1 12 Sale of captives. New Hellenism 



labour. And this suggests to me a question in reference to the disposal 

 of Greek slaves. For the vast majority of slaves 1 in Greece, whether 

 urban or rustic, were certainly Barbarians of several types for several 

 purposes. The sale of the people of captured cities had become quite 

 an ordinary thing. Sparta had sinned thus in her day of power, and 

 the example was followed from time to time by others. The cases of 

 Olynthus in 348 BC and Thebes in 335 fall in the present period. 

 Aeschines mentions 2 some captives working chained in Philip's vine- 

 yard ; but these can only have been few. The mass were sold, and a 

 large sum of money realized thereby. At Thebes the captives sold 

 are said to have numbered 30,000. What markets absorbed these 

 unhappy victims? I can only guess that many found their way to 

 Carthage and Etruria. 



XIX. THE MACEDONIAN PERIOD 322-146 BC. 



The deficiency of contemporary evidence illustrating the agricultural 

 conditions of this troubled age in the Greek world makes it necessary 

 to combine the various scraps of information in a general sketch. 

 Hellas had now seen its best days. The break-up of the great empire 

 of Alexander did not restore to the little Greek states the freedom of 

 action which had been their pride and which had been a main influence 

 in keeping up their vitality. The outward and visible sign of their 

 failure was the impossibility of an independent foreign policy. The 

 kingdoms of Alexander's Successors might rise and fall, but Greek 

 states could do little to affect the results. A new world was opened 

 to Greek enterprise in the East, and Greek mercenaries and Greek 

 secretaries traders and officials were carrying the Greek language and 

 civilization into wide lands ruled by Macedonian kings. But these 

 were individuals, attracted by the prospect of a gainful military or 

 civil career. Either they settled abroad, and drained Greece of some 

 of her ablest sons ; or they returned home enriched, and formed an 

 element of the population contrasting painfully with those who had 

 stayed behind. In either case it seems certain that the movement 

 tended to lower the standard of efficiency and patriotism in their native 

 states. Citizen armies became more and more difficult to maintain. 

 The influx of money no longer locked up in Oriental treasuries only 

 served to accentuate the old social distinction 3 of Rich and Poor. Men 

 who came back with fortunes meant to enjoy themselves, and they 



1 See Dem Mid % 48 p 530, etc. 



2 Aeschin F Leg 156 p 59. The passage of Dem F L to which he refers is not in our 

 text, for 194-5 pp 401-2 is different. 



3 See Plut Aratus 14, 25, 27, 36, 39, 40, Philopoemen 7, 15. 



