a smaller history of greece-第68章

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wrote　upwards　of　100　comedies；　of　which　only　fragments　remain；　and　the　unanimous　praise　of　posterity　awakens　our　regret　for　the　loss　of　one　of　the　most　elegant　writers　of　antiquity。　　The　comedies；　indeed；　of　Plautus　and　Terence　may　give　us　a　general　notion　of　the　New　Comedy　of　the　Greeks；　from　which　they　were　confessedly　drawn；　but　there　is　good　reason　to　suppose　that　the　works　even　of　the　latter　Roman　writer　fell　far　short　of　the　wit　and　elegance　of　Menander。

The　latter　days　of　literary　Athens　were　chiefly　distinguished　by　the　genius　of　her　ORATORS　and　PHILOSOPHERS。　　There　were　ten　Attic　orators；　whose　works　were　collected　by　the　Greek　grammarians；　and　many　of　whose　orations　have　come　down　to　us。　　Their　names　are　Antiphon；　Andocides；　Lysias；　Isocrates；　Isaeus；　AEschines；　Lycurgus；　Demosthenes；　Hyperides　and　Dinarchus。　　ANTIPHON；　the　earliest　of　the　ten　was　born　B。C。　480。　　He　opened　a　school　of　rhetoric；　and　numbered　among　his　pupils　the　historian　Thucydides。　Antiphon　was　put　to　death　in　411　B。C。　for　the　part　which　he　took　in　establishing　the　oligarchy　of　the　Four　Hundred。

ANDOCIDES；　who　was　concerned　with　Alcibiades　in　the　affair　of　the　Hermae；　was　born　at　Athens　in　B。C。　467；　tend　died　probably　about　391。

LYSIAS；　also　born　at　Athens　in　458；　was　much　superior　to　Andocides　as　an　orator；　but　being　a　METIC　or　resident　alien；　he　was　not　allowed　to　speak　in　the　assemblies　or　courts　of　justice；　and　therefore　wrote　orations　for　others　to　deliver。

ISOCRATES　was　born　in　436。　　After　receiving　the　instructions　of　some　of　the　most　celebrated　sophists　of　the　day；　he　became　himself　a　speech…writer　and　professor　of　rhetoric；　his　weakly　constitution　and　natural　timidity　preventing　him　from　taking　a　part　in　public　life。　　He　made　away　with　himself　in　338；　after　the　fatal　battle　of　Chaeronea；　in　despair；　it　is　said；　of　his　country's　fate。　　He　took　great　pains　with　his　compositions；　and　is　reported　to　have　spent　ten；　or；　according　to　others；　fifteen　years　over　his　Panegyric　oration。

ISAEUS　flourished　between　the　end　of　the　Peloponnesian　war　and　the　accession　of　Philip　of　Macedon。　　He　opened　a　school　of　rhetoric　at　Athens；　and　is　said　to　have　numbered　Demosthenes　among　his　pupils。　　The　orations　of　Isaeus　were　exclusively　judicial；　and　the　whole　of　the　eleven　which　have　come　down　to　us　turn　on　the　subject　of　inheritances。

AESCHINES　was　born　in　the　year　389；　and　he　was　at　first　a　violent　anti…Macedonian；　but　after　his　embassy　along　with　Demosthenes　and　others　to　Philip's　court；　he　was　the　constant　advocate　of　peace；　Demosthenes　and　AEschines　now　became　the　leading　speakers　on　their　respective　sides；　and　the　heat　of　political　animosity　soon　degenerated　into　personal　hatred。　　In　343　Demosthenes　charged　AEschines　with　having　received　bribes　from　Philip　during　a　second　embassy；　and　the　speech　in　which　he　brought　forward　this　accusation　was　answered　in　another　by　AEschines。　　The　result　of　this　charge　is　unknown；　but　it　seems　to　have　detracted　from　the　popularity　of　AEschines。　　We　have　already　adverted　to　his　impeachment　of　Ctesiphon；　and　the　celebrated　reply　of　Demosthenes　in　his　speech　DE　CORONA。　　After　the　banishment　of　AEschines　on　this　occasion　（B。C。　330）；　he　employed　himself　in　teaching　rhetoric　at　Rhodes。　　He　died　in　Samos　in　314。　　As　an　orator　he　was　second　only　to　Demosthenes。

Of　the　life　of　his　great　rival；　DEMOSTHENES；　we　have　already　given　some　account。　　The　verdict　of　his　contemporaries；　ratified　by　posterity；　has　pronounced　Demosthenes　the　greatest；　orator　that　ever　lived。　　The　principal　element　of　his　success　must　be　traced　in　his　purity　of　purpose；　which　gave　to　his　arguments　all　the　force　of　conscientious　conviction。　　The　effect　of　his　speeches　was　still　further　heightened　by　a　wonderful　and　almost　magic　force　of　diction。　　The　grace　and　vivacity　of　his　delivery　are　attested　by　the　well…known　anecdote　of　AEschines；　when　he　read　at　Rhodes　his　speech　against　Ctesiphon。　　His　audience　having　expressed　their　surprise　that　he　should　have　been　defeated　after　such　an　oration　　〃You　would　cease　to　wonder；〃　he　remarked；　〃if　you　had　heard　Demosthenes。〃

