the Lacedæmonians to attack those in Piræus. When una◄ nimity was restored, and those troubles were composed,1 the Lacedæmonians sent ambassadors and demanded payment of their money. Upon this there arose a debate; and some contended that the borrowers, the city party, should pay; others advised, that it should be the first proof of harmony to join in discharging the debt: the people, they say, determined themselves to contribute and share in the expense, to avoid breaking any article of their convention. Then were it not shameful, O Athenians, if at that time you chose to contribute money for the benefit of persons who had injured you rather than break your word, yet now, when it is in your power without cost to do justice to benefactors by repealing the law, you should prefer to break your word? I for my part would not advise it.2

The character of the republic therefore, O Athenians, one may see both by the example which I have cited, and by new government of Ten was then established, in place of the Thirty. Lysander came to their assistance; but Pausanias, the Spartan king, who was opposed to the designs of Lysander, effected a reconciliation between the two Athenian parties, and, withdrawing the Peloponnesian troops, allowed the democracy to be reestablished. A general act of amnesty, which was faithfully observed, secured the state against further civil broils. The repayment of the Spartan loan was a wise measure on the part of the Athenians, and is justly praised by the orators. Isocrates, in his Areopagitic Oration (p. 153), thus speaks of it :

:

"The victorious party who returned with arms in their hands (those in Piræus, I mean,) having destroyed the principal authors of the public calamities, dealt so fairly and constitutionally with the rest, that the party who had driven them into exile fared no worse than they who returned. But the most noble and signal proof of the moderation of the people was this:-The party that abode in the city had borrowed a hundred talents from the Lacedæmonians, to besiege those who occupied Piræus. An assembly was held to consider the question of repayment; and many urged that the borrowers, and not the besieged party, should discharge the debt of the Lacedæmonians; but the people determined to pay it by general contribution."

The orators, in speaking of these transactions, call the Tyrants and their party, οἱ Τριάκοντα, οἱ ἐν ἄστει, οἱ ἐξ ἄστεος, and the like; while they describe the popular party by the terms, οἱ ἐν Πειραιεῖ, οἱ ἐκ Πειραιῶς, οἱ κατελθόντες, &c.

1 Τὰ πράγματα ἐκεῖνα κατέστη. Reiske: “ad quietem et pristinum statum redierunt." Auger: "tout eut été rétabli." Pabst die Verfassung des Staats wieder geordnet worden war.

2 Schaefer: "indignum censeo.' Pabst ich mag nicht dieser Meinung

seyn.

:

many others, to be what I say, truthful and upright, looking not to pecuniary profit, but to what is honourable in action, Of the character of him who framed the law I know nothing in other respects; I say nothing against it, I am not aware of anything; yet judging by the law, I find it to be far different from yours. I say therefore, it would be more creditable for him to follow you in repealing the law, than for you to follow him in enacting it; and more advantageous to you both, if the state should have persuaded Leptines to appear like her, than if she were persuaded by Leptines to be like him. For be he ever so honest, as I am quite willing to admit, he is not better in character than the state.

I think, men of the jury, it will assist your deliberations upon the present question, when you learn also, that the peculiar feature, which makes the gifts of popular governments superior to the gifts bestowed by others, is in danger of being destroyed by the law. In regard to the profit of those who receive their bounty, despots and oligarchs can reward the most highly; for they make whom they please immediately rich but in regard to the honour and the security, you will find the gifts of popular governments are preferable. For that, instead of receiving the disgraceful meed of flattery, you are in a free state rewarded for merit, is a circumstance of glory and it seems better to get he willing admiration of your equals, than to receive anything from a master. In despotic governments fear of the future is paramount to present obligation; but with you, whatever a man receives, he may hold safely-might at least in former times. This law therefore, which deprives gifts of their security, takes away the only advantage by which your gifts are distinguished: and, take from any government whatsoever the rule, that persons well-affected to the establishment shall be recompensed,—you will have taken away no slight protection of the government.

Possibly however, to withdraw your attention from these points, Leptines will venture to say, that now the official burdens fall upon poor men, but by the present law the most wealthy will bear them. Specious enough to the ear so far: examine it closely however, and it will appear to be false. We have, as you know, services to be performed by the resident aliens and by the citizens, from each of which certain privileged persons have the exemption of which Leptines

deprives them. From contributions for war and the public safety, and from the service of the trierarchy, justly and properly by our ancient laws no man is exempt, not even those whom Leptines proposed, the descendants of Harmodius and Aristogiton. Let us see then what additional parties1 he finds for us to perform those services, and how many he will let off, if we are against him. Our wealthiest men, constantly serving the trierarchy, stand exempted from the ordinary burdens, while those who possess an insufficient income, having an exemption by necessity, are out of the reach of this liability: 2 from neither of these classes therefore shall we gain a contributor through the law. Oh, but he introduces many new parties to perform the services of the resident aliens. Well: if he can show five, I admit myself to be talking nonsense. However I will assume this not to be so, but that, if the law be established, the resident aliens charged from time to time will be more than that number, and that no citizen will stand exempt by reason of the trierarchy. Let us see then what it will be to the commonwealth, if all these persons perform the ordinary official services. It will be found, I say, to be far from an equivalent for the disgrace that must ensue. Look at it in this way. Of the aliens there are exempt, let me suppose, ten: and decidedly, as I said just now, I don't believe there are five. Of the citizens, am sure, there are scarcely five or six. Of both then sixteen. Let us make them twenty, or if you like, thirty. Now let me ask, what is the number of persons who perform the regular services every year, choir-masters, gymnasiarchs, and feasters of the tribes? Perhaps sixty or a few more altogether. Then, in order that thirty or more persons may bear the charges during the whole time, should we cause all to regard us with mistrust? Surely we know this, that, as long as the republic subsists, there will be plenty performing official services, and

I

3

1 Xopnyous (as F. A. Wolf observes) is here used in the wider sense, meaning not only the Choragi, but those who contributed to the other ordinary services. Pabst: Spendengeber.

sen.

