an excellent pamphlet published by the -Oxford University Press, gives a much fuller and more complete list -of books and translations for those who would like further -suggestions. - - - -III. _Greek Sculpture and Architecture_ - -Not every one can go to Greece or even to Sicily, but most museums -have good collections of casts and {413} models. Greek sculpture is -not all found in one place, but scattered through the museums of the -world. Those who can go to London, Paris, Rome and Naples, if -nowhere else, can get first-hand knowledge of some of the greatest -things the Greeks produced. For the sculptures from the Parthenon -are in the _British Museum_; most beautiful things are in the _Museo -delle Terme_ in _Rome_ (to see the other half of the Throne of -Aphrodite one must go to the _Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, -Massachusetts_), and Sophocles is in the _Museum of the Lateran_. -From Naples one can go to _Paestum_, once the Greek colony of -Poseidonia, famous in ancient times for its roses, and see the Temple -of Poseidon. It has never been restored, and is one of the best -preserved Greek temples to be seen anywhere out of Attica. There it -stands, as it has stood for over two thousand years, looking out -towards the sea, solitary, now, and desolate, yet in its loneliness -most beautiful. - -All these things are merely suggestions as to one way of beginning. -Those who begin will find no difficulty in going on. - - - - -{415} - -INDEX - - -A - -Academy, 194, 211, 381 - -Achaean League, 407 - -Acropolis, 91, 190, 194; temples on, 278 ff.; later history of 284 ff. - -Aegean civilization, 5 - -Aeschylus, 107, 163, 390, 395, 402, 412 - -Aethiopians, 44 - -_Agamemnon_ of Aeschylus, 391, 395, 412 - -Agamemnon, Tomb of, 6, 25, 26 - -Agora, 191, 207 - -Alaric the Goth, 284 - -_Alcestis_ of Euripides, 393, 412 - -Alcibiades; early life of, 302 ff.; Sicilian expedition, 305 ff.; -summoned to Athens, 309; the traitor, 310 ff.; recalled to Athens, -314; exiled, 315 - -Alcmaeonids, 104 - -Alexander; youth and education, 342 ff.; policy, 345; conquests of -347 ff.; death of, 356; empire of, 398, 406 - -Alexandria, 400 ff.; Museum at, 401; Library, 401; book-publishing -in, 402; science in 404 ff. - -Alexandrian editions, 403 - -Amphipolis, 301 - -Amphora, 203 - -_Anabasis_ of Xenophon, 318, 320, 412 - -Anaximander, 112 - -_Antigone_ of Sophocles, 392, 412 - -Aphrodite, 51 - -Apollo, 48, 52, 53 - -_Apology of Socrates_, 371, 373, 374 - -Aratus, 407 - -Archimedes, 404 - -Architecture, 277 ff. - -Archon, 94 - -Ariadne, 7 - -Aristeides; character of, 156; rivalry with Themistocles, 156; -ostracism of, 158; return of, 162; forms Delian League, 180 - -Aristophanes; comedies of, 209, 300, 393, 412 - -Aristotle; _Politics_ of, 72, 384, 412; views on education, 227, 384; -tutor to Alexander the Great, 344; at the Lyceum, 383; will of, 383; -"Father of Natural Science," 383 - -Artaxerxes, 317 - -Artemis, 49, 217 - -Artemisium, 149 - -Athena, 47, 48, 50; birth of, 280; contest with Poseidon, 92, 281; -symbol of Athens, 283 - -Athenian Dress, 195 ff. - -Athenian Education, 221 ff. - -Athenian Government; rule of one man, 91 ff.; oligarchy, rule of the -few, 94 ff.; rule of the many, 96 ff. - -Athenian House, 198 - -Athenian Life, 190 ff. - -Athenian Pottery, 203 ff. - -Athenian Trade, 201 - -Athens; situation and appearance, 190 ff.; classes of people, 