:>: \: STHi s. 



DEMOSTHENES. 



have affirmed, without some disgrace ; but at the funeral ceremony 

 I", r those who fell lie was called upon to pronounce tho customary 

 oration (which however hiu been decided not to be that which goes 

 under this name), and he resumed his place at tho head of the govern- 

 nient. He became victual-provider for the city, superintended the 

 repair* of tho fortifications, and wag proceeding with hi* usual vigour 

 in prosecuting hit political scheme*, when news camo that Philip had 

 been assassinated, July B.C. 338. The conduct of Demosthenes on this 

 occasion, as reported by Plutarch and -Eschines, bos sometimes fur- 

 nished a subject for strong animadversion. He is said to have appeared 

 in a white robe, although his daughter was just dead, and he or hi* 

 friends proposed honours to the memory of the assassin of Philip. As 

 to the first of thece charges, it may be said in his defeuoe that it only 

 indicates how completely devoted he was to the cause of his country, 

 even to the exclusion in a great degree of privaU affections. 



On the accession of Alexander, Demosthenes persevered in his 

 decided opposition to Macedou. Alexander's first employment, after 

 his election as stallholder by the Amphictyonic league, was to 'iu.il 

 au insurrection in the northern and western provinces of Macedonia. 

 While he was absent a report of his death was spread at Thebes, which 

 revolted from the confederacy. Demosthenes (Plutarch) fanned the 

 flame of this insurrection, and, on Alexander's sudden appearance 

 before Thebes, Demosthenes was appointed to confer with him ; but 

 ho went only to the borders of Attica. As Alexander demanded his 

 person immediately after tho destruction of Thebes, together with nine 

 other Athenians, on the pretext of trying them as traitors, it is most 

 probable that, when he was sent on the mission to Thebes, he had 

 reason to fear some act of violence if he put himself in the power of 

 Macedon. Demades, a man as high in point of intellect as he was 

 debased in morals, was the negociator in his place, and by some means 

 or other contrived to save Demosthenes. Plutarch relates (' Life of 

 1'hocion ') that a bribe was given to Demades to persuade him to 

 exertion in behalf of Demosthenes, but it is hardly probable. 



During Alexander's Persian expedition Demosthenes had to sustain 

 an attack from his old rival ./Eschines. He defended himself from 

 tho charges brought against him [,'EscuiXKs] in the oration called that 

 ' On the Crown. But we hear little of him as a public man. He 

 probably considered that, at a time when tho chief enemy of the 

 libel-tie* of Greece was employed in schemes most likely to conduce to 

 hi-r welfare, from the ruinous effect they promised to produce on the 

 strength of Macedonia, any measures likely to recall Alexander from 

 Asia would only be the means of binding still faster those chains 

 which it had been his own constant aim to loosen. 



The only aflair of moment in which Demosthenes was at this time 

 engaged was occasioned by the treachery of Harpalus, one of Alexan- 

 der's generals, who had been left governor of Babylon when Alexander 

 proceeded on his Indian expedition. Harpalus, having grossly abused 

 his tru.-t, fled to Europe on the return of Alexander, accompanied by 

 6000 Greek soldiers. He came to Athens as a suppliant, and engaged 

 the orators to support him. All but Demosthenes espoused his cause 

 with readiness, and he at last concurred, not without Biupiciou of 

 bribery. (Plutarch.) The Athenians however refused to listen to his 

 proposal of organising a movement against Alexander, and prosecuted 

 Demosthenes for recommending measures not for the good of the 

 state. He was fined fifty talents by the Areopagus, and being unable 

 or unwilling to pay this sum, retired to ^ICgina and Troezeno, where 

 he remained from n.i-. 324 till the death of Alexander, which occurred 

 in the following year. Immediately on the news of that event he 

 renewed his opposition to Macedon, oven before his recall, which 

 Plutarch says was owing to this conduct. He was recalled by a decree 

 of the people ; and a trireme was sent to ..ttgiua to carry him back to 

 Athena, his progress from the port to the city being a continuous 

 triumph. 



During the Lamian war ho presided at Athens, and when Antipater 

 defeated tho confederate Greeks, and marched upon the city, Demos- 

 thenes, as the prime mover of the confederacy, judged it prudent to 

 withdraw to Calauria, a little island opposite Tronene, where he took 

 refuge in a temple of Poatidon. Macedonian messengers were sent to 

 persuade him to accompany them to Antipater, but he resisted at! 

 their entreaties. Plutarch, from whom this account is taken, nay* 

 that he retired into the inner part of the temple under pretence ol 

 writing a letter, and while there took poiion, which he had for some 

 time carried about his penon, and died before he could get out of the 

 temple. Another account, which Plutarch also gives as coming from 

 one of Demosthenes' friends, is, that " by thu singular favour and 

 providence of the gods he wax thus rescued from the barbarous cruelty 

 of the Macedonians;" in other word.', that be died of some muldci 

 attack brought on by the anxiety and disappointments of the last few 

 wix-ks of his Ufa. 



Demosthenes seems to have been actuated all through his politic* 

 life by the .tronge-t pasnion to promote the interests of his nativ. 



ntate ; and if lie only delnyed tho fate of hi country he di.l v. 



lie seems to have attempted. It is the highest praise of hi 

 prudence and foresight that all hu political ) r. .-diction* v. 

 us be distinctly forenaw, it was the influence of Maoedon, and in. 



1 diasenaion, wl.ich destroyed the sovereign and independen 



political c .mmiii.itie* of Greece. Thos who expect to find in hi 



> !' oratory the fervid and impassioned language of a man cnrrk 



away by his feelings to the prejudice of bis judgment, will be disap- 

 lointed. He is said not to have been a ready speaker, and to h&vo 

 vquired preparation. All his orations bear the marks of au effort to 

 convince tho understanding rather than to work on the passions of 

 us hearers. And this U the highest praise. Men may be ptrruaded 

 >y splendid imagery, well-chosen words, and appeals to their passions ; 

 tut to convince by