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PR. E. FAC E.
é & RANSLATION,” it has been ob-
T served by a late eminent scholar,”
“ because the materials are provided to
“our hands, is thought an easy occupation;
“but the candour and indulgence of a
“reader bear no ratio to the difficulty of
“a labourer in this province. For, in
“faët, an unrestrained and idiomatical
“transfusion of a Greek or Latin author
“into a modern language, with fidelity to
“ the sentiment, and unoffending facility of
“conneéted and free construction, through
“successive paragraphs, constitutes an
* Gilbert Wakefield.
ºf 528
Priated by Richard Cruttwell,
St. J
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ii PREFACE,
“undertaking nice and arduous in the
“extreme; so as to become, in some in-
“stances, an almost insuperable task.”
Experience has amply confirmed, to the
Translator of the following Orations, the
truth of these remarks. The task, which
he has imposed upon himself, he has found
to be by no means an easy one. In the
performance of it, however, he has laboured
assiduously to do justice to his great mo-
dels. He has not, indeed, applied for
assistance to other English Versions of the
same authors; but has purposely and wholly
avoided them ; not from presumption or
vanity, he trusts, on his part; but from a
wish which he feels, and which he hopes
is not unbecoming, that the present work,
whatever may be its merits or its defects,
may be exclusively his own.
That his performance should be free
from numerous inadvertencies and errors,
PREFA C Ee iii
t
t
* \ , ºr
h -
he has not the weakness to suppose; yet he
trusts that it will present, upon the whole,
a tolerably correct delineation of the sense
and meaning of the authors whom he has
copied. Whether he has succeeded in
giving to his Translation any portion of
the grace and spirit, which embellish the
pages of the admired Originals, must be
left to the better taste and judgment of
the public to decide.
In a work, intended for the use of the
general reader, rather than for the learned,
it has not been deemed necessary to bring
forward all the authorities for the fačts
recorded in it. These, however, are uni-
formly deduced from the best sources; and
it is to be hoped, that they will be found
to be correctly stated.
It is scarcely necessary to observe, that
the Orations, contained in the present vo-
lume, have invariably been held in deserved
iv PREFA C Ee
estimation by the admirers of ancient lite-
rature; and from the very distinguished
talents of the writers, to whom we are in-
debted for them, they are certainly entitled
to the attentive perusal of every scholar.
With regard to the Harangue of PER1-
cLEs, it has been remarked, by a very
competent judge, that it surpasses the
skill of the most able translator to do
adequate justice to its merits. “That
Oration,”
2
observes Mr. Mitford, * remains
“in its original language a perfect model
“of the simple and severe sublime in
“oratory, which has been the admiration
“of all succeeding ages; but which must
“sink in any translation, denies abridg-
“ment, and defies either imitation or
“paraphrase, perhaps beyond any com-
“ position that was ever committed to
“writing.”
* History of Greece.
PREFACE, V
However just a description this may be
of the peculiar nature and character of that
celebrated composition, yet since there are
those, who have it not in their power to
peruse it in the Original, there can surely
be no impropriety in endeavouring to give
as faithful an interpretation of it, as pos-
sible, in a language that is intelligible to
*eaders of this description. Should it be
the Translator's lot, to be ranked among
those, who, in the phraseology of sports-
men, have been styled, rather humorously,
“unqualified persons,” he trusts that he
shall not be very severely handled, at the
bar of impartial Criticism, for his attempt.
The valuable remains of Classical an-
tiquity, contained in the present pages,
are indeed already before the public in
an English dress, from the pens of several
ingenious and learned men. They have
not, however, as far as the Translator
knows, been brought together, so as to

vi PREFACE,
form a distinét volume. Yet the similarity
of the subjects, on which they treat, renders
them, as he conceives, not unworthy of such
an union. And the present circumstances
of the times, in which so many of our brave
countrymen have fallen in battle, and for
whose loss the wounds of sorrow are as yet
scarcely closed, seem to render them, as
far as Heathen compositions can be so,
peculiarly appropriate.
The Rev. Dr. Bentham, formerly Canon
of Christ-Church, Oxford, in the year
1746, presented to the literary world a
selection of Funeral Orations, from the
Greek and Latin writers, accompanied by
a Preface and Notes.” The three Orations,
which now solicit the reader's attention,
are to be found in that selection, in their
original language; and the Translator feels
it incumbent upon him, on this occasion,
* The second edition was published in 1768.
PREFACE, vii
|
to acknowledge the able assistance, which,
in the course of his labours, he has derived
from the excellent Notes and Observations
to be found in Dr. Bentham's publication.
That valuable work, the Author under-
stands, is at present used in some of our
great. Classical Schools; and the copious
reference to historical facts, and to national
customs and manners among the Greeks,
which appears in these antient composi-
tions, as well as the moral and patriotic
sentiments in which they abound, render
them peculiarly calculated for the study of
ingenuous and youthful minds.
Should the quotations from Greek and
Latin authors, occasionally introduced into
the Notes by the Translator, be thought
by some, in a work of this description,
to be unnecessary, they may, perhaps, be
regarded by the lover of Classical literature
(should any such person condescend to
inspect the following pages) to be not

viii PRE PACE,
wholly unacceptable, or improper. At
all events, they may easily be passed over,
in the perusal of the Volume.
Bath,
Oct. 17, 1811.
§'s.-
CONTENTS.
LIFE of THUCYDIDES - - -
Chara&er of PERICLES - - -
Brief Remarks on ANTIENT FUNERAL
ORATIONS - - - - - -
Description of the FUNERAL CEREMONY, by
THUCYDIDES - - - - -
Oration of PERICLES - - - -
Life of PLATO - - - - - -
MENEXENUS, or Funeral Oration of PLATO
Life of LYSIAS - - - - - -
Oration of LYSIAS - - - - -
Additional OBSERVATIONS
17
2]
27
y1
87
181
193
Index - - - - - - - - -
263
273
CORRIGENDA.
Page 4, Text, line 8, for relation of facts, read estimate of facts.
28, Text, line 6, Render the sentence as follows; To observe
a medium in speaking upon a subject, in confirmation
of the truth of which it is scarcely possible to say too
much, is not easy.
36, Note, line 16, for tide, read sea.
87, Text, line 3; Place the letters of reference thus; they
go b the way • appointed for them by the Fates.
Ibid, Note, line 2, for the the Translator has judged proper
to omit, read, the Translator has judged it proper to
omit.
121, Note, line 9, for Artemesium, read Artemisium.
170, Note, line 8, Erase the inverted Commas.
172, Text, line 21, for, that after supplying them with
military accoutrements fit for their manly years, they
may commence, &c. read, supplying them with military
accoutrements fit for their manly years, that they may
commence, &c.
176, Note, line 10, for lib, read lib. 4.
224, Note i, line 5, for victory, read advantage.
431, Note q, line 3, for is, read ºf Q.
.
s
INTRO DUCTION .
TH U C Y DI DES.
His Life—Writings—Style—and
Character.
HUCYDIDES, the celebrated Greek
historian, was descended from a
very illustrious Athenian family, allied to
Miltiades. His father's name was Olorus.
He was born 471 years before the Christ-
ian aera. To him we are indebted for a
very interesting account of the first
twenty-one years of the Peloponnesian
war; a work, which, from the extreme
fidelity of its details, its judicious and
profound observations, and the peculiar
B
ii INTRODUCTION,
conciseness and energy of its style, has
been perused in all ages, both by the
statesman and the scholar, with admi-
ration and delight.
No historian ever enjoyed more favour-
able opportunities than Thucydides, of
ascertaining the truth of the facts which
he records; and no man could possibly
have made a better use of them. During
eight years of the Peloponnesian war, he
was employed by the Athenians in a mi-
litary capacity. In consequence, how-
ever, of his ill success in an expedition
confided to his command, he incurred
the displeasure of his countrymen, and
was doomed to exile. In this state he
continued for the space of twenty years.
But what was in itself a heavy calamity,
and was probably viewed by him in that
light, proved of the utmost benefit to
INTRODUCTION, iii
the literary world; as he diligently em-
ployed the period of his banishment in
colle&ting materials for the great work
which he was then meditating. In this,
as we are credibly informed, he spared
neither expense nor pains to arrive at
the truth of the facts which he narrates.
It appears not to have been till after
his return from exile, that he began to
compose his history. He was then more
than sixty years of age; a period of life,
when a writer of his vigour of mind, and
formed, like him, to habits of patient
cnquiry and deep reflection, would not
be likely to be led aside by credulity; nor
greatly warped by passion and prejudice,
in his judgment either of men or things."
* SMITH, in his “Life of Thucydides,” observes,
that if we estimate his chara&ter from his History, he
was “all judgment, and no passion.”
B $2
iv PREFA C Ee
estimation by the admirers of ancient lite-
rature; and from the very distinguished
talents of the writers, to whom we are in-
debted for them, they are certainly entitled
to the attentive perusal of every scholar.
With regard to the Harangue of PER1-
cLEs, it has been remarked, by a very
competent judge, that it surpasses the
skill of the most able translator to do
adequate justice to its merits. “That
Oration,” observes Mr. Mitford,” remains
“in its original language a perfect model
“of the simple and severe sublime in
“oratory, which has been the admiration
“of all succeeding ages; but which must
“sink in any translation, denies abridg-
“ment, and defies either imitation or
“paraphrase, perhaps beyond any com-
“ position that was ever committed to
“writing.”
* History of Greece.

INTRODUCTION. y
those who had been particularly hostile
to him in life, he does it without making
any severe reflections upon their con-
dućt. His ideas of the charaćter of an
historian were too dignified, to suffer
him to mingle any observations of a
personal nature with the majesty of his
details. It is recorded of him, that, when
he was only a boy, he heard Herodotus
read his history in public; and it is
added, that he was so much affected on
the occasion, as to shed tears. Herodo-
tus warmly congratulated his father, on
possessing a child of so much promise.
Ammianus Marcellinus, who has left
some account of Thucydides, speaks
highly of his charaćter as a writer. He
says, that his orations are finished com-
positions; that his skill in describing cha-
raćters is great; his method clear; his
vi INTRODUCTION.
style, from the nature of his temper and
genius, as well as from the importance
and dignity of his subjećt, lofty; and
well accommodated to whatever topics
he treats. At the same time he observes,
that, owing to the extreme vehemence
of his manner, he sometimes appears to
be obscure.
Dionysius of Halicarnassus acknow-
ledges Thucydides to be a most excellent
historian. Yet he severely censures his
partiality to ancient phraseology; and
reprobates the style of his orations, as
being too poetical, and as partaking of
an extraordinary degree of pomp and
decoration.” But Henry Stephens has
very properly vindicated the Greek
historian; and shewn, in what respects
Dionysius himself imitates Thucydides,
° Dion. Halicar. de Lysia.
INTRODUCTION. vii
at the very time that he so harshly ani-
madverts upon him.
So ardent an admirer was Demosthenes
of the Historian of the Peloponnesian
war, that he is said to have transcribed
his work eight times over with his own
hand : a memorable proof, even should
the fact be, in some degree, exaggerated,
not only of this celebrated orator's very
exalted opinion of his great model, but
likewise of his indefatigable attention to
the formation of his style. g
Cicero observes, that the narratives of
Thucydides are conspicuous for their
simplicity and grandeur; that in his
judgment he far surpasses all other men
in the art of speaking; that he so abounds
in a variety of topics, that the number of
his ideas almost exceeds the number of
viii INTRODUCTION.
his words; that his expressions also are
so appropriate and close, that we cannot
distinguish, whether his language embel-
lishes his thoughts, or his thoughts his
language. At the same time he con-
fesses, that this very able writer is not
always free from the charge of obscurity;
particularly in the Orations, which he has
thought proper to introduce in the course
of his historical narratives. He farther
observes, that this obscurity is occasion-
ally so great, as to render him almost
unintelligible." So impressive and awa-
kening is the eloquence of Thucydides,
as to be compared by Cicero to the mar-
tial instrument, which gives the awful
signal for battle." As a writer, however,
he appears not to have been an universal
favourite; the reasons of which may be
—u
* Cicero. Brutus. $.287. Id. Orator.lib. ii. §. 13.
* Ib. §. 30. * Ib. §. 39.
INTRODUCTION. ix
found in the causes already assigned;—
his frequently comprehensive brevity,
and the occasional obscurity and rugged-
ness of his style. “Truth in its severity,
“ and reason in its robust and manly
“state, are all the Muses and Graces to
“which Thucydides hath done obei-
“ sance.” "
Of Roman writers, Sallust is regarded
as bearing in his manner the greatest
resemblance to Thucydides; and Quin-
tilian declares, that he would not scru-
ple to place his countryman upon a
level with him.*
It is said, on the authority of Diogenes
Láertius, that we are indebted to Xeno-
phon for the works of Thucydides; for
that when he had it in his power to
* Smith. & Quintil, lib. x. cap. 1.
X INTRODUCTION.
suppress them, he produced and pub-
lished them to the world; and thus
conferred an obligation upon posterity,
which every scholar will be ready to
acknowledge.
INTRODUCTION, xi
PE R I C L E S.
His Administration—Taste—Eloquence—
and Popularity.
The brief extraćt from Thucydides,
here presented, in a new translation, to
the English reader, consists of a Funeral
Harangue pronounced by Pericles, on
the termination of the first campaign of
the Peloponnesian war, over the Athe-
nian soldiers and their auxiliaries who had
fallen in battle. The task of delivering
this celebrated eulogy was naturally as-
signed to Pericles, who was then at the
head of the government at Athens, and
was highly distinguished for his birth,
rank, taste, and eloquence. Few men
xii INTRODUCTION.
ever surpassed this eminent charaćter in
those talents and qualifications, which
are requisite in all who are called to bear
a conspicuous part in the direction of
public affairs. It was during the inte-
resting period, in which he took the lead
in the Athenian commonwealth, that the
polite arts arrived at so high a pitch of
perfeótion. Not only did Pericles bear
unrivalled sway in the management of
the state: as a public speaker likewise,
and as possessing the most refined taste in
architecture, music, painting, and poetry,
no one could be compared to him. To
his liberal and patriotic spirit Athens was
indebted for some of its most magnificent
edifices. As a General also, Pericles was
eminently distinguishcd; and, in conse-
quence of his consummate valour and
military skill, the Athenians obtained
several advantages over their enemies,
INTRODUCTION. xiii
which were of the greatest importance
to the state.
It could not be expected, that a cha-
raćter so superior should escape without
enemies. Neither can it be affirmed, that
his condućt and government were always
irreproachable. It was well known,
that, to support his popularity, Pericles
had lavished the public money: yet he
was never guilty of this breach of duty
to enrich himself; and he was always
above a bribe. The state was, notwith-
standing, highly indebted to him for the
very essential services which he had ren-
dered it. His adversaries in the govern-
ment, however, prevailed against him.
The tide of popular favour turned; in
consequence of which he was deprived
of his military command, and a heavy
fine was imposed upon him.
xiv INTRODUCTION.
Yet so great was the opinion enter-
tained of his talents; so unequal also
to this extraordinary man were all his
contemporaries in the state; and so little
satisfied were the people with the pro-
ceedings of those, who succeeded him in
the administration of public affairs; that
very soon after this sentence against
him was passed, he was solicited to take
again into his hands the reins of govern-
ment.
He did not long survive his restoration
to popular favour. The plague, which,
soon after the commencement of the
Peloponnesian war, made such dreadful
havock among his fellow-citizens, and
of which the faithful historian of that
war has given so affecting an account,
attacked this distinguished statesman,
INTRODUCTION. XV
and committed such ravages upon his
constitution, that he died soon after.
Amidst the attentions shewn to Pe-
ricles by his friends in his last illness, and
the just compliments paid him for the very
eminent services which he had rendered
to the state, he informed them, that they
had omitted the praise, which was most
gratifying to himself. The circumstance,
he said, which afforded him, in these
moments, the greatest satisfaction, was
this;–that no Athenian citizen, in con-
sequence of any action of his, had ever
put on mourning: a most consolatory
reflection to one, who, for a series of
years, had borne so distinguished a part
in civil transactions as he had done; and,
more especially, in a state subject to such
popular ferments, as sometimes shook the
Athenian government.
xvi. INTRODUCTION,
Pericles died in the third year of the
Peloponnesian war; not long after he
had pronounced this eloquent eulogy
at the tomb of his brave countrymen.
INTRODUCTION. Xvii
ANCIENT
FU N E R A L ORATION S.
Their Object—Utility
Pericles.
Oration of
THE custom of pronouncing funeral
harangues, over such as had fallen in bat-
tle, is said to have been first established
among the Greeks, in consequence of the
memorable defeat of the Persian invaders.
Such harangues were considered as not
only highly useful to the living; but were
thought to be peculiarly acceptable and
gratifying to the dead. They were ac-
cordingly repeated, in the same public
manner, once a year. And how very
essentially a ceremony of this kind must
have contributed to keep alive a martial
spirit, and that patriotic feeling, so ne-
C
Tºni Ny.
xviii INTRODUCTION,
cessary to the support of a popular
government, must be evident. Pliny de-
clares Virginius Rufus supremely happy
in having Cornelius Tacitus, who was so
highly famed for his eloquence, to pro-
nounce his funeral oration.”
Whether we have the actual speech of
Pericles transmitted to us by the histo-
rian; or whether it be only the oration,
which Thucydides has judged proper to
put into his mouth on that occasion, it
may not be easy to determine. But it is
not improbable, that Thucydides was
present, and even assisted at that au-
gust ceremony. We may therefore con-
* “ Hujus viri exsequiae magnum ornamentum prin-
cipi, magnum seculo, magnum etiam foro et rostris
attulerunt. Laudatus est a consule, Cornelio Tacito :
nam hic supremus felicitati ejus cumulus accessit, lau-
dator eloquentissimus.” Plin. Epist. lib. ii. ep. 1.
INTRODUCTION, xix
clude, that although the exact words of
the orator be not given to us, the senti-
ments are such as he would be likely to
address to his valiant countrymen, while
assembled around the lifeleſs remains of
their heroic relatives.
This is what the historian himself pro-
fesses to perform. It was all, indeed, that
could reasonably be expected from him.
Duker is of opinion, that in the Oration
of Pericles we, no doubt, have his sense
and meaning, but not his words, given by
Thucydides. Gottleber thinks, however,
that the style is different from the uſual
manner of writing of the Greek historian.
i “ Hanc orationem aliis verbis conceptam esse, e
“ charaćtere scribendi, qui Thucydidis est apparet.”
Baveri Thucyd. tom. i. p. 298.
C 2
I 21
Funeral Ceremony described.
Thucydides, Lib. ii. c. 84.
HE same winter," the Athenians, ac-
cording to national custom, cele-
brated a public funeral of those who had first
fallen in the present war, after the follow-
ing manner. Having erected a tent three
days before, they exhibited” the bones of
* This grand national ceremony took place at the
close of the first campaign of the Peloponnesian war,
in what is now called the month of February; at which
time the Funeral Oration was annually repeated.
* In this description of the funerai ceremony, the
translator has taken the liberty of changing the present
of the Greek into the preterite tense of the English,

22 FUNERAL C E REMONY
the deceased;" when every one brought
what offering he pleased to his own rela-
tive." The day of the funeral being arrived,
as being more agreeable to the idiom of the latter
language. And he believes that he is justified in so
doing by the established laws of translation. “This
“tense in narrative is contrary to the genius of the
“English language. The poets have assumed it, and
** in them it is allowable, because it is their obječt to
“ paint scenes as present to the eye, ut pictura, poesis;
“but all that a prose narrative can pretend to is an
“ animated description of things past. If it goes any
“farther, it encroaches on the department of poetry."
—See “Essay on the Principles of Translation," p.
241. edit. 2d.
* It is well known to have been the custom of the
Greeks to burn the bodies of their dead, with certain
rites of superstition and respea. The ashes were after-
wards collected and preserved; as we learn from the
manner in which the bones of Hector were preserved
at Troy. Iliad. lib. 24. Likewise those of Achilles.
Odyss. lib. 24.
* The Greeks decked the bodies of their deceased
friends, or the urns which contained their ashes, witb
boughs, ribbons, flowers, &c.
DESCRIBED, 23
* *
chests of cypress," one for each tribe,"
were drawn in carriages. These contained
the bones of all that belonged to each par-
* As being particularly durable. Cypress is said to
resist the worm, moth, and all kinds of putrefaction,
and to last for several hundred years. The chests
which contain Egyptian mummies are made of cypress.
Cedar, ebony, and several other kinds of wood, like-
wise, have the same power of resisting the attacks of
decay and corruption. “Cariem vetustatemque non
“sentiunt cupressus, cedrus, ebenus, lotos, buxum,"
&c.—Plin. Nat. Hist. lib. xvi. c. 40. “ Pinus et cu-
“ pressus adversus cariem tineasque firmissimae.”— Ibid
lib. xvi. c. 42. Weever, the English antiquary, in his
“Discourse on Funeral Monuments,” speaking of the
manner in which the Egyptians embalmed their dead,
observes: “ so did they, by the juice of cedars, which,
“by the extreme bitterness and siccative quality, not
“ only subdued forthwith the cause of interior corrup-
“tion, but hath to this day (a continuance of above
“three thousand years) preserved them uncorrupted.”
Horace likewise mentions the “hateful cypress,” as
peculiarly adapted to funereal purposes:
“ —— neque harum, quas colis arborum
“Te, praeter invisas cupressos,
“ Ulla breven dominum sequetur.”—Od. xiv. lib. 2.
* The Athenian people, for the more convenient
administration of justice, and other objects, were di.
24 FU N E R A L C E REM O N Y
º
ticular tribe. An empty bier, also, with a
pall over it, was borne in the procession,
in honour of those who were missing, who
could not be found at the colle&ting of the
slain. Any citizen, or stranger, who chose
it, might attend the funeral. Womenº
also, who were related to the deceased,
were present at the sepulchre, as mourners.
Their remains were then deposited in a
public monument, situated in the hand-
somest out-parts of the city." In this were
constantly interred all that died in war,
*——-
vided into ten tribes. The number was afterwards
augmented to twelve.
* Before this time, and during the sway of Solon,
women were rarely allowed to be present at funerals, and
only those who were above sixty years of age. As is now
the custom among the Turks and other Eastern nations,
the female sex, among the Greeks, were almost entirely .
excluded from society. The degree of civilization, to
which a nation has attained, may generally be estimated
from the consideration shewn to the fair sex.
* Called Ceramicus. This was a public burial-ground
at Athens, which contained various national edifices.
D ESC RIBED, 25
l
except the men of Marathon. For them,
on account of their extraordinary valour,
a tomb was erected on the spot.
The rites of sepulture being ended, a
person selected by the state, highly es-
teemed for his wisdom, and of superior
station and dignity, pronounced over them
a suitable panegyric. Which being done,
they withdrew. In this manner they buried
them. And during the whole war, as oc-
casion required, this custom was observed.
Over those who perished in the first cam-
paign, Pericles, the son of Xantippus,
was chosen to speak. And at the proper
time coming forth from the monument,
and ascending an elevated tribunal, made
for the purpose, that the most distant parts
of the crowd might hear him, he addressed
them as follows:
i For some account of this celebrated character, see
Introduction, page xi.
[ 27 J
FU N E R AL ORATION
OF
PER I C LES.
( & OT a few of those, who have already
spoken in this place, have been
in the habit of praising the person* who
annexed this harangue to what the law
requires, as being honourable to those, who
are buried from off the field of battle, to
have it pronounced over them. To me,
however, it seems sufficient, when men have
displayed actual bravery, that some actual
demonstration of honour, similar to the
public exhibition around this sepulchre,
* It is not certainly known by whom these Funeral
Harangues were at first instituted. They have been
ascribed to Solon and Pericles; and have been referred
even to the time of Cecrops.
! Next to those higher considerations, suggested by
religion, public honour is, doubtless, the most efficient
28 FU N ERA L ORATION
should be made to them; and not that
the conſidence, inspired by the valorous
deeds of many, should be exposed to hazard
by the skilful or unskilful eloquence of a
single individual.
To enlarge with propriety upon topics,
of the truth of which it is scarcely possible
to produce convićtion, is not easy. For the
hearer, who is well acquainted with them,
and ever so kindly disposed, may imagine,
that some favourite point, well known to
himself, has been imperfectly handled; while
he, who is not conversant with the subject,
stimulus that can be applied to noble minds. And it
is incumbent upon those, who have it in their power,
from their situation and rank in society, to give a salu-
tary dire&tion to the national feeling, to foster a patri-
otic spirit by every possible incitement. Without such
a spirit, the safety and independence of nations would,
in most periods of the world, and more especially in the
present state of things, be greatly endangered.
‘Ets owy& agrº, apwww.abal regi warens.
ll. lib. xii. 1. 243.
OF PERICLES. 29
may think, from a spirit of jealousy, should
he hear any thing advanced beyond his
own powers, that it must be exaggera-
ted. For we listen with patience to the en-
comiums bestowed upon others, as long as
we fancy ourselves capable of performing,
even in part, the actions ascribed to them.
Whatever exceeds our own ability, we
believe not, from envy." Yet since our
* The orators at this solemnity, it is said, were for-
bidden to prefix any exordium to their harangues. “Mn
“ resoluage, wres wasy," was the law. What is here
advanced by Pericles, respecting the different effects of
such harangues upon different persons, was perfectly
proper; and in stating the difficulties, with which a
public speaker, like himself, has to contend on such
occasions, he discovers an intimate knowledge of the
human mind.
Sallust has closely copied the sentiments and language
of Pericles: “In primis arduum videtur res gestas scri-
“ bere: primūm, quod faétis dićta sunt exacquanda:
“ dehinc, plerique, quae dićta reprehenderis, malevo-
“lentia et invidiá dićta putant: ubi de magnä virtute
“ atque gloria bonorum memores, quae sibi quisque fa-
“cilia fačtu putat, aequo animo accipit: supra ea, veluti
“fiéta, profalsis ducit.”—Sallust. Bell. Catalin. c. 3.
SO FU NERAL ORATION
ancestors have judged these things to
be right, it becomes my duty, in compli-
ance with the law, to endeavour, as far as
in me lies, to fulfil the wishes and expecta-
tions of every one present.
I shall first touch on the subject of our
ancestors. For it is both just to them, and
at the same time decorous, indeed, on such
an occasion, to pay them this tribute of
notice." By their valour, this country, of
which they were invariably the possessors,
has been transmitted to our hands, through
a series of generations, in the full enjoy-
* The Athenians might justly pride themselves on
their ancestry. Greece was certainly the first Euro-
pean nation that became civilized; and the people of
Attica, who, from the remote antiquity of their origin,
maintained that they were born from the earth, or were
the ačtual produce of the soil which they inhabited,
were the first distinguished, in this respect, among their
countrymen. More than fifteen hundred years before
the Christian aera, various important national regula-
tions were established by Cecrops, the founder of the
Athenian city and government.

OF PERICLES, 31
ment of freedom. These men are deserv-
ing of commendation: yet our fathers are
much more so. For, in addition to their
hereditary possessions, having obtained
all our present dominion, they have be-
queathed it, acquired, as it was, with the
greatest difficulty, to us who survive."
We ourselves, who are present,-those of
us, especially, who are still in the prime
of life,” have contributed essentially to
its aggra
**-----
ndisement;4 and the city is very
*–
° — “ egregias animas, quae sanguine nobis
“Hanc patriam peperére suo.”
AEneid. lib. ii. 1. 23.
P The period for military service at Athens com-
menced at eighteen, and ended at sixty. None but
free citizens were admitted to the privilege of serving
their country in this honourable capacity; and the
Athenian soldier always maintained himself. Merce-
naries were regarded as contemptible. To troops
animated by such a spirit, what enterprize could be
formidable? Or how can we wonder at the renowned
exploits of Marathon, Salamis, or Plataea
* Pericles had himself enlarged the Athenian posses-
sions, by conquering the islands of Samos and Euboea.
32 FU NERAL, ORATION
*I*T*ºl
sufficiently provided by us with all things
necessary, both for war and peace.
As I would gladly avoid prolixity, in the
presence of those to whom the subject is
familiar, I shall pass by the warlike
achievements, which led to the acquisition
of all that we possess; and by which either
our fathers, or ourselves courageously re-
pelled their attacks, whenever the Barba-
rians or the Greeks made war upon us."
But by what sort of discipline we arrived at
this power; and under what form of go-
vernment; and by what means it was esta-
blished on so extensive a scale; I shall,
first, particularly explain; and shall then
proceed to the praises of these men: judg-
ing such topics not only to be fit, on the
present occasion, to be enlarged upon; but
that it will be of advantage also to this
* In the Menexenus, or Funeral Eulogy of Plato,
these achievements are particularly described,
OF PERIC LES. 33
fa
ºp
numerous assemblage of citizens, atten-
tively to hear them.
Our political establishment is not formed
according to the laws of our neighbours;,
but we ourselves rather constitute a model
to all other communities, than make them
our pattern. And inasmuch as the admi-
nistration of it is vested in the hands, not
of few persons only, but of many, it is
styled a Democracy. Provision is made
by law for the equal distribution of justice
in matters of private dispute; and every
individual, according to the degree of con-
sideration in which he is held, and his
peculiar merit of any kind;—not from his
belonging to a particular class in society,
-*.
• The public orator here, as well as in other parts of
his address, alludes more particularly to the Lacedae-
monians; a people, in their manners, customs, and
institutions, forming so striking a contrast to the
Athenians.
D
34 Fu NERAL ORATION
so much as from his general good cha-
raēter, takes precedence in the state."
Nor does poverty or obscurity operate as
an obstacle to any one, who is able to ren-
der himself useful to his fellow-citizens.
We not only enjoy our political rights un-
fettered; amidst the jealousies, incident to
man and man in their daily pursuits, we
manifest no resentment towards our neigh-
bour for following his own inclination; nor
clothe our countenances in dolorous looks,
which, although they inflićt no positive
punishment, are nevertheless distressing."
ºr risis ſm
* The Spartan kings, who were of the family of the
Heraclidae, are pointed at in this observation.
* This refers to the stern, unbending character of
the Lacedaemonians, who carried their severity of man-
ners and of discipline to the highest pitch. The proofs.
of this assertion, on record in their history, are nu-
merous and well known. In fact, such a people might,
not unaptly, be denominated civilized savages, or well-
organized barbarians. Whatever diversity of conditions,
º
OF PERIC LES. 35
While, moreover, we manage our private
affairs without offence, we especially avoid
the transgression of our public duty through
motives of timidity; being influenced by a
principle of uniform obedience to the ma-
gistrates and the laws; more particularly
such laws, as are formed for the benefit of
the injured; as well as those, which, though
unwritten,” still involve the violators of
them in acknowledged infamy.”
*:
*** *
and of manners existed among the Athenians, they were
certainly not marked by the cold repulsive qualities
which distinguished the Spartan charaćter.
* That is, the maxims and traditions of their an-
cestors; or, the laws of morality, which were not ill
understood by the Athenians.
y The Athenian government has bequeathed to pos-
terity a most useful lesson of civil jurisprudence; and
the wise regulations and laws of Solon, even where his
form of government has not been adopted, (and what
sober-headed nation would wish to adopt it?) have
been of the greatest importance to legislators, in all
succeeding ages.
D 2


36 FU NERAL, ORATION
Besides handsome entertainments of a
private nature, we have established for
ourselves a great many stated seasons
The state of Athens was . purely democratical.
Though Solon had excluded the fourth of the Classes,
into which he had divided the nation, from all
participation in the enjoyment of magisterial honours,
yet every question, or matter of deliberation, was
finally decided by an appeal to the assembly of citizens.
Notwithstanding the salutary checks established to
guard against the baneful effe&t of popular prejudice
and passion, these checks, as the entire history of that
wonderful commonwealth strikingly proves, were not
always sufficiently powerful to counterbalance the nu-
merous evils, occasioned by so unfortunate a constitution
of society. Athens, in its best condition, might not
improperly be compared to a tide-river; which, at
high and low water, may, for a certain time, be tole-
rably serene and inviting; yet no sooner does the tide
return, than its tranquillity is disturbed, and its surface
ruffled. &
What Pericles observes respecting the equal distri-
bution of justice among the Athenian people, is un-
questionably true. The court of Areopagus,though foully
stained with the blood of the excellent Socrates, bore, for
ages, a high charaćter for wisdom and integrity. Yet
the iniquitous practice of Ostracism deeply tarnished
OF PERIC I, E8. 37
of cessation from labour, in anniversary
games and festivals; the daily enjoyment
of which dissipates every thing of a sor-
rowful nature.”
the boasted lustre of Athenian honour and justice; and
the State, which was reduced to the dire necessity of such
an infamous proceeding, could scarcely be said to be
founded on liberal principles. Still less can this be
admitted, when we recolle&t, to how small a propor-
tion of the inhabitants of Attica, compared with its
whole population, the privilege of citizenship was .
extended; and that there were not less than four hun-
*~~~~ w *-*-* was "ºssº...we'rº-
ared thousand adual slaves within the narrow confines–
of this far-famed territory.
It should be remembered also, that it is the popular
and accomplished Pericles who is now haranguing;
and upon an occasion, when the speaker could hardly
resist the temptation of paying a few compliments to
an audience, whom he had been so much in the habit
of courting, and in whose favour he deservedly held so
distinguished a place.
* “Sport, that wrinkled care derides.”—Milton.
The number of Grecian festivals—was immense; and
scarely to be equalled, even by those of the Church
of Rome, in the most flourishing periods of its history.
Of these Potter, in his Archaeologia, enumerates above

38 FUNERAL, ORATION
All kinds of merchandize, likewise, from
every part of the world, find their way, by
reason of its magnitude, into our city; and
three hundred, exclusively of the public games. It was
not without good reason, therefore, that the Apostle
Paul, on his memorable visit to Athens, observed to its
inhabitants, that they were &statºa woverseou; that is, very
prone to the worship of demons, or dead heroes. Many
of their ceremonies were wholly of a festive nature;
and some were attended with practices, which decency
forbids us to describe. It would be difficult to ima-
gine, how any government or people could long subsist
under such a system of things; did we not recollect,
that a vast body of slaves, far exceeding the number of
the citizens, were invariably subjected to rigorous servi-
tude, and constantly attending to the necessary and more
laborious duties of life; while the rest were employed in
the most superstitious observances, or rioting in scenes
of dissipation and vice. The expenses attending these
Public festivals, which were generally conducted upon
****ś must have been
immense. But the democratic Athenians sometimes
99ptrived to make their overgrown rich to contri-
bute largely, however involuntarily, towards defraying
them; thus preserving, as far as they were able, the
-proper-equilibrium of a society #9 constituted. To the
unbounded love of show and pleasure, which influenced
the Athenians, no bad resemblance ma , perhaps, be
ºung in the character and manners of the gay Parisians,
*~~~~~ • *.*

OF PERIC LES. 39
it falls to our lot, each of us, to enjoy
the good things that belong to other
nations, with no less a relish than we do
Ollſ OWIl, a
In the study of subjects relating to war,
we are superior to our enemies. For we
throw our city entirely open to the world;
and trusting not so much to preparations and
stratagems, as to our own high-minded firm-
ness in the management of our affairs, we
never, by laws of exclusion, keep any stran-
ger away from the schools of science; nor
from any spectacle whatever, which, when
* Commerce was carried on to a very considerable
•xtent by the Athenians. It, consequently, enabled
them to obtain many of those articles of luxury and
magnificence, of which they were so fond. The Peiraeus,
their celebrated harbour, however insignificant it may
appear in our day, was very commodiously situated for
trade; and they had various colonies, with which mer-
cantile intercourse, to a great degree, was doubtless
carried on. .
*º
•. * , , ºrºA.-
::
.