194; -burnt by Xerxes, 161; burnt by Mardonius, 168; during Persian War, -144; Long Walls, 173, 298; fortifications of, 172; becomes an empire, -183; enemies of, 291 ff.; during Peloponnesian War, 296 ff.; downfall -of, 315 - -Athos, Mount, 126 - -Arrian, 334, 349, 351, 353 - -Assembly; Spartan, 79; Athenian, 210, 299 - - - -B - -_Banquet_ of Xenophon, 225, 412 - -Bema, 210 - -Brasidas, 301 - -Byzantium, 110, 175 - - - -C - -Cadmus, 324 - -Callimachus, 403 - -Caryatid, 280 - -Cecrops, 91 - -Cerameicus, 204 - -Chaeronea, 332 - -Chios, 112, 125, 202 - -Chiton, 195 - -Chlamys, 196 - -Cimon, 93 - -Citizenship, Greek ideals of, 73 ff. - -City-State, 70 ff. - -Cleon, 301 - -Clio, 49 - -_Clouds_ of Aristophanes, 300, 412 - -Colonies, 108 ff.; Ionian, 110 ff.; in Italy, 113; in Sicily, 113; in -Egypt, 113 - -_Constitution of the Lacedaemonians_ of Xenophon, 88 - -Corinth; council at, 145; urges Sparta to make war on Athens, 291; -fall of, 408 - -Crete, 6 ff.; legends of, 7 ff.; dress, 11; writing, 15; religion, -13; life in, 16 ff.; amusements, 18 - -Crito, 374 - -Croesus, 100 ff.; conquers Ionian colonies, 115; war with Cyrus, 116 - -Cunaxa, 319 - -Cylon, 103 - -Cyrus the Great, 115; conquers Sardis, 116; conquers Ionian colonies, -117 - -Cyrus the Younger, 318 ff. - - - -D - -Daedalus, 8 - -Darius, 118 ff.; Scythian expedition of, 118 ff.; determines to -invade Greece, 124, 126 - -Delos, 128; Confederacy of, 180 - -Delphi, 43; oracle at, 57 ff.; Treasury of Athenians at, 134 - -Demeter, 54 ff. - -Demosthenes, 335 ff.; 412 - -Deucalion, 42 - -Diogenes, 346 - -Dionysus, 232 - -Dodona, 57 - -Dorians, 75 - -Draco, 98 - -Drama, 233 - -Dramatists; Aeschylus, 390; Aristophanes, 393; Euripides, 392; -Sophocles, 392 - -Dress; Athenian, 195; Cretan, 11; Homeric, 28 - - - -E - -_Economist_ of Xenophon, 198, 215, 216, 412 - -Education; Athenian, 221 ff.; Spartan, 84 ff. - -_Electra_ of Euripides, 393, 412 - -Eleusis, 54, 220 - -Elysian Fields, 44 - -Empire; Athenian, 183, 282; Alexander's, 398, 406 - -Epaminondas, 325 ff. - -Ephors, 80 - -Erechtheum, 279 - -Eretria; joins Ionian revolt, 123; burnt by Persians, 128 - -Euclid, 404 - -Euripides, 39, 109, 226, 234, 238, 300, 392 ff., 402, 412 - -Evans, Sir Arthur, 12 - - - -F - -_Funeral Speech_, 187 - - - -G - -Games; Isthmian, 61; Olympic, 60 ff.; Pythian, 61 - -Gordian Knot, 347 - -Greece; divisions of, 37; trees of, 37; products of, 38; climate of, -39 - -Greek Art, 394 ff. - -Greek Characteristics, 40 - -Greek Spirit, 102, 358 - - - -H - -Hades, 54 ff. - -Hecataeus, 112 - -Hellenic Period, 399 - -_Hellenica_ of Xenophon, 315,316, 327, 412 - -Hellespont, 141 - -Hellenistic Age, 398 ff. - -Helots, 76 - -Hephaestus, 50 - -Hera, 47 - -Hermes, 49, 106 - -_Hermes_ of Praxiteles, 222, 395 - -Herodas, translation from Mime III, 228 ff. - -Herodotus, 39, 78, 111, 115, 117, 118 ff., 136 ff., 174, 282, 385 -ff., 412 - -Hestia, 51, 52, 199 - -Himation, 196 - -Hipparchus, 106 - -Hippias, 106, 128 - -_Hippolytus_ of Euripides, 234, 412 - -Historians; Herodotus, 385 ff.; Plutarch, 389; Thucydides, 386 ff.; -Xenophon, 388 - -Homer, 22, 58, 112, 225, 411 - -Homeric Age, 27 ff.; dress, 28; palaces, 28 ff.; furniture, 30 ff. - -_Homeric Hymns_, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 54, 55, 58, 281, 411 - -Houses; Athenian, 198 ff.; Cretan, 16; Homeric, 28 - -Hydria, 203 - -Hyperboreans, 43 - - - -I - -_Iliad_, 6, 8, 19, 20, 22, 46, 68, 106, 