2 So Pabst und sind von dem zwang dieser Besteurung ausgeschlos F. A. Wolf otherwise: "in hunc censum referri non possunt: non pertinent ad eum hominum ordinem, qui numera publica obire potest."

3 That is, during the time that it takes to go through all the persons liable to the charge. Thus, if the number of persons at Athens liable to

no failure of serviceable men, but none will be willing to confer a benefit upon us, when they see former benefactors wronged. Well: but if there were ever such a deficiency of parties able to serve, which, in the name of Heaven, would be the better course-to bring the ordinary services into partnership, like the naval, or to deprive your benefactors of their gifts? I should think the former. As it is, he gives them a respite just for the time that each of these persons bears a charge:1 afterwards each of them will spend as much as before. In the other case, each paying a small contribution according to his means, no man would suffer any hardship, however little he possessed.

There are persons however with so little of reason in them, O Athenians, that, although they venture not to contest these arguments, they make assertions of another kind-that it is. monstrous, when the state has no funds of her own, that individuals should become rich by having got hold of an immunity. It is not just to couple these things together.2 If a man has wealth without injuring you, surely one need not be charged were 600, and the persons annually charged 60, the law of Leptines, providing 30 more contributors, would give an average annual addition of 3.

F. A. Wolf, in his Prolegomena, expresses a doubt whether Demosthenes has not understated the number of persons enjoying the exemption: "Dubites, an hæc computatio à Demosthene bona fide facta sit, maximè de civibus. Nam si ipsam orationem sequamur in iis, quæ de immunibus civibus habet, horum major numerus colligetur. At esset mirum tamen in tali re fallere velle populum." It has been suggested that when Demosthenes says, there are hardly five or six citizens exempt, he means not those who have the grant of exemption by law, but those who enjoy their exemption entirely by virtue of the grant, excluding (according to his previous calculation) those rich enough to be trierarchs, or too poor to be charged with any service. Such a meaning however cannot fairly be got from the words ἀτελεῖς εἰσι.

1 Leptines eases the general body of men liable to serve for such time only as the new parties whom he introduces have the charge laid upon them. Thus to take the number assumed in the last notewhile the three additional parties, whom Leptines provides for the current year, are called upon to serve, some three persons out of the sixty chargeable will be relieved for the time; but their turn will soon come round again.

2 These two things, the poverty of the state and the immunity of certain individuals, have no proper connexion, and are only mentioned together to raise a prejudice. Auger and Pabst have missed the point of the sentence. Auger; "ils ont tort dans ces deux points." Pabst : mit Unrecht behaupten sie Beides.

grudge it to him. If they can say he has obtained it fraudulently or in any improper way, there are laws by which they may punish him; but when they decline to take such course, they should forbear also to use this language. With reference to the state having no funds, you must consider, that you will be no better off by taking away the immunities: for these expenses have no connexion with the public revenues and treasures. And besides—there being now two advantages for the state,' wealth and general confidence; the confidence that we actually enjoy is the more valuable. Yet if any one thinks, that, because we have no money, we ought likewise to have no good name, he reasons badly. My prayer to the gods is, that, if possible, we may have wealth also in abundance, but that at all events we may maintain our character of being trustworthy and truthful.

But come, I will prove that the affluence, which my opponents will tell you some men will derive from their relief, is to your advantage. You are of course aware, that no man is exempt from the navy-charge or the war-taxes. Well then: this man of wealth, whoever he is, will contribute largely to these expenses: no doubt of it. And all will agree, that our means of providing for these services ought to be the most ample: for by the expenditure in choral exhibitions pleasure is given to the spectators only for a brief portion of a day; but by unstinted supplies for the service of war safety accrues to the commonwealth for ever. So that as much as you relinquish here, you gain there; and you give by way of honour what, even if not given, may be had by those whose estate is equal to the trierarchy. That no man is exempt from the navy-charges, I believe you are all aware: however he shall read you the law itself. Take the navy law and read just that part :

THE LAW.

"And none shall be exempt from the trierarchal service except the nine archons."

1 That is, two advantages which the state may possess, or may seek to possess. Auger translates it with much clearness: "Ajoutez que des deux avantages dont peut jouir notre ville, les richesses et la confiance des peuples, la confiance qu'on a maintenant en elle est le plus précieux." Pabst Ausserdem ist, wenn unser Staat zwischen den beiden Gütern, Vertrauen und Credit auf der einen Seite und Geldbesitz auf der andern Seite die Wahl hat, Vertrauen und Credit für ihn bei weitem mehr werth.