40 FUNERAL ORATION
free of access, may prove beneficial even
to our enemies.b
There are those who, in their systems of
discipline, by laborious exercise make va-
lour a particular object of pursuit with their
young men, as soon as they become such:
but we, although our habits of life are re-
laxed, are not less prompt, than they, at
facing dangers equally formidable.* As a
—-up
* On the authority of Plutarch, it has been remarked
upon this passage, that the Lacedaemonians, who were
extremely cautious in these respects, did not exclude
strangers from their public institutions and festivals
from a mean monopolizing spirit; but to prevent the
introdućtion of any thing that might tend to the cor-
ruption of the national manners.
* Here also, in various passages, the state-orator, in
his very eloquent and impressive harangue, pointedly
glances at the manners and institutions of the great
rival state of Athens, Lacedaemon. No two states, in
their fundamental principles and habits, could be more
opposite to each other. The Spartans separated them-
selves from the whole world; and formed a government
ºr TT mºſ f --~º
OF PERI. C. L.E.S. 41
proof of it, the Lacedaemonians never in-
vade our territory by themselves; but do it
in conjunction with all their allies. But
we, whenever we make an attack upon
our neighbours, obtain the vićtory without
difficulty, even in a foreign country; and
while fighting with those, who have their
dearest interests at stake. None of our
enemies have ever encountered our whole
force, collectively; some portion of it being,
at the same time, occupied in the care of
totally distinct from every other civil polity. By a system
of discipline the most rigorous, and an early familiarity
with the greatest hardships, it was the object of their
famed legislator Lycurgus to train them for bearing the
numerous difficulties and privations incident to a military
life. Though far from being consistent with the principles
of true valour, it was their delight, not only to encoun-
ter their foe in manly combat, but to endeavour to gain
the advantage over him by stratagem also. Hence, by
way of preparative for the various employments of war-
fare, they encouraged their youth in the baser arts of
plunder. The story of the boy, who suffered the fox to
gnaw into his bowels, rather than betray the theft of
which he had been guilty, is well known.

42 FU NERAL ORATION
our naval concerns; while the rest are dis-
patched to our various foreign possessions
by land. Yet if at any time they fall in
with only a certain detachment of our
troops, and gain a vićtory over part of
us, they boast that they have routed all:
and when they sustain a defeat, that they
have been defeated by all. But if, with
our habits of indolence, rather than by
attention to harder discipline; if, not more
from the influence of positive laws, than
of high-minded manners, we are ready to
expose ourselves to danger; the result is,
that we escape the painful anticipation of
impending troubles; and, when they are
come upon us, that we display no less for-
titude, than those who are always in train-
ing for them."
* It was not less true, than it was prudent in Pericles
to affirm it to be faët, that Athenian valour was always
pre-eminent in the field. The Orator continues, in
his interesting address, to allude to the Lacedæmo-
OF PERIC LIES. 43
Not only in these, but in other respects
also, our city is deserving of admiration. We
cultivate elegance with Geconomy, and libe-
—º-
nians, (between whom and the Athenians a great con-
test for political superiority had now commenced) as in
no respect surpassing in valour and skill, notwithstand-
ing their peculiar attention to military habits, his own
brave countrymen. Doubtless, much of the efficacy and
of the success of military manoeuvres must depend, not
merely upon the physical powers of the forces employed,
but also upon the precision and uniformity of their
movements. Yet, after all, where mental energy is
paramount, and where it is attended by a competent
knowledge of tačtics, and no very great disparity of
numbers, vićtory will, generally, be the result. Is it
not a fačt, that many of the most distinguished officers,
both in the British army and navy, have, from their
cradles, been accustomed to all the comforts and ele-
gancies of polished life? What Lacedaemonian could
have surpassed in patience or perseverance the brave, but
lamented Moore ? who, amidst difficulties and dangers,
rarely experienced by a commander, at the expense of his
own life preserved a British army from destruction? Or
his gallant, but more fortunate friend Graham, who quit-
ted independence and ease for the toils of war; and who,
on the heights of Barrosa, at the head of a braveband, far
inferior in numbers to the opposing force, has just added
a fresh wreath to the bright chaplet of British valour?
44 FU NERAL ORATION
ral knowledge without unmanly delicacy."
Our wealth we employ in well-timed ačtion,
rather than in ostentatious boasting. The
confession of poverty we consider not as
disgraceful to any one; but to make no
efforts to escape from it, we think highly
so." The same persons hold in their hands,
at one and the same time, the management
of both domestic and state affairs; and
even others, who are engaged in handicraft
employments, possess an adequate know-
• The Athenians were accused by their neighbours of
too great refinement; and Pericles makes this remark
in reference to the charge, that extravagance is the re-
sult of a taste too highly cultivated. Tº yze pixox2A12
roadwrov swara, says the Scholiast on the passage.
f “Poverty,” observes Dr. Johnson, “ has, in large
“ societies, very different appearances. It is often con-
“ cealed in splendour, and often in extravagance. It is
“ the care of a very great part of mankind to conceal
“ their indigence from the rest. They support them-
“ selves by temporary expedients; and every day is lost
“ in contriving for the morrow."—Rasselas.
.-
r
OF PERICLES. 45
ledge of political subjećts.g. For it is a pe-
culiar feature in our charaćter, to regard
him, who takes no interest in these things,
as not merely idle, but useless." We form
* Knowledge, arising from political discussion, when
rightly condućted, composes the genial atmosphere that
nourishes and keeps alive the divine spirit of liberty.
Such information would necessarily be widely diffused
among the Athenians. They were naturally a lively,
inquisitive race of men. From the very system of.
their civil government, it would follow, that political-
and that, such was the disposition of this most-extra-
ordinary—people, appears from the account—which
Demosthenes, in one of his Orations, has left use of their
-unbounded curiosity and yolatility. We have still
greater authority also for believing, that the chief
delight of the Athenians consisted, “either in telling or
“ in hearing some new thing.” In commenting upon
this propensity of the Athenians to political conversa-
tion, Baver observes: “Eademillis rationimirum, quae
“Britannis, Londini utique.”
* At Athens, on all public emergencies, whoever
stood neuter, was looked upon as disgraced; and a law
was expressly made by Solon for that purpose. In a
community so, liable to popular commotions, where
ambitious demagogues were continually starting up,
46 FUNERAL, ORATION
a right judgment also of things, and take
correct views of them for ourselves; because
we consider deliberation to be in no respect
injurious to action. We rather deem inju-
rious the want of that knowledge, which is
indispensable, before we proceed to the exe-
cution of what is necessary, and which dis-
cussion would have supplied. For in this
respect we are pre-eminent; that we not only
form the boldest projećts; but also, after the
greatest deliberation, actually undertake
them. Whereas, with others, ignorance
generates presumption; and deliberation
leads to fear. Now those may certainly be
reckoned the bravest of men, who, while
and endeavouring to mislead the people, there was the
utmost necessity, that all who wished well to the state,
should come boldly forward, and make a public decla-
ration of their sentiments. It was right, that they
should not merely give their unbiassed opinions respect-
ing any particular men or measures; but also, that they
should oppose them, in a manner still more decided,
whenever the welfare and safety of the state rendered
such extraordinary efforts necessary.
|
|

OF PERICLE8, 47
they have a perfect knowledge, both of
what is formidable, and of what is pleasant,
yet in no respect shrink, for this reason,
from danger.
In matters of beneficence, likewise, we
are totally different from the generality.
For we make friends, not by receiving, but
by bestowing favours. Now the man, who
has done a favour, is the more firmly at-
tached, inasmuch as he, who has received
the kindness, is security for the obligation
conferred. Whereas the feelings of the
person obliged are less alive; since he
knows, that the obligation must be re-
turned, not as a favour, but as a debt.
* This passage may serve as a comment on those me-
morable words of our Saviour, recorded in the A&s
of the Apostles: “It is more blessed to give, than to
“receive.”—Chap. xx. ver. 35. Gottleber has quoted
a passage, from the Ethics of Aristotle, which beauti-
fully illustrates this sentiment. “Those who have
* conferred a kindness," observes this sagacious philo-
48 FU NERAL ORATION
We are the only people, also, who render
assistance, to a considerable extent, to any
man, not from the mere calculation of
advantage, so much as from a firm reliance
upon his liberality and honour.
In a word, I affirm that our city, taken
in the aggregate, is the instructress of
Greece; and that every individual among
us seems to me to be possessed of those
personal abilities, which qualify him to
undertake, with the utmost grace and ele-
sopher, “ love, and are attached to those whom they
“ have obliged, although they neither have been, nor
“ever can be, of any service to them. The case is the
“ same with artists. For every one loves his own work
“ more than he would be beloved by it, were it pos-
“, sessed of life. Poets, in particular, discover this par-
“tiality. They are extremely fond of their own pro-
“ dućtions, loving them affectionately as their chil-
“dren. The same principle holds good with respect
“ to benefactors. The recipient of the kindness is their
Aristot. Ethic. lib. ix. c. 7.
** work.”
OF PERIC LES. 49
gance, a great variety of objects.k That
what I now declare is not mere parade of
words, but real matter of fact, the power
* Allusion is probably here made to the different
athletic exercises pračtised by the Athenians; in every
species of which, the orator affirms, that his fellow-
citizens were in no respect inferior to the other Greeks.
Among the Lyric odes, however, of the Theban Bard,
only two Athenians are celebrated as having distin-
guished themselves on these occasions; Megacles,
in a chariot-race, at the Pythian Games; and Timo-
demus, as a pancratiast. There might probably be,
and doubtless were, many other citizens of Athens,
who obtained the crown of vićtory in these splendid
contests; but their names have not been rendered con-
spicuous on the rolls of fame,
& & carent quia vate sacro."
We know that it was made a considerable objećt with
the Athenians to train their children to manly exer-
cises. Their aim, in so doing, was to prepare them
the better for bearing the hardships of war. And
whatever may be a man's destination in life, health
ought to be regarded as a primary object in edu-
cation; and all, to whom this important trust is
committed, are bound to pay particular attention to it.
Even the more delicate sex should be habituated to
such exercises, as contribute to health and personal
vigour. The puny forms, reared by the hand of the in-
IJ.
50 FU N ERA L ORATION
itself of the state, which by these habits we
have acquired, plainly shews. For of all
existing communities, our city is found,
when put to the test, even to surpass the
high charaćter generally entertained of her.
She is the only State, against which her
foes, when making war against her, feel no
resentment on account of the evils which
she inflicts upon them: nor does she give
those, who are in subjećtion to her, reason
to complain, that she is unworthy of the
sway which she possesses over them."
judicious and affected, excite the commiseration of all
beholders; and must eventually lead to a race of beings,
as destitute of noble and manly sentiments, as they are
deficient in corporal strength and activity.
*
| That is, even those who are vanquished by the
power of Athens, esteem her charaćter so highly, as to
consider defeat itself to be in no respect disgraceful :
and the States already dependent upon her (such is her
treatment of them) feel the yoke of bondage to be as
light as possible. In the history of Athenian power,
however, instances may be pointed out, in which that
refined people were guilty of great inhumanity towards
OF PERICLES. 51
Thus having founded a power, which is
by no means destitute of very conspicuous
proofs of its existence, we shall be objects
of admiration, not only to our own age, but
likewise to posterity; and shall require for
our panegyrist neither a Homer," nor any
other person, who in poetic numbers can
the States that were in subjećtion to them. Even
Pericles himself, after conquering the Samians, did
not treat them with much lenity.
* Homer is probably introduced in this passage, as a
general term for any celebrated poet. Otherwise, the
manner in which mention is made of the venerable
bard is by no means so honourable as one could wish.
In the Catalogue of Ships, which he has drawn up
with such consummate precision, he certainly notices,
in very flattering terms, the city and territory, the
people and General of the Athenians. Yet in the
sequel of his admired poem no farther allusion is
made to them. Other States of Greece, of much less
consequence than Athens, occupy very distinguished
places in the animated descriptions of encounters and
battles given by the Poet; but the Athenians are passed
by, or forgotten. Possibly some parts of this cele-
brated poem may have been lost. And if it be true,
as the learned historian of the Life and Writings of

E 2
59 FUNERAL, ORATION
administer to us present delight, yet whose
suspicious statement of facts will not bear
the test of truth. By our enterprising spirit
we have forced for ourselves a way into
every part both of sea and land; and, all
over the world, we have erected indelible
memorials, both of our displeasure and of
our favour. For such a state, these our
countrymen, judging it wrong to have it
wrested from them, have nobly died in
battle; and it is proper, that each indivi-
dual also, who survives, should be willing
to expose himself to difficulties for its sake.
Wherefore I have entered the more at
large into the history of the city, in order
to convince you, that there is a great
inequality between the prize for which we
Homer" supposes, that the Poet himself might never
have committed his sublime effusions to writing, or
might not, perhaps, have possessed the ability to do so,
may not the fa& be more than probable?
- * Wood.


OF PER1 C L ES. 53
are contending, and theirs," who have
no such interest at stake; and at the same
time to shew, by incontestible evidence,
the propriety of the praises bestowed
upon those, in whose behalf I am now
speaking.
The principal topics of encomium are
now exhausted. The virtues of these men,
and of such as they, constitute the best
illustration of the panegyric which I have
passed upon the city. And to many of
the Greeks, as of those now present, my
account of their heroic deeds would not
appear to come up to the fact. The valour
of each of these individuals seems to me to
be clearly proved by the circumstance of
his death; which first points it out to notice,
* The speaker here alludes to the Lacedaemonians.
He had before intimated the superior excellence of the
Athenian government to that of their rivals and enemies
in the Peleponnesus.
ºšiº-
* & -
2& 29
$º:
54 FU NERAL OF ATION
and at last confirms it. For even those,
who are less meritorious in other respects,”
ought to receive particular distinction,
when they have signalized their courage
against their enemies, in behalf of their
country. For having obliterated their bad
by their good qualities, the benefits, which
they have conferred upon their native
land, exceed the injuries it has suffered
from them. Not one of these men P has
disqualified himself for manly exertion by
giving to wealth, and to a wish for the
continued enjoyment of it, the preference
• He means those Athenian citizens, serving in the
army, who had been guilty of different crimes; and
whose immorality he describes as cancelled by their
manly exertions in favour of their country. The ex-
pression is softened, in tenderness to such offenders.
P That is, all, of every description, who have proved
their valour in the war; not those merely, whom he
has just particularized, as having atoned for their evil
deeds by their patriotic exertions. .
OF PERICLES. 55
to valour; nor has any one, in the hope
of averting the evils of poverty, (as if
by absolutely escaping from it, he must
at length become rich,) warded off from
himself the season of danger. But judg-
ing revenge upon their enemies to be more
desirable than these things, and at the
same time regarding such dangers as the
post of honour, they were anxious, while
at their peril they avenged themselves
upon their foes, to aspire to the attainment
of those other objects. Under the uncer-
tainty of success, they relied upon hope;
yet they judged it right, with respect to
dangers that were manifest, to place their
confidence in their own exertions. By
deeming it better, also, even to expose
themselves to sufferings in their own de-
fence, than by yielding to save themselves,
they escaped dishonourable imputations.
Their bodily conflićt, which was of short
duration, they sustained with firmness:
and while the fortune of the day was in
56 FU NE RA L ORATION
suspense, and fear was a stranger to their
bosoms, death hurried them away from
the field of glory."
These men have condućted themselves
towards the state, as became them. With
respect to those who survive, we must ex-
press our wishes for a safer issue of things.
At the same time you must consider it to
be your duty to cherish sentiments no less
determined against your enemies; and must
not suffer the good effects, arising from
* In the latter part of this difficult paragraph, which
is chara&erized by Dionysius, the Critic, in terms
that denote the utmost possible intricacy and diffi-
culty, the translator has found himself compelled, for
the sake of perspicuity, to break the original into se-
veral separate sentences; and to adopt a greater latitude
of expression, than he should otherwise have thought
himself warranted in using. The reader will more
easily decide, how far he was justified in taking such a
liberty, if he will only turn to the original, and make
experiment of the passage himself.
****
OF PERIC L ES. 57
such a spirit, to terminate merely in words.
These any one can multiply in your pre-
sence, who are as well acquainted with
the subjećt as myself; and can declaim
before you on the happy effects that result
from our repelling the attacks of our
adversaries. Rather let your valour have
for its object such deeds, as daily add to
the aggrandisement of the city, and
confirm your attachment to it.
You may consider, moreover, whenever
you are struck by its magnitude, that it
was by a spirit of intrepidity, knowledge
of their duty, and an honourable ambition
to signalize themselves, that valiant men
obtained for it these distinétions; and not,
whenever they were unsuccessful in any
attempt, by thinking it right to deprive
the State of the benefit of their courage;
but, as the most honourable offering which
they could make, by entirely devoting
themselves to its service.
58 FU NERAL ORATION
For, by surrendering their bodies to the
public good, they have individually ob-
tained never-fading glory, and a monument
the most illustrious;–not merely that in
which their ashes are deposited, but one
in which their fame, upon every occasion
for the display of eloquence, or for honour-
able exertion, will indelibly remain. Fort
The whole EARTH Is THE sepulchae or
Renowned men; and it is not merely in-
scriptions upon monuments in their native
country, which proclaim their praises; but,
in regions not their own, the unwritten re-
membrance of them lives in the breast of
every individual, more permanently than
any structure whatever of art."
—º--º- * - **
—º-º-º-º-º-- - -- * - - *—& Æ ———r
* The speaker, now grown warm with his subjećt, is
very impressive, and even sublime. We have here,
in the original at least,
“Thoughts that breathe, and words that burn.”
Nor is it surprising, that the Prince of Orators should
have been powerfully fascinated by such glowing
eloquence.
**
OF PERICLES, 59
Nobly emulating these characters, and
thinking happiness to consist in liberty,
and liberty in true greatness of mind,
scruple not to meet the dangers of warfare.
Neither “ storied urn, nor animated bust,” can form
a record of noble deeds half so pleasing to the pious
mind, as that which survives good actions in the
gratitude and affection of those who feel the bene-
ficial effects arising from them. Sacred be the ashes
of the virtuous dead; of all, who by their writings
have enlightened, or by their condućt have proved
themselves to be the kind benefactors and friends of
society. Curiosity may be delighted by contemplating
the spot where their remains are deposited; and the
best energies of some minds may be roused to exer-
tion, by mingling their feelings with the ideas na-
turally associated with such interesting scenes. But
this can be done much more effectually by the faithful
pen of Biography, employed in describing, fully and
distinétly, the grand outlines of their actions, dispo-
sitions, and charaćters; and in pointing out, at the
same time, what is worthy of imitation in them, and
what is not. Does not the striking passage in the ha-
rangue of Pericles, which has given occasion to these
refle&tions, furnish an ample reply to the plan, lately
suggested by the well-known Author of an “Essay
upon Sepulchres,” for perpetuating the memory of
. ... •
* -8.:* * *:-.
hiº, Til I ºn
illustrious charaćters?
60 FU NER A. L. ORATION
Iliſi
For it is not more natural to those who are
in adversity, and who have no hope what-
ever of happiness, to be lavish of their
existence, than it is incumbent upon you
to be so. You may, indeed, preserve your
lives, but this will be done at the risk of
the most serious reverses. And you, above
all others, if you are in any respect
negligent of your duty, will expose the
greatest interests to imminent hazard. For
to a man of spirit, at least, it is much more
painful to experience discomfiture, aggra-
vated by a debasing pusillanimity, than
death, which feels no suffering, and which
is the result of valiant achievements, and an
inspiring confidence in the public cause."
**
* Respecting these lines, Duker observes, “nec mihi
“liquet, quae sit illarum sententia;" and he adds, that
the whole passage is “ 8wavonrē..” With becoming
deference to such respectable authority, the translator
humbly apprehends their meaning to be simply this:
That a principle of conscious integrity, and that love
for the independence and the liberties of his country, at

OF PERICLES. 61
Wherefore, while I lament with you, who
are the parents of these men, as many of
you as are present, I shall not, in a less
degree, administer to you consolation.
That your children were born to a variety
of trials, you are well assured. And
though it be your lot to grieve, yet they
have experienced the best of fortune, who,
like these men, have obtained so glorious
an end; and whose lives and deaths are
equally happy. I know, indeed, how diffi-
cult it is to persuade those of you, who, in
the successes that have befallen others,"
and which in different circumstances were
all times felt and cherished by every generous mind,
will support the true patriot under the disappointment
of his dearest hopes in life, and in circumstances of the
deepest adversity.
* Namely, the children of those whom he is addres-
sing, and whose fate he considers, and pronounces to
be so enviable. He assures the parents of such children,
that they themselves, when their regrets become soft-
ened by time, will be sensible of this,
* 3rm
62 FU NIERA II, ORATION
a subject of exultation to you, will now
find so many causes to excite your regret.
Neither is yours the sorrow of those, who
have been robbed of blessings which they
never tasted. You have been deprived
of what was most dear to you. It is
right, however, for such of you as are
not yet too old to have other children, to
comfort yourselves with this hope." By
means of them you will all of you, indi-
vidually, forget those, who are now no
more. And to the State the benefit of
them will be two-fold; inasmuch as they
will prevent its numbers from being dimi-
nished, and will contribute to its safety.
* The topic of consolation, here pointed out by the
public orator, would not, one should suppose, be very
efficacious towards the allaying of sorrow. It is
unnatural and far-fetched; and no human being,
under aggravated feelings of mental distress, probably,
ever derived support from such reflections. It might
not, however, be impolitic in Pericles, to direct the
minds of his auditors to what would certainly prove
beneficial to the State, &
OF PERIC LIES. 63
For it is not possible that they, who have
no children to expose to dangers, as our
fellow-citizens have done theirs, should
have it in their power, with the same
honour and integrity, to consult for the
public weal.”
-:

* The true wealth of a nation consists in an adequate-
smººr,
number of robust, enlightened, and patriotic indivi-
quals; ready to maintain, against domestic and foreign
snemies, whenever it maybe necessary, the independence.
and the rights of their native land. And the parent,
who has trained the dearest objects of his affection so as
to form such chara&ers, is the greatest benefatº—to
society,+next to him, who by his conversation, his life,
and his writings, has freed the minds of his countrymen
from ignorance and vice, and instructed them in the
divine principles of religion and morality. Sir William
Jones, in his truly classic Ode, after the manner of
Alcaeus, finely expresses the foregoing sentiments: tº
“What constitutes a State?
“ Not high-rais'd battlements, or labour'd mound;
“Thick wall, or moated gate:
“Not cities proud, with spires and turrets crown'd :
“Not bays, and broad-arm'd ports,
“Where, laughing at the storm, rich navies ridé:
64 FU NERAL, ORATION
Those of you, moreover, who are past
the meridian of your days, must view this
prolonged portion of your being, which has
been happily spent, as so much positive
gain to you. At the same time reflect, how
circumscribed the rest of it will be, and alle-
viate your sorrows by thinking of the re-
nown which these men have acquired. For
the love of glory alone never grows old;
and in the season of life, when usefulness
is past, the accumulation of wealth affords
not, as some affirm, so much delight as
honourable distinčtion.
“Not starr'd and spangled courts,
“Where low-bred baseness wafts perfume to pride.
tº ºf No:—MEN, high-minded MEN,
“With powers as far above dull brutes endued,
“ In forest, brake, or den,
“As beasts excel cold rocks and brambles rude:
“Men, who their duties know;
“But know their rights; and knowing, dare maintain;
“Prevent the long-aim'd blow;
“And crush the tyrant, while they rend the chain :
“These constitute a State.”
OF PERICLES, 65
You, now present, who are the children
and brothers of these men, have, I per-
ceive, an arduous struggle to make. For
all are in the habit of praising those who
are no more. And even though your
valour should very greatly surpass theirs,
you will hardly be reckoned their equals;
but must rank somewhat below them. For
envy prevails among living competitors;
but he who forms no obstacle to any one, is
distinguished by kind regards, in which
jealousy has no share.
If it be right for me to touch at all upon
the virtues of those females, who will now
be reduced to a state of widowhood, a
brief admonition will comprise what I have
to say. It will highly redound to your
honour, if you prove yourselves not inferior
to what nature designed you to be; and if
y “Virtutem incolumen odimus:
“Sublatam ex oculis quaerimus invidi.”—Hon.
F
66 FUNERAL, ORATION
as little as possible, either in praise or
dispraise of you, be rumoured among the
other sex.”
I have now advanced, according to the
law, all I have to offer that is appro-
* Young, in his “Love of Fame," has a similar
sentiment:
“Your sex’s glory 'tis, to shine unknown;
“Of all applause, be fondest of your own."
Sat. v. l. 566, 567.
-The manner, in which Pericles addresses the female
Yart of his audience, would scarcely have been ex-
pećted from the renowned admirer and friend of the
accomplished Aspasia. In justice to the Orator, how-
ever, we must recolle& the very degraded state in
society, which women in general, even among the re-
fined people of Greece, at that time occupied. The
Greek dramatic writers, and especially Euripides,
contain the strongest inve&ives against them, which it
would be easy to produce. *
It was not thus, if we may judge from what we learn
concerning them from the writings of Homer, that
females were treated in the Heroic times of Greece.
Even the offending Helen received the most delicate
attentions from the venerable Trojan chiefs, on the
OF PER I C LES. 67
iſ in
priate; and, in fact, the persons now buried
have received one portion of the honours
due to them. The rest will be paid to their
children, who will henceforth be brought
up, till they arrive at manhood, at the
public expense; the State having proposed
this privilege, as a badge of distinétion for
such honourable exertions; and as equally
advantageous to them, and to their sur-
vivors." For those States which hold forth
. .
walls of Troy. The beautiful pićture of nuptial felicity
in the interview between He&or and Andromache, 213
described in the Iliad, forms one of the most interesting
scenes in all antiquity. And the charaćter of the
chaste and faithful Penelope, as drawn by the same
masterly hand in the beautiful pages of the Odyssey,
greatly heightens our esteem for the loveliest part of
the human species. -
* This regulation of Solon was not only an ačt of
honour conferred upon the children of fallen soldiers,
but of justice also. And every State, that is anxious to
be strong in the affections and loyalty of its subjećts,
(and in what can its strength more properly consist?)
must take care, that its resources are not lavished on the
undeserving, the inefficient, and the idle; to the neglect
of these first objects of national gratitude and care.
F 2
68 FUNERAL or ATION of PER1c LEs.
to their subjećts the greatest rewards of
valour, always produce the best citizens.
Now then, after duly paying the tribute
of sorrow to your respective relatives, go
your way."
Till the age of maturity, which was fixed at eighteen,
the children of those Athenians, who had sacrificed
their lives in fighting the battles of their country, were
brought up and educated at the public expense. They
were then presented with a complete suit of armour;
and, besides other privileges, with which they were fa-
voured, they had the honour of occupying the first seats
in all their public assemblies.
* It may to us appear rather unpolite in the Orator
to bid his audience disperse. What he here says was
merely to inform them, that the ceremony was over.
We must recolle&, also, that Pericles was a man high in
office; and, consequently, particularly interested in the
preservation of public order and tranquillity.
The Roman formula of dismissing a popular assembly
was a little more affable: “Si vobis videtur, discedite,
“ Quirites.” If it be agreeable to you, Romans, depart.
—Liv. II. 56.
THE
{
"MENExENUs,"
OR
FU N E RAI, ORATION
OF
PLATO.
A prº-3 ºf %2, Pººr
fºe." A aft ºr , 4- ſº-
~% tº
[ 71
PLATO.
His Life—Character—Writings—
Funeral Oration.
LATO, to whom we are indebted for
the following Funeral Harangue, was
an ancient Greek philosopher, of great
celebrity. He was born at Athens, 428
years before the Christian era; and died at
the venerable age of 81. It is said, that
his descent might be traced to Codrus, on
the father's side; and to Solon, on the
mother's. He was certainly Sprung from
one of the most illustrious and ancient
families in Athens.
It was during the odious reign of the
Thirty Tyrants that Plato lived. In con-
sequence of the bloody despotism of those
oppressors of his country; and, more espe-
72 LIFE AND writ ING's
cially, on account of their murder of
Socrates, his beloved master, he retired
from Athens, in quest of knowledge. At
the age of twenty-eight he studied Mathe-
matics under Euclid at Mégara, and
Theodorus at Cyrene. From his youth he
had devoted his attention to the liberal
arts; and had laudably availed himself of
the numerous opportunities of mental im-
provement, afforded in the far-famed place
of his nativity, to all who resided in it;
or who thought proper to visit it, for the
sake of instruction.
In the ardour of youth, (as is by no
means uncommon, when accompanied by
genius,) his inclination strongly impelled
him to the study of poetry; but, at the age
of twenty, having once heard the lectures
of Socrates, the early productions of his
imagination were soon consigned to the
flames. He appears to have been very
steady in his determination to abandon

OF PLATO, 73
tº gº.
the Muses. He even retained his objections
to poetry, or his apprehension, at least, of
the dangers attending it, so far, as, in his
plan of a Republic, to banish it from the
State.
Urged by an insatiable thirst after know-
ledge, he travelled to Italy and Egypt, to
collect information. In the former he
became acquainted with the Pythagorean
philosophers and their tenets. In the lat-
ter, he is said to have been introduced by
the Egyptian priests to a knowledge of
the Sacred Books of the Jewish prophets.
Euripides is reported to have accompanied
Plato to Egypt; where the poet, it is added,
falling sick, was indebted to the skill of
the Egyptian sages, and to sea-water, for
his recovery. On which account, in one
of his verses he expressed the following
sentiment:
“All human ills the sea can wash away.”
'74 LIFE AND W RITINGS:
It was Plato's intention to pay a visit to
the Magi; but he was unfortunately pre-
vented by the wars, then raging in Asia.
Every Athenian citizen being trained to
the use of arms, it is recorded that this ce-
lebrated philosopher served as a soldier in
three expeditions. The poet AEschylus had
done the same before him; and according to
the accounts which we have of his life, had
acquired a greater portion of military fame,
than ever attended the Sage of the Academy.
The former was present, and particularly
distinguished himself, at the three glorious
battles of Marathon, Salamis, and Plataea.
At the age of forty, Plato, visited, the
beautiful island of Sicily. His principal
object, on this occasion, was to explore its
wonderful natural phoenomenon, mount
AEtna. During his residence in that island,
he received the most distinguished atten-
tions from several of its chief inhabitants.
But from Dionysius, who was at that time
OF P LATO, 75
ºf ſiliſ
king of Sicily, and at whose request he is
said to have visited that part of the world,
his treatment was of a very different kind.
In consequence of Plato's extreme freedom
of speech, even his life is said to have been
placed in the most imminent danger.” But
although he escaped death, yet, at the
command of the tyrant, he was sold at
AEgina for a slave. By the zealous inter-
ference, however, of his numerous friends,
he was soon liberated from this state of
bondage. Dionysius afterwards wished to
apologize to Plato, for the injury which
he had done him; but the philosopher
replied, that “he had not leisure to
“remember Dionysius.”
In the course of his life, Plato paid two
other visits to the island of Sicily. At one
* The conversation turned upon Politics. “No-
“thing,” said Plato, “can be so base or so wretched,
“ as an unjust Prince.” ‘You speak, replied Diony-
76 LIFE AN ID W R1T IN GS
time he wrote to Dion, who overturned
the government of this detested tyrant,
requesting him to purchase for him three
Pythagorean books, at the enormous price
of an hundred Minae, or three hundred
pounds of our money.c
On returning from his travels to his
native city, he would not consent, in the
declining state of theliberties of his country,
to take an active part in politics. To such
distraćting and unprofitable speculations he
happily preferred the study of Philosophy;
*...*... . . .”... "
sius, ‘like a dotard.” “And you,” rejoined Plato,
“like a tyrant.”
* The present, it seems, are not the only times, in
which Classical books have been remarkable for their
high price. But we should remember, that in the days of
Plato there was no Press; and that all books were, con-
sequently, in Manuscript, which must necessarily have
enhanced their value to a very great amount. Some
persons are of opinion, that the literary world is partly
indebted to the labours of a Dibdin, for paying so ex:
travagantly dear for these articles of learned luxury.
|
OF PLATO. 77
and, accordingly, founded that celebra-
ted School of science, denominated the
Academy, in the suburbs of Athens; where,
amidst tranquil shades, and in sequestered
walks, he diffused, among the various mul-
titudes who resorted to him, the copious
streams of that diversified knowledge,
which, from long study, observation, and
experience, he had so plentifully collečted
in the course of life.
His philosophical system was said to be
composed of a threefold union of the
doćtrines of Heraclitus, Pythagoras, and
Socrates. The first was his model, with
regard to objects of sense, or Physics;
the second, in those of intellect, or Meta-
physics; and the third, in the duties of
man to man, or Morals.
Among the most distinguished of Plato's
scholars were Aristotle, Hyperides, Iso-
crates, Theophrastus, and Demosthenes.
... arºs... º.
78 LIFE AND WRITINGS
:
~.
By those who attended his lectures, or who
had been delighted by the attractive charms
of his very refined, conversation, he was
looked up to with the greatest respect and
veneration. When observed to be present
at the Olympic Games, the eyes of all the
assembly, were fixed upon him; and he was
greeted with the most lively expressions of
admiration and applause.
On account of his sublime genius, and
extraordinary powers of language, he was
called the “ Divine Plato;” and so pre-
eminent was his knowledge, that in the
language of Pliny, he is styled, the “High-
V Priest of Wisdom.” (Cicero and Quintilian
are very eloquent in praise of his wº
Jupiter himself, it is said, had he converse
in Greek, would have spoken like Plato.
His dićtion is often sublime; and is always
exuberant, majestic, and flowing. His
style, however, is charged with being oc-
casionally affected, Certainly it sometimes
**- Aus
------, -
**** * , , &

OF PLATO. 79
wanders, not a little, into the regions of
poetry. I Instances of tautology also may
be pointed out in his writings, which
the superior attention to accuracy, or, per-
haps, the fastidiousness of the present day
would scarcely tolerate. But notwithstand-
ing these more trivial defects, àd what
literary performance, either in ancient or
modern times, is free from them?) Plato
is a writer who must always be admired,
wherever genius, and learning, science,
and taste are to be found, as uniting the
greatest acuteness and penetration of mind
with the most ardent imagination and the
most profound knowledge.
Much of what is fanciful, however, is
contained in his compositions; and he was,
doubtless, more distinguished for the fer-
tility of his genius, and the liveliness of his
imagination, than for the solidity of his |
judgment, or his strength of reasoning.
But it would carry the reader beyond a
8() LIFE AND WRITI NGS
mere sketch of the life of this celebrated
sage of antiquity, (to which the present
Memoir professes to confine itself,) were
we to enter into a particular detail of the
many most ingenious and diversified specu-
lations, with which his works abound; or to
state, what have been their influence upon
the sentinents of mankind in general,
and . especially upon the opinions of the
Christian world. The leading doćtrines of
the Platonic system were, two grand prin-
ciples of all things, God, and matter; the
immortality of the soul; and a future state
of rewards and punishments.
The charaćter of Plato was adorned by
many excellent and amiable qualities. In
his enjoyments he was remarkable for tem-
perance and moderation. In his friend-
ships, he was warm and steady. His temper
was naturally grave and sedate; and in his
youth, it is said, he was neverseen to laugh.
A rich vein of irony occasionally pervades
<-------- .
OF P LATO. 81
his writings, and appears in the Introduc-
tion to his Menexenus. Had he not
checked so dangerous a propensity, he
might have distinguished himself, not a
little, as a writer of satire. His attention
was laudably directed to higher objects.
One of his sayings ought never to be for-
gotten. Upon remonstrating with a person
for playing at dice, the latter excused him-
self, by observing, that the stake he played
for was only trifling. “But habit,” replied
the philosopher, “is not trifling.”
Plato's mode of reasoning was that termed
the Socratic. He accordingly wrote in the
form of dialogue; and in this manner his
Menexenus, or Funeral Harangue, is in:
troduced. Socrates is there described as
addressing Menexenus in a jocular style,
on his attendance at the Senate-House.
Menexenus informs him, in reply, that he
had gone thither, upon hearing that the
Council were about to elect a person to
/ Gł
'82 FU NERAL ORATION
|
speak over their brave countrymen who had
fallen in battle, and whose obsequies were
shortly to take place. Upon this, Socrates,
who was no admirer of the eloquence ge-
nerally employed by the Athenian orators
in public, makes various sarcastic remarks
upon their manner of speaking. He no-
tices their extreme propensity to panegy-
rize all, who happened to furnish them with
topics for their harangues. He himself,
he adds, could make as good an harangue,
were he appointed upon the occasion, as
they did; for that he had a most excellent
instruétress in eloquence; one, who had
‘formed an orator surpassing all other public
speakers of , whom Athens could boast.
This was Pericles; who, from the admirable
Mºrº lessons of his mistress Aspasia, had at-
jiº iſºm
tained the greatest celebrity in Oratory.
Socrates observed, that he had heard her,
the day before, enlarging upon the topics,
which she supposed would, at the ap-
proaching funeral ceremony, constitute the
substance of the public orator's harangue.

O F P LATO, 83
After this preamble, Socrates is intro-
duced by Plato, as delivering from memory
what he recollected of the speech of Aspasia.
His discourse is divided into three heads.
First, he enlarges upon the noble birth
of his Athenian countrymen, who were
descended from the genuine blood of their
ancestors, unmixed with that of any foreign
origin. Secondly, he expatiates upon the
excellence of the Athenian government
and mode of education. Thirdly, he enters
into a particular detail of the distinguished
... tº Jº ºn º-, *-*.*.***
charaćterswhom it had produced among
their forefathers; with the numerous deeds
of heroism and valour, which, inspired by
the love of liberty and of their country,
they had achieved. These charaćters he
introduces as addressing their descendants;
and exhorting them to behave in a manner
worthy of their renowned progenitors, by
valiantly fighting the battles of their
r|Y
country; by supporting the rights and
independence of their civil constitution;
G 2
84 FU NERAL, ORATION
by maintaining the liberties, personal and
public, of the great body of citizens at
large; and by protećting every thing, that
was most valuable and dear to them, from
all encroachments on the part of their ene-
Inies, whether at home or abroad. He
then concludes, by recommending to the
kind care and affection of his fellow-
citizens the children and parents of those,
who had sacrificed their lives for the good
of the State. This, he adds, has made a
suitable and honourable provision for the
maintenance and education of the children
of their departed countrymen; to whose
memory also it has instituted, not only
this annual panegyric; but has likewise
appointed gymnastic, equestrian, and other
liberal games, in commemoration of their
many great virtues and heroic achieve-
InentS.
With the recolle&tion of these distinc-
tions and honours, conferred on their illus-
OF PLATO. 85
*-*-*•
trious relatives, he advises them to soften
their regrets, and to soothe their sorrows;
and then dismisses the assembly.
Respe&ting this harangue, Cicero ex-
presses himselfin his ** Orator,” as follows:
“populari oratione, quâ mos est
“ Athenis laudari in concione eos, qui sint
** in prælio interfeéti; quæ sic probata est,
** ut eam quotannis, ut scis, illo die recitari
** necesse sit. In eâ est ista vocum con-
** cursio, quam magnâ ex parte, ut viti-
** osam, fugit Demosthenes.”
OF
PLATO.”
ſ | "HE obse quies, due to these men, have
now Leen strićtly performed; and,
having received them,” they go the way
* The introdućtory dialogue to this Oration, between
Socrates and Menexenus, the translator has judged
proper to omit; as being, from its ironical and humour-
ous strain, unsuitable to the dignity and gravity of the
subsequent sentiments. Socrates is there introduced by
Plato, as pronouncing, from memory, the harangue which
he had heard Aspasia deliver, partly from premeditation,
and partly extempore, in honour of the heroes who had

88 FUNERAL or ATIon
'li º ºth
appointed for them by the Fates;s being
publicly accompanied by the city, and
fallen in battle. But, in all probability, it is the entire
composition of Plato himself, who, in his writings, not
unfrequently ascribes sentiments to Socrates, of which
he himself was the sole author. It is recorded, that
when Plato read to Socrates one of his Orations, the
latter exclaimed, “By Hercules, what fićtions and lies
“ does this young philosopher put into my mouth !”
* That is, to join the shades below; to which no
departed spirit, according to the heathen system of
theology, could have access, till the proper rites of
burial had been performed. Hence the religious exact-
ness with which these humane attentions to the dead
were uniformly paid; and the great anxiety, expressed
by those who were about to close their earthly existence,
to obtain them. The Pythagorean philosopher Archy-
tas is represented by Horace, as pouring forth the most
menacing execrations against a sailor, as he passed the
coast, where the former lay shipwrecked add unburied,
unless he would take the trouble to sprinkle a little sand
over him:
- - - - - “ licebit,
“ Injećto ter pulvere, curras.”
OD. lib. i. 28.
• The transition from the present world to the next
has often been described, both in prose and verse, as a
OF PLATO's 89
privately by their friends. But it is both
right, and the law requires, that the com-
pliment of an harangue, which has not yet
been made, should be paid to them. For
when noble deeds have been performed,
an oration, well delivered, is an honourable
memorial, from those who have heard of
their fame, to the men who have achieved
them. Some such oration, therefore, is I
necessary; inasmuch as, while it renders
an adequate tribute of praise to the dead,
it kindly offers the encouragement which is
proper for the living;. inviting children and
brothers to take example from the valour
of these men; and comforting fathers and
mothers, and other more distant relatives,
should any such be remaining to them.d
journey, or passage. In the original the idea is beau-
tifully expressed, and has been much admired, both for
the sentiment and language.
* There is great truth in these observations. At such
a time, the hearts of those, who have experienced the
loss of beloved relatives, are particularly susceptible of
90 FU NERAL, ORATION
What then, would it seem, ought to be
the nature of such an harangue? Or
where can we justly enter upon the praises
of brave men; who, while living, de-
lighted their friends by their yalour; and
submitted to death, to obtain security for
their survivors?
|
k
To me it appears best, as they were na-
‘turally brave, to begin their praises from
their birth. Now they were naturally
brave, inasmuch as they were the sons of
brave men." First, then, let us pass our
tender impressions; and are not a little soothed and
comforted, by hearing the praises of those whom they
have so highly esteemed. But how slight is the con-
solation, which, with all its boasted charms, heathen
eloquence could afford to the dejećted heart, compared
with the exalted and animating hopes, which the
Christian Orator, standing on the rock of divine faith,
j and even with graces of dićtion and powers of lan-
guage often far inferior, is able to impart.
* Although philosophers have sometimes been the
'fathers of fools, and heroes of cowards, yet the obser-
OF P LATO, * 91
encomiums upon their excellent pedigree;
secondly, on their nurture and education ;
and, in the next place, let us shew how
honourable, as well as how consistent with
these advantages, were the deeds which
they achieved.
These men derived their excellent pedi-
gree from the blood of their ancestors;
which was not of foreign origin, and
which did not place these their descend-
ants, as if their progenitors were aliens,
in the situation of emigrants in the coun-
try; but as aétually sprung from the earth,
and as really living upon, and inhabiting,
their native soil; brought up, moreover,
vation has generally been found to be true; as Flaccus
sings:
“Fortes creantur fortibus et bonis.
“Est in juvencis, est in equis, patrum
“ Virtus; nec imbellem feroces
“Progenerant aquilae columbam."
Od. 4. lib, iv.
92 FUNERAL. ORATION
not by a step-mother, as the rest of the
inhabitants, but by a mother;—the region
in which they resided; and now lying dead
in their own territory, where their mother
produced, and nourished, and has received
them back again to her bosom.f
f The Athenians prided themselves, not a little, upon
their natural descent; and strongly marked the line, be-
tween the native citizen and the other branches of their
population. These consisted of sojourners and slaves.
It was only persons of the first dignity and merit, who
could obtain the privilege of citizenship in the best
periods of the Republic ; and so strićt were the laws
relative to their ele&tion, that many of these failed in
their application for that honour. To be a free-born
citizen of Athens, it was necessary that one or both of
the parents should be of Attic extračtion. This regu-
lation had been relaxed; but was again revived by
Pericles; in consequence of which, above four thousand
citizens were deprived of their freedom, and sold as
slaves; an act of injustice and inhumanity, which
greatly tarnishes the splendour of that celebrated poli-
tician's most memorable administration.
The jealousy shewn by the Athenians, in admitting
strangers to the enjoyment of civil honours among them,
arose from the high notions which they entertained of
the antiquity of their descent. It was a long-established
OF PLATO. 93
It is highly proper, in the first place, to
set forth the praises of the mother herself.
For it so happens, that we shall, at the
and common opinion among them, that the earth was
the mother of mankind, and ačtually produced human
beings from her capacious and fertile bosom. Hence,
like many other ancient nations, the Aborigines of the
country which they inhabited, the Athenians boasted
that they were the produćtion of the soil on which they
lived, or sons of the earth. From this arose the custom,
with many of them, of wearing grasshoppers of gold in
their hair; because these insects were supposed to be
formed from the ground.
The most remote period, to which Athenian history
can be traced, even by tradition, is the reign of Ogyges;
who is said to have been contemporary with the Patriarch
Jacob; or at least, with the Jewish legislator, who was
born 1571 years before the Christian era; a period of
265 years later. But of this ancient king, who is
thought to have reigned at a place called Athens in
Boeotia, no mention is made even by the earliest Grecian
poets, historians, or geographers ; and the only event
recorded of his reign, is a remarkable flood, which pro-
duced immense desolation and misery in the fertile
fields of Boeotia.
Nothing of Athenian history can, with any tolerable
degree of certainty, be depended upon, even in the time
94. FU NERAL, ORATION
ł same time, be doing homage to the noble
descent of these heroes. The country is
entitled, not only to our praises, but to those
jis
łof all men, on a great variety of accounts;
|but in the first place, and chiefly, inasmuch
łas it is beloved by the gods. This my
#assertion is confirmed by the contest and
decision which took place, when the gods
had a competition for it." But if the gods
regarded it as worthy of commendation, is
it not right that all men should be lavish
j in their praises of it?
of Cecrops, who came from Egypt, and settled in Attica
above 200 years after the death of Ogyges. For many
centuries, subsequent to the reign of Cecrops, all is
vague tradition and hopeless uncertainty. “
* This alludes to the fabulous account of the contest
that took place between Neptune and Minerva, which
of the two should give the name to the city of Athens.
The former created a horse, and the latter the olive,
which was judged to be the more valuable production
of the two, and which, accordingly, decided the dis-
pute in favour of the Goddess of Wisdom.
i
º&
|


OF PLATO, 95
The second circumstance, which justly
entitles it to encomium is this; that at the
very time when the whole world besides
!
|
t
naturally produced all kinds of animals,
both wild and tame, our country not only
did not give birth to, but was perfectly free
from savage beasts.” . And from among all
other creatures she selected for herself, and;
brought forth man, surpassing in the fa- t
culty of intellect all other creatures, and
alone acknowledging a regard to justice, i
and the gods. It is a remarkable proof of
•-ºº:
* Attica is allowed to have been civilized before any
of the other distrićts of Greece; which will sufficiently
account for this circumstance. The savage tribes of
animals are put to flight by the softening genius of
cultivation. The first heroes, whom history introduces
to our notice, such as Hercules, Theseus, and Meleager,
signalized themselves not only in vanquishing public
depredators; but also in clearing the countries in which
they lived, or through which they travelled, from the
wild beasts that infested them, and which often occa-
sioned extreme dismay to the unguarded inhabitants.
* This is a just and striking definition of man;
who, from being endued with intelle&ual powers, be-
96 FUNERAL ORATION:
the assertion, that this country was the
mother, not only of the ancestors of these
men, but likewise of our own. For every
creature, that bringsforth, is furnished with
the sustenance requisite for its offspring."
Whence it clearly appears, whether a
woman has actually produced a child, or
whether she has not; and that when
she is destitute of the sources of suste-
comes qualified for religious and moral agency; a dis-
tinčtion, which no other creature in the universe can
boast. Milton, in his “Paradise Lost,” has finely
described the formation of our great first parent. Yet
how far do the descriptions, both of the philosophic
Plato and of the sublime Milton, fall short of the match-
less dignity and simplicity of Moses: “And God created
“man in his own image; in the image of God created
“ he him.”
* We are here reminded of Mr. Roscoe's elegant
translation of Tansillo's “Nurse;" a poem, the perusal
of which may very properly be recommended to those
of our fair countrywomen, who are not yet acquainted
with the excellent advice and beautiful sentiments with
which it abounds.
OF PLATO, 97
nance for her infant, the child must be
supposititious.
Hence also our country, and mother,
can give abundant proof, that her men are
her own children. For she alone having,
in fact, brought forth for herself this living
creature, did at that time produce, for
the food of man, the fruits of wheat
and barley, constituting the best and most
effectual sustenance for the human race.
These proofs are more admissible in the
case of the earth, than of a woman. For
the earth does not take example of ges-
! Exceptions may be made to this, as a general
rule. But to reason, as Plato does in this passage, that
because Attica produced the common fruits of the
earth, she must ačtually have brought forth her inha-
bitants from her soil, may possibly be consistent with
ancient fable and tradition, but certainly does not at all
accord with sound reason and common sense. Such an
account of things would, doubtless, be gratifying to an
audience so vain of their national ancestry, as the
Athenians were.
H
98. FU NERAL, ORATION
—r-
tation and production from a woman; but
a woman, from the earth.” She has not
grudged to others the enjoyment of these
fruits, but has been liberal of them.
Next sprang from her lap, to mitigate
the labours of her sons, the fruit of the
olive." After supplying, them with suste-
- =
* This curious sentiment, respecting the produćtion
and nutrition of the Athenians from their mother-earth,
is very fanciful and inconclusive. Yet, while seriously
entertained, it must have contributed, not a little, to
excite a spirit of patriotism and mutual attachment
among them.
* The “ ºrova, agaryny,” in the original, may call forth
to the recolle&tion of the classical reader Horace's
beautiful expression, applied indeed to his lyre: **
“ – laborum
“Dulce lenimen.”
Pliny also, in his Natural History, speaks of the olive,
in equally appropriate terms with those used by the
writer of the Menexenus: “Arbores postea blandiori-
“ bus fruge succis hominem mitigavere. Ex iis recreans
“ membra olei liquor.” The olive has always been
considered as the crimblem of peace and plenty. It was
the favourite plant of the great tutelary Goddess of
i
nance till they arrived at manhood, the
gods (whose names it is not fit, upon an
occasion like the present, to enumerate)
were appointed by her to protećt and
instrućt them. For we well know, who
they were, who furnished us with the ac-
commodations of life; and who instrućted
Athens; and formed the crowns, which encircled the
heads of her vićtorious citizens. The liquid produced
from it was converted, as at present, to a great variety of
uses. In the Athenian Gymnasia, as well as in those of
the Romans, and likewise in their baths, oil was con-
stantly employed for the purpose of promoting agility
and health.
“Exercent patrias oleo labente palaestras
“ Nudati socii.” Virg. AEn. l. iii. 281.
Oil was, in fact, both among the Greeks and Romans, a
necessary luxury. “Ungor olivo,” says Horace, in the
humorous journal which he gives of his daily em-
ployments. And the Roman Naturalist, above quoted,
reproaches the Greeks for making this valuable liquid
so essential an article in the catalogue of human wants:
“ Usum ejus ad luxuriam vertère Graeci, vitiorum om-
“ nium genitores, in gymnasiis publicando.” It is said,
that the olive was brought from Egypt to Attica by
Cecrops.
H 2
*g.
**** = .
**** * →
**** -
100 FU NERAL ORATION
V
-
t
us from our infancy in the arts originally
requisite for the procuring of daily subsist-
ence; and who taught us the mode of
obtaining arms, and the use of them, for
the defence of our country.” Now the
progenitors of these men, who had their
birth and education after this manner,
formed for themselves, and were members
of, a civil government, of which it is
proper here to give a brief account. For
' A STATE Is THE NURSE OF MEN ; when
GOOD, of GooD su BJECTs; BUT when
THE contRARY, OF BAD.P
tº---—
• Minerva, the parent of the olive, and the Goddess
of Wisdom, was the Divinity who had the city of
Athens under her special protećtion. Triptolemus, the
son of Ceres, instructed the Athenians in agriculture;
and Theseus, in civil policy. Cecrops brought from
Egypt to Athens a form of religious worship; and also
taught its inhabitants the art of navigation.
P Having now finished the first topic which he pro-
posed to discuss,—the venerable origin of those heroes
of his country, who had fallen in battle;—the Orator
iſ nº
sees”
4.
Sºº
*** º In
Aſ
(? OF PLATO. 101
Under how excellent a form of go-
vernment, therefore, our ancestors were
brought up, I think it incumbent upon
me to shew. From this, in fact, not only
they themselves, but their present descend-
ants, among whom may be reckoned these
departed heroes, became brave. For the
government itself was then, as it is now,
an Aristocracy; under which we are sub-
jećts, not only at present, but have been so,
passes on to the second general head of his harangue;
the object of which is, to describe the nature g
government under which they livedi.introducing this
branch of his discourse with the following inst remark,
that it is the pºlity of a nation, which in reality forms
the charageº. of its subjećts;...and that these are good
****.*, *, *.* § ºf J.
|
or bad, virtuous or vicious, according to the principles.
****-*.x, , .
upon which theiß administrationisconduaed.
It may with truth be added, that both a govern-
ment, and the community to which such government
belongs, mutually act and re-aēt upon each other.
Yet not with equal force. Prodigious is the power of
the political machine, when ably constructed, and vir-
tuously administered; and fortunate would it be for
society, were those who direct its grand movements,

102 FU NERAL ORATION
|
|
|
º
re,
for the most part, from that time to this.
One, indeed, calls it a Democracy. Ano-
ther gives it some other name, as best
pleases him. But it is, in reality, a Popular
Aristocracy, founded on respectability of
character. For we always have our kings;
who are, at one time, hereditary; at an-
other, elective. The power of the State is
generally in the hands of the multitude;
who distribute the offices of authority and
controul, among such as are uniformly es-
teemed the most worthy; and neither from
the want of influence, nor from poverty,
nor from the obscurity of his ancestors,
is any one rejected by them. Neither is
he, as in other States, honoured for the
opposite qualifications. We have pnly one
rule: whoever is accounted wise, or good,
dire&ts and governs."
* – A * * * *
liberty, virtue, and justice, which would most essen-
, tially contribute to the peace, and happiness of the
iſii in
world.

OF PLATO. 103
This species of polity is founded upon
equality of birth. Other States, indeed,
are composed of men of all descriptions, :
..º.
a From what is afterwards advanced, it appears that
Plato, when he asserts that the Athenian government
was aristocratic, means an aristocracy of virtue and
talents; not of rank and wealth. Strićtly speaking,
however, after the time of their kings, the Athenian
polity was democratical; and though the Orator states,
that they had always their kings, yet these, after º
reign of Codrus, the last of the royal line, were only a
kind of chief magistrates, called Archons; of whom
there were three; one of whom was always styled Kirk
.*
The best-constituted government is doubtless that,
in which each rank in society has its just share of ;
civil power; and where no branch of the body politic
possesses a greater portion of influence, than pro-
perly belongs to it. Unfortunately, at Athens the
gº citizens of the lowest class, who were by far the most |
numerous, yet who by no means resembled the lower
orders of society in modern States, bore the chief sway :
in their popular assemblies; where every question was
finally decided. The consequences, arising from the
very nature of such an assembly, were frequently lament-
able in the extreme. Notwithstanding the various means
prescribed by their wisest legislators to prevent it, a
spirit of precipitation, fickleness, and faction often pre- /
&
‘.…' ...' ... r. . .
... tº ºssº - “
104 FU NERAL, ORATION
and of anomalous kinds. Hence their
governments also are anomalous; being
Tyrannies and Oligarchies. Their subjects,
vailed in them. To prevent these irregularities, the
Senate of Five Hundred was instituted. But even so
large a number, as this, of graver citizens entrusted with
the administration of public affairs, was unable to stem
that torrent of popular frenzy and volatility, which so
strongly marked the charaćter of the Athenian citizens.
|
The lesson, on the subjećt of government, taught to
& legislators and communities at large, in the history of this
very extraordinary nation, is extremely important. For
although under that system of civil policy the greatest
heroes were formed, and the most patriotic ačts achieved,
yet we may learn from it, even if modern examples
were wanting, the certain distraćtion, restlessness, and
infelicity, that must inevitably ensue from a form of
government purely democratic. Properly—speaking, it
t/ was an Aristocracy of the multitude, that governed in
Athgns. None but citizens were admitted to political
) privileges, or to the right of voting in their public as-
semblies. Now it is well known, that these formed, com-
paratively, but a very small proportion of the population
of Attica. Their number did not far exceed twenty
thousand; while that of the slaves was calculated at
four hundred thousand. But these wretched men, the
enlightened Athenians, like the rest of the more civi-
OF PLATO. , 105
of course, view one another in the light,
either of despots or of slaves. But we and
our fellow-citizens, being all of us born, like:
brothers, of one mother, think it dishonour-
able, to be either the slaves or the masters off
each other. For our original equality of
|
|
;
}
}
birth obliges us to devise, and to establis
lized parts of the world at that period, had no notion
whatever of regarding as entitled to civil rights. At
least the exceptions were few ; though to procure
emancipation was not, under certain circumstances,
forbidden to any of these oppressed and degraded beings.
The benevolent genius of the Gospel has not yet taught
mankind, that they are all brethren. But its effects have
already been most beneficial; and we may venture
to predićt, that they will be still more so. Even Euro-
peans, with all their boasted improvement, seem to be
extremely reluctant to abandon the execrable traffic in
human flesh. Britons may, indeed, glory, that one
European nation, at least, has broken the fetters of po-
litical servitude, and set the hapless prisoner free; and
by this measure they have not only so far ensured, we
may humbly hope, the favour of Heaven; but they have
also given to the world a memorable proof of that con-
scientious regard to the sacred principles of religion and
equity, which are not less deserving of applause, than
they are worthy of imitation. Hallowed be the names
106 FUNERAL ORATION
| upon law, a system of equal rights; and to
t
{
§
regard pre-eminence in virtue and under-
'standing, as the only basis of mutual subor-
dination." Consequently, the fathers of
these men, as well as our own, and these
men themselves, having been brought up
j in principles of perfect liberty, and being
honourably descended, have exhibited to
of those generous and enlightened Patriots—of a
Clarkson, a Wilberforce, and a Fox,−whose distin-
guished talents and indefatigable exertions particularly
contributed to an event so truly glorious.
* It is impossible not to admire these noble senti-
ments. But the pleasure derived from them is greatly
diminished, when we reflect on the oppressed condition
of by far the greater part of the inhabitants of Attica.
An equality of ranks, however, in society is the most
romantic proposition that ever entered the imagination
of man. But equal laws, and equal rights, are the very
essence and groundwork of liberty; and happy is the
nation, whose government rests on this best and most
secure of all foundations. In a society like that of
Athens, in which superior intelle&t and virtue possess
their due influence, government will, in gencral, be
constituted on this principle. Wealth is sure to find
its just weight in the political balance; and it is per-


OF Pſ, ATO, 107
the world many nobledeeds, both of a public
and private nature; judging it to be their i
duty to fightforliberty, both against Greeks
in behalf of Greeks; as well alS aginº
Barbarians, for the Greeks in general. . )
Time would fail me adequately to describe
the manner, in which they defended them-
fe&ly right and proper that this should be the case.
But decided superiority of intelle&t, with its all-
commanding powers of argument and persuasion, will
invariably rise above this, and every other considera-
tion whatever.
• The spirit of liberty, as we have seen in the pre-
sent day, cannot, it is true, at all times stand against
the tremendous effects of numbers and discipline,
leagued on the side of despotism and oppression. Yet
it is certainly capable, when directed by a proper degree
of wisdom and skill, of performing the most glorious
achievements. This appeared, on various occasions,
in the heroic conduct of the Greeks; who, though they
did not uniformly regard the rights of others, as they
ought to have done, yet were most strenuous and va-
liant defenders of their own liberties. The difference
will always be considerable, between the physical effects
108 FU NERAL, ORATION
selves, when Eumolpus and the Amazons,"
of a multitude who know for what they are contend-
ing, and who are sensible of its value, and those of a
body of men, who are little better than inanimate
machines, moved about at the pleasure and caprice
of their leaders.
* The Orator here alludes to a very remote period of
Grecian history. Eumolpus was a Thracian king,
who had established himself at Eleusis, and was created
priest of Ceres Eleusinia. He assisted the people of
Eleusis, in a war carried on with Erectheus, king
of Athens, in which they were both killed. Eu-
molpus lived 1396 years before Jesus Christ. The
priesthood of Ceres was confined to his descendants.
* The war with the Amazons, a very extraordinary
race of heroines, celebrated by Homer and otherantient
writers, happened in the time of Theseus, 1219 years
before the Christian era. That famous hero and legis-
lator, it is said, twice triumphed over this military band
of females, on the banks of the river Thermodon in
Cappadocia, and in the plains of Attica. Their queen
Hippolyta he took prisoner, and made his spouse. It
is the general opinion of antient writers, that this
female race was originally of Sarmatian or Scythian
extraction; though by poetic fable they are transferred
to the neighbourhood of the Euxine sea and the river
Thermodon. The tragedian AEschylus describes them
OF PLATO, 109
with other nations prior to them, invaded
the country; as well as how they sup-
as inhabiting the region of Colchis, and as being un-
daunted in war:
& Cº Koxxºos Ts ya's twoixoſ
“nap6trol, waxals arpsarot.”
Prom. Vinc. l. 423, 424.
Some very curious particulars are told of this female
race. It appears, that they wrested the civil power from
their countrymen, in consequence of a defeat sustained
by their husbands in battle; thus affording, according
to Justin, who gives a particular account of them,
“singulare omnium seculorum exemplum." Their
male children they strangled; but educated the females;
cutting off the right breast, for the sake of greater
facility in drawing the bow. They were indebted to
their neighbours for the continuance of their race. Yet
no individual among them, who had not killed three
men, at least, was indulged with this privilege. These
Heroines are mentioned by Virgil:
* Quales Threſciae cum flumina Thermodontis
* Pulsant, et pi&is bellantur Amazones armis:
“Seu circum Hippolyten, seu cum se Martia curru
“Penthesilea refert; magnoque ululante tumultu
“Feminea exultant lunatis agnmina peltis.”
AEn. xi. 660.
A race of Amazons is said to have existed in Africa,
and also in South-America: from whom the river Amazon
is named, on the banks of which, it is reported, they lived.
110 FUNERAL ORATION
* * * .
k, sº
| | "|
ported the Argives against the Thebans;
and the Heraclidae against the Argives.”
Poets, indeed, have already skilfully
displayed to the whole world, and have
In the subsequent oration of Lysias, the Amazons
are particularly described.
* The Theban war is rendered for ever memorable
by the sublime drama of AEschylus, entitled, the “Seven
against Thebes.” It is hardly necessary to observe,
that this contest happened between the two sons of
CEdipus, Eteocles and Polynices. The Thebans were
vićtorious; and Adrastus and the Argives, who had
espoused the cause of one of the brothers, were defeated.
The rites of burial were inhumanly denied to the
vanquished troops of Argos; upon which the Athenians
judged it right to interfere, and effected by force the
wishes of the Argives. These events happened thirty-
two years before the Trojan war.
y The war between the Heraclidae and the Argives
took place a hundred years posterior to the siege of
Troy. By this contest a very considerable change was
effected in the affairs of Greece. The family of Her-
cules, who considered themselves as next in succession
to that of Perseus, had long laid claim to the Pelopon-
nesus. They had beendriven from Argos by the persecu-
OF PLATO. I 11
sung, in harmonious numbers,” the valour
of these men; so that my inferiority would
soon become manifest, were I to attempt to
celebrate the same subjećts in simple prose.
For this reason, therefore, I think it pro-
per to pass by these topics; since they
have already received ample notice. It
rather seems incumbent upon me, in the
way of commendation, and as an incitement
to others, to enter into a detail of matters,
tion of Eurystheus, the last king of Argos, of the Perseid
line. The throne had been usurped by the descendants of
Pelops, who reigned at Argos and Mycenae during the
space of 160 years. At that time the Heraclidae, assisted
by the Athenians, as we are here informed, after seve-
ral fruitless attempts made a successful descent upon
the Peloponnesus, routed the Argives and the Pelopidae,
and gained possession of their long-lost territories.
* The poets, principally here alluded to, besides
Homer, are the three celebrated Greek tragedians,
AEschylus, Euripides, and Sophocles; all of whom, in
some part or other of their immortal writings, have
referred to these occurrences, and to the personages
connected with them.
l 19 FU NERAL ORATION
which, however worthy of being recorded
in verse, have not hitherto received the
honourable mention due to them, and
are passing to oblivion; leaving it to poets"
to convert them into Odes, and other sorts
of metrical composition, in commemoration
of those who have so nobly performed them.
The chief of these are as follows. When
the Persians bore sway in Asia, and were
holding Europe in subjećtion,” their power
* Plato, in his youth, had made several unsuccessful
attempts at poetry. Both he and Solon are said by
Wood, in his “ Essay on the Genius and Writings of
Homer,” to have been deterred from prosecuting the
poetic art by the following simile of that great bard:
“‘ns 3 or rw wroxeno. 3 were worapolo
“Begºvzºv asya. wua wors $oor. Atºp 8s r’ axpaw
“Hiorts 8oowow, spivyourns dao; ska,
peºp
“Todan apa Tºwww taxºn yuys?
Iliad. xvii. 263.
b About 538 or 540 years before Jesus Christ, when
Cyrus, the Great, was in the midst of his most
brilliant and important vićtories.
OF PLATO, 113.
was checked by our parents, the native f
inhabitants of this country. Their valouri
it is right, and even necessary, first of all,
to commemorate and applaud. Hand-
somely to do so in an harangue, one ought
in fact to have witnessed it; and to have
lived at the very time, when the whole of {
Asia was labouring under the yoke of its
third king. The first of these was Cyrus;
who, by his individual courage, gave free-
dom to his fellow-citizens the Persians,
at the very time that he subjugated the
Medes, who ruled over them; and ex-
tended his sway over the rest of Asia, to
Egypt."
* Cyrus was not less remarkable for his success in
war, than he was famed for his political sagacity, and
skill in the arts of peace. Xenophon's account of him,
though in many respects fićtitious, is known to every
one, and is highly interesting. Æschylus also has
made honourable mention of him. Among his various
conquests he subdued Babylon. He also liberated the
Jews from their captivity. The accounts, however,
which we have of the history of Cyrus, and of the
I
I 14 FUNERAL ORATION
º
His son added to his dominions both
Egypt and Lybia, as far as it was possible
for him to penetrate." Darius, the third
in succession, pushed the limits of his
power by land to the Scythians;" with
transaćtions of his reign, are by no means so full and
accurate as might be wished. “What principally
makes the want of an authentic history of him to be
regretted,” observes an excellent historian of Greece,”
“he stands singular among the many conquerors, by
whom it has been the fate of that large and rich por-
tion of the world (Upper Asia) to be overrun, as a
benefactor to mankind; as a father to all his people;
to the conquered scarcely less than to his fellow-
conquerors.” He died 529 years before Christ.
* Cambyses, a tyrannic prince, who became insane,
After his conquest of Egypt, he led his army unsuc-
cessfully into Ethiopia. He reigned only seven years.
* Probably to divert the restless spirits of his Persian
subjećts, now become familiar with war and conquest,
Darius undertook an expedition, upon a very large scale,
against the Scythians, who lived to the north of the
Euxine sea. But from the want of provisions in that
uncultivated and distant region, and in consequence of
* Mitford.
OF PLATO, 115
his fleet he had possession both of the sea,
and of the islands: so that no one ever
thought himself equal to cope with him.
The minds of all men were completely
subdued.' Nations so numerous, and
extensive, and warlike, had bowed their
necks to the Persian yoke.
Now Darius, on pretext of our having
entertained designs against Sardis, thought
* = < * *
*-*—º---------a *—-º-º-º- *ºmºmºmº
the harassing mode of warfare employed by the Scy-
thians, he completely failed of success.
f The Persian power was now at an enormous height.
All the great Asiatic governments, such as Assyria,
Media, Lydia, Armenia, and Tyre, with Egypt likewise,
had submitted to its sway, and were united to it. Various
encroachments had already been made by this vast
power upon some of the dependencies of Greece; so
that its inhabitants might justly look-with dread to
the future.
* The Athenians, having entered into a league with
the Ionians, who inhabited Asia Minor, had actually
made an unsuccessful attempt to burn Sardis, the capital
of Lydia, then under the dominion of the Persians,
I 2
1 16 Y UN ERAL ORATION
proper to criminate both us and the Ere-
trians; and under the command of Datis,
| dispatched fifty myriads of men" in trans-
| ports and vessels of war, besides three
# hundred other ships; requiring him, if he
| wished to save his head, to bring back
with him prisoners, on his return, both the
Eretrians and the Athenians. Upon this,
he sailed to Eretria, against a people,
who maintained among the Greeks of
that time the highest reputation for skill
in military affairs; and although their
numbers were not small, he reduced them
to subjection in three days. And that no
* That is, five hundred thousand; which might be the
fact, if we include all the men contained in the ships,
together with the vast body of attendants which usually
| followed an Asiatic army. The number of the Persians
is differently stated by different writers; as well as that
of the Athenians, who soon after opposed them on the
plains of Marathon. - . . .
This expedition took place, not long before the
glorious victory obtained by Miltiades. . .
OF PHATO. 117
person might escape, he made a general
search through their territory, in the
following manner. After his men had
gained the coasts of Eretria, they joined
hands; and, stretching from sea to sea,
passed entirely through the country; that
they might have it in their power to tell
the King, that no person had eluded them.*
With the same object in view, they landed
at Marathon, from Eretria; judging it to
be easy for them, by the same compulsion,
to couple the Athenians and the Eretrians
together, and to carry them away.
While these things were either ačtually
doing, or attempted, none of the Greeks
* The Eretrians, in alliance with the Athenians,
had assisted the Ionians in their endeavours to shake off
the Persian yoke. For several days they resisted their
assailants with great spirit; but being betrayed by two.
of their own citizens, Euphorbus and Philagrus, their
temples were plundered and destroyed, and the inha-
bitants doomed to servitude. Being sent to Darius, he
| 18 FU NERAL ORATION
rendered any assistance, either to the
Eretrians or the Athenians, the Lacedae-
monians excepted. These arrived the day
after the battle.m. All the rest, being
struck with alarm, and satisfied with their
present security, remained quiet. On an
occasion like this, any human being would
be able to judge, what sort of heroes those
very benevolently gave them for their refidence a
village near Susa, which was occupied for ages by
themselves and their posterity.
* The general panic, excited by so very formidable
an expedition, will account for this effect; and the mag-
nanimity of the Athenians and the Lacedæmonians,
who, in the common cause of liberty, laid aside their
mutual jealousies and dissentions, appears in a most
conspicuous point of view. •
* They were prevented by religious considerations,
as they alleged, from commencing their march before
the full moon, of which it wanted five days, when
application for assistance was made to them by the
Athenians. Some other motives probably influenced
their condućt. The glory of the Athenians was the
greater.


OF PLATO. 1.19
º
must have been, who, without support
from others, encountered the Barbarian
force at Marathon; and who chastised
the insolence of all Asia; and first erected
trophies over the Barbarians ; who, more-
over, taking the lead of the other Greeks,
taught them, that the Persian power was
not invincible; but that, invariably, num-
bers and wealth must yield to valour.
I therefore maintain, that we not only
derive from those men, as our parents,
our very bodies; but also, that they are the
authors, not only of our liberty, but of the
liberty of all that inhabit this continent.n
For with this object in view, the Greeks,
" Never was a more brilliant vićtory obtained, than
that over the Persian host at Marathon. The in-
waders were confident of success, and the invaded had
every thing at stake. The effect, produced in Greece
by this vićtory, must have been astonishing; and it is
no wonder, that the praises of the Athenian heroes
should, upon such an occasion, have been extolled to the
s
*:::

120 FUNERAL, ORATION
in after times, following the example of
the heroes of Marathon, hesitated not to
expose themselves to the dangers of war
for their safety. To them, therefore, in this
harangue, I must assign the post of dis-
tinction. As next in merit, honourable
mention must be made of those, who ob-
skies. Had not the particulars of this great achieve-
ment been so well known to his audience, the Orator
would, doubtless, have detailed them more at large;
and, in that case, he would have paid the tribute of
applause due to the distinguished skill and valour
of Miltiades, the commander in chief on that memo-
rable day. Hippias, the exiled son of Pisistratus at
the Persian Court, was present with the invading
forces in this celebrated expedition. According to
3Oſlº C accounts, he fell in the battle of Marathon.
Themistocles also, and Aristides, afterwards so re-
nowned in Athenian story, commanded the center of
the brave army, that so nobly defended the liberties
of Greece. The glorious event happened 490 years
before the birth of Christ. Cornelius Nepos thus dis-
tinguishes it: “Quà pugnâ nihil adhuc est nobilius.
Nulla enim unquam tam exigua manus tantas opes
prostravit.” -

OF PLATO. 121
.
tained the vićtory in the sea-fights of
Salamis and Artemisium.”
• The latter of these engagements happened be- |
tween the Athenians and the Persians, the same
day on which the famous battle of Thermopylae took
place, and ten years after the vićtory at Marathon.
The advantage appears to have been nearly equal on
both sides. The Greeks, however, judged it proper to;
retreat. This was the more necessary, as the Persian'
army was then advancing by land towards Attica.
It was not till after the affair of Artemesium, that
the battle of Salamis was fought. This naval engage-
ment produced as great an effect, perhaps, upon the state
of Greece, as the celebrated battle of the Nile did
on the fate of Europe. Salamis was situated near the
coast of Attica, and contained a convenient bay for
shipping. Here the Grecian fleet was attacked by the
immense armament of the Persians; over which it gained
a most decisive vićtory. Xerxes, from an eminence on
the Attic coast, is said to have witnessed the complete
defeat of his own forces. Themistocles dire&ted the
wavering counsels of the Athenians and their confede-
rates on this memorable occasion. Aristides also, who
had been just recalled from banishment, did the same.
AEschylus, the dramatic poet, fought in this engage-
ment; and in one of his tragedies has made a striking
allusion to it. He there says, that from the number of
wrecks and floating bodies, the sea was scarcely visible.
122 FUNERAL ORATION
~ : " .. "
* . ** *
ºsº.º. . . . . -
ãº. &: * * * &
.
|
It would be easy for any one to detail
a variety of particulars respecting these
men; both as to the attacks which they
sustained by land and sea; and the man-
ner, in which they repelled them. I shall
only state, what I conceive to be most
to their honour, that they acquitted them
! selves, next to the heroes of Marathon.
For the men of Marathon established only
this fačt, to the Greeks; that they had
it in their power, however few, to defend
themselves by land against a host of Bar-
barians. But at sea, the point was as yet
};i
After this great battle, the Persian fleet immediately re-
treated to the Hellespont, and the army made a retrograde
movement towards Thessaly. The States of Greece were
delivered from their fears; and from the abyss of despair
were raised to the highest pitch of joy and exultation.
It was at the time of the Persian invasion, that the
Oracle of Apollo advised the Athenians to defend them-
selves by means of wooden walls; which Themistocles
very properly interpreted of ships.
OF PLATO. 1923
undecided. The Persians, moreover, bore
the character of being not only ...]
on that element; but superior in numbers |
and wealth, ingenuity and strength. Yet
the men, who fought that naval engage-
ment, merit this particular encomium; that
they dispelled the fear, under which the
Greeks were labouring; and put an end to |
their apprehensions from a multitude of
ships and men. Now it so happens, that
the other Greeks derived instrućtion from
both; as well from such as had fought at
Marathon, as from those who were in the
naval engagement at Salamis; having
learnt and been accustomed, in the one by
land, and in the other by sea, not to dread
the Barbarians.
I affirm, that the vićtory at Plataea holds
the third place, both in order and import-
ance, among the events that contributed
to the safety of Greece; and that both the
Lacedaemonians and the Athenians bore
* *
~ * ~...~. .
3-ºxº~~~~. . . .
124 FUNERAL ORATION
|
|an equal share in it.P So that by the
united exertions of these men the greatest
and most formidable danger was averted;
and for this display of valour they now
|receive from us the tribute of praise, and
}
i
|- be applauded by posterity for ever.
... 4
* . . .
iiiiſi
P A horrid carnage of the vanquished Persians is
said to have followed this defeat, which took place
about a year after the battles of Artemisium and Salamis.
The Persian General Mardonius, who in his march had
destroyed Athens, was slain. Pausanias commanded
the Lacedaemonians; and Aristides, the Athenians. The
"atter, in the battle of Plataea, had a sharp contest with
a body of the Thebans, who had espoused the cause of
the invaders. The Athenians were vićtorious. Not
less than fifty thousand Greeks are said to have joined
the Persians in this attack upon their European neigh-
bours. It is added, (though we know not how to credit
the account) that of two hundred and sixty thousand
; Asiatics, only three thousand survived the havock that
! had been made of their countrymen. Immense spoils,
\of inestimable value, were colle&ted from the van-
jquished upon this occasion. To the Plataeans were
lierred the Aristeia, or first military honours, for the
valour by which they had distinguished themselves in
this sanguinary engagement.
OF PLATO. 125
After this event, many of the Grecian
states still adhered to the Barbarian Mo-
narch; and the King himself proclaimed
it to be his intention, shortly to make
another attempt upon the Greeks. Jus-
tice indeed requires, that we should call
to our remembrance these men ; who, to
the achievernents of their forefathers,
added the entire salvation of their coun-
try, by completely clearing the sea, and
ridding it of every thing belonging to the
Barbarians." These were the men who'
had been engaged in the naval battle of
the Eurymedon, and who had fought
* After the three great battles of Marathon, Salamis,
and Plataea, which delivered the Greeks from their dread
of the Persian power, the maritime superiority of the
Athenians became still more preeminent, than it had
ever been at any former period. To promote this
superiority was the first objećt of the administration of
Themistocles; and by his consummate genius and un-
wearied perseverance he happily accomplished this grand,
objećt. This celebrated man, however, like all other
126 FUNERAL ORATION
against Cyprus, and who had sailed into
Egypt, and who were enployed upon
many other occasions; and it is our duty
to remember them, and to acknowledge
our obligations to them, for causing the
King, instead of meditating the destruc-
human charaćters, was by no means perfect. He is
charged with being mercenary. Yet he certainly de-
served a better fate, than that which he experienced
from his ungrateful countrymen. But it seems to have
been usual with the Athenians, first to cherish rising
talents by unbounded admiration; and afterwards, so
fickle was their nature, to become extremely jealous of
them,and unable to endure their possessors even in their
presence. Hence the ingenious adoption of the Os-
tracism, so common at Athens; or an expeditious
mode of putting out of the way a very clever, or a
very worthy man. Let it ever be remembered, to the
honour of Aristides, that he refused to join in the
* iniquitous sentence against Themistocles.
* Aristides being dead, and Themistocles banished,
the condućt of the Persian war had devolved upon
Cimon, the son of Miltiades. Under his command, the
brave Athenians pursued the advantages, already ob-
tained over the Persian invaders, with success. Various
-º-

OF PLATO, 127
tion of the Greeks, to take measures,
through fear, for his own safety." In
this war with the Barbarians, the whole
city was completely drained of men, in
its own defence, and that of its allies.
places in Thrace and Ionia submitted to his arms.
In an obstinate and bloody engagement, the Persian
fleet was defeated by that of the Athenians, near the
Isle of Cyprus. Aid was given to the Egyptians, who
about this time revolted from the Persian government.
A great vićtory was obtained by the Athenians on the
banks of the Nile; but after a war, carried on during
six years, they were unsuccesful; and experienced con-
siderable reverses, both by sea and land.
The two-fold vićtory, on the river Eurymedon in
Pamphylia, was gained on the same day by Cimon,
nine years after the battle of Platza. The spoils,
arising from this vićtory, were immense; and the
number of prisoners prodigious.
*...*** †† Rar. fi 'i
* Artaxerxes had now succeeded to the throne of
Persia, on the murder of his predecessor Darius. After
the repeated defeats, sustained by his father and himself,
from the Grecian arms, he was glad to make a peace
with the Athenians, on terms not less glorious to them,
than disadvantageous to himself. This war had conti-
128 FU NERAL ORATION
But when peace was established, and the
city enjoyed an honourable preeminence,
it experienced, (what usually befalls indi-
: viduals in prosperity,) first, a spirit of rival-
| ship, and then of envy;" a circumstance,
nued with little interruption, for the space of fifty years.
* A small, but unanimous Republic, which first refused
i to acknowledge the usurped authority of the Great
i King, defended its liberty against the whole force of
| the Persian empire, brandished in its turn the hostile
º and making Asia not only the seat of war, but
of vićtory, dićtated to its haughty invader the most
humiliating conditions of peace.”
Rutherford's View of Ant. Hist. vol. ii. p. 139.
* So decided was the superiority obtained by the
Athenians after the Persian war, over the other States of
Greece; so arbitrary, moreover, and often domineering
was their conduct towards their neighbours, that it is no
wonder a spirit of jealousy should have been excited
against them. This spirit made its appearance, particu-
larly among the Lacedæmonians, who had long before re-
solved, on the first convenient opportunity, to commence
hostilies with the Athenians. A variety of circum-
stances concurred to increase this rooted enmity, and
to kindle the flames of war. Nor were there wanting
OF PLATO. 129
which cooled the attachment of even this
city towards the Greeks in time of war.
Hostilities afterwards taking place, they
engaged at Tanagra, and fought with the
Lacedaemonians for the liberty of the
Boeotians; but, the battle being a drawn
one, it was decided by a subsequent action.
For they quitted the field, and went away;"
deserting the Boeotians, whom they were
aiding; but our troops, having, on the
third day, gained a vićtory at Oenophyta,"
in both States, as is usual, ill designing citizens, who
were at all times ready to promote the cause of the
opposite party.
* Tanagra was in Boeotia. The battle, here spoken
of, was fought between the Athenians and their allies,
and the Lacedaemonians. Neither party could at first
claim the vićtory; but in consequence of the defection
of the Thessalian horse, in the battle that took place on
the subsequent day, the Athenians were defeated with
great slaughter.
* The battle of CEnophyta, or the Vineyards, was
fought, however, sixty-two days, or more, after that of
Tanagra, between the Athenians, and the Boeotians who
K
18O FU NERAL, ORATION
very properly brought back those, who,
from injurious treatment, had made their
escape. These were the men who, in now
rendering assistance to Greeks against the
Greeks in the cause of freedom, having
displayed their valour, and having esta-
blished the liberty of those, whose efforts
they were seconding, have, in honour of
their services, and the first after the Per-
sian war, been deposited by the city in
this monument.
After these events, when a great war had
broken out,” and all the Greeks had com-
were in the Lacedæmonian interest. The latter were
completely defeated. Myronides commanded the Athe-
nians. After this defeat Tanagra was taken, and the
greater part of Boeotia, Thebes excepted, acknowledged
the power of the Athenians.
* The Peloponnesian war, which took place between
the two rival States of Athens and Sparta, 431 years
before Jesus Christ. What Plato here asserts of a uni-
versal combination of the Greeks against the Athenians,
~~~~~~x->r-rºx--, -º- + -w- -- - --~~~~ 0-- . . . . . . . ~~ --,
s'
OF P LATO. 131
bined in arms against us, and were laying
waste the country, and making a very
ungrateful return to the city; our troops,
having gained a naval vićtory over them,
and taken their Lacedaemonian generals
prisoners at Sphagia,” when they might
justly have put them to death, spared their
lives notwithstanding, and set them at
liberty, and concluded a peace; judging it
to be their duty, while they waged war with
the Barbarians to destrućtion, to consider
vićtory as its limits, with those of the same
*—- : *— -º-º- à sº fi —A-A. #. à k -a. –4–
is not strićtly true. Though the cause of the Athenians
was not, perhaps, the popular one, they were not
without numerous auxiliaries.
* Sphagia, or Sphaćteria, a small island on the coast of
Messenia in Peloponnesus, opposite to Pylus. The latter
place had been taken by the Athenians. In order to
recover it, the Spartans made themselves masters of
Sphagia, and defended a fortification in that island
with desperate valour. They were at last, however,
compelled to surrender, and were carried prisoners to
Athens.
* k 2
139 FU NERAL ORATION
nation; and, by no means, through any
private resentment of the city, utterly to
annihilate the common bond of union
among the Greeks.
It is right, indeed, to bestow praises on
these men, who, after prosecuting this war,
are here interred; inasmuch as they have
proved, if any persons could suspect that
braver men could be found, than the Athe-
nians were in the former war with the Bar-
barians, that they disputed a point, which
could not be maintained. For these men,
upon that very occasion, when Greece was
distraćted by civil broils, by their military
superiority established the fact; since by
themselves they gained a decisive vićtory
over those, who held precedence of the
other Greeks; and in conjunction with
whom they then conquered the Barbarians.
But the third war, after this peace, was
both disappointing to our hopes, and dread-
-------------------rºw---..…------------wºrrºw-vs---wºrrºr. -rºw
*
OF PLATO. 133
ful; in which many brave men, having
perished, lie buried here;’ many, who, in
various parts of Sicily, raised numerous
* The Sicilian war is generally reckoned, not as a
distinét war, but as a branch of the Peloponnesian.
The Sicilians were, in general, friendly to the Lacedæ-
monians. The Athenians commenced hostilities here,
by sending assistance to the Leontines against the
Syracusans. At the beginning of the Pelopon-
nesian war, Syracuse held a considerable rank among
the Grecian Republics. It was, consequently, an object
of no small importance with the two contending parties,
Athens and Lacedaemon, which of them could procure
the cooperation of such a State in its favour. The
Syracusans having attacked Leontium, which resisted
their tyranny, the people of the latter place, being of
Ionian extraćtion, applied to Athens, as the mother-
state, for assistance. Contrary to the advice of Pericles,
who had formerly condućted the Athenian government
in so prosperous and splendid a manner, they agreed to
grant their request. The Lacedaemonians took part
with the Syracusans. The war was carried on, for a
considerable time, with various success. But after
several campaigns, the Athenians were completely de-
feated, both by sea and land; and were obliged to
surrender themselves prisoners of war to the Syracusans.
As was by no means uncommon in the warfare of those
days, the Athenians received the most cruel treatment
134 FU NERAL O HAT I ON
i trophies, while asserting the liberty of the
Leontines, to whose assistance, agreeably
# to their oaths, they sailed to those regions.
But, in consequence of the length of the
passage, the city having suffered them to
experience a want of provisions; and not
Having it in its power to supply them,
they, for this reason, abandoned the enter-
prize, and were unsuccessful. Wherefore
their enemies, and opponents in the field,
obtained greater commendation for pru-
dence and valour, than we who be-
$
from their vićtorious enemies. The consequences of
this defeat, to the chara&er and influence of the
Athenian government, were most fatal; and the dismay,
occasioned by the accounts of these successive disasters,
was such as no language can describe.
The voyage from Athens to Sicily, as afterwards
stated by the Orator, seems to have been thought in
those times of great length; and the distress, which
the Athenians appear to have suffered, from the want
of provisions and other necessaries for their under-
taking, must have been extreme.
of PLATO. 135
friended the other party." Many also fell
in naval engagements in the Hellespont;" |
when, in a single day, they captured all the
ships of the enemy, and likewise conquered
* The translator is by no means confident as to his
interpretation of this passage. The Orator's meaning
seems to be this: that while the Syracusans, by the
brilliancy of their success, commanded universal ad-
miration and applause, the Athenians, who had failed
in their enterprize, had not proper justice done them
by their countrymen for their brave exertions; the
ardour of applause being chilled by the apprehensions
and the alarms occasioned by defeat.
* Several naval engagements took place about this
time in the Hellespont. That, particularly referred to
in this passage, was fought near Cyzicus, between the
Athenians and the Lacedaemonians; when the latter
were totally routed, and every ship belonging to them
was taken. Alcibiades was the Athenian commander
in chief, Thrasybulus also was one of the Athenian
admirals on this occasion. The Lacedaemonian fleet
was under the direction of Mindarus, who fell during
the engagement. The return of Alcibiades to his
native country resembled that of an Olympic conqueror.
The affairs of Athens, by these efforts of valour in its
citizens, began to assume the aspect which they had
worn in better days. -
136 FU NERAL, ORATION
many others. What I mean, by saying
that the war was dreadful, and disappoint-
ing to our hopes, is this; that the rest
of the Greeks had became so disposed
to quarrel with the city, as to dare to
send ambassadors to solicit the King," our
greatest enemy, whom they joined us in
repelling, privately to return upon us; a
Barbarian, against the Greeks; and to
assemble against the city all the Greeks,
as well as the Barbarians: on which emer-
gency, both the strength and valour of
d Not long after the defeat of the Athenians in
Sicily, the scale of influence in Greece was turned; and
an alliance shortly took place between the Lacedaemo-
nians and “ the King,” as he was usually styled; or
the Persian monarch. Numerous defections from the
Athenian power were the inevitable result of the va-
rious defeats which that State had sustained in Sicily.
It was with the utmost difficulty, amidst these defec-
tions, that they supported their independence. Yet it
must be acknowledged, that the condućt of the Athe-
nians in their prosperity had not been such, as strongly
to attach to them those, whom they reckoned in the
number of their friends and allies.
OF PLATO. 137
the city were very conspicuous. For,
thinking that it had already been subdued;
and the fleet being blocked up at Mitylenë;"
after going to their succour with sixty
sail; the ships being manned by themselves;
and, as they were confessedly the bravest
men,' having obtained a vićtory over their
enemies, and having liberated their friends;
since, moreover, they met with a fate which
they did not merit, and still remain unres-
cued from the watery deep, they have here
• The Athenian fleet under Conon had been obliged
by superiority of numbers to take refuge in the port of
Mytelene, in the isle of Lesbos; where it was besieged
by the Lacedaemonians, under the direction of Callicra-
tidas. The situation of Conon was perilous; and great
exertions were made at Athens to render him assistance.
* Xenophon informs us, that an hundred and ten
triremes were equipped for his relief; and that these
were manned, not merely by those citizens whose ser-
vices the law required, but also by many of the Order
of Knights, who, on common occasions, were not liable
to naval service.
138 FU NERAL, ORATION
º ~ * - “...,
i iſ iſ iſ
a sepulchre assigned to them.'s But we
ought always, not only to remember, but
to applaud them. For by their valour we
conquered, not merely in that naval en-
* Gottleber rejects the conječural emendation of
Wesseling upon this passage; and shews, by a quotation
from Chariton, that it was customary with the Greeks to
honour with sepulchres even the dead, whose bodies
could not be found. Plato therefore used a language very
intelligible to his countrymen, when he observed, that
even such, as had been swallowed up by the sea, must
be considered as deposited in the monument before
them.—Baver's Thucyd. tom. i. p. 297, not.
The vićtory, here mentioned, was gained over the
Peloponnesians at the little island of Arginusae, be-
tween Lesbos and the AEgean main. The crews of
twelve ships, after floating on the wrecks of their
vessels, when the engagement was over, perished in the
sea. Measures had been taken to rescue them from
their perilous situation; but these were rendered in-
effectual by the intervention of a storm. The fačtious
spirit of the Athenian government, however, would not
admit of these operations of the natural elements as a
sufficient apology for those, to whom the order had been
given to rescue these unfortunate men from destruction;
and, accordingly, by a sanguinary decree, procured by
management and intrigue, six of the Generals, who had
OF PILATO. - 139
gagement, but likewise during the rest of
the war; since by their efforts an idea went
forth respecting the city, that not all the
world could ever subdue it." And so it
commanded in the battle of Arginusae, were most
unjustly executed.
How well-founded were the apprehensions of Alci-
biades, who, when asked, why, on some occasion, he
shunned returning to Athens, and whether he could not
trust his country, replied: “Yes, I can trust my coun-
“ try in every case, but on a trial of life and death;
“ and then, not even my mother; lest, by mistake,
“she put into the fatal urn a black ball instead of a
** white one "
“Me vestigia terrent
** Omnia te adversum spectantia, nulla retrorsum.”
HoR. Ep. 1. 74, 75. L. 1.
* The naval power of Athens, which, in consequence
of the defeat at Syracuse, had experienced so serious a
depression, had, by the most astonishing efforts on the
part of its citizens, and in opposition to the formidable
difficulties which it had to encounter, been raised to
nearly its former pitch of prosperity and splendour.
The Peloponnesian State had, for years, in vain tried to
annihilate it; and the Persian empire, which, since the
disasters which had befallen the Athenians in Sicily,
had generally gone hand in hand with these States, had

140 FU NE RA L ORATION
was. For it is by our own dissensions, not
by other nations, that we have been over-
come. It is even now beyond their power
to subdue us. But we have ourselves van-
quished, and subdued ourselves.
no naval force that could stand against it. In fact, the
Athenian marine, in the better times of that common-
wealth, contrasted with the naval power of other con-
temporary states, resembled, on a much smaller scale,
the flag of Britain ; which commands the admiration
and homage of every other naval power in the world.
* These observations are perfectly just. The fever of
fačtion, which was continually raging in the veins of
the Athenian constitution, was infinitely more formi-
dable to it, than all its external enemies put together.
The condemnation of the Generals had produced, as
might naturally be expected, heart-burnings and jea-
lousies which had not yet subsided. The capture of
the Athenian fleet at AEgospotamos by Lysander, which
was accompanied by the massacre of three thousand
persons who composed their crews, was probably in a
great degree owing to the miscondućt and the want of dis-
cipline, occasioned by discordant sentiments among their
naval commanders. On the night, on which the news
of that defeat was brought to Athens, Thucydides says,
so great was the consternation, that no one slept. Its
OF PLATO, 141
After these things, when tranquillity
was restored, and a peace was established
with other nations, our domestic war was
so condućted,” that if it were decreed
consequences were fatal to the Athenian superiority
and independence. Their fleet was given up to the
Lacedæmonians. The Long Walls, and the fortifications
of the Peiraeus, were destroyed. Their democratical form
of government was changed to oligarchical; and the
Athenians agreed that their forces, both by land and
sea, should be entirely subservient to the will of the
Lacedaemonians. Thus ended the famous Peloponnesian
war, in the twenty-seventh year from its commencement.
To the honour of the Lacedaemonians, it ought to be
mentioned, that when they had it in their power
to raze the city of Athens to its foundations, and to sell
the inhabitants for slaves, they still suffered it to exist,
though in a state of the most abjećt humiliation and
wretchedness. Such indeed must have been this most
calamitous reverse to the high-minded Athenians. The
Lacedaemonians said, “They would not be guilty of
putting out one of the eyes of Greece." g
The subjugation of Athens by the Lacedæmonians
took place 403 years before the Christian era.
* The civil war, herementioned, was occasioned by the
very oppressive conduct of the Thirty Tyrants, appointed
142 FU N ERA L ORATION
by fate, that civil anarchy should break
out among men, no person could wish
it to be otherwise, whenever his own
state is affected by such a malady.' So
by the Spartans to govern Athens. They are said to
have caused more deaths, in the short space of eight
months, than happened during the twenty-seven years
of the Peloponnesian war. Such detestablecruelties had
necessarily driven many persons into voluntary exile.
These unhappy fugitives, headed by Thrasybulus, made
an irruption into Attica for the deliverance of their
country; and at length succeeded in their patriotic
attempt.
* In the determined opposition made to the Thirty
Tyrants, the utmost unanimity prevailed among all
classes of persons at Athens. The turbulent spirit of
fačtion subsided. And when success had crowned
their efforts, the victorious party exercised their sway
with the utmost mildness, and in the most conciliatory
manner. This was owing to the noble condućt of
Thrasybulus. By his advice an ačt of amnesty (which,
by the way, was not faithfully observed) was passed in
favour of those who had supported the hateful cause
of the Tyrants.
It is remarkable, that the Athenians should have
owed this happy deliverance to the Spartans themselves;
OF PI, ATO, 143
cordially and readily did the inhabitants
from the Peiraeus and the city unite with
one another; and, contrary to expectation,
with the other Greeks; and in such a
spirit of forbearance was a reconciliation
effected with the party at Eleusis."
The sole cause of all these things was,
in fact, their affinity; which afforded
ground, not in word only, but in deed, for a
settled and natural friendship. It is there-
fore our duty to commemorate those, who
lost their lives by one another in this war;
and, under these circumstances, mutually
to reconcile them, in the best manner we
who, having become jealous of the power of Lysander,
and being ashamed likewise of his condućt, had sent
Pausanias to check his career of cruelty and oppression.
* Eleusis was the place, to which the party that
supported the Thirty Tyrants had withdrawn from the
city, and with whom hostilities were happily terminated
by the powerful mediation of Thrasybulus.
144 FU NERAL . ORATION
are able, by supplications and sacrifices, n
offering prayers to those who preside
over them, since we also have been recon-
ciled. For it was not from malice, nor from
enmity, that they assailed each other ;
but from adverse fortune.” We ourselves,
who survive, can bear witness to these
things. For, partaking of the same blood
with them, we can forgive one another,
both for what we have done, and for what
we have suffered.
n The Greeks practised a great variety of ceremonies
in honour of the dead, with the view of rendering their
Manes propitious. For, it seems, they still considered
them as retaining the same affections and feelings, as
aćtuated them while living. The principal deities,
who presided over the dead, were Mercury, Pluto, and .
Proserpine.
* That misfortunes arose from the malignant influ-
ence of some evil power or spirit, was a notion very
prevalent in the heathen world. These civil dissensions
may justly be ascribed, however, to the calamity, under
which Greece at that time laboured, of a foreign domi-
nation. They happened during the reign of the Thirty
Tyrants.
OR PLATO. 145
Afterwards, when we had established a
general peace, the city enjoyed tranquillity,
and extended pardon even to the Barba-
rians;P for although they had suffered a
considerable degree of harm from it, they
had not defended themselves ill. But
it was indignant at the Greeks; because it
recollected, what recompense, notwith-
standing the benefits which they had
received from it, they had made, by leaguing
themselves with the Barbarians, and by dis-
mantling the ships, that had once been the
means of their preservation; and by de-
stroying our walls, in return for our having
prevented theirs from being demolished."
P That is, the Persians; it being well known, that
the Greeks regarded all other nations, but themselves,
as uncivilized.
* The Grecian States were pretty equally divided
between Athens and Sparta, in the famous Peloponnesian
war ; the issue of which was the dismantling of the
Athenian fleet, and the destruction of their walls and
fortifications. The service, here alluded to by the
I.
146 FU NERAL, ORATION
While the city was deliberating, whether
it should any longer assist the Greeks,
either in enslaving one another, or in
preserving them from the yoke of the
Barbarians, its administration was thus
condućted. So that during this our sus-
pense, the Lacedaemonians, thinking us,
who are the champions of liberty, subdued,
and that it was now their business to reduce
the rest, were pursuing these measures.
But why should I enter into particulars?
For I should only have to detail, in what
took place afterwards, things of no long
standing; and which happened, not many
generations ago. For we ourselves know,
in what consternation the Argives, the
principal of the Greeks, the Beotians, and
Orator, which had been rendered by Athens to the
Greeks in general, was their deliverance of the country
from Persian invaders; a deliverance, effected princi-
pally by means of Athenian patriotism and valour.
OF PIATO. 147
the Corinthians, came to procure the assist-
ance of the city." And, what is of all
things most surprising, even the King, by
a change of circumstances, was brought
into such embarrassments, that no means
of safety from any other quarter were left
to him, but from this very State, which
it was his anxious wish utterly to destroy."
* This happened during the Corinthian war, as it
is called, which was instigated by Persian money,
and lasted eight years. It was carried on, chiefly,
between the Lacedaemonians on the one side, and the
Boeotians on the other. The latter were associated
with the Argives, the Corinthians, and the Athenians;
whose united objećt it was, to resist the encroachments
of Spartan power, then predominant in Greece, and
rendered universally odious by the most unwarrantable
encroachments.
* This designation, already noticed, here applies to
Artaxerxes; whose throne, at that period, was shaken
by the glorious vićtories of the Spartan Agesilaus.
Phrygia, and other provinces in Asia Minor were ra-
vaged by him; and on the river Pačtolus in Lydia, he
erected to his successes a trophy of vićtory. So alarmed
by his progress was the Great King, as to be reduced to
the necessity of purchasing his safety of Agesilaus;
L 2
148 FU N ERA L ORATION
Were any one, indeed, desirous of bringing
a well-founded charge against the city,
this would be the only one, that could
with justice be alleged;—that she is
always too much disposed to compassion-
ate, and to serve her inferiors. And indeed
at that time it was impossible for her firmly
to abide by the resolutions she had formed,
never to assist any of those subjugated
States, that had done heran injury. Where-
fore she was diverted from her purpose, and
did assist them.' And by the service which
and of employing emissaries to tempt with gold the
Athenian Orators, and other Grecian demagogues.
Upon certain illustrious charaćters of antient times,
no less than upon more humble names, in these “de-
generate days," the precious ore, it seems, possessed
no inconsiderable powers of attraction.
* Notwithstanding the Athenian government was
frequently extremely despotic towards her dependants,
there was often a liberality in her policy, and a gene-
rosity in her conduct, which refle&ed great honour
upon her chara&ter. In the Peloponnesian war, she had,
unfortunately, many opponents; and this circumstance
OF P LATO, 149
she rendered to the Greeks, she delivered
them from the yoke; so that they continued
free, till they again became their own
enslavers." But to the King she dared
not to lend herself as an auxiliary, from
the reverence which she cherished for the
trophies of Marathon, and Salamis, and
Plataea.” By permitting, however, only the
must have rendered her indifferent to the fate of such
States as had refused to give her their assistance. Yet
so rooted was her antipathy to Spartan ascendancy, and
Persian despotism, as even to induce her to overcome
her feelings of retaliation and revenge towards those,
who had forsaken her in her distress.
* The States of Greece, who opposed the aggression
of the Spartans in the Corinthian war, were preserved,
by means of Athenian exertion and valour, from
being finally subdued; till by the peace, concluded by
Antalcidas, the Spartan, with the Persians, under cor-
rupt influence, the liberties of the Athenian States,
both in Europe and Asia, were basely sacrificed.
* This is finely observed by Plato. The high spirit
of Athens, he says, could not consent, when recolle&-
ing the various attempts which had been made by the
150 FU NERAL ORATION
exiles and volunteers to do this, she
certainly saved him.9
Having, accordingly, in expectation of
hostilities, and in her own defence, erected
fortifications, and built a fleet, since she
was forced to enter into it, she waged war
with the Lacedaemonians, in behalf of the
Parians.” But the King was afraid of the
*-
«Syo ºn
Persians upon its independence and liberty, and even
upon its existence, ever openly to espouse their cause,
and to fight under the banners of the Great King.
y Athens, virtually, did render assistance to Persia by
means of the persons here stated; and more especially
through Conon, then in voluntary exile, by whose un-
wearied endeavours at Susa to obtain the aid of Artax-
erxes, in which he was finally successful, the walls and
fortifications of the City of Minerva were restored, and
the Athenian superiority at sea nobly retrieved.
* The particulars of this affair are not, it seems,
given by the Greek historians. Certain it is, that as
soon as the walls and fortifications of Athens were
restored, the patriotic Conon, by means of a Persian
squadron, the use of which had been granted to him by
OF PLATO, 151
city; and perceiving that the Lacedaemo-
nians were weary of the war by sea;" being
willing, moreover, himself to withdraw
from it, he required, that the Greeks on
the Continent (whom the Lacedaemonians
would formerly have surrendered to him,
on condition that he would agree to con-
tinue in league with us,” and the rest of
the Satrap Pharnabazus, recovered many of the places
in the Ægean sea, and on the coast of Ionia, from
Spartan and Persian authority; a condu&, which gave
very just offence to the latter power, and greatly facili-
tated the negociations of Antalcidas, the Spartan, at the
Persian court. Probably because its deliverance from
Persian, or Spartan authority was owing to the present
influence of Athens, Paros is stated by the Orator, as
receiving military assistance from it.
* The Lacedzmonians had lately sustained a very
signal defeat at Cnidus, and were, even in the present
reduced circumstances of the Athenian navy, by no
means a match for it.
* This inglorious proposal was a&ually made by the
Athenians to the King of Persia, in the twentieth year
of the Peloponnesian war, under the mediation of
159 FUNERAL ORATION
the allies,) should be given up to him;
that, as he thought they would not con-
sent, he might have a pretext for seceding.
As to the other allies, he deceived himself;
for they were willing to surrender to him;
and engaged, upon oath, Corinthians, and
Argives, and Boeotians, as well as the rest
of the auxiliaries, that, provided he would
pay them money, they would deliver up
the Greeks on the continent. We alone,
however, could not endure, either to give
them up, or to take the oath."
Alcibiades, and soon after the disasters which had be-
fallen the Athenian arms in Sicily. It was suggested
as the basis of an alliance with the Athenians and their
confederates; but in consequence of other more de-
grading conditions, offered to them at that time by the
Great King, which could not possibly be complied
with, the negotiation happily failed.
* By the peace of Antalcidas, as it is styled, the
the Asiatic Greeks were surrendered to the arbitrary
domination of Persia. Yet not by unanimous consent
of the Grceks. The King of Salamis, the Thebans,
and the Athenians opposed it, but in vain. The united
OF PLATO, 153
Thus the city, in possessing this cha-
raēter for nobleness of mind, and the love
of liberty, is influenced by steady, sound
principles, and by a natural hatred of the
Barbarians; inasmuch as the Greeks and
the Barbarians are, clearly, distinét races
of men." For it is not the Pelopses, nor
the Cadmuses, nor the AEgyptuses, nor
powers of Sparta and Persia were ready to crush any
State, that might dare to refuse to accede to it; and
the noble spirit of independence and freedom, which
had adorned the Grecian annals with such matchless
deeds of heroism, had now, unfortunately, breathed its
last. This ignominious treaty was concluded, 387 years
before Jesus Christ.
* The line of distinčtion, between themselves and
the rest of mankind, was very strongly marked by the
Greeks. All other nations they invariably denominated
Barbarians. The same spirit of nationality and vanity
influenced the venerable descendants of Abraham. This
self-partiality is perhaps unavoidable, whenever the in-
habitants of a particular country greatly surpass their
neighbours, either in science, civilization, and taste; or
in any other object of acknowledged importance.
154 FUNERAL or At 1o N
the Danauses," that live in common with
us; nor many others, who, though natu-
ralized Greeks, are originally Barbarians;
but being Greeks ourselves, free from any
Barbarian admixture, we live together;
and hence the City has contraćted a perfect
hatred of every foreign race. Never-
theless, we have been again left to our-
selves; because we chose not to be guilty
* The antient Grecian patriarchs, or heroes, came
originally from foreign realms. Their histories are
well known. Pelops, the most distinguished of them,
came from Phrygia, and gave his name to that part
of Greece called Peloponnesus. Phoenicia was the
birth-place of Cadmus, who also could boast of royal
origin; he established himself in Boeotia, and greatly
contributed to the improvement of the country, by the
introdućtion into it of alphabetical letters. Ægyptus
was the son of Belus, king of Africa. Danaus was his
brother, and was settled at Argos. In consequence of
a declaration of the Oracle, that one of his nephews
would dethrone him, he instigated his fifty daughters,
who were married to his fifty nephews, to murder their
husbands on their wedding-night; one only of whom
had the grace to abstain from the bloody deed. .
OF PLATO, 155
of a base and impious deed, in surren-
dering the Greeks to the Barbarians."
But being reduced to the same situa-
tion which formerly occasioned hostilities
against us, by good fortune we condućted
the war better than we did at that time.
For while in possession of ships, and for-
tresses, and colonies" of our own, we were
released from the war. Hence also our
enemies, to their joy, were delivered from
it. Yet in these hostilities we have been
deprived of brave men; both of those,
who suffered from an unfortunate choice
* We cannot but admire the Athenians for this con-
du&; and, certainly, in national matters, notwith-
standing their frequent deviations from reëtitude, they
generally acted upon a more enlarged and liberal system
of policy, than the rest of the Greeks.
* Is it likely, that the “Great King” of modern
times had been reading Plato's Greek, when he so
feelingly acknowledged, that he wanted “ ships,
“ colonies, and commerce?"
156 FU NERAL, ORATION
of position at Corinth, and from treachery
at Lechaeum." They were brave men too,
who set the king at liberty, and cleared the
seas of the Lacedaemonians. Of them it
is my business to remind you; and you it
becomes to unite with me in commending
and in honouring such men.
* In the league formed against Sparta, which led to
the Corinthian war, the Athenians naturally sided with
the enemies of Lacedæmon; and the disasters, here
alluded to, happened in that war. Between the Spartans
and their enemies, Corinth was distraćted; being, alter-
nately, according to the chances of war or the intrigues
of treachery, under the dominion of both. There were
two harbours at Corinth, one called Lechaeum, and the
other Cenchreae ; at the former of which, it seems, the
Athenians suffered from some ačt of perfidy on the part
of the Corinthians; as they did, in another case, from
a disadvantageous military position, which they took,
in an engagement with the enemy.
* The war had been instigated by the Persians, in
order to divert the progress of the Spartan arms against
themselves; and it happily succeeded. The Athenian
fleet also, under Conon and other commanders, had,
by several splendid vićtories, recovered its former de-
cided superiority over that of Lacedaemon.
| | 42 OF PLATO. 157
ºf
These are the achievements of the men
who lie here; and of others, who have
sacrificed their lives in behalf of the city.
Many and honourable are those already
enumerated. What remain behind are
much more so; for the days and nights
would not be few, which a full account of
them would occupy. In remembrance
of such persons, therefore, it becomes our
* The Orator is now advancing towards his Perora-
tion; and the apology which he offers for not dwelling
longer on the heroic actions of his countrymen is, in
the original, highly beautiful. The Translator, here,
as on many other occasions, must confess, how un-
equal he feels himself to do adequate justice to the
admirable model which he has, presumptuously per-
haps, undertaken to copy.
The great.obječ of this Funeral ceremony was to .
nourish a martial spirit, and to fan the flame of patriot-.
ism, in the hearts of the spectators. By a fine Per:
sonification of those brave men, who had fallen in.
battle, the Orator now proceeds to make an animated
appeal to their descendants; exhorting their children.
to imitate so noble an examples, and offering...tº
pārefits, and other relatives...all the consolatiºnº-
sary under the heavy loss which they had sustained.
... • -->
... . . ~...~~~~<^***
158 FUNERAL ORATION
duty to exhort their deseendants, indivi-
dually, as in time of war, not to desert the
rank held by their forefathers; nor, through *
the influence of a dastardly spirit, to
retreat from the enemy.
Wherefore, ye children of valiant men,
I myself at present exhort you, and
in future, as opportunity offers, I shall
both remind and encourage you, to be
ready to display your bravery to the utmost.
On the present occasion, it is my duty to
bring forward, what our fathers enjoined
us to communicate to their descendants,
if at all dismayed, when dangers threatened
them. I will tell you what I heard from
themselves; and what, if they had the
power, they would now gladly say to you;
deducing the sentiments, which I now
ascribe to them, from what they then stated.
What I am going to relate, we must fancy
ourselves listening to, as from themselves,
in words like these:
OF PLATO. 159
“That ye are the children of brave
fathers, is sufficiently clear from the pre-
sent circumstances." Though we might
have preserved our lives at the expense of
our honour, yet we nobly chose rather to
die," than plunge both ourselves and our
-i-A *-* A-4

* A luminous train of the most admirable sentiments,\
expressed in the finest terms of the first language in the
world, pervades the following eloquent Prosopopoeia,
put by Plato into the mouth of the deceased heroes,
and supposed to be spoken by them to their surviving
relatives. The address breathes a spirit of patriotism,
worthy of the glowing pen of Tyrtaeus.
m The Goddess of Wisdom, however, informs Tele-
machus, that this does not always follow; and that few
children are equal to their fathers; many, indeed, being
worse, and few better:
“Ilaveo, yag ro, ºrabis Suolo ware rºora,'
“ol wºuoris Maxius' waveo, 3s rewareQ agees"
Hom. Odyss. lib. ii. 276, 277.
* “Pejusque leto flagitium timet.
“Non ille pro caris amicis
“Aut patriá timidus perire."
Hon. Od. ix. lib. 4.
“Indecorant bene nata culpr.”-Ib, iv. lib. 4.
160 FU NERAL, ORATION
posterity in disgrace; and stain with re-
proach the names, both of our fathers and
of all our progenitors. We think that the
man ought not to exist, who can involve
his family in disgrace; and that neither
gods nor mortals can look with pleasure
upon such a one, after he is dead, either
upon the earth, or underneath it.
It is your duty, therefore, in compliance
with our advice, whatever objećt besides
you strive to attain, to prosecute it with
energy; from a convićtion, that without
this all possessions and pursuits are dis-
honourable and worthless.” For neither
do riches, connected with a pusillanimous
* Magnanimity, energy of mind, and bravery, were
considered by the Heathen world, as the principal in-
gredients in the formation of an exalted charaćter.
“The greatest virtues,” observes Aristotle, “are those
which are the most useful; inasmuch as virtue consists
in the power of communicating benefits. Hence men,
famed for their justice and valour, are the most ho-
OF PLATO. . . 161
spirit, confer honour upon their possessor;
for such a man is rich for another, and not
for himself. Neither do personal grace and
strength, combined with cowardice and
vice, appear honourable, but dishonour-
able; rendering the possessor more noto-
rious, as well as exposing his timidity.” All
knowledge, moreover, devoid of reëtitude
and other virtues, is craft, not wisdom.
Wherefore, as an objećt of invariable at-
tention, endeavour by all means to cherish
a perfect willingness, as far as possible to
surpass in celebrity both us, and those who
noured: the former, being useful in peace; and the
latter, in war.”—Aristot. Rhetor. c. 9.
In praise of valour Tyrtaeus sings:
sº "H 3’ aestm, ro?’ asſaoy sy av%arouai, agusovº
“Kaawson r piper yºyºral are my.”
Tyrtaei Eleg. I.
* Heótor reproaches Paris with being handsome, but
destitute of bodily strength and mental energy:
** Kataoy
“ Eibos sw” axx' ex ºr 8in pesaw, e3s ris aarn."
How. Il. lib. iii. 1. 44.
IM
162 FUNERAL, ORATION
lived before us." Otherwise rest assured,
that if we exceed you in valour, we shall
still, notwithstanding our preeminence, be
involved in your disgrace; but our inferi-
ority, if we should be surpassed by you, will
be a happy event to us. In all probability,
however, we shall be surpassed by you, and
you will rank above us, if you call to your
aid the glory of your ancestors; neither
abusing it, nor employing it uselessly;
from a persuasion, that to a man, who
has any sense of his own dignity, nothing
can be more disgraceful, than to make a
display of honours not properly his own,
but derived from the renown of his fore-
* Aristotle observes, that “it is the tendency of an
honourable pedigree to render the person possessed of
it still more ambitious of renown; for that it is natural,
wherever a stock of any kind exists, to be desirous of
adding to it.”–Rhetor. lib. ii. c. 12.
* “ Quis enim generosum dixerit hunc, qui
“ Indignus genere, et praeclaro nomine tantum
(ſº Insignis »” - Juv. Sat. viii. 30,
OF PLATO, 163
fathers." For The GLoRy of PARENTs is
AN EXCELLENT, AND AN Ho Nou RABLE
TREAs URE To THEIR chILDREN ;' but to
enjoy from them a store of riches and dis-
tinétions, and not to transfer it to descend-
ants, when we have neither possessions nor
dignities, peculiarly our own, to bequeath
to them, is base and unmanly.
Having zealously pursued these objects,
whenever the fate, to which you are des-
tined, may convey you to us," you will
come to us, as friends to friends; but if
you have neglected them, and have brought
“Ut miremur te, non tua, primum aliquidda,
“ Quod possim titulis incidere praeter honores.”
Ibid.
* “ Dos est magna parentium
« Virtus.” HoR. Od. xxiv. lib. 3.
* “ — ovyag ra's Karaśvaouss', ax”*
* Eur Aidao bows, ºrgiy Pogorſpºon huae swaxºn.
Odyss. K- 174.
M 2
164 FU NERAL ORATION
upon yourselves disgrace, you will be re-
ceived by none of us with kindness.”
Thus far the address to their children.
" The same consciousness was ascribed by the
Heathens to the dead in the regions below, as they
possessed while living. This appears from various
passages in the Greek and Roman writers. In the
interview which took place between Ulysses and his
departed friends Agamemnon and Achilles, in the
infernal regions, the latter express the greatest eager-
ness to be informed of what took place after their
deaths in the world above; and rejoice, or grieve at what
is told them, in the same manner as they would have
done at being made acquainted with similar events
during their lives. Achilles is delighted to be informed
of the valour of his son Neoptolemus:
“TsSoavrn, 3 or dio, sºn, agiðsixstow awa."
Hom. Odyss. 1. XI. 539.
The shades, impelled by the greatest curiosity,
eagerly crowd around AEneas also, in the regions of
Tartarus:
“Circumstant animae dextrá lavāque frequentes;
“ Nec vidisse semel satis est: juvat usque morari;
“ Et conferre gradum, et veniendi discere causas.”
Æneid. vi. 486.
OF PI, ATO. 165
“Those of us,” who have fathers and
mothers living, must observe to them, if
they stand in need of consolation, how
necessary it is for them to bear their cala-
mity, if calamity it can be called, as easily
as possible, and not to join in lament-
ation; for importunity will not be requisite
to obtain partners in sympathy; inasmuch
as the disaster, that has taken place, will
not fail to furnish them; but as a remedy
and solace for their griefs, they should
be reminded, that the gods have vouch-
safed to grant them the chief things, for
which they addressed to them their prayers.
For they did not pray that their children
might be immortal, but brave and re-
nowned;’ and these objects, which are the
* The Prosopopoeia of the deceased warriors is still
carried on; and their advice abounds in the most ex-
cellent sentiments.
* “Neque quisquam parens liberis, utiaeterni forent,
“optavit; magis, utiboni honestique vitam exigerent.”
SALL. Bell. Jug.
166 FU N ERA = ORATION
Thin a
greatest of blessings, they obtained. But
it is impossible for any human being to
have every thing in life to happen accord-
ing to his wishes. While bearing their
trials with fortitude, our parents will, in
in fact, have the reputation of being the
fathers of manly children, and of being
themselves courageous. But by yielding to
them, they will excite suspicion, either that
they are not the authors of our being, or that
those, who praise us, speak falsely. Both
these alternatives must be avoided; and
Renown in war was the object of He&tor's prayer for
his beloved Astyanax:
“Ziv, axxo, ri Saoſ, 3ors ºn º roºs yºvsa Sai
“nziº,' swor, as 3 sya me, agrgivia Teaucraw,
“'nºs &n, r' a yaşov, º, ixis ºpt awarau,"
Ho M. Il. vi. 476.
Happy the parents, who, if they pray at all, pray not
that their children may be exempted from disease and
death; but that they may possess those valuable
qualities of the understanding and the heart, which
ennoble the character, and will survive the grave!
OF PLATO, 167
they, above all others, must be our encomi-
asts, by plainly shewing themselves, as men,
to be really the fathers of men. For, in
truth, the old adage, “moderation in
“all things,” seems to have been well
observed. It is, indeed, an excellent
maxim.” For the man who has secured to
himself whatever contributes to happiness,
* Our great Epic poet has put a literal translation of
this adage into the mouth of the Archangel Michael,
when instructing Adam how to avoid the “painful
passages to death.” The Man of Paradise enquires;
* — Is there yet no way, besides
• These painful passages, how we may come
* To death, and mix with our connat'ral dust?'
“There is,” said Michael, “if thou well observe
“The rule of not too much; by temp'rance taught,
“In what thou eat'st and drink'st; seeking from
“ thence
“Due nourishment—not gluttonous delight;
“Till many years over thy head return: -
“So may'st thou live; till, like ripe fruit, thou drop
“Into thy mother's lap; or be with ease
“Gather'd, not harshly pluck'd, for death mature.”
Par. Lost, b. xi. 527.
168 FUNERAL ORATION
or nearly so; and who is not dependent
upon other persons, so as to be forced to
fluctuate, according to their good or ill
fortune; and who has his concerns thus
arranged in the best manner possible for
the present life; he is the prudent man; he
is likewise the man of firmness and judg-
ment. Such a one, while wealth and chil-
dren are in his possession, and when they
are gone, will best obey the proverb. For,
*-*.
—r—
The same precept is laid down by Horace:
“Est modus in rebus; sunt certi denique fines,
“Quos ultra, citraque, nequit consistere reëtum.”
Serm. L. i. S. 1. 106.
And again in his Epistles:
“Virtus est medium vitiorum; etutrinque redućtum."
Ep. lib. i. 18.
Human felicity depends essentially upon the ob-
servance of a due moderation, both in our joys and
sorrows; for this implies a proper discipline of the
affections and the passions; those main-springs of hap-
ness or misery in the human system. “ Keep thy heart
“with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.”
OF PLATO. 169
in consequence of his self-possession, he
will be seen neither to rejoice, nor to grieve
immoderately.
“That our sons may be such, we not
only think right, but it is likewise our
positive and earnest desire. Such also we
should now prove ourselves to be, by mani-
festing neither excess of sorrow, nor of timi-
dity, even though it were necessary for us,
in our present state, to die again. We
intreat our fathers and mothers to spend
the remainder of their days under the
influence of this sentiment; and to rest
assured, that it is not by bewailing and
grieving for us, that we shall be most gra-
tified. For if the dead have any knowledge
of the living, our friends could not condućt
themselves in a manner less agreeable to
us, than by making themselves wretched,
and by bearing their troubles impatiently.
Light and moderate regrets will be most
acceptable to us. For all that once be-
170 FUNERAL, ORATION
longed to us will shortly come to an end;
—the happiest event that can befal the
human race." Hence it is more fit, that
you should honour, than grieve for those
who are no more. If due care be mani-
fested in the support of our wives and
children, and if your attention be directed
to them, they will hence be rendered less
sensible to the vicissitudes of fortune;
and will live, not only more beloved by
ourselves, but likewise more respected and
honoured.”
“These declarations will suffice from
ourselves to our relatives. But to the State
we would recommend, that for our sakes it
* If the human soul be a&ually an emamation from
the Deity, as Plato thought; and the corporeal part of
man only a kind of temporary prison, in which it is
lodged, and by which it is confined and contaminated,
which also was the opinion of that ancient philo-
sopher; the event, which emancipates a human being
from this ignominious terrestrial tenement, must be the
happiest that can possibly befal it."
OF PLATO, 171
would take care both of our fathers and
of our children; by giving to the latter
a decent education; and by providing for
the former, in their old age, a maintenance
worthy of them. We are confident, in-
deed, that even if we did not recommend
this object, ample attention would be paid
to it.”
These sentiments, O ye children and
parents of the deceased, as they enjoined
us to communicate, so I do most cheerfully,
and in the best manner I am able, inform
you of them. And in their behalf I
request, of you, their children, that you
would follow the example of your fathers;
and of you, their parents, not to despond
on your own account; inasmuch as in
your old age you will enjoy from us
a public maintenance, and in private life
every attention will be shewn you, accord-
ing as opportunity may throw any of you
into the society of these your grandsons.
172 FU NERAL ORATION
As to the provision which the city will
make for you, you are already assured of
it; since, in having enacted laws relative
to the children and fathers of those who
have fallen in war, she is actually extending
protection to you; and, as constituting a
distinét class from the rest of the citizens,
the supreme power is required to see, that the
fathers and mothers of these persons sustain
no injury. But their children she main-
tains in common; anxiously wishing, that
they may feel their orphan state as little as
possible; while they are children, stand-
ing in the place of a parent to them;
and when they arrive at manhood, dis-
missing them to their friends with a com-
plete suit of armour; pointing out to them,
and reminding them of, the discipline to
which their fathers submitted, as the means
of arriving at their virtues; and likewise,
that after supplying them with military
accoutrements fit for their manly years,
OF PLATO, 173
they may commence their journey to their
paternal homes under favourable auspices.”
* It is highly honourable to the Athenian charaćter,
that so liberal a provision, in behalf of the parents and
families of their deceased heroes, was established by
law. Solon was the author of these salutary regula-
tions; and they refle&t equal credit upon his policy
and humanity.
Nothing can be more evident, or more clearly con-
sistent with the first principles of justice, than that
those who have shed their blood in behalf of a com-
munity, should receive an adequate recompense, either
in their own persons, or in those of their nearest rela-
tives, from their fellow-citizens. By every well-regu-
lated government this debt of gratitude is duly paid;
and in no country in the world more liberally, perhaps,
than in our own.
The prospect of a handsome remuneration for their
faithful services, in addition to other public honours,
so confessedly due to the toils and sufferings of the
patriotic soldier and sailor, must animate their courage
in the hour of danger, and comfort and soothe their
hearts under the wounds inflićted by the swords of
their enemies.
The Athenian State was extremely jealous of the
honour of those who were thus placed under its special
174 FUNERAL, ORATION
In honour also of those who have died,
she herself never fails, as the year returns,
publicly to perform, in behalf of all, the
same rites," as are privately paid to each
protection; and the person was reckoned infamous,
who offered them the least indignity.
The parents of the deceased warrior were supported
in the Prytaneum,” at the public expense. Their fare
was by no means luxurious. The children were not
only maintained, but likewise educated, at the charge
of their country. And not only their sons, but their
daughters also were taken under the particular charge
of the State. The two daughters of Aristides had
handsome marriage-portions assigned to them by their
grateful countrymen. And we are told, that when the
Athenians heard, that the daughter of Aristogiton was
in reduced circumstances, they not only presented her
with an estate, but provided her with a husband.
* On the authority of Cicero we learn, that a Funeral
Oration was annually pronounced at Athens, over those
of the Greeks who had fallen in battle. The passage is
quoted in the preceding Sketch of the Life and Writings
of Plato, p. 85.
* A large hall, so called, at Athens ; where the principal magis-
trates assembled, either for the purpose of offering sacrifices to the
gods, or of feasting with those who had distinguished themselves
by their exertions in favour of their native land.
OF PLATOs 175
individual respectively, by those who are
related to him.
She appoints, moreover, gymnastic and
equestrian games, and trials of skill in
every species of poetry." And, in truth,
with respect to the deceased, she places
* It was a well-known custom among the Greeks, as
well as among the Romans, to mark the decease of any
extraordinary person by athletic exercises, and games of
various kinds. Thus Achilles celebrates the death of
his friend Patroclus;” and AEneas, that of his father
Anchises.t. Literary competitions also, and, more
especially, contests for poetic excellence, seem, occa-
sionally, to have formed part of these funeral honours.
They were often disgraced, however, by human sa-
crifices. Achilles slew twelve Trojan youths at the
funeral pile of Patroclus.t. The same bloody rites
prevailed also among the Romans, the Gauls, and the
Thracians. Human sacrifices were customary in the
Druidical superstitions of our more remote ancestors.
In times, subsequent to the Heroic age, Funeral
Games were celebrated at the tombs of illustrious cha-
raćters; such as Miltiades, Timoleon, and others. The
origin of this custom is ascribed to Acastus and Theseus.
* Iliad, ub. 2s. # ABneid, lib. 5. # Iliad. mb, as 175.
176 FU NERAL, ORATION
herself in the situation of a son and heir ;
with regard to their children, in that of a
father; and as to parents, and those who
sustain a similar relation, in the charaćter
of a guardian: uniformly displaying, in
favour of every one, all the attention that
is requisite.
Considering these things, it becomes
your duty, to bear with the greatest
resignation the loss which you have sus-
tained. Hence you will secure to your-
selves, most effectually, the attachment,
both of the dead and of the living; and will
Gymnastic sports were held on occasions of joy also
among the Greeks and Romans. When Xenophon, in
his memorable retreat, had arrived at Trapezus, on the
borders of the Euxine Sea, sacrifices were offered to
Jupiter the Preserver, and likewise to Hercules, accom-
panied by festive games. They were not contaminated,
however, by the exhibition of human vićtims.” At
Cotyora also, in the same celebrated expedition, the
Greeks had Gymnastic contests.
* Xenoph. Anab. lib.
OF PLATO, 177
either render service to others, or receive
attentions from them, with the greatest
readiness.
Wherefore, since you, who are their re-
latives, and all other persons present, have
individually paid, according to law, your
tribute of sorrow to the dead, you may
withdraw."
&= --
* At the conclusion of this Harangue, the dialogue
between Socrates and Menexenus is resumed with its
former spirit. Menexenus can scarcely believe it
possible, that so admirable an Oration could have
been composed by a woman; and Socrates does not
affirm that it was, though he proposes to introduce his
friend to Aspasia, in proof of the fačt. But Menexenus
replies, that he was already acquainted with that cele-
brated Milesian lady. At the same time he politely
offers his acknowledgments to the author, whether it
were Aspasia, or any other person, for the excellent
sentiments which he had heard; professing his willing-
ness to listen, at any other time, to a similar display of
eloquence.
Whatever beauties the preceding Oration may, in
its present dress, exhibit to the English reader, (and
N


178 FUNERAL or ATI on of PLATO.
the Translator is far from being satisfied with his
own performance;) the lover of antient literature will
cordially unite with Menexenus in the approbation
bestowed upon the Original; and in a willingness to
hear, or to read any compositions of equal merit, which
the genius of eloquence, either of past or present times,
may provide for his amusement. No one, indeed, can
peruse the writings of Plato, although they may occa-
sionally carry him into the regions of fancy and fiction,
allegory and mysticism, without pleasure. For, as Dr.
Blair observes, “whether we be edified with the matter
“ or not, (and much edification he affords,) we are
“ always entertained with the manner; and left with
“ a strong impression of the sublimity of the Author's
(ſ; genius."-Leót. 37,
FU NERAL ORATION
OF
LYSIAS.
LY S I AS.
His Life—Character—Writings—
Funeral Oration.
ATER than Pericles, but antece-
dently to Plato and Demosthenes,
flourished Lysias, the celebrated Grecian
orator. He was born at Athens, 458
years before the Christian era. Cephalus,
of Syracuse, was his father; and it was
during a visit which he paid to Athens,
at the invitation of Pericles, that Lysias
was born.
* In the Introdućtion to his Oration against Eratos-
thenes, Lysias declares this to have been the case.
182 LIFE AND WHITINGS
* * * * , ºº is “ ” “w * *
He received his education among the
most illustrious Athenian youths. In the
fifteenth year of his age, and the twelfth
of the Peloponnesian war, in company
with his two brothers, he joined the
Athenian colony at Thurium, in Italy;
where he remained, till the disastrous
issue that befel the Athenian arms in
Sicily.
When the colony at Thurium, in con-
sequence of the declining fortunes of the
mother-state, was meditating a revolt,
Lysias was steady in his attachment. to
Athens, and returned home.
Justin informs us, that he raised,
at his own expense, five hundred Syra-
cusans, to send to the assistance of his
native city; the common country of
OF LYSIAS, 183
eloquence, as he styled it." It is said,
that he was banished from Sicily, toge-
ther with three hundred other persons,
who were attached to the Athenian cause.
It was in the forty-seventh year of
his age that Lysias returned to Athens,
No sooner was he arrived there, than
he resumed his literary studies, and
prosecuted them with the greatest
ardour. He soon distinguished himself
by his talents; not, indeed, by the
delivery of orations, but principally
º -º- —º
wº-
* “ Lysias, Syracusanus orator, exsul tunc, quin-
“gentos milites stipendio suo instrućtos, in auxilium
“ patriz communis eloquentiae misit.”
JustiN. lib. v. c. 9.
Lysias, however, was not, as this author states, a
Syracusan, but an Athenian, as Cicero positively
asserts: “Est enim Atticus, quoniam certe Athenis est
“ et natus, et mortuus, et functus omni civium
** munere.” Cicero, Brutus, 16.
| 84 LIFE AND W RITINGS
by the composition of them; since it
is recorded of him, that he pro-
nounced in public only one harangue;
that against Eratosthenes, one of the
Thirty Tyrants, for the murder of his
brother. The rest of his Orations, which
are thirty-four in number, were written
for the use of others.
In pleading the cause of his bro-
ther, Lysias uses the strongest language
against the oppressors of his country.
He never scrupled, indeed, boldly to in-
weigh against the detestable tyranny then
established by the Lacedaemonians at
Athens: and he was one of that patriotic
band, whose glorious exertions happily
contributed to itsdownfal andextirpation.
It appears, that the profession of a
public Orator was originally the objećt
OF LYSIAS. 185
in life which Lysias had in view; but
meeting with a competitor in Theodorus,
of greater acuteness, though less eloquent
than himself, he on that account relin-
quished his intention, and devoted him-
self solely to the composition of Orations.
When the trial of Socrates was coming
on, Lysias presented him with an Ha-
rangue for his defence. The Sage perused
it with approbation; and allowed it un-
questionably to possess the merit of being
elegant and oratorical. At the same time
he informed Lysias, that however well
suited it might be to the occasion, it was
not, for many reasons, proper for him
to use; and, principally, as being too
premeditated and artificial."
• Diog. Laert. lib. ii. cap. v. n. 20. Cicero de Orat.
lib. i. 54. Quintil. Jib. ii. cap. 16.
186 LIFE AND. W. RITINGS
Lysias was not only contemporary
with Socrates, but lived either at or
near the same period with Pericles,
Sophocles, Herodotus, Euripides, Thu-
cydides, Aristophanes, Xenophon, and
Plato. Demosthenes was born a little
before his death, which took place at
Athens, in the eightieth or eighty-first
year of his age.
The charaćter of Lysias appears to
have been very respectable, and highly
esteemed. He was an ardent friend to
the liberties of his country; and in his
spirited defence of his brother, he ap-
peals to the inoffensive and peaceable
lives of his father and family at Athens,
for the space of thirty years.
As a writer, Lysias is particularly com-
mended by Cicero, Quintilian, Dionysius
OF LYSIAS. 187
of Halicarnassus, and others. Cicero
says, that he approaches near to a per-
fe&t Orator; that in acuteness, elegance,
wit, and brevity, he greatly resembles,
though he rises far above, the elder
Cato; that he is, occasionally, extremely
impressive and powerful; yet that his
style is not, in general, of the nervous
kind.”
Quintilian observes of Lysias, that he
is correót and elegant; resembling a clear
fountain, rather than a great river."
Dionysius of Halicarnassus, who has
left a particular account, and an analysis
of his writings, denominates him the best
standard of the Attic style; not the style,
in which Thucydides and Plato wrote;
Jºgº
* Cicero. Brutus, 16. * Quintil, lib. x. c. 1.
188 LIFE AND WRITINGS
but that, which was prevalent at the par-
ticular period when Lysias flourished. “In
“purity of language,” observes this emi-
ment Critic, “the chief, and most material
“thing in composition, none of those,
“who came after, exceeded him. This
“one excellence I find in this Orator,
“worthy of studious imitation; and I
“would recommend it to those, who wish
“to write or to speak with purity, to
“make him their model in this respect.”
Although the following composition of
Lysias possess neither the simple subli-
mity and force of Pericles, nor the copious
eloquence and flowing harmony of Plato,
it may justly be described as abounding
in excellencies of a very superior kind.
The precision and elegance, by which
the style is distinguished, have in all
f Dionys. Halicar. de Lysia.
OF LYSIAS, 189
ages attracted the admiration of the best
judges of fine writing;' and the senti-
ments, conveyed in it, are worthy of the
high subjećt of which the Orator treats.
The Athenians, with other States of
Greece, had afforded military assistance
to the Corinthians, in the war between
them.and the Lacedaemonians; and it was
in honour of his brave countrymen, who
had fallen in battle, that Lysias penned
this Funeral Harangue. The manner, in
which he handles his subjećt, is not bor-
rowed from that of Pericles, who preceded
him in this species of eloquence. The
great objećt of that celebrated Statesman,
when he pronounced his far-famed Ora-
tion at the tomb of the deceased warriors,
* Muret. Var. Le&t. 17, 11. Theon, cap. 1, 2.
Harpocr. Tºgaya. Aristot. Rhetor. e
ISO LIFE . An D WRITINGS
was, not merely to stimulate his fellow-
citizens to the defence of their native land,
and to incite them to deeds of valour;
but likewise to insinuate himself into
their favour, and to maintain his popu-
larity among them. He was anxious
also, that they should continue to believe,
that their own country, so renowned for
its wise and salutary laws, its excellent
military discipline, and its numerous
highly respectable and useful institutions,
was superior to every other nation in
the world. He accordingly expatiates
largely, in the course of his address,
in praise of Athens; minutely descri-
bing, in terms of warm commendation,
the genius, character, and pursuits of
its inhabitants; at the same time
contrasting them with those of their
Lacedaemonian neighbours and rivals.
Lysias, on the other hand, in what he has
OF LY S.I.A.S. 191
written in honour of his countrymen,
has chiefly confined himself to a retro-
spective view of their heroic ačtions, in
different periods of their history; and
has concluded his oratorical detail with
a glowing description of the charaćter
and condućt of those Athenians, who,
as auxiliaries to the Corinthians, had
encountered dangers and death, in op-
posing the Lacedaemonians; a people,
whom they regarded not merely as their
own enemies, but likewise as the com-
mon disturbers and enemies of Greece.
Although this highly-finished literary
produćtion appear not to have been
formed after the sublime model of
that of Pericles, upon a similar subjećt,
it seems probable, that the Sage of
the Academy, or whoever it was who
composed the Funeral Harangue which
192 LIFE AND writi NGS OF LYSIAs.
passes under his name, followed the plan
already laid down by Lysias, rather than
that of Pericles;–if he in any respect
copied either of his predecessors.
FU N E RAL ORATION
OF
LYSIAS.
ID I imagine it possible, my fellow-
citizens, in your presence, and at this
sepulchre, for eloquence to describe the
valour of the men who are lodged in it, I
should have censured the persons, whoissued
the order to speak over them at the short
notice of a few days. But since no human
being, with ever so great a portion of
time allowed to him, would be equal to the
task of composing an Oration adequate to
O

194 FU N E R A L ORAT I O N
the merits of these men; therefore has the
city, in consideration, as I conceive, of
the persons who speak in this place, limited
the injunétion to so short a period, on the
idea that the candour of their audience
would, for this reason, be most readily ex-
tended to them." The subjećt of my dis-
course relates to these fallen heroes; but
it is not their noble deeds, that will put my
abilities to the test; so much as the elo-
quence of those, who have gone before
me in enlarging upon the same topics.
For their bravery has supplied such an
abundance of matter, both to those who
are possessed of a poetical talent, and to
such as have the inclination to harangue,
that much of what is honourable has been
* The Orator here solicits, in the happiest manner,
the favour of his auditors. With admirable skill he
turns the circumstance of the short notice, allowed the
speaker on this occasion for his composition, into a
compliment; not merely to those who had made the
arrangement, but also to the brave men who were the
objećts of his eulogy.
sha

OF LY SIA 5. - 195
said of them by the former; and not a little
also has been omitted by the latter; so that
ample materials remain for those who come
after. For in no part, either of land or
sea, are they unknown; and in all places,
and by all men, even by such as are
lamenting the loss of their own friends, the
virtues of these Heroes are celebrated.”
* The deeds of ancient Heroes were extolled, not only
in Funeral Harangues; but likewise in Lyric Odes,
and other poetical compositions, pronounced on various
occasions of public festivity. The amorous Anacreon,
in his address to his Lyre, takes a final leave of Heroes,
as subjećts of his song:
“ Xaigoirs Aotºrov *u.
“‘Hewis" Od. I.
From what Lysias here says, it appears, that the
heroic ačtions of these auxiliaries of the Corinthians had
been celebrated by other Orators, before he drew up
this laudatory harangue; which was probably never
spoken; Lysias, as was observed in the preceding epi-
tome of his life, having pronounced in public only
one Oration.
The Exordium to this Harangue is very appropriate.
Lysias, indeed, is particularly commended by Dionysius
of Halicarnassus, for the extreme neatness and propriety
o 2
196 FU NER A L ORATION
On the authority of tradition, I shall
begin by enumerating the early dangers of
our ancestors. For it is right that all men
should perpetuate the remembrance of
them, by recounting their praises in Odes,
and by assigning to them a place among
the records of the brave; by doing them
honour on such occasions also as these;
and instrućting the living by the example
of the dead.
Now the Amazons were of old the
daughters of Mars, and lived by the river
of his Introdućtions. A proper Exordium is stated by
this writer to be “that, which will suit no part of an
“Oration sowell, as the place which it already occupies.”
Lysias, he observes, was great in this respect; for that
although he wrote upwards of two hundred judicial
Orations, all his Exordiums were perfeótly suited to
their respective subjects.
* The subjećt naturally leads to this retrospection;
and would be confined indeed, had the speaker been
limited to the particular occasion or action, in which
the departed Heroes had distinguished themselves.
OF LY S.I.A.S. 197
Thermodon; and were the only people,
among the neighbouring nations, who were
furnished with iron weapons, and who
first rode on horses; by means of which,
in consequence of the inexperience of
their enemies, they unexpectedly over-
took them in flight; and left them behind,
when they were pursued. But they were
rather accounted men, by reason of their
intrepidity, than women, from their sex.
For they were thought to surpass men more
in their minds, than to differ from them
in their bodies.
And whereas they held many communi-
ties in subjection to them; and had, in fačt,
reduced their neighbours to slavery; since
they had heard, moreover, from report,
the transcendant glory of this country :
being animated by the prospect of much
renown, and with sanguine expectations,
they formed a coalition with the most
warlike nations, and carried on hostilities
198 FU N ERA. L. O. RAT I O N
with this city. But having met with brave
men, they displayed minds correspondent
with their natures; and an idea, the reverse
of that formerly received respecting them,
being adopted, they were judged to be
women, rather from their behaviour in
dangers, than from their bodily appear-
ance;" and it was peculiarly their misfor-
tune, that they were unable to profit by
their errors, and to adopt wiser measures in
future; or to return to their homes, to give
an account of their reverses, and of the
bravery of our ancestors. I'or by meeting
death on this very spot, and paying the
price of their folly, they rendered the fame
of this city for valour immortal: and by
their disasters here, obliterated the very
mame of their own country. So that having
* In their dress and armour they resembled men,
indeed; but, however valiant they might be, when they
had to combat such soldiers as those of Athens, their
aćtual inferiority to men soon became manifest.
OF LYSIAS. 199
unfairly aimed at possessing what belonged
to others, they very justly lost their own." '
When Adrastus and Polynices led their
army against Thebes," and were vanquished
* Xenophon has a sentiment nearly similar to this:
“noxxois 3' ex ºpxtasy avros ro Pºsé9 sxso &ny ºtws'
“ twºvungarris 3s narray xvpio, swat, 3a ravra & ºr exor
C’ſ awarvXoy" Xew. Cyr. Lib. I.
Certainly no very extraordinary glory could accrue
to the Athenians, notwithstanding what Lysias here
advances, from their conquering a band of females, like
that of the Amazons, though armed with spears, and
bows, and shields. He has already asserted, that al-
though they had externally the appearance of men, yet
they behaved merely as women in the field of Mars;
and from this it may, I apprehend, be fairly concluded,
that, with few exceptions, they displayed no very sur-
prising military prowess, when opposed to the stronger
sex. That such a race of females existed at a very early
period, although much of what is fabulous be related of
them, cannot be doubted. For a more particular ac-
count of them, see Note, page 108.
* The Theban war, already described,” happened
about the same time with that of the Amazons; or 1225
years before Jesus Christ. Several fine Dramas have
* Note, p. 110.
&
- ... ** * * = ... --- - - -i-....' ..
4.- : * * = *…* ... -- ºr--~~~~
200 FUNERAL ORATION
in battle, and the Thebans would not permit
them to bury their dead, the Athenians,
thinking that if they were guilty of any
omission, they should suffer the heaviest
punishment for it after the present life,
and that the infernal Gods would have
their just rites withheld from them; that
in consequence, moreover, of the viola-
tion of religious ceremonies, the Celestial
Deities would be treated with impiety;" at
first sent heralds, and besought them to
grant, that they might bury their slain;
since they judged it befitting the character
been founded by the Greek Tragedians upon the subject;
as the Antigone, of Sophocles; the Phoenissae, of Euri-
pides; and the “Seven against Thebes,” already men-
tioned, of AEschylus. .
* The negle&t of the funeral rites, due to the
dead, was reckoned, in ancient times, as it would
even now be justly regarded, an act of great impiety.
Till these had been properly performed, the unhappy
shades, it was thought, wandered about on the banks of
the Stygian lake, unable to pass to the abodes of the
happy. The wretched Elpenor, upon meeting Ulysses
OF LY S.I.A.S., 201
of brave men to avenge themselves upon
their enemies, while alive; but the part of
those only who distrusted their own powers,
to display their prowess upon their bodies,
when dead. *
Being unable to obtain the objećt of
their request, they made war upon them,
although no previous misunderstanding
existed between them and the Thebans;
nor was it with a view to gratify the Ar-
gives, who were living; but, because they
thought it right, that those who had fallen
in war should receive the obsequies due
to them, they exposed themselves to dan-
gers from others, for the sake of both; for
the Thebans, that they might never again,
in the subterraneous regions, earnestly supplicates his
master and friend to bury his body; and to perform the
proper funeral honours to him, when he arrives at the
isle of Circe, where he had perished. To enforce his
request, he adds,
“Mn rou ri Sawy £4mytûa. yiwaka." Odyss. ii. 73.
20% FU NERAL, ORATION
through want of attention to the dead,
treat the gods with irreverence; but for the
Argives, that they might not return to their
homes, without obtaining the honour des-
tined for them by their country; deprived
also of the accustomed Grecian rites; and
disappointed in an expectation, naturally
cherished by every one.
Under the impression of these senti-
ments, and regarding the incidents peculiar
to war, as alike common to all men, though
they met with many enemies, yet having
justice for their ally," they conquered when
they fought. Nor were they so elevated
by their good fortune, as to be anxious,
on that account, to inflict a severer punish-
ment upon the Thebans; but, in return
for their impiety, they displayed to them
their courage; and having themselves
* Taken in a general view, this must be allowed to
be rather a beld assertion. --
OF LY S.I.A.S. 203
obtained the prize for which they came,
they buried the Argive dead in their own
Eleusis.' Such was the condućt of the Greeks
with respect to those who fell in battle,
when the Seven Generals attacked Thebes."
But in after times, when Hercules dis-
appeared' from among men, and his sons
fled from Eurystheus, and were rejected by
* There were, it seems, several places of this name,
besides that in Attica. w
* The Athenians, if we may judge from their usual
charaćter, were certainly capable of these generous
exertions. Yet other motives of policy, with respect to a
State so near to them, might, and probably did operate
to produce the effects described. We are told, that in
the space of ten years afterwards, the sons of the Grecian
chiefs, who had fallen before Thebes, inflićted a most
severe punishment upon its citizens for the indignities
that had been offered to the Manes of their fathers.
! It appears to have been a notion very generally ea-
tertained in the Heathen world, that Heroes, and other
distinguished charaćters passed immediately from earth
into the society of the gods; in fact, that they never died.
204 FU N ERAL ORATION
all the Greeks, who dreaded his power,
though they were ashamed of his ačtions;"
The actions and charaćter of Hercules are wrapt
in much obscurity. He appears to have been a power-
ful and generous benefactor to mankind; and to have
devoted himself to the avenging of their injuries and
wrongs, at a time when laws were not established; or,
if established, when they were too weak, or too negli-
gently administered, to prote& the great rights of the
community. As such, it was not to be expe&ted that he
should be uniformly successful. Disappointment and
suffering have generally been the lot of the principal
benefačtors of mankind. This indeed, as we learn from
the highest authority, is the only school in which great
charaćters can be formed. And a celebrated Poet, of
our own country, in his beautiful Ode to Adversity,
has well described the same sentiment:
“When first thy Sire to send on earth,
“Virtue, his darling child, design'd;
“To thee he gave the heavenly birth,
“And bade thee form her infant mind.”
GRAY.
Tradition reports, that Hercules, while burning him-
self on a funeral pile on mount CEta, was carried to
heaven in a cloud, in the midst of thunder and lightning.
The particulars of this Apotheosis, as well as of many
other incidents in the life of this celebrated Hero, are
elegantly described by Sophocles, in his well-known
tragedy, entitled Trachiniz. T-
OF LYSIA.S. Q05
after they had arrived at this city, they sat
as suppliants at the Altar." Yet when
* Between the families of Perseus and Pelops, from
whom Hercules and Eurystheus were descended, a long
competition and enmity had subsisted. As the perse-
cutor of Hercules, Eurystheus is well known. Unfor-
tunately for the former, his descendants were banished
from the Peloponnesus; and obliged to live, for a
considerable time, in exile. The Athenians protećted
and befriended them; and by their powerful assistance
at length enabled them to return to their native land,
and to recover their ancient territories. This event
happened eleven hundred years before Christ.
* There was an altar at Athens, erected in honour of
the descendants of Hercules, and devoted to Com-
passion. It is the altar here particularly referred to.
Temples and altars, were regarded by the Heathens, as
sacred places; and as affording protećtion to all fugitives
and criminals, who had recourse to them in distress.
Hearths, likewise, as consecrated to Vesta, were allowed
to possess the same power. Euripides has founded his
interesting Tragedy of the Heraclidae, on the flight of
the descendants of Hercules from the oppression of
Eurystheus. In the opening of the piece, the unhappy
exiles are represented as surrounding the altars of the
gods for protećtion; and when Copreus came from
Peloponnesus, as the messenger of Eurystheus, to de-
mand that they should be delivered up to him, the
206 FU N E R A L ORATION
Eurystheus demanded them, the Athenians
would not consent to deliver them up; but
felt a greater veneration for the valour of
Hercules, than they experienced fear from
their own danger. And they deemed it
proper, rather to contend in favour of the
weaker party, with justice on their side,
than to ingratiate themselves with the
powerful, by delivering up those who had
sustained an injury from them.”
Athenians resisted his demand; and charged him, from
a becoming reverence to the gods, not to violate the
holy asylum of these miserable fugitives. In reply to
Copreus, the Chorus says:
“Exe, Siwº izrapas alºus $24, #ive,
“ Kai un Biaº Xup
“Aapova, aroxenuſ o' tºr.
“Iloria yag Auxa rab’s retairs."
EU Ripip. Heraclid. l. 102.
° Notwithstanding the Athenians, as a people, were
guilty of many political crimes towards other nations,
still they were capable of performing the most generous
deeds, and occasionally gave aétual proofs of such a dis-
position. In this class we may place their condućt, in the
OF LYSIAS. 2O7
When, also, Eurystheus, in conjunction
with those who then occupied the Pelopon-
nesus, made war against them, though
on the brink of danger, they changed not
their resolution, but maintained the same
sentiment as before; having experienced,
with respect to themselves, not a single ačt
of goodness from their father; and with
regard to his sons, not knowing what sort
of men they might hereafter prove them-
selves to be ; yet thinking it right so to do,
although no previous enmity had subsisted
with Eurystheus, nor had any advantage
been proposed, save that arising from good
present case, towards the family of Hercules. Gaspar
Stiblinus, in his Preface to Euripides's Tragedy of the
Heraclidae, thus describes this fine quality in the Athe-
nian chara&ter: “Insigne hoc est eulogium Atheniensis
“civitatis, cujus amplissima laus est, defendere sup-
“plices; miseros et oppressos adversus vim tueri;
“justitiam absºlue omni respectu propugnare; malos
“ persequi; pietatem colere; denique Rempublicam sal-
“ vam ac florentem, sine omni tyrannidis vel servitii
Euair. Heraclid. Ed. Stephani.
“ metu, continere.”
| TITT || i
208 FU NERAL ORATION
opinion, they submitted to danger thus
great on their account. Such as had suf-
fered harm, they pitied; but they hated
those who had condućted themselves with
insolence. The latter it was also their
endeavour to keep within due bounds; but
they judged it right to assist the former.
To do nothing, likewise, contrary to their
inclination, they esteemed a mark of free-
dom; and to lend their aid to the injured,
of justice; but to die in battle, if neces-
sary, for the sake of both, they regarded
as a proof of magnanimity.
Both were so high-minded, that Eurys-
theus and his friends sought to obtain
nothing from them, as a favour; and the
Athenians thought it not right, that Eurys-
theus himself should take away by intreaty
the suppliants from them. Wherefore,
opposing them with only their own forces,
they fought, and vanquished the enemy
which came from all Peloponnesus. The

OF LY SIAS, 209
persons also of the sons” they rendered
secure; and delivering their minds from
fear, they set them at liberty, in compli-
ment to their father's virtues; and at their
own hazard raised them to honours. So
much more fortunate were the sons, than
the father; for although he had been the
cause of much good to all mankind; and
had exposed himself to a life of extreme
labour, and difficulty, and contention;
and had inflićted punishment upon others
who injured him; yet upon Eurystheus,
though his enemy, and though he had
greatly offended him, he was unable to
avenge himself; but his sons, by means of
this city, witnessed, on the same day, both
their own safety, and the punishment of
their adversaries.
Many circumstances conspired to render
our ancestors unanimous in maintaining, by
*==—
* Of Hercules.
P
- lºw - - -

210 FUNERAL, ORATION
their arms, the cause of justice. For the
commencement of their life was founded
upon equitable principles.” They did not,
* This period of Athenian history is too much in-
volved in uncertainty and fable to enable us to ascertain
at present the truth of this assertion. The reason, given
in the subsequent sentence, will not be satisfactory on
this point; unless we admit, with Plato and Lysias, that
the people of Attica were really and truly Avrox%rse,
or Tryºnis; that is, born from the earth which they
inhabited. It is acknowledged, that for a considerable
period in remote ages they lived, unmolesting and un-
molested, in peace and comfort. The soil of Attica was
too barren, and its territory too rocky and uninviting,
to tempt the invading foe to disturb the tranquillity of
its inhabitants, and to despoil them of their possessions.
The compliment, here paid by the Orator to the
integrity and equity of the ancient occupiers of Attica,
seems, however, to imply, that notwithstanding this was
the case, their condućt had not been always marked by
these qualities. Nor can the fact be predicated of the
political condućt of any great and powerful State in any
country, whether ancient or modern. The simplicity of
hife and manners, prevailing among a people addićted to
industrious habits, and prosecuting the arts of peace,
is highly favourable to virtue. Before avarice and
ambition find their way into a community, a greater

OF LYSIAS. .211
like most nations, after being collected from
all quarters, and driving away a different
race of men, inhabit a territory belonging
to others; but being born from the soil,
their mother and country were one and
the same." They were the first, and the only
people at that period, who, after putting an
end to the dynasties that existed among
them, established a Democracy.’ Thinking
regard to justice will naturally exist, than is afterwards
to be found in it. For although it does not always follow,
that a superior degree of civilization is invariably at-
tended with a correspondent degree of principle and
virtue; yet it is universally allowed, that the simple mode
of life, and the rural occupations, of the Swiss, for in-
stance, before the grand Despoiler of Europe had found
his way into their peaceful territory, were more favour-
able to good morals, than the high polish of fashionable
life, either on the banks of the Thames, or the Seine.
* In the foregoing Oration of Plato, the same sen-
timent appears;* and is there commented upon.f
* From the time of Cecrops to that of Codrus, a period
of 487 years, Attica was governed by Kings. Among
these, Cecrops, Ereğtheus, and Theseus were distin-
* P. 91, 92. f Notes, p. 93, 98,
l
P 2.
219 FU NERAL ORATION
UNIv ERs AL LIBERTY to BE THE GREAT-
Est Bon D of UN lon;' and, in conse-
quence of the dangers which they had
mutually encountered, cherishing the same
common hopes, they lived, as members of
guished. The royal succession was commonly heredi-
tary; yet their monarchies were generally limited.
Before the reign of Theseus, Attica was divided into a
number of petty sovereignties, which were often at war
with each other. The Athenians were certainly the
first people among the Greeks, as the Corinthians
were the last, who adopted a strićtly popular form of
government.
• The reply of Tigranes, the Armenian, to Cyrus,
on the subject of liberty, is particularly memorable:
“Exiv6-eas swºvus, xaxov yae wo, boxes siva, º avrov
& Cº. *Arvºsgow *tva, º, ºralaiv sauvørgia, xaraxiway." XEN oph.
Cyr. c. 3.
Also the address of Cyrus to his troops: “Tº ºvSs-
“gian ixotºwn an arri wº ºxy warran 19 awawy woxAaraagiar."
Xenoph. Anab. c. 1.
And Milton observes, in his Paradise Lost;
— “True liberty,
– “ which always with right reason dwells,
“Twinn'd, and from her hath no dividual being."

OF LY S.I.A.S. 213
| IIII
the State, with minds unshackled;" con-
ferring honour upon the good, and inflićting
punishment upon the bad, according to
law;" judging it to be the custom of brute
beasts to be under the dominion of bodily
force; but that it belongs to men, as being
v- --gº-
* Rational liberty is wholly inconsistent with the least
degree of mental restraint, as far as relates to the inves-
tigation of truth, and the discussion and dissemination
of the important principles connected with it. Hence
the impolicy and the injustice of all restrictions in
matters of religion and conscience.
* “Est enim unum jus, quo devinóta est hominum
“ societas, et quod lex constituit una. Quae lex est reëta
“ ratio imperandi et prohibendi." Cic. de Leg. l. i.
Paley observes, “That people, government, and con-
“stitution is the freest, which makes the best provision
“ for the enaćting of expedient and salutary laws."
Mor. Philos. And Montesquieu, on the same topic,
remarks, “Liberty is in its highest perfe&tion, when
“criminal laws derive each punishment from the parti-
“cular nature of the crime. There are then no arbitrary
“ decisions. The punishment does not flow from the
* capriciousness of the legislator, but from the very na-
“ture of the thing; and man uses no violence to man."
Spirit of Laws, b. xii. c. 4.
214 FUNERAL or AT1 on
governed by law, and instructed by reason,”
to define by legal institutions the limits of
justice, and to persuade by argument; in
a word, to be actuated by these principles."
For, in fact, being noblyborn, and cherishing’
congenial sentiments, the ancestors of the
men, who lie here, performed many excellent
and admirable deeds; and those, who are
descended from them, have, in consequence
of their valour, left in every place trophies,
—great, and for ever to be remembered.
* “Animal hoc providum, sagax, multiplex, acutum,
“memor, plenum rationis et consilii, quem vocamus
“Hominem, praeclară quadam conditione generatum
“esse a supremo Deo. Solum est enim ex tot animan-
“tium generibus atque naturis particeps rationis et
“ cogitationis, cum cetera sint omnia expertia.”
Ciceno de Leg. lib. i. c. 7.
7 Nothing can be more rational than these senti-
ments; which contain a just outline of the true prin-
ciples of civil liberty. Britons excepted, no people ever
understood these principles better than the Athenians
did; but in pračtice, alas! like a celebrated nation of
modern days, it is much to be regretted, they were often
sadly deficient!

OF LY S.I.A.S. 915?
They alone, in behalf of all Greece,
twice encountered dangers from many
myriads of the Barbarians.” For the King
of Asia,” not being satisfied with the pos-
sessions already in his power;' but hoping
to bring Europe also under his dominion,
prepared an army of fifty myriads of men.
And under the idea, that if they could gain
over to themselves this city, as a willing
ally; or overthrow it, if unfavourable to
—w- -r-wa
• The Athenians certainly formed the principal bar-
tier to the formidable attacks of the Persian invaders.
* It is this restlessness of disposition in princes and po-
liticians, that has led to all the miseries which ambition
has occasioned in the world. The craving desire for a
particular town, island, or province, has soon discovered
some pretext or other for endeavouring to gain pos-
session of it. The trumpet of discord has been sounded,
and streams of blood have dyed the fairest portions of
the earth. Man has murdered his fellow man; as if:
they had been originally created to harass and destroy
each other. Under the mild reign of the Prince of
Peace such things, from causes so unjustifiable and
criminal, certainly ought not to be. -
* Xerxese
rº-Arrºry-wr-ºw Y - •+', ºr rw
* *
216 FU NERAL, ORATION?
them; they might easily command the rest
of Greece, they landed at Marathon.
They supposed, likewise, that the Greeks
would thus be most effectually deprived of
their allies, if, while they were divided into
factions, as to the mode of resisting the in-
waders, they could place them in the midst
of danger. But in consequence of former
achievements, they entertained such an
opinion of the city, as to be sensible, that
although they might first attack any other
State, they would have both to fight with
it, and with the Athenians; since the latter
would readily come to the assistance of the
oppressed. But if they should first march
hither, none of the other Greeks would dare,
in order to save the rest, to enter into an
open enmity with them, for their sakes.
Such, accordingly, were their sentiments,
But our ancestors, who were not acquainted,
from observation merely, with the dangers
of war, but thought that a glorious death

OF LY SIAS. 217.
would advance the brave to immortal re-
nown," dreaded not the multitude of their
enemies, but rather trusted to their own
valour. And being ashamed to have the
Barbarians in their country, they waited
not till their allies were informed of it, or
came to their assistance. Nor did they
think it right for them to be indebted to
others for their preservation; but rather,
that the rest of the Greeks should owe the
obligation to themselves.
* Tyrtaeus, in his glowing effusions in praise of va-
lour, observes:
“Te0Yau eval yae xzxo, twº reou axola, widorra.
“Arºp a yaşov, r-e ‘n rareið, wagwausrow."
During his fatal encounter with Achilles, He&or
prays, that he may be able to mark his death by some
glorious exploit:
“M” way adºrses, ys 23 axxsws awoxolºny,
“AAAz waya gºas ri × saaouavotal ºrvºsa Sai."
Iliad. lib. 22. l. 304.
And Cicero has this sentiment: “Clarae vero mortes
“ pro patriá oppetitae, non solum gloriosae rhetoribus,
* Sed etiam beatae videri solent.”
Tusc. Quaest. lib. i. 48,
218 FUNERAL ORATION
Universally inspired by this feeling,
though few only in number, they advanced
to encounter many. For they thought it
their duty to die with all; but to be brave,
with a few; and that by their deaths they
should preserve the lives of others, and
transmit to posterity a reputation peculiarly
their own. They judged, likewise, that
men who could not conquer by themselves,
would not be able to do it with auxiliaries;
and that, if defeated, they should only die
a short time before their fellow-citizens; but
that, if they gained the vićtory, others also
would be free. Wherefore, proving them-
selves brave men; and not regarding their
own persons; and, when their honour was at
stake, deeming life of no value; and treat-
ing with greater reverence their own laws,
than dreading the dangers to which they
were exposed from their enemies;–they
raised trophies, in honour of Greece, over
the Barbarians; who, contrary to the most
sacred engagements, and for the sake of

OF LYS IAS, 2 is)
wealth, quitted their own country, in order
to invade the territory of others."
But with such celerity was the danger
dissipated, that the same persons brought to
the rest of their fellow-citizens the tidings,
that the Barbarians had arrived, and that
* The Athenians, from their natural valour, and
enthusiastic love of liberty, would be likely to make a
most determined resistance to the Persian invaders.
But another reason existed, why they should particu-
larly exert themselves; and that was, the positive
command of Darius to the condućtors of this grand
expedition, that they should by all means lay waste the
territories of the Athenians and the Eretrians, and
carry their possessors into captivity, into the farthest
regions of the East. The army, that opposed the
numberless hosts of Persia, consisted only of about
twenty thousand men, No others of the Greeks, the
Plataeans excepted, who formed but a handful of troops,
rendered any effective assistance to the Athenians. The
Spartans, indeed, were willing to do it; but alleg-
ing the observance of a superstitious ceremony, as pre-
viously necessary, they did not arrive till the day after
the battle. What Lysias here asserts, respecting the
violation of their oaths by the Persians, probably refers
to some treaty with the Greeks, which by this invasion
220 FUNERAL or ATION
our ancestors had conquered them." For,
in fact, none of the other States entertained
any apprehension as to the approaching
danger; but when they had heard the
intelligence, they were delighted, on ac-
count of their own liberty. It is not
surprising, therefore, that these remote
achievements, as if of modern date, should
render the bravery of our ancestors,
even at present, an object of universal
emulation.
y- —w--→r ~- ~ —ur
of their territories they had broken. There is another
reading, as Bentham has observed, which materially
changes the sense of the passage. According to this
the meaning is, that the Barbarians had passed over
those boundaries of the Persian territory, which nature
seemed to have prescribed. This first defeat of the
Persians in Greece took place 490 years before Jesus
Christ.
* Miltiades, the favoured General on this glorious
occasion, by his laudable decision and dispatch, soon
brought the momentous business to a happy termina-
tion. No condućt could have been more judicious than
his was upon the occasion; and delay would have been
attended with the greatest possible danger.
OF LYSIAS, 221
After these things Xerxes, king of Asia,
who regarded Greece with contempt, but
whose hopes were baffled; who felt dis-
graced, moreover, at what had happened,
and was grieved at this disaster, and angry
with those who had occasioned it; who
had never experienced reverses, nor met
men of valour in the field; after a prepa-
ration of ten years, came with twelve
hundred ships: but he brought with him so
vast a multitude of infantry, that it would
be a work of no small difficulty to number
the nations that accompanied him." This
circumstance, in particular, proves their
immensity; that although he might have
transported his army, from Asia to Europe,
* The numbers of the land forces, and of the naval
armament in this formidable expedition, have been
computed at nearly two millions of fighting men. If to
this calculation be added the enormous multitude of
women, eunuchs, and slaves, that accompanied the
march of this tremendous armament, the concourse
will appear immense. *
222 FU NERAL ORATION
ii il I
in a thousand vessels across the narrowest
part of the Hellespont, he would not do it;
because he was of opinion, that it would
occasion to him great delay.' But in de-
fiance of things both human and divine,
as well as of the opinions of men, by
making a bridge over the Hellespont, and
digging through Mount Athos, he formed
for himself a path on foot by sea, and a
passage for ships by land; no one making
any opposition to him, while some reluc-
tantly obeyed, and others voluntarily be-
trayed him. For some had not the power
to defend themselves; and others were
corrupted by money. So that they were
influenced by the twofold motives of gain
and fear.
In crossing the bridge of boats, formed by Xerxes
over the Hellespont, seven days and nights were con-
sumed; but had so numerous an army been conveyed
in ships, however short the passage, the trouble of em-
barking and disembarking would have occupied much
more time. Yet, notwithstanding the pious remark
OF LY S.I.A.S. $2.23
But the Athenians, while Greece was thus
situated, went themselves on board their
fleet, to render assistance at Artemisium."
The Lacedaemonians, however, and some
of the allies advanced to meet them as far
as Thermopylae; thinking, that by reason
of Lysias, no violence surely was offered, either to
things human or divine, by the measures here adopted
by the Asiatic Monarch to transport his troops to the
future scene of operations.
* In this critical emergency, the powerful eloquence
and authority of Themistocles tended to unite all
parties, Divided sentiments had prevailed; more par-
ticularly, as it seems, respecting the interpretation of
the Oracular response, which had been given on the
occasion. The Athenians were admonished to seek for
refuge within their wooden walls. The majority of
them understood the answer, as relating to the wooden
palisade, which formerly surrounded the citadel; and
which, they maintained, that Apollo commanded to be
restored. The construćtion, put upon the Oracle by
Themistocles, gained universal approbation. He told
them positively, that it related to their ships. Athens,
in those times, was a great naval power; and its
citizens were enjoined to depend for safety upon their
Froper and natural means of defence, their fleet.
224 FUNERAL ORATION
of its narrowness they should be able to
guard the pass." The danger taking place
at the same time, the Athenians gained the
vićtory at sea; but the Lacedaemonians,
who were by no means deficient in courage,
but were deceived, both as to the number of
those, with whom they imagined they should
guard the place, as well as of those, with
whom they were about to contend, were
not ačtually subdued by their enemies, but
sacrificed their lives, on the very spot where
they had been stationed to fight." Thus
* “ Nothing could be more commodious than this
“ spot for the small force of the Greeks to make a stand
“ against the immense army of Persia.”
Mitford's Hist. of Greece.
.*
* The battle of Artemisium, however, was a drawn
one. Yet Plato, in his Funeral Oration, classes it with
the vićtory at Salamis. It is no unusual circumstance,
for each contending party, on such occasions, to claim.
the vićtory,
* The valour of the Spartans, under the condué of
their intrepid General Leonidas, was never equalled
before, and has never been surpassed, since that memo-
*... . . . . .
'. - . . . * * * .
. **. :*::... - - ... º. . . . .
sº. • ‘º. ze:*.*. . * r
\ |
sº tº .
* *- : *


OF LY SIAS, 225
one party having been unsuccessful, and
another having made themselves masters of
the pass, they marched against this city.
But our ancestors, being informed of the
disaster that had befallen the Lacedaemo-
nians, and being at a loss, in their present
circumstances, what to do; being convinced,
also, that if they should advance to meet the
Barbarians by land, the latter, with their
thousand vessels, would gain possession of
the city, while left without its inhabitants;
rable engagement. But for treachery, the . Persian
host would never have gained their point. Lysias well
observes, that they were not absolutely conquered by
their enemies. Their bodies, indeed, were buried under
an accumulated mass of Persian arms; but their souls
were invincible. Walter Scott, by far the most popular
of modern poets, in his “Vision of Don Roderick,"*
justly panegyrizes the late heroes and heroines of Sara-
gossa, in a sentiment similar to the above, as follows:
“And when at length stern fate decreed thy doom,
“They won, not Zaragoza, but her children's bloody
“ tomb.”
ſº
• Page 47, Ed. 4to.
Q
226 FUNERAL ORATION
and that if they should go on board their
ships of war, it would be taken by the
army by land; and that, both to repel the
invaders, and to leave a sufficient guard,
would not be in their power;—on the
choice of two alternatives, whether it were
necessary to quit the country; or, after
forming a league with the Barbarians, to
place the Greeks in a state of slavery;
thinking that liberty, with valour, and po-
verty, and banishment, would be preferable
to national servitude, with ignominy and
riches;" quitted” the city in behalf of
Greece, that they might meet partial dan-
ger with one of the two; but not with both
~- -mººr
f:
.-
*.-
* This, however common, is a sentiment to be always
admired and cherished. With such a spirit to put in
motion its energies, no nation, of any consequence, can
be long enslaved.
* The nominative case to the verb “ quitted,” the reader will
recollect, is “ancestors;” in the preceding page, line 4;-at no
less a distance than twenty lines from the corresponding term.
Should the Translator be censured for this arrangement, he must
appeal to the authority of his Original.
OF LY S.I.A.S. 227
powers at the same time. And having,
for the sake of safety, removed their chil-
dren, wives, and mothers, to Salamis,
they also collected the fleet of their
other allies.
But not many days after came also the
expedition by land, and the fleet of the
Barbarians; at the sight of which who
would not have trembled ! With what vast
and awful dangers, in defending the liberty
of the Greeks, had this city to struggle !
And what resolution must they have pos-
sessed, who saw the troops contained in
those ships, while both their own safety
was precarious, and the danger likewise
was imminent; as well as they, who would
soon have to fight at sea, for the dearest
objects of their affection, even the prizes of
vićtory lodged at Salamis " Such a host of
* These prizes were the wives, children, and other
relatives of the Athenians; all of whom were staked
on the issue of this great contest. Death may well be
Q 2
228 FU N ERAL, ORATION
enemies had entirely hemmed them in, that
their own deaths appeared, from knowing
them beforehand, to be the least of evils
present to them; and their heaviest cala-
mity, what they expećted those would
suffer, from the vićtorious Barbarians,
whom they had already transported from
them to a place of safety.
In fact, by reason of their present per-
plexities, they often embraced each other;
and, as was natural, lamented their lot.
They were sensible of the fewness of their
ships, and perceived those of the enemy to
be numerous. They knew, also, that the
city was deserted, and the country laid
called the least of evils, when such important in-
terests are involved. This they regarded as inevita-
ble. But the miseries that would accompany defeat and
servitude, from being unknown and protracted, might
well be viewed as worse than death, in all its horrors.
“‘Huav yag r' agirus amoarvta, ºvºvora Zavs
“Aysé9, svr' aſ wiv xara Beauov neae śamaw"
Odyss. lib. 17. l. 322.
OF LYSIAS. 229
waste, and full of Barbarians; that the
temples too were burnt, and every species
of calamity was impending. They heard,
likewise, as in one chorus, both the Grecian
and Barbarian Paean;" and the language of
encouragement used on both sides; and
the shrieks of the perishing. The sea, more-
over, was full of dead; and many ships
also, both of friends and foes, were dashed
against each other; and the naval engage-
ment long remained doubtful; since they
thought, at one time, that they had con-
quered, and were safe; and at another,
that they were defeated, and were undone.
* A hymn to Apollo, or Mars; in which the soldiers
joined, previously to, or after, a battle. “Besides
“hymns of a religious kind, it has been customary with
“ all armies, as well those of civilized nations as bar-
“barous, at the time of coming to an engagement, to
“ endeavour to strike terror into their enemies, and to
“encourage their friends, by the shouting repetition of
“ some certain words peculiar to themselves.” Various
instances of this kind might easily be enumerated.
* BENT HAM.
230 FUNERAL ORATION
:
-
In fact, by reason of the alarm under
which they laboured, they imagined that
they saw many things which they did not
see, and heard many things which they
did not hear.” What supplications were
not made to the gods, and sacrifices to
importune them ' What commiseration
did not the children, what affection did not
the wives, what distress did not the fathers
and mothers display !? What presentiments,
• “Fear,” observes Dr. Johnson,” “whether na-
“tural or acquired, when once it has full possession of
“ the fancy, never fails to employ it upon visions of
“calamity." It is not surprising, that the daemon of
superstition, in a season of extreme alarm and danger,
should be busily at work. At such a time, everything
is magnified. Imagination gives birth to a thousand
monsters of its own creation. Suspicion and conjećture
assume the forms of certainty. Even the softest whis-
pers and the slightest murmurs quickly swell into
reports at once loud and terrific; and an universal panic
and credulity prevail.
P So minute is Lysias's description of this interesting
scene, that one might almost suppose that he had
witnessed it.
r * Rambler.
-3.*r -.
.
g
OF LY S.I.A.S. 231
of the evils that would befal them, from .
defeat! What god, amidst dangers so
immense, would not have pitied them 1
What man would not have wept! Who
would not have admired them for their
courage!" Unquestionably, they far sur-
passed all other men, not only in the plans
which they formed, but in their mode of
encountering the dangers of war. Having
quitted the city, and gone on board the
fleet, they ranged themselves, small as were
their numbers, in order of battle, against
the host of Asia; and by this naval vićtory,
exhibited a proof to all the world, how
* The various emotions of mind, excited in the
Athenians, when the dangers of invasion were imme-
diately at their doors, is here described in very lively
colours. Imagination, indeed, can scarcely conceive
any thing more terrible, than such a state of things.
Lysias was a very patriotic chara&er; and from the
concluding remark in this paragraph we may perceive,
that he loses no opportunity of extolling the principles
of civil liberty above those of despotism and slavery.
23% FU NERAL, ORATION
much better it is to hazard life with a few,
in defence of one's liberty, than with many,
under a king, to enslave others.
Various very excellent regulations were
adopted by them, in behalf of Grecian
liberty. Themistocles was appointed Ge-
neral; a man of the greatest talents for
eloquence, council, and ačtion." A larger
number of ships, moreover, than all the
other allies possessed, with soldiers likewise
of the greatest experience, were ordered.
What other people, in fact, of all the
Greeks, could bear comparison with them,
in point of intelle&t, number, or valour?
Justly, therefore, and indisputably, did
they obtain the palm, in that naval vićtory,
from the rest of Greece; and, as might
* “Nulla res major sine illo gerebatur: celeriterque,
“ quae opus erant, reperiebat, facile eadem oratione
“explicabat. Neque minus in rebus gerendis
“ promptus, quam excogitandis erat.”
Connel. NEP. in Themist. Vitā.
OF 1,Y S.I.A.S. 233
be expe&ted, were crowned with success,
proportionate to the dangers which they
had encountered; and displayed, to the
Asiatic Barbarians, incontestible proof of
their genuine and native bravery." By thus
condućting themselves in the engagement
at sea, and by taking upon themselves by
far the greatest share of danger, they, by
their single valour, established the common
liberty of the rest of their countrymen.
\
Afterwards, when the Peloponnesians
were fortifying the Isthmus with a wall,
and felt assured of their own safety; think-
ing themselves freed also from the danger
by sea; and intending, as unconcerned
spectators, to witness the rest of the Greeks
* “But the Athenians neither excel other men in
“ grace of elocution, nor in bodily stature and strength,
“so much as they do in the love of glory; which
“ peculiarly operates upon them, as an incitement to
“excellent and honourable deeds.”
Xenoph. Mem. lib. iii. c. 3. $. 13.
234. ru N EBAL ORATION
become a prey to the Barbarians; the
Athenians were incensed; and advised
them, if they still persisted in this deter-
mination, to draw a wall quite round the
Peloponnesus; for that if they themselves,”
from the treachery of the Greeks, should
join the Barbarians, they would have no
need of their thousand ships; nor would
the wall on the Isthmus be of any service
* While in league with the Persians, the Athenians
would, consequently, be exposed to no attacks from
them, either by sea or land.
From this account of the proceedings of the Spartans,
it appears, that they were not always very alert in coming
to aid the common cause of Grecian liberty; and that
they would certainly have preferred staying at home, in
their sea-girt Penipsula, could they have done it with
propriety or decency. We must not, however, forget,
what had been the exploits of Leonidas, and his three
hundred brave followers, in the Straits of Thermopylae.
One such glorious achievement should counterbalance
twenty instances of wavering councils, or of tardy
measures, in a nation so firmly attached, as were the
Spartans, to their national institutions and customs.
* The Athenians.
OF LY S.I.A.S. 235
to them,f since the empire of the sea would
belong to the King, without a struggle.
Being convinced, however, and acknow-
ledging, that they were not only guilty of
injustice, but had adopted bad advice;
that the Athenians, moreover, said only
what was right, and gave them the best
counsel; they rendered them assistance at
Plataea. But the ranks being deserted, un-
der cover of the night, by the greater part
of the allies, in consequence of the number
of their enemies," the Lacedaemonians and
* Very considerable jealousies and dissensions pre-
vailed in the Grecian army, on the eve of the glorious
vićtory of Plataea. Many of these related simply to
points of precedence, with regard to situation in the
line of battle. The Athenians, conscious, as it were,
of their decided superiority, nobly waved all ceremony
on the occasion; and cheerfully consented to take
whatever situation might be judged most proper for
them. The circumstance, here mentioned, of desertion
in the Grecian army, is, from a variety of circumstances,
highly probable. Most of the Northern States of
+ The Lacedaemonians.
236 FU NERAL, ORATION
Tegeans put the Barbarians to flight; but
the Athenians and Plataeans fought and
conquered such of the Greeks, as had re-
nounced the cause of freedom, and put on
the yoke of slavery.” On that day they
-y
Greece had already, from necessity or from choice, sub-
mitted to the invader; and numbers, regarding matters
as desperate, and all efforts against such an host of
foes as likely to be unavailing, would, doubtless, be
anxious to provide for their own safety, under a new
situation of things.
* Mardonius, in this battle, very judiciously stationed
those of the Greeks, who had basely joined the Persian
arms, opposite to the Athenians. He knew perfectly
well, from dear-bought experience, that the Persian
troops would not be able to stand the violent shock of
Athenian bravery. The Grecian auxiliaries were soon
put to flight by their indignant countrymen. Only the
Thebans, for any length of time, resisted the attack.
The Barbarian forces soon fled to their camp. This
was strongly fortified for the occasion; and would pro-
bably have held out successfully, but for the vigorous
attack of the Athenians, seconded by the brave efforts of
the Tegeans and Spartans. A dreadful revenge was
taken upon the invaders. It is related by Herodotus,
that of two hundred thousand Persians, ſcarcely two
thousand escaped the fury of their opponents.
OF LYS IAS. 237
came to a most honourable termination
of their former dangers; and effected the
complete establishment of the liberty of
Europe." And having, in all their perils,
given convincing proof of their valour;
both when alone, and with others; by
land, and by sea; against Barbarians, and
against Greeks; they were universally
deemed worthy, as well by their comrades
in danger, as by their opponents in arms,
to hold precedence in Greece.
* The bloody battle of Mycale, in Ionia, was fought,
between the Greeks and Persians, on the very same day
as that of Plataea. Forty thousand Persians are said
to have fallen in that engagement, which released
the Grecian colonies in Asia Minor from the Persian
yoke.
Thus ingloriously to the Eastern invaders, but hap-
pily for Athens and its dependencies, terminated this
second most daring attempt upon the liberties of Greece.
And every generous heart must fervently wish, that
all similar outrages, which ambition may meditate
upon the rights and liberties of mankind, may end in
like manner!
238 FUNERAL ORATION
Afterwards, on occasion of a Grecian
war, in consequence of the rivalship and
envy excited by past transactions; when
all were high-minded, and each was look-
ing out for the slightest cause of exception;
the Athenians, having had a naval engage-
ment with the inhabitants of Ægina, and
their allies, took from them seventy tri-
remes. Being engaged, at the same time,
in reducing both Egypt" and AEgina; and
the flower of their youth being absent
from home, both in the fleet, and in the
army; the Corinthians and their allies,
thinking that they might either make an
incursion into the country, in its present
deserted state, or draw off the troops from
AEgina, sallied forth with all their forces,
and took possession of Geranea.” But the
Athenians, while some were at a distance,
- ºr
* A mountain and defile, between Corinth and
Athens.
* See Fun. Orat. of Plato; p. 126, note r.
OF LY S.I.A.S. 239
and others near at hand, durst not send
for any of them ; but trusting to their own
bravery, and holding their assailants in
contempt, the more advanced in years,
and such as were under age, deter-
mined to meet the danger by themselves;
some possessing approved, and others
hereditary courage; part, having already
often displayed their valour; and others,
following their example; the elder, know-
ing how to direct; and the younger, being
able to execute their commands. Having
Myronides for their General, they went to
meet them in Megaris; and fought, and
conquered their whole force; with troops
already worn down, or who had not yet
arrived at their vigour, engaging, in the
territory of another, those who had at-
tempted to invade their own; and by a
vićtory, highly honourable to themselves,
but most disgraceful to their enemies,
ere&ting a trophy, obtained by some who
were already disabled; and by others,
240 FU NERAL ORATION
who were not yet become effective men.
But after both of them had displayed their
extraordinary magnanimity, and been
crowned with glory, they returned to their
native country; these, to complete their
education; those, to consult for the inte-
rests of the rest of the community."
* No sooner had the Greeks succeeded in repelling the
Persians from their territories, than the flame of internal
dissension was again revived among them. The rising
walls of Athens excited the jealousy of Sparta and her
allies. Hostilities, under various pretences, were fre-
quently carried on. Jealousies and warfare had formerly
subsisted between the inhabitants of AEgina and Athens.
The latter again stirred up their animosity; and war
was renewed; but most disastrously for the former.
The right to the territory of Megaris had been a subject
of altercation between Corinth and Athens; and the
Corinthians seized the opportunity, while the Athenian
troops were employed in Egypt against the Persians, to
make incursions into Megaris, where they captured the
fortress of Geranea. On this occasion, as we are in-
formed by Lysias, the Athenian citizens nobly came
forward, in the absence of their troops, and gloriously
triumphed over the invaders. These events took place,
457 years before Christ. -
U F LY SIAS. 241-
. It is no easy task, therefore, for an in-
dividual to detail, one by one, the dangers
encountered by multitudes ; nor to de-
scribe, in a single day, transactions that
have occupied the whole series of time.
For what time, or language, or speaker,
would be equal to the task of duly setting
forth the valour of the men who lie before
us? Since by difficulties without number,
by efforts the most conspicuous, and by
perils the most glorious, they secured
the liberty of Greece; and exhibited
their native country to the greatest advan-
tage." During a period of seventy years
they retained possession of the seas,"
* These sentiments are no less true, than they are
eloquently and admirably expressed. The Orator ap-
pears to feel all that honest pride, at contemplating
the heroic ačtions of his countrymen, which might
naturally be indulged, while expatiating upon so ani-
mating a topic.
* The brilliant vićtories, gained at Salamis and Mycale,
gave the Athenians this decided superiority; which they
R
242 FU NERAL, ORATION
and kept the allies from breaking out into
revolt. They judged it right, that the
Many should not be in subjećtion to the
Few; but rendered it incumbent upon all
to be put upon the same footing. Nor
did they reduce the allies to weakness, but
even contributed to render them strong;
and displayed their power to such an ex-
tent, that even the Great King was no
longer eager for the possessions of others;
but relinquished a part of his own; and
was apprehensive for the safety of the rest."
retained till the fatal issue of the Peloponnesian war;
when their fleet was dismantled, and their fortifications
were razed to the ground.
* The same remark, in nearly the same words, is
made in the Funeral Harangue of Plato.”
The treaty of peace between the Athenians and the
Persians was entered into about thirty years after the
battles of Platza and Mycale. It was extremely humi-
liating to the latter. But after carrying on hostilities
with the Greeks for upwards of fifty years, and being
baffled in the ambitious projećts which they had in view,
* Page 126, 127, and Note, s.

OF LY SIA8. 243
Neither did any vessels sail from Asia,
during that time; nor had the Greeks
any king set up among them; nor was any
city of Greece reduced to servitude by the
Barbarians. So complete a sense of mo-
deration and fear had the valour of these
heroes impressed upon all men. For which
reason, they alone ought to take prece-
dence of the Greeks; and to hold the
foremost rank among their states.
Under circumstances of bad fortune also,
they have given illustrious proofs of their
bravery. For when the fleet had been
lost in the Hellespont, either through the
treachery of the Admiral, or by the ap-
pointment of the gods; and that event
turned out to be most calamitous, both to
-*—-”
the Persians were glad, in the reign of Artaxerxes, to
obtain a respite from warfare, and to recruit the ex-
hausted strength of their empire. One of the articles
of the treaty was, that no Persian vessel should make its
appearance in the AEgean and Mediterranean seas.
R 2
244 FU NEMAIL ORATION
ourselves, who were so unfortunate, and
to the rest of the Greeks; they clearly
proved, in a short time afterwards, that
the independence of the city was the salva-
tion of Greece. For when the ascendancy
had passed to other hands," they, who, till
-ā-ā-
• Lysias here alludes to the calamitous defeat of the
Athenian fleet in the Hellespont, at AEgospotamos, by
Lysander; when a hundred and seventy-one gallies
and three thousand men were captured by the trium-
phant Peloponnesians, under the famed Lysander. The
prisoners were, all of them, Adeimantus excepted, most
inhumanly massacred. Adeimantus is said to have
opposed the cruel wish of Philocles; who, before the
engagement, proposed to cut off the right hand of every
Spartan who should be taken prisoner. Either on this
account, or because of some treacherous correspondence
with the Peloponnesians, he was fortunately spared.
Such unfeeling condućt, manifested in the prosecution
of the warfare subsisting between these two rival
powers, serves to shew, to what a pitch the spirit of
animosity and rancour was unhappily carried. From
the period of this signal defeat of the Athenians at
sea, we may date the decay and downfal of their naval
greatness. Every thing, from that time, gave way to
the force of the Lacedaemonian arms.
f Those of the Lacedæmonians,
OF LYSIAS. 245
they sailed to Europe, had never been
on board a ship before, conquered the
Greeks by sea, and subjugated the Gre-
cian states, and appointed kings; some,
after our calamities, and others, after the
vićtory gained by the Barbarians." Where-
fore, it was proper, at this sepulchre, and
on that occasion, for Greece to bewail
her condition, and to grieve for those who
are here deposited; since with their valour
is buried the liberty of Greece. For
Greece is unfortunate, in being deprived
of such men; but the King is fortunate, in
having other persons” at the head of af-
fairs. For our country, since it is bereft
of these men, is fallen into servitude; but
since others have the command, he is
wºmmº-
* No sooner had Sparta gained the ascendancy over
Athens, than in its turn, like its fallen rival, it became
an object of jealousy to the Persians. Hostilities, of long
continuance, were the result; and by the influence of
gold, liberally distributed among the Grecian hirelings,
domestic dissensions and civil warfare ensued. The Per-
sians did not fail to take advantage of these distraćtions.
• The Lacedæmonians.
246 FUNERAL ORATION
fired with an ardent wish to prosecute the
plans of his ancestors."
I have digressed into these matters, to
express my regret for them, in behalf of
all Greece. Both in private and in public
those men ought to be commemorated,
who, to avoid servitude; and fighting for
justice; and contending against faction, in
support of a popular government; and
meeting with universal opposition;–went
down to the Piraeus;" compelled by no
-v------ -y-ur-y
* These plans had for their object the complete sub-
jugation of all the Grecian States, together with their
various dependencies, which had for years been medi-
tated; and the prospect of effecting which, since the
spirit of Athens had been broken by defeat and adver-
sity, had become much more encouraging.
* The grand naval arsenal of the Athenians, at that
time occupied by order of the Thirty Tyrants. Thra-
sybulus, with a select band of patriotic followers, went
down to surprise it, and gained a glorious vićtory over
, the oppressors of his country.
* The proper laws of Athens had been superseded by
the arbitrary and bloody edićts of the Lacedæmonian

OF LY 8MA8e 247
law," but under the impulse of their own
natural disposition; rivaling, amidst new
dangers, the ancient valour of their an-
cestors; at the hazard of their lives securing
for others' the freedom of the State; pre-
ferring death, with liberty, to life, with
slavery; being no less ashamed, on account
of their private calamities, than moved with
indignation at their enemies; decidedly
preferring death, in their own country, to
life, as inhabitants of another; having the
sančtion of oaths" and treaties" for their
tyranny; than which none more iniquitous, or more
cruel, are recorded in history.
| Those who, under this horrible system of things,
had either fled, or been banished from their country.
* The oaths, taken by the Athenian youths, when
they entered upon their military duties, and by which
they bound themselves to be faithful to their country.
* The treaties, here mentioned, are the articles of
capitulation entered into between the Athenians and
Lysander, when the city fell into his hands; and by
248 FU NERAL". ORATION
allies; but, for enemies, those who were foºt
merly their own citizens.” Yet fearless of
their foes, however numerous, and exposing
themselves personally to the dangers of
war, they erected a trophy over their adver,
saries; and, as proofs of their valour, point
to the sepulchres of the Lacedaemonians;
raised near this monument. For; in fact,
though the city was small, they rendered
it great; and, when divided into factions;
they restored, it to unanimity; and sur-
rounded.it with walls; instead of ruins.”
which he bound himself to guarantee to the inhabitants
their own constitution and government; which agree-
ment was, most shamefully violated.
* The Thirty Tyrants endeavoured to maintain the
usurpation which they had established, by taking their
arms out of the hands of all the Athenian citizens,
except three thousand, whom they made subservient
to their atrocities.
P. The walls of Athens were rebuilt by Conon, the
Athenian, in the year before Christ 398. Conon, by
OF LYSIA.S. 249
Such of them as went down,” gave ad-
vice correspondent with the exploits of
the men who lie here ; and direéted their
attention, not to the punishment of their
enemies, but to the safety of the City.
And as they would neither submit to
any thing derogatory to themselves, nor
were desirous of aggrandisement, they
permitted even those, to share the benefits
of their liberty, who were anxious to en-
slave them; although they chose not to be
companions with them in their servitude."
his interest in the Persian court, had obtained the
assistanee and command of their fleet, by means of
which he gained the decisive battle of Cnidus. This
important vićtory, and the battle of Chaeronea, in which
the Spartans were vićtorious, are the two principal
engagements that took place in the Corinthian war;
which lasted during eight years; and in which the
Corinthians were united with the Thebans against the
Lacedaemonians.
‘. To the Piraeus; more than five miles from the City.
* The patriotic opposition, made by Thrasybulus and
the friends of Athenian liberty to the cruel despotism
250 FU NERAL, ORATION
But by the greatest and most honourable
exertions they proved to demonstration,
that it was not from any cowardice
of theirs, nor from the valour of their
enemies, that the City had before been
unfortunate. For if, while distraćted by
of Sparta, during the reign of the Thirty Tyrants, was
not only crowned with vićtory in the field, and the
complete attainment of its object; but was likewise
followed by a reconciliation and amnesty, highly
honourable to both parties. This was effected by the
humanity and wisdom of Thrasybulus, the Athenian ;
and Pausanias, the Spartan; who amicably adjusted this
important revolution; a revolution, remarkable for its
unusual mildness and moderation; and well worthy the
consideration of those statesmen and politicians, who
may happen to live in times, when such lamentable
events take place. “As for you, my fellow-sufferers
“ and fellow-exiles,” says Thrasybulus,” “you, who
“shared the hardships of my banishment, and who now
“share the triumph of my vićtorious return, I exhort you
“ to forgive and forget our common injuries. Let the
“ dignity of your sentiments adorn the splendour of
“ your actions. Prove yourselves superior to your
“ enemies, not only in valour, but in clemency; that
“ moderation may produce concord, and concord
“strength.”
.* Mitford's Greece.
OF LY S.I.A.S. 251
fačtions; and, in spite of the Peloponnesians
and other enemies, who were present," they
were able to return to their own city;" it
is evident, that with unanimity they might
easily have sustained a war with them. In
consequence, therefore, of the dangers
which they encountered in the Piraeus,
they are objects of universal envy.
On the strangers also, here buried, it is
right to bestow praise; since after rendering
assistance to our community, and fighting
for our safety, regarding valour as their
country;” they sacrificed their lives in this
manner. Wherefore the City has not only
mourned over them, and granted them a
public funeral; but she has likewise as-
* Such of the Athenians as supported the interest of
the Thirty Tyrants.
* Many of its inhabitants had quitted Athens. These
might now rome back with safety.
* “ Ubi libertas, ibi patria."
252 FU NERAL ORATION
signed to them, for ever, the same honours
which she bestows upon the citizens.
But the persons, now interred, who
rendered assistance to the Corinthians,
when injured by their old friends,” having
formed a common league with them, did
not entertain the same sentiments as the
Lacedaemonians; (for the latter envied
them their happiness; whereas the former
compassionated their sufferings;) nor did
they remember the enmity which had once
prevailed; but very highly esteeming the
present good understanding, they gave a
conspicuous proof, to all the world, of
their valour." For they dared, in order
to aggrandize Greece, not only to hazard
* The Corinthians and Lacedæmonians had generally
been firm friends.
y The Orator is now entering, particularly, upon the
praises of those Athenians, who had sacrificed their
lives in behalf of the Corinthians, while resisting the
encroachments of their Lacedæmonian neighbours, then
OF LY SIAS, 253
their lives for their own safety, but also
to die, for the liberty of their adversa-
ries." For they fought, in conjunction with
the allies of the Lacedaemonians, for the
liberty of the latter. And, provided they
gained a vićtory, they judged them worthy
of the same privileges with themselves;
but in case of a reverse, the badges of
slavery would be for ever riveted upon all
the occupiers of the Peloponnesus. While
thus situated, life to them was pitiable, and
death to be desired." But these men, both
in the zenith of their power. The whole passage, to the
end of the Oration, abounds in the most noble and
patriotic sentiments, Perhaps there is nothing, in
either of the two preceding Funeral Harangues of
Pericles and Plato, superior to this Peroration of Lysias.
* The Corinthians had generally been leagued with
Sparta against Athens.
* It has been a favourite sentiment in the school of
patriotism, that death is preferable to slavery. Yet this
must certainly very much depend on the nature and
degree of the oppression endured. There are many
nations, the people of which may very properly be
254 FU NERAL, ORATION
while living, and when dead, are objećts
of envy; since, when young, they were
instrućted by the valiant deeds of their
forefathers; and, when men, they not only
preserved their honour, but displayed ačiual
proofs of their bravery.' . They have en-
riched their country with many illustrious
exploits; and when affairs have gone wrong
in other hands, they have given them a
favourable direction; and kept the war at
deemed slaves; yet among whom no inconsiderable
degree of enjoyment and of comfort may be found.
These blessings, however, are far more precarious in
a State, where the will of a Despot is irresistible; than
in one, in which life, property, and civil rights, are
secured by established and written laws.
* Military valour occupied a principal place in the
catalogue of heathen virtues; and still ranks high in
the estimation of mankind. As long as the war-system
continues, this must be expected to be the case. When-
ever the mild spirit of the Gospel shall universally
prevail in the world, other qualities, more benign and
beneficent, will form the principal theme of panegyric
with the poet and the orator. “Talia sæcla, currite."
OF LYSIAS. 255
a distance from their own territory. They
have ended their lives, as brave men ought
to end them; by making the proper recom-
pense to the land of their nativity; and
by leaving it to those, who brought them
up, to lament over them. Wherefore, it is
the duty of the living, to cherish an affec-
tionate regard for their memory; and to
bewail their own situation; and, during
the remainder of life, to manifest towards
their relatives proper feelings of compas-
sion. For what farther enjoyment can
possibly remain to them, after such men
are consigned to the grave? Men, who
regarded valour as paramount to all other
considerations; and who deprived them-
selves of life, and brought their wives into
a state of widowhood; and rendered their
children orphans, and reduced their bro-
thers, and fathers, and mothers, to a state
of destitution?"
* In supporting its government and independence.
256 FUNERAL ORATION
Amidst many affecting circumstances, I
congratulate their children, that they are
too young, to be sensible of what excellent
parents they have been bereaved. With
their parents I sympathize, because they
are too far advanced in years, ever to forget
the calamity that has befallen them. For
what greater cause of regret can there be,
than to have begotten, and brought up, and
buried one's own children; and in old age
to be helpless in body, deprived of all one's
hopes; without friends, and without re-
d Those, who fall in the field of battle, are not al-
ways the greatest sufferers from the bloody business of
war. Such as are left behind, when they are sum-
moned from their homes by the martial trumpet, and
who are connected with them by the closest ties,
often find the darts of anxiety much more pungent
than the hostile spear. To soothe the sorrows of such
persons ought to be considered as an object of the first
importance, by those who entertain proper sentiments
of gratitude for the sacrifices, made by the patriot and
the hero, for the benefit of their country.
OF LY SIASs 257
sources? Being, at one time, and to the
same persons, the objećts of envy, but now
of commiseration?" Is not death, to such
persons, more desirable than life? For,
in proportion as men have been distin-
guished, is the sorrow experienced by
survivors aggravated. But how is it pos-
sible for them to suppress their griefs?
Can they do it amidst the distresses of
the State? It is probable, that, at that
time, the regrets of others will revive the
memory of these departed heroes. Can
they do it in a season of public happiness?
Feelings of regret must be predominant
with them; since, while their own children
are gone, the living are reaping the fruits
* We have here a very affecting description of the
most forlorn and miserable state which can possibly be
experienced. It is to be hoped, that there are but few
such instances of human infelicity; and that wherever
they are to be found, those well-founded assurances,
imparted to the world by Christianity, may reflect upon
them the cheering rays of consolation.

258 FU NERAL, ORATION
of their valour. Can they do it while
surrounded by personal dangers? When
they see those, who were once their friends,
avoiding their desolate condition, and their
enemies exulting over the disasters that
have befallen those, who are so nearly
connected with them? In my opinion,
the only return of gratitude we can make
to the men now buried here, is, by highly
esteeming, as they did, their parents; and
by attaching ourselves as strongly to their
children, as if we ourselves were their fa-
thers;–by affording also to their wives the
same protection, as they did, while living."
For what can we more properly honour,
than the remains of such heroes as these?
And whom of the living can we more justly
* Lysias treats the fair part of his audience, with
rather more consideration than Pericles manifests to-
wards them, in his Funeral Harangue.”
* Page 65.
OF LYSIAS, 259
hold in estimation, than such as are related
to them ; who only enjoyed, in common
with others, the benefit of their valour;
but to whose lot it is fallen to bear, alone,
the calamity of their death?
I am not indeed sure, whether grief, on
such occasions, be proper. For we must
not forget, that we ourselves are mortal.
Why then should we grieve, on their
account, for what we have been in the
habit of expecting they must suffer? Or
why bear so impatiently the common lot
of nature; since we know, that death is
common to the best, as well as to the
worst, of men? It neither passes by the
bad, nor treats the good with homage;
but appears alike to all.” Were it indeed
* The same sentiment Horace has expressed in the
well-known lines:
“Pallida mors acquo pulsat pede pauperum tabernas,
(ſº Regumque turres.” Od. 4. lib. i.
s 2
260 FU NERAL ORATION
possible for those, who have escaped the
dangers of war, to become for ever after
superior to dissolution, it would be right
that the living should never cease to lament
the dead." But, in the present state of
things, nature must submit to disease;
and the power, which appoints our lot, is
inexorable." Wherefore it is right to regard
those as the happiest, who, having exposed
themselves to dangers for objects the most
momentous and the most honourable;
without resigning themselves to the dis-
posal of chance, or waiting till death came
of its own accord, have finished their lives
in this manner; and have chosen for them-
* Because, in that case, such as had fallen in war
would have sustained a positive loss; since the privi-
lege of exemption from death, constituting, according
to such supposition, the reward of the surviving vićtor,
would have been denied to them.
* “ — ineluctabile fatum.” AEn. lib. viii. 334.
* Mutari enim fata non possunt.”
Cice Ro de Div. l. ii.
OF LY S.I.A.S. 261
selves an end the most glorious. For their
fame will be undecaying; and their honours
will be envied by all men. With regard to
their bodies, they are lamented as mortal;
but with respect to their valour, they are
celebrated as immortal. For they are in-
terred with public honours; and Games
for competition in corporeal strength and
genius, attended with great expense, are
instituted for them; since those, who have
perished in battle, are deemed worthy of
the same homage as the immortal gods.”
On account of their deaths, therefore, I
pronounce them happy, and objećts of
envy. And, in my opinion, these are the
only men, for whom it is well that they
have ever been born. For although their
bodies were subject to dissolution, they have
left behind them, in consequence of their
bravery, a name that is imperishable.
---
* Funeral Oration of Plato, p. 175.
262 FUNERAL or AT1 on of LYst As.
Nevertheless, it is our duty to comply
with ancient usages; and, in obedience to
the laws of our country, to shed the tear
of sorrow over their graveſ'
| This Oration, having never been publicly spoken,
it was not necessary to add to it the usual form of words
by which the audience is dispersed; as in the Funeral
Harangues of Pericles and Plato." That of the latter
also was never delivered before a popular assembly;
yet the writer supposes it to have been ačtually pro-
nounced by Aspasia; and as such it is recorded. After
all, it may be owing merely to chance, that the formula
of dismission was not added to this Oration by the
masterly writer.
* Page 68, and 177.
AD DITIONAL
O B S E R V AT I O N S.
ADDITIONAL OBSERVATIONS.
Introduction, P. 3, L. 4.
Note. Exile, according to Plutarch, is a blessing,
which the Muses bestow upon their favourites, to enable
them to finish their most beautiful compositions.
Ibid. p. 11, last line.
Note. He was called ‘the Olympian,' from the
extraordinary force of his eloquence. “ Olympium
* Periclem, dignum cognomine.’
Plin. Nat. Hist. lib. 34. cap. 8.
“Post Pericles, quicum floreret omni genere virtutis,
“hâc tamen fuit laude clarissimus."
Cicero, Bautus, 7.
266 ADDITioNAL oBsERvATroNs.
Iwtaod. p. 17. l. 9.
Note. Ex omni tamen Graeciâ Athenis ferè solis
constitit; et à quibusdam scriptoribus istius populi
quodammodo inventum esse perhibetur.
Taylor, Le&t. Lys.
Ibid. l. 15.
Note. Funeral Harangues were still more common
among the Romans than the Greeks, from whom the
custom was borrowed. Cicero complains of the abuse
of this honour, and ascribes to it the corruption of the
Roman history.
Cicero de Clar. Orat. 16. TAY Lor, Le&t. Lys.
Description of the FUNERAL CEREMONY, p. 22.
To Note d add ; ** Nam et Athenis jam ille mos à
“ Cecrope, ut aiunt, permansit, hoc jus terrâ humandi ;
** quam cum proximi injecerant, obdu&taque terra erat,
“ frugibus obserebatur, ut sinus et gremium quasi
* matris mortuo tribueretur; solum autem frugibus
** expiatum ut vivis redderetur."
Cicero de Legibus, lib. 2. c. 25.
Ibid. p. 23.
To Note e add,
* speramus carmina fingi
“ Posse linenda cedro, et levi servanda cupresso?"
HoRAT. de Arte Poeticâ, l. 331.
ADDITIONAL OBSERVATIONS. 267.
Funeral Oration of PERICLES, p. 34.
To Note u subjoin, “ Illa severa Lacedaemon," is
the language of Cicero. De Leg, lib. 2. c. 15.
Ibid. p. 36.
To the second paragraph of Note y, add; The
sagacious Bayle, in his ‘Life of Pericles,” thus de-
scribes the charaćter of the Athenians; “The history
“we have of that people is only fit to impose upon us;
“we are charmed with the fair side of it; we are
“dazzled with the battle of Marathon and Salamis;
“ with their land and sea forces; their conquests, the
** wealth of the inhabitants, the pomp of their public
“ shews, and the magnificence of their public buildings.
“ All these things induce us to think, that to live under
“ another form of government is to be a slave. But if
“we had a history which should but touch upon those
“ things, and set forth at large the tumult of their
“ assemblies, the factions which divided that city, the
“ the seditions wherewith it was agitated, the most
“illustrious subjećts persecuted, banished, punished
“ with death, at the will of a violent harangue-maker,
“we should be convinced, that the Athenians, who
“boasted so much of their liberty, were in truth but
“slaves to a few factious persons, whom they called
“Demagogues, and who made them turn sometimes
“one way, sometimes another, according as their pas-
“sions changed; as the sea drives the waves, sometimes
“one way, sometimes another, according as it is tossed
“by the winds.” -
268 apprtional, oBsERvATioNs.
Funeral Oration of PERICLES, p. 41.
Note, to the last sentence but one in the page ;
For a pleasant allusion to the custom, see Xenophon's
Anabasis, lib 4. p. 3o9, edit. Hutchinson.
-» Ibid. p. 64. l. 5.
Subjoin, as Note ;
*• Quem sors dierum cunque dabit, lucro
* Appone.” Horat. Od. lib. 1. 9.
Life and Writings of PLATO, p 78.
Subjoin, as Note;
“ Ille quidem sapientissimus Græciæ vir, longèque
** do&issimus." Cicero de Leg. lib. 2. c. 15.
** Quis dubitet Platonem esse praecipuum, sive
* acumine disserendi, sive eloquendi facultate divinâ
** quâdam et Homericâ.” Quintil. lib. 10. c. 1.
Funeral Oration of PLATO, p. 17O.
To Note a, add; ** Non nasci bomini longè optimum
“ esse; proximum autem, quamprimum mori.”
Ciceko Tusc. Quaest. lib. 1. 48.
Life and Writings of LYSIAS, p. 181.
Subjoin, asNote; Cephalus was of an opulent family;
and in his house Socrates held many of his discourses
upon civil government.
ADDITIONAL OBSERVATIONS. 269
Life and Writings of LYSIAS, p. 185.
As Note to line 6, add, “Eygays 3s was rexyas
* fºrefixas." Lysine vit. ex Suida.
Ibid. p. 186.
To line 12, subjoin as Note, after “esteemed;” At
the instance of Thrasybulus he would have been pre-
sented with the freedom of the city, but for some
defe&t in point of form; “quod non ad senatum prius
“ de ea re referretur.” See TAYLon’s Lysias.
INDEX.
INDEX.
–=&ºeOesº-
A.
ADAGE, Greek, quoted by Plato, 167.
Adeimantus, saved for his humanity, 244.
AEgina, naval engagement near it, 238.
4Egospotamos, the Athenian fleet defeated there, 140, .
244. Lamentable consequences of it, ib. Athe-
nian independence annihilated by that disaster, 141. ,
AEschylus, the Greek Tragedian, a soldier also, 74.
Present at three great engagements, ib. His “Seven.
against Thebes" referred to, 110. Mentions Cyrus,
113. His authority quoted, 121.
Alcibiades, commands at Cyzicus, 135. Triumphant,
ib. Anecdote of him, 139. g
Ambition, political, reprobated, 215.
Amazons, a race of women; their origin, 108. De-
scribed by Æschylus, 109. Particulars relating to
them, ib. Mentioned by Virgil, ib. Said to have
existed in Africa also, and South America, ib.
Account of them by Lysias, 196, 197. Vanquished
by the Athenians, 198. Observations respecting
them, 199.
Anacreon, quoted, 195.
Ancestors, Athenian, praised by Pericles, 30. By Ly-
sias," 196.
T
274 IND EXe
Antalcidas, the Spartan, inglorious treaty made by him
with the Persians, 149, Particulars stated, 152.
When concluded, 153.
Apostles, A&ts of the, quoted, 45. Text illuſtrated
from Pericles, and Aristotle’s Ethics, 47.
Archytas, the Pythagorean philosopher, 88.
Archons, Athenian magistrates, 103.
Areopagus, Court of, 36.
Aristides, the Athenian, present at the battle of Mara-
thon, 120. And Salamis, 121. Would not consent
to banish Themistocles, 126. Honour paid to his
daughters, 174.
Aristotle, his Rhetoric quoted, 160, 162. Referred to,
189.
Arginusz, island of, 138. The Lacedæmonian fleet
defeated there, ib. Athenian crews lost near it, ib.
Artaxerxes, concludes a peace with the Athenians, 127.
Humbled by the vićtories of Agesilaus, 147. Tempts
with gold the Athenian demagogues, 148.
Artemisium, sea-fight of, 121.
Aspasia, instrućts Pericles in eloquence, 82. Socrates,
acquainted with her, 177.
Athens, remotest period of Athenian history, 93. Pa-
tronage of it contested, 94. Indignant at the
Greeks, 145. For what reason, ib. Maritime su-
periority, 125. Promoted by Themistocles, 125.
Drained of men in the Persian war, 127. Domi-
neering, 128. Lacedaemonians take umbrage at it,
128. Naval power, 139. The Greeks implore its
aid, 147. Generosity of its charaćter, 148,155. No-
bleness of mind, and love of liberty, 153, Hatred
INDEX, 275
towards the Barbarians, ib. Jealous of the honour
of its sons, 174. Affecting description of its dis-
tress in the Persian invasion, 228,229. Preeminent
in Greece, 237. Excites the jealousy of Sparta,240.
Walls of it, rebuilt, 248.
Athenian people, how divided, 23. Constitution,
described, 33, 101. Under various names, 102.
Unfavourable to public comfort, 103. Chara&er
described, 34, 35. Festivals, mentioned, 36, 37.
Democracy remarked upon, 36. Citizenship limited
to few, 37. Their chara&er resembling that of the
Parisians, 38. Liberal spirit, 39,206. Contrasted
with the Lacedæmonians, and others, 40, 41, 42.
Valour preeminent, 42, 43. United elegance with
economy, 48. All of them politicians,44. Thought
too refined, ib. Lively and inquisitive, 45. Cha-
raēterized by Demosthenes, 45. And an Evangelist,
ib. Beneficent,47. Of versatile genius, 48. Mild
to their enemies, and dependants, 50. Only two
Athenians celebrated by Pindar, 49. Their names,
ib. Not always humane, 50. Their fame universal,
52. Their origin, 91,211. Vain of their descent,
92, 93. Wore golden grasshoppers, and why, 93."
Their tutelary Deities, 100. Kings, 102. Senate
of Five Hundred, 104. Equality of birth, 105.
Favourable to equal rights, 106. The objects of
envy, 128. Defe&tions from them, 136. Torn by
fačtions, 140. Vanquished by the Lacedaemonians,
and when, 141. Their early history chara&erized
by virtue, 210. First establish a popular form of
government, 212. Bravely oppose the Barbarians
T &
276 INDEXe
at Marathon, 215, 216, 217, 218. Particular mo-
tives to such resistance, 219. Praised for their
heroism on that occasion, 227, 228. Surpassing
the rest of the Greeks, 232.
Attica, the first civilized region in Greece, 30, 95.
Extolled, 94. Produces men, 91, 95. Also the
olive, 98. Its Kings, 211. -
B.
BARROSA, battle of, glorious to British valour, 43.
Baver, German editor of Thucydides, his opinion
quoted, 19.
Bayle, his Life of Pericles, quoted, 265.
Beneficence, a feature in the Athenian charaćter, 47.
Bentham, Rev. Dr., a different reading proposed by
him in his Adioſ Emiraptoi, 220. Quoted, 229.
Bier, an empty one carried in the funeral procession of
the Athenian heroes, and why, 24.
Blair, Rev. Dr., his opinion of Plato, as a writer, 178.
Books, Pythagorean, purchased by Plato,76. Classical,
their present extravagant price, ib.
Bravery, when the most perfect, 46.
Burial, rights of, indispensable in the heathen world,88.
C.
CAMBYSES, son of Cyrus, tyrannic, and insane, 114.
Cecrops, first king of Athens, 30, Whence he came,
94. What he taught the Athenians, 100.
Cedar, its juice used in embalming by the Egyptians, 23.
Ceramicus, public burial-ground at Athens, 24.
Chaeronea, battle of, gained by the Lacedaemonians, 249.
Chariton, quoted by Gottleber, 138. • * :
INDEX. 277
£hildren, a pledge of patriotism and loyalty,63. Those
of their soldiers publicly maintained by the Athe-
nians, 67, 172. Period of their education, and
particular attention shewn to them, 68. Qualities
of children, like those of their parents, 90, 91.
Cicero, commends Plato, 78. Mentions his Menexenus,
85. His authority quoted, 174, 183, 185, 187,213,
214, 217.
Citizens, their fidelity and valour to be rewarded, 67.
The best are formed by the best governments, 68.
Bad ones may atone for their vices by patriotic ex-
ertions, 54.
Citizenship, of Athens, difficult to be obtained, 92.
Circe, isle of, 201.
Clarkson, Rev. Mr., his highly meritorious exertions
for the abolition of the Slave trade, commended, 106.
Cnidus, the Lacedaemonians defeated there, by the
Athenians, under Conon, 151, 249.
Conon, celebrated Athenian general, 137. The Athe-
nian fleet at Mytelene under his command, 137.
An exile at the Persian court, 150. By his influ-
ence there, Athens again raises its head, ib. Asserts
its naval superiority, 151. Rebuilds its walls, 248.
Compassion, an altar at Athens erected to it, 205.
Copreus, the messenger of Eurystheus, 205.
Corinth, distraćted between Athens and Sparta, 156.
Its auxiliaries celebrated, 195.
Cymon, son of Miltiades, 126. Condućts the Persian
war, ib. With great success, 126, 127.
Cypress, its qualities described, 23. Mentioned by
Horace, and Pliny, ib.
278 INDEX.
Cyprus, the island, 136. Persian fleet defeated near
it, 127.
Cyrus, the Great, his extraordinary talents, 1.13. An
authentic history of him wanted, 1.14.
Cyzicus, naval engagement near it, 135. The Athe-
nians vićtorious, ib.
D.
DARIUS, king of Persia, his Scythian expedition, 114.
His extensive sway, 115. Particular order to his
troops, when invading Greece, 219.
Datis, Persian General, sent against the Eretrians, 116.
Reduces them, ib. Curious manoeuvre by him,
117. Lands at Marathon, ib.
JDeath, the happiest of events, 170. In some cases the
least of evils, 228. Not always preferable to sla-
very, 253.
Deities, presiding over the dead, 144.
Plemosthenes, his chara&ter of the Athenians, 45.
Dialogue, in Plato's Menexenus, heads of it detailed,
81, 177. Why omitted by the translator, 87.
JDibdin, Rev. Mr., thought by some to be more a friend
to Booksellers, than to Scholars, 76.
Diogenes, Läertius, his authority quoted for facts, 9,185.
Dionysius, of Halicarnassus, his opinion referred to,
56. Quoted, 188.
Duker, editor of Thucydides, his opinion of the Ora-
tion of Pericles, 19. His sentiments respectfully
controverted, 60.
Egypt, a great vićtory obtained by the Athenians on
the banks of the Nile, 127. Reverses afterwards, ib.
INI) EX. 279
Eleusis, a town of Attica, possessed by the Thirty Ty-
rants, 143. Argive dead buried there, 203.
Eloquence, Heathen, compared with Christian, 90.
Elpenor, companion of Ulysses, unburied,201. Wretch-
ed in the shades, ib.
Eratosthenes, Oration of Lysias, referred to, 181.
Eretrians, bravely resist the Persians, 117. Doomed to
servitude, 117. Kindly treated by Darius, 118.
Euclid, instrućts Plato in Mathematics, 72.
Eumolpus, king of Thrace, los. Established at Eleusis,
ib. Wages war with Erectheus, ib. Killed, ib.
When he lived, ib. g
Euripides, the Greek tragedian, 66. Severe upon
women, ib. Accompanies Plato to Egypt, 72.
Falls sick there, ib. Cured by sea-water, ib. His
Heraclidae, 205.
Eurymedon, river in Pamphylia, naval engagement
there, 125. The Athenians vićtorious, 127.
Eurystheus, king of Argos and Mycenae, 203, 205.
Persecutes Hercules, 205, 208.
Exercises, athletic, much praćtised by the Athenians, 49.
Exordiums, in Funeral Orations, said to be prohibited,
29. Definition of one by Dionysius, the Critic, 196.
F.
FACTION, more formidable to Athens than all her
enemies, 140. -
Females, not treated gallantly by Pericles, 66. In the
heroic times greater consideration shewn to them,67.
280 1.N.D.Ex.’
Festivals, Grecian, numerous, 37. Of different kinds,
38. Expensive, 38.
Fox, Right Hon. Charles James, strenuous friend of
the enslaved African, 106. -
Fugitives, Greek, where protećted in distress, 205.
Funeral ceremony, Athenian, described by Thucydides,
21. When celebrated, ib. By whom attended, 24.
G.
GAMES, gymnastic, accompanying funeral rites, 175,
261. To whom ascribed, ib. Instances of them;
175, 176. •
Generals, Athenian, six of them unjustly executed, 138.
Geranea, a defile, seized by the Corinthians, 238. Its
situation described, ib. +:
Gottleber, commentator upon Thucydides, his opinion
respecting the Oration of Pericles, 19. His quota-
tion from the Ethics of Aristotle, 47. Differs from
Wesseling, 138.
Government, its influence, 101. What, the best cons
stituted, JO3. *
Graham, General, the hero of Barrosa, praised, 43.
Gray, the poet, quoted, 204.
Greece, saved by Athenian independence, 244. Un-
fortunate, in being deprived of its heroes, 245.
Greeks, treatment of their dead, 22. Many joined the
Persian invaders, 124. Custom, peculiar to them,
138. Regarded other nations as Barbarians, 153.
Free from Barbarian admixture, 154. Desert the
|
IND EXe 981.
ranks, 235, 236. After the defeat of the Persians
again become fačtious, 240.
Glory, the love of it unchanging, 64.
- H. |
HECTOR and Andromache, their celebrated inter-
view, 67. *
Helen, receives marked attentions from the Trojan
chiefs, 66. -
Heraclidae, driven from Argos, 110. Assisted by the
Athenians, 111. Recover the Peloponnesus, ib.
Tragedy of the, 205. Quoted, 206. -
Hercules, the hero, 95. Account of his sons, 203, 204.
Remarks on his charaćter, 204. His death, and
Apotheosis, ib. ... •
- Hellespont, naval engagements in it, 135. Athenian
fleet lost at AEgospotamos, 243.
Herodotus, his authority quoted, 236.
Heroes, of the early ages, public benefactors, 95. *
Whence they came originally, 154. Their names,
ib. Athenian, extolled, 194, 195, 261. Thought
to be translated, 203. - -
Hippias, son of Pisistratus, present in the Persian
expedition, 120. Thought to have fallen at Ma-
rathon, 120. p
Hippolyta, queen of the Amazons, 108. Taken pri-
soner by Theseus, ib. His spouse, ib. •
Homer, mentioned by Pericles, 51. Does not parti- - t
cularly celebrate the Athenians at the siege of Troy, -
51. Some parts of his Poems may have been lost,

282 INDEXe
51. Thought by some not to have committed his
poetical effusions to writing, 52.
Honours, public, incentives to noble deeds, 27, 28.
I.
ILIAD, quoted, 28, 112, 159, 161, 163, 164, 166,201,
217, 228.
J.
JEWS, their national pride, 153. -
Johnson, Dr., his observation on poverty and extrava-
gance, 44. His description of Fear, 230.
Jones, Sir William, his fine Ode, 63.
Justin, quoted respecting Lysias, 182.
Juvenal, quoted, 162, 163.
TC.
King, the Persian monarch so styled, 136. Great King
of modern days, 155. Does he read Plato's Greek 2
ib. Of Persia, greatly alarmed, 242. Spartan Kings,
their descent, 34.
Knights, Athenian, privilege enjoyed by them, 137.
L.
LAW, the perfection of liberty, 213.
Lacedaemonians, of different charaćter from the Athe-
nians, 33. Hinted at by Pericles, 34. Chara&er
described, b. Why strangers were excluded by
them, 40. Farther particulars of their chara&er,
40, 41. Again alluded to by Pericles, 53. Arrived
|
INDEX, 353
too late for the battle of Marathon, 118,219. Beset
the Athenian fleet at Mytilene, 137. Their considera-
tion for humbled Athens, 141. Jealous of Lysander
...thete, 143. Not always prompt to aid the rest
of Greece, 234. Assist the Athenians at Platza,
235. Their cruel edićts at Athens, 247.
Lechaeum, treacherous to the Athenians, 156.
Leonidas, his brave band, 224. Overcome by trea-
chery, 225.
Leontines, in Sicily, aided by the Athenians, 134.
Liberty, love of it, fostered by political discussion, 45.
Its true basis, 106. Its spirit superior to mere phy-
‘sical force, 107. Praise of it, 212. Rational, the
birthright of all men, 213. Civil, well defined by
Lysias, 213, 214.
Life, simplicity of, favourable to virtue, 210. Not to
be undervalued in a state of slavery, 253.
Lysander, Spartan General, 140. Reduces Athens, 141.
His treaty with the Athenians broken, 248.
LYSIAS, Athenian Orator, when born, 181. His father
and family, ib. Where educated, 182. Travels,
ib. Attached to Athens, ib. Said to be driven
from Sicily, 183. Return to Athens, 183. Pro-
secutes his studies, ib. Not a Syracusan, ib. De-
livers only one Oration in public, 184. Pleads his
brother's cause against the ThirtyTyrants, ib. Com-
poses a Defence for Socrates, 185. This not adopted,
and the reasons for it, ib. With whom contem-
porary, 186. His charaćter, ib. As a man, ib.
As a writer, 187. Praised by Cicero, Quintilian,
Dionysius, the Critic, 187. Remarks on his Fu-
284 INDEX,
neral Oration, 188, 189. Subjećt of it stated, ib.
His Oration contrasted with that of Pericles, 189,
190, 191. The Oration itself, 193. Happy In-
troduction, ib. 194. Commended by a celebrated
Critic for his Exordiums, 195. Treats the fair sex
more politely than Pericles, 258.
M.
MANES, or souls of the dead, propitiated by the Greeks,
144.
Marathon, heroes of, particular compliment pald to
them, 25. Battle of, noticed by Plato, 119. Its
effect upon Greece, ib. When it happened, 120.
‘Mardonius, the Persian General, 124. Commands at
the battle of Plataea, 236. His judicious arrange-
ment of his troops, ib. Slain at Plataea, 124.
Megaris, the territory of, contested, 240.
Meleager, one of the ancient Heroes, 95. His exploits,
ib.
Men, renowned, their sepulchres where, 58, 59. Su-
perior to brtites, 64. The strength of a state, ib.
Man, defined, 95. Who a wise man, 168.
Menexenus, of Plato, referred to, 32. The Introdućtion
to it, why omitted, 87.
Merchandize, Athenian, 38. Extensive, 39.
Michael, the Archangel, 167.
Miltiades, General at the battle of Marathon, 120.
His condu& highly praiseworthy, 220.
Milton, quoted, 37, 96, 167, 212.

INDEX, 285
Minerva, protećtress of Athens, 100.
Mitford, historian of Greece, quoted, 224.
Mitylene, Athenian fleet blocked up in it, 137.
Montesquieu, his “Spirit of Laws,” quoted, 213.
Moore, General, commended, 43. - º
Moses, Book of Genesis, quoted, 96.
Muretus, his War. Leót. referred to, 189.
Mycale, in Ionia, battle of, 237. When fought, ib.
Its consequences, ib.
Myronides, Athenian General, vićtorious in Megaris,
239, --
N.
NATION, its true wealth, 163.
Nepos, Cornelius, quoted, 120, 232. s
Neutrality, at Athens, disgraceful, 45. The propriety
of such stigma, 45, 46. - * -
Nile, river, great vićtory gained near it by the Athe-
nians, 127.
O.
OATHS, taken by the Athenian soldiers, 247.
Obligation, attachment diminished by it, 47.
Odyssey, quoted, 159, 163, 164, 201, 228.
CEnophyta, in Boeotia, battle of, 129. Particulars
it, 130. -
Ogyges, king of Bæotia, some account of him, 93.
Olive, described by Pliny, 98. To whom sacred, ib.
Its uses, 99. Whence brought, ib.
386 IºWººD EX,* *
Orations, Funeral, when first established, 17. Their
object, ibn Annual; 17, 174. To whom their
institution is ascribed; 27. Honourable to the
dead; and useful to the living, 89.
Ostracism, reprobated, 37. An ingenious device, 126;
P.
PAEEY; Archdeacon, his Moral Philosophy quoted;218.
Poean, what, 229.
Paul, Saint, his Observations on Athenian superstition.
Pausanias, the Spartan General, co-operates with Thra-
sybulus, 250.
Pelops, Grecian hero, 205.
PERICLES, his Funeral Harangue, 9. At the head of
the Athenian government, and highly distinguished;
11, 12. Successful as a General, 12. Notwithout
enemies, 13. His condu&, not irreproachable, ib.
In disgrace, and fined, ib. Recalled to the manage-
ment of public affairs, 14. Attacked by the plague,
14. Dies, 15. His consolation in his last illness,
15. Year Of his death, 16. Whether the Funeral
Harangme, be:hisscomposition, or that of Thucy-
dides, uncertain. 18. His father;. 25, Athenian
possessions enlarged by his military-operations, 31.
Illitreats the Samians, 51. His address to the women
animadverted upon, 66. Remarks upon the close
of his Oration, 68. Revives a severe regulation at
Athens, 92. Invites the father of Lysias to Athens,
18l. . - -
I.N.D.EX, 287
Perseus, the hero, 205. Family of, ib.
Persia, its attacks upon Greece, 112. Power at an
enormous height, 115. Conquered at Marathon,
119. Degrading proposals made by the king of
Persia to the Athenians, 151. Not accepted, 152.
When first defeated in Greece, 220. Second expe-
dition, disastrous, 287. Humiliating treaty with
the Athenians, 242, 243.
Piraeus, what; its distance from Athens, 249.
Plataea, vićtory of, celebrated by Plato, 123. Parti-
culars of it, 124. Its citizens highly distinguished,
ib. Alone assist the Athenians at Marathon, 219.
PLATO, where born; and when,7t. When he died, ibe
His descent,ib. Retires from Athens, 72. Becomes
attached to Socrates, ib. Poetry not admitted into
his Republic, 73. Travels to Italy and Egypt, ib.
Accompanied by Euripides, ib. Serves as a soldier,
74. Visits Sicily, ib. Ill treated by Dionysius, the
tyrant, 75. His spirited reply to him, ib. Writes
to Dion for Pythagorean books, ib. Returns from
his travels, ib. Prefers philosophy to politics, ib.
Founds the Academy, 77. His philosophical sys-
tem, ib. His scholars, 77, 78. Honoured at the
Olympic Games, 78. Epithets in praise of him, ib.
Encomiums bestowed upon him, ib. His style, 78,
79. Mental charaćter, ib. Fanciful, as a writer,
ib. His leading doćtrines, 80. Charaćter, ib-
Talent at irony, 81. Reproof of a dice-player, ib.
Mode of reasoning, ib. Topics of his Menexenus,
s1, 82. Pericles and Aspasia, mentioned, 82.
Heads of his Funeral Harangue, 83. What Cicero
288 . INDEX:
says of it, 85.” Plato often fathers his own sentiº
. . ments upon Socrates, 88. Sometimes reasons aba.
... surdly, 96, 97. Attempts poetry, 112. Deterred
from it, and why, ib. Observations on his writings,
178. Dr. Blair's opinion of them, ib. n
Pliny, quoted, 18, 23, 98, 99.
Plutarch, his testimony in favour of the Lacedaemonians,
40. His remark on Exile, 263.
Poetry, competitions of, at funeral ceremonies, 175.
Prosopopoeia, fine one of Plato, 157, 159.
Proverbs, Book of, quoted, 168. º ‘e
Prytaneum, public establishment at Athens, 174. Pa-
... rents of deceased warriors supported in it, ib.
º Q. .
{
QUINTILIAN, his comparison of Sallust and Thu-
cydides, 9. Referred to, 185, 187.
R.
RANKS, an equality of, absurd, 106.
Rites, funeral, negle&t of them impious, 200. -
Boscoe, Mr., his Translation of “The Nurse" of Tan-
sillo, 96. “
Rufus, Virginius, his Funeral Oration pronounced by
‘’ Tacitus, 18.
Rutherford, his “View of Ancient History, quoted,
128. *
- e S. * - *
SALAMIS, sea-fight of 121. Account of it, ib. Its
happy effects upon Greece, 122. - -
INDEX, 289
Sallust, quoted, 29, 165.
Saragossa, its heroic defence, 225. s .
Sardis, capital of Lydia, 115. Athenians attempt to
burn it, ib. . .
Scholiast on Pericles, quoted, 44.
Scott, Walter, his ‘Vision of Don Roderick,' quoted,225.
Sepulchres, “Essay upon,” alluded to, 59. *
Services, public, ought to be rewarded, 173. Good
effects of such remuneration, 173. Military, Athe-
nian, particulars respecting them, 31.
Slaves, in Attica, numerous, 37. Rigorously treated,
38, 105. Slavery, mitigated by Christianity, 105.
Honourable mºst-ºf-three-sealous advocates for
‘African emancipation, 106. ‘. . . . .
Smith, his chara&er of Thucydides, 3. Quoted, in
praise of him, 9. ' ' . i
$ocrates, his observation to Plato, 88.
'Sokon, his legislation commended, 35. Hisław against
political neutrality, 45. His care of the children
of military men, 67, 173.
Sophocles, his Trachiniae referred to, 204.
Sparta, (Lacedæmon,) viewed with jealousy by the
Persians, 245.
Spartans, see Lacedæmonians.
Sphagia, the island of, taken by the Lacedæmonians,
131. Retaken by the Athenians, ib.
Stiblinus, Gaspar, his encomium on Athens, 207.
- T.
TANAGRA, in Boeotia, battle of, 129.
Tansillo, author of “ the Nurse,” 96.
U
290 - INDEXe
Theodorus, of Cyrene, ene of Plato's tutors, 72.
Themistocles, present at the battle of Marathon, 120.
And of Salamis, 121. Zealous promoter of the
maritime ascendancy of Athens; 125. Ungratefully
treated by his countrymen, 126. #is noble condu&,
when his country was in danger, 223. . .
Theon, referred to, 189.
Thermopylae, defile of, and the Lacedaemonians, 223,
224. Strong position for the Greeks, 224.
Theseus, hero, his exploitsºs. sºonquers the Ama-
ZOnº 108, -
Thrasybélus, nobly opposes the Spartan tyranny, 142.
Effects a reconciliation among his divided country-
men, 143. Surprizes the Piræus, 246. His condu&
commended, 250. His speech quoted, ib.
THUCYDIDES, his descent, 1. When born, ib.
Historian of the Peloponnesian war, ib. Charaćter
of his work, 1, 2. His favourable opportunities of
ascertaining facts, 2. Employed in a military ca-
pacity, but unsuccesful, 2. Banished, ib. Remains
in exile twenty-one years, 2. The period of his
banishment well employed, 3. His great work
begun, upon his return from exile, 3. His age at
that time, and habits of mind, 3. Uncertain where
he died, 4. His age, and year of his decease, 4.
His great impartiality, as a narrator of fačts, 4.
His moderation commended, 5 Hears Herodotus
read his history in public, and how affected by it,
5. His charaćter, as an historian, by Ammianus
Marcellinus, 5 and 6. Censured for his style, by
Dionysius of Halicarnassus, 6. Vindicated by
INDEX. . . 291
Henry Stephens, 6. Greatly admired by Demos-
thenes, #2 Partially commended by Cicero, 8.
As a writes; not an universal favourite, 8 and 9.
Sallust, compared with him, 9... Probably attended
the Funeral ceremony, when Pericles spoke, ºb.
Thurium, Athenian colony, 182. Visited by Lysias, ib.
Meditätes a revolt, ib. . . . ."
Tigranes, his memorable reply to Cyrus, 212.
Translator, his reasons stated for a change of tense, 21.
Apologizes for eliberty taken with his Author, 56.
Doubts the propriety of his interpretation of a
passage, 135.
Trapezus, sacrifices offered there by xenophon on his
retreat, 176. ... •
Triptolemus, instrućts the Athenians in agriculture, 100.
Tyrants, Thirty, their execrable condućt, 141. Many
Athenians fly from their country in consequence
of it, 142. The Tyrants are overthrown. 142.
Strong measure taken by them, 248.
Tyrtaeus, his Elegies quoted, 161,217.
V.
VALOUR, military, not highly esteemed by Christ-
ianity, 254.
Vanity, national, not uncommon, 153.
Vesta, what sacred to her, 205.
Virgil, AEneid quoted, 31, 99, 109, 164,260.
W.
WAR, Theban, account of it, 110. Between the
Heraclidae and the Argives, ib. Lacedæmonian,
292 INADEX.
9 D & 4)
U, ) — tº
A
* º
begun, 180. Sicilian, account of it, 133. Disas-
trous to the Athenians, ib. Civil, 141. Corinthian,
described, 147. Theban, Lysias's account of it,
199. Dramas founded on the subject, 200. Those
who fall in war not the greatest sufferers from it,
256.
Warriors, deceased, their bones exhibited, 21. Offer-
- ings brought to them, 22. Their bones deposited
in chests of cypress, 23. Afterwards in a public
|
t
t
monument, 24. ' ' * * *-
walls, wooden, of Athens, 122. Interpretation of the
Oracle of Apollo relative to them, 223. Long
Wałls of Athens, 141.
Weever, the English Antiquary, quoted, 23.
Wesseling, Commentator upon Thucydides, his con-
jećtural emendation rejećted by Gottleber, 138.
Wirberforce, Mr., friend of oppressed humanity, 106.
Wood, his account of Homer, quoted, 112.
Women, rarely admitted by the Greeks at public
Funerals, 24. Pericles, no flatterer of them, 66.
X.
XENOPHON, might have suppressed the Writings of
Thucydides, 9. His authority quoted, 137, 176,
199, 212, 233.
Xerxes, his expedition against Greece, 221. Num-
ber of His ships, and troops, ib. His mode of
transporting them, 222. Not impious for a certain
measure, 223.
related by ºchard Cruttwell,
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