402, 411 - -Ionian Colonies, 110, 202; conquered by Croesus, 115; conquered by -Cyrus, 117; appeal to Athens for help, 174 - -Ionian Revolt, 122 - -_Iphigenia in Tauris_ of Euripides, 238 ff.; 393, 412 - -Isthmian Games, 61 - - - -K - -King's Peace, 317 - -_Knights_ of Aristophanes, 300, 412 - -Knossos, 8; palace of, 10; destruction of, 20 - -Krater, 203 - - - -L - -Lacedaemonians, 75 - -Laconia, 75 - -Lade, 124 - -Laurium, 156 - -Lawgivers; Draco, 98; Lycurgus, 76 ff.; Solon, 96 ff. - -Lekythos, 203 - -Leonidas, 148 - -Lesbos, 112 - -Leuctra, 327 - -Long Walls, 173, 298, 316 - -Lyceum, 383 - -Lycurgus, 76 ff.; travels of, 77; at Delphi, 78; government of, 76 -ff.; death of, 90 - -Lydia, 114 - - - -M - -Macedonians, 329 - -Magna Graecia, 113 - -Mantinea, 327 - -Map-makers, 112 - -Marathon, 130 ff. - -Mardonius, 125, 137, 166, 168 - -Mediterranean, 3 ff. - -_Memorabilia_ of Xenophon, 278, 373 - -Metopes, 282 - -Minoan Civilization, 8 - -Minos, 7 - -Miletus, 111, 202; siege of by Lydia, 114; revolt against Darius, -122; fall of, 124 - -Militiades, 131 - -Muses, 49 - -Music, 227 - -Mycenae, 25 ff.; 32 - -Mycenaean Civilization, 5 - - - -N - -Naucratis, 113 - -Naxos, 122, 127 - -Nicias, 302 - - - -O - -_Odyssey_, 7, 8, 19, 22, 29, 30, 50, 402, 411 - -_Oedipus at Colonus_ of Sophocles, 392, 412 - -_Oedipus the King_ of Sophocles, 392, 412 - -Oligarchy, 94 - -Olympia; oracle at, 57; statue of Zeus at, 64 - -Olympic Games, 60 ff. - -Olympus, 43, 46 - -Oracle; origin of, 56; oracles of Zeus, 57; of Apollo, 57 - -Oracles; about Homer, 58; given to Lycurgus, 78; to Cylon, 103; to -Spartans, 107; "deceitful answer" to Croesus, 115; of the wooden -walls, 159 - -Orations; _Funeral Speech_ of Pericles, 187 ff.; of Demosthenes, from -_Third Philippic_, 338; from _Second Olynthiac_, 339; _On the Crown_, -339 ff. - -Ostracism, 157 - - - -P - -Palaestra, 227 - -Pan, 51, 129, 134 - -Panathenaic Festival, 204, 217, 283 - -Parnassus, 42, 49 - -Parthenon, 280 ff. - -Pausanias, Spartan General; at Plataea, 168 ff.; at Byzantium, 175; -suspicious conduct of, 175; death of, 176 - -Pausanias the Traveller, 25, 64, 69 - -Pedagogue, 223 - -Pediment, 277 - -Peiraeus, 173, 202 - -Peisistratus, 104 ff. - -Pelopidas, 326 - -Peloponnesian War; causes, 291 ff.; course of war, 296 ff.; Sicilian -Expedition, 305 ff.; defeat of Athens, 315 ff. - -Pentathlon, 67 - -Pericles, 53; early life of, 183; leader of Athens, 185; _Funeral -Speech_ of, 187 ff.; beautifies Athens, 289; policy during -Peloponnesian War, 297; death of, 298; imperial policy of, 298 ff. - -Persephone, 54 ff. - -_Persians_ of Aeschylus, 163, 412 - -Persian Wars, 118 ff.; invasion under Mardonius, 125; Marathon, 125 -ff.; invasion under Xerxes, 136 ff.; Thermopylae, 148 ff.; Salamis, -161 ff. - -_Phaedo_ of Plato, 375, 377 - -_Phaedrus_ of Plato, 382, 412 - -Pheidias, 46, 64, 279, 395 - -Pheidippides, 129, 132 - -Philip of Macedon, 328; King of Macedonia, 330; policy of, 330; -conflict with Greek states, 331 ff.; destroys Thebes, 332; death of, -333 - -_Philippics_ of Demosthenes, 338, 412 - -Philosophers; Aristotle, 72, 227, 383 ff., 412; Plato, 380 ff., 412; -Pythagoras, 379; Socrates, 361 ff; Thales, 111, 379 - -Philosophy, Greek, 378 - -Pindar, 69, 323 - -Plague in Athens, 297 - -Plataea; aids Athens before Marathon, 131; battle of, 168 - -Plato, 57, 194, 225, 226, 228, 363, 367, 371, 373, 374, 375, 377, 380 -ff., 412 - -Plutarch, 