The　remaining　three　Attic　orators；　viz。　LYCURGUS；　HYPERIDES；　and　DINARCHUS；　were　contemporaries　of　Demosthenes。　　Lycurgus　and　Hyperides　both　belonged　to　the　anti…Macedonian　party；　and　were　warm　supporters　of　the　policy　of　Demosthenes。　　Dinarchus；　who　is　the　least　important　of　the　Attic　orators；　survived　Demosthenes；　and　was　a　friend　of　Demetrius　Phalereus。

The　history　of　Greek　PHILOSOPHY；　like　that　of　Greek　poetry　and　history；　began　in　Asia　Minor。　　The　earliest　philosopher　of　distinction　was　THALES　of　Miletus；　who　was　born　about　B。C。　640；　and　died　in　554　at　the　age　of　90。　　He　was　the　founder　of　the　IONIC　school　of　philosophy；　and　to　him　were　traced　the　first　beginnings　of　geometry　and　astronomy。　　The　main　doctrine　of　his　philosophical　system　was；　that　water；　or　fluid　substance　was　the　single　original　element　from　which　everything　came　and　into　which　everything　returned。　　ANAXIMANDER；　the　successor　of　Thales　in　the　Ionic　school；　lived　from　B。C。　610　to　547。　　He　was　distinguished　for　his　knowledge　of　astronomy　and　geography；　and　is　said　to　have　been　the　first　to　introduce　the　use　of　the　sun…dial　into　Greece。　ANAXIMENES；　the　third　in　the　series　of　the　Ionian　philosophers；　lived　a　little　later　than　Anaximander。　　He　endeavoured；　like　Thales；　to　derive　the　origin　of　all　material　things　from　a　single　element；　and；　according　to　his　theory；　air　was　the　source　of　life。

A　new　path　was　struck　out　by　ANAXAGORAS　Of　Clazomenae；　the　most　illustrious　of　the　Ionic　philosophers。　　He　came　to　Athens　in　480　B。C。；　where　he　continued　to　teach　for　thirty　years；　numbering　among　his　hearers　Pericles；　Socrates；　and　Euripides。　　He　abandoned　the　system　of　his　predecessors；　and；　instead　of　regarding　some　elementary　form　of　matter　as　the　origin　of　all　things；　he　conceived　a　supreme　mind　or　intelligence；　distinct　from　the　visible　world；　to　have　imparted　form　and　order　to　the　chaos　of　nature。　　These　innovations　afforded　the　Athenians　a　pretext　for　indicting　Anaxagoras　of　impiety；　though　it　is　probable　that　his　connexion　with　Pericles　was　the　real　cause　of　that　proceeding　（see　Ch。IX）。　　It　was　only　through　the　influence　and　eloquence　of　Pericles　that　he　was　not　put　to　death；　but　he　was　sentenced　to　pay　a　fine　of　five　talents　and　quit　Athens。　　The　philosopher　retired　to　Lampsacus；　where　he　died　at　the　age　of　72。

The　second　school　of　Greek　philosophy　was　the　ELEATIC　which　derived　its　name　from　Elea　or　Velia；　a　Greek　colony　on　the　western　coast　of　Southern　Italy。　　It　was　founded　by　XENOPHANES　of　Colophon；　who　fled　to　Elea　on　the　conquest　of　his　native　land　by　the　Persians。　　He　conceived　the　whole　of　nature　to　be　God。

The　third　school　of　philosophy　was　the　PYTHAGOREAN；　founded　by　PYTHAGORAS。　　He　was　a　native　of　Samos　and　was　born　about　B。C。　580。　　His　father　was　an　opulent　merchant；　and　Pythagoras　himself　travelled　extensively　in　the　East。　　He　believed　in　the　transmigration　of　souls；　and　later　writers　relate　that　Pythagoras　asserted　that　his　own　soul　had　formerly　dwelt　in　the　body　of　the　Trojan　Euphorbus；　the　son　of　Panthous；　who　was　slain　by　Menelaus；　and　that　in　proof　of　his　assertion　he　took　down；　at　first　sight；the　shield　of　Euphorbus　from　the　temple　of　Hera　（Juno）　at　Argos；　where　it　had　been　dedicated　by　Menelaus。　　Pythagoras　was　distinguished　by　his　knowledge　of　geometry　and　arithmetic；　and　it　was　probably　from　his　teaching　that　the　Pythagoreans　were　led　to　regard　numbers　in　some　mysterious　manner　as　the　basis　and　essence　of　all　things。　　He　was　however　more　of　the　religious　teacher　than　of　the　philosopher；　and　he　looked　upon　himself　as　a　being　destined　by　the　gods　to　reveal　to　his　disciples　a　new　and　a　purer　mode　of　life。　　He　founded　at　Croton　in　Italy　a　kind　of　religious　brotherhood；　the　members　of　which　were　bound　together　by　peculiar　rites　and　observances。　　Everything　done　and　taught　in　the　fraternity　was　kept　a　profound　secret　from　all　without　its　pale。　It　appears　that　the　members　had　some　private　signs；　like　Freemasons；　by　which　they　could　recognise　each　other；　even　if　they　had　never　met　before。　　His　doctrines　spread　rapidly　over　Magna　Graecia；　and　clubs　of　a　similar　character　were　established　at　Sybaris；