75, 90, 93, 96, 154, 156, 158, 172, 177, 178, 180, 181, -185, 186, 284, 298, 304, 309, 310, 314, 336, 337, 345, 346, 389, 412 - -Pnyx, 210 - -Polemarch, 94 - -_Politics_ of Aristotle, 72, 384, 412 - -Poseidon, 47, 92, 281 - -Praxiteles, 222, 395 - -Propylaea, 278 - -_Protagoras_ of Plato, 225, 412 - -Ptolemy Philadelphia, 401 - -Ptolemy Soter, 401 - -Pyrrha, 42 - -Pythagoras, 379 - -Pythian Games, 60 - - - -R - -Religion; Cretan, 13; Greek, 44 ff. - -_Republic_ of Plato, 226, 381, 412 - - - -S - -Sacred Mysteries, 54 ff., 220 - -Salamis, 97; battle of, 163 ff. - -Sappho, 112 - -Sardis; taken by Cyrus, 116; burnt by Ionians, 123; Persian army at, -138 - -Schliemann, 23 ff. - -Science; in Ionia, 111; in Alexandria, 404 ff. - -Scythia, 118 - -Senate, Spartan, 78 - -_Septuagint_, 403 - -Sicily, 113 - -Sicilian Expedition, 305 ff. - -Socrates, 278, 303, 396; early life, 361 ff.; Socrates and the -Sophists, 364; Socratic method of teaching, 366; accusations against, -368; trial off 368; _Apology_ of, 368 ff.; death of, 374 ff. - -Solon; early life of, 96; war over Salamis, 97; Archon, 98; reforms -of, 98 ff.; travels of 100; Solon and Croesus, 100 ff. - -Sophists, 364 - -Sophocles, 392, 395, 402, 412 - -Sparta; situation of, 75; government of, 76 ff.; customs, 81 ff.; -education, 845.; position of women, 89; aids Athens in expelling -Hippias, 107; refusal to join Ionian revolt, 123; refuses immediate -help before Marathon, 129; at Thermopylae, 148 ff.; jealousy of -Athens, 172 ff.; policy towards Ionian colonies, 174; during -Peloponnesian War, 287 ff.; supremacy of, 316 - -Sphacteria, 301 - -Statues; _Zeus_ at Olympia, 64; _Hermes_ of Praxiteles, 222; _Athena -Promachos_, 279, 284; _Athena Polias_, 280; _Athena Parthenos_, 283; -_Sophocles_, 413 - -Stoa, 193 - -Strabo, 4 - -Symposium, 213 - -_Symposium_ of Plato, 363, 367, 412 - -Syracuse, 113, 226, 405; battle in harbour of, 312 - - - -T - -Temples, 14, 276 ff.; Athena Nike, 279; Erechtheum, 279; Parthenon, -280 ff.; Paestum, 413 - -Ten Thousand, March of the, 318 - -Thales, 111, 379 - -Theatre, 232 ff. - -Thebes, 153, 317; early history of, 322; legends of, 324; supremacy -of, 325 ff.; defeated by Philip of Macedon, 332; destroyed by -Alexander, 346 - -Themistocles; early life and character, 153; at Artemisium, 150; -builds a navy, 155; rivalry with Aristeides, 156; at Salamis, 161 -ff.; popularity of, 171 ff.; fortifies Athens, 172; accusations -against, 176; ostracized, 177; at the Persian court, 177; death of, -178 - -Theocritus, 216 - -Therma, 143 - -Thermopylae, 148 ff. - -Theseus, 7, 92, 93; ship of, 9, 374 - -Thucydides, 7, 155, 181, 189, 297, 302, 308, 309, 314, 360, 386 ff., -412 - -Tiryns, 27 - -Trojan War, 22, 347 - -_Trojan Women_ of Euripides, 39, 300, 412 - -Troy, discovery of, 24 - -Tyrants, 102 ff.; Cylon, 103; Peisistratus, 104 ff. - - - -W - -_Wasps_ of Aristophanes, 209, 300, 412 - -Women, position of; in Athens, 214 ff.; in Sparta, 89 - -Writing, Cretan, 15 - - - -X - -Xanthippe, 363 - -Xenophon, 88, 198, 214, 215, 216, 225, 278, 314, 315, 318, 327, 373, -388, 412 - -Xerxes, 136 ff. - - - -Z - -Zeus, 7, 46, 52, 53, 199, 231 - - - - - - - -*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE BOOK OF THE ANCIENT -GREEKS *** - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the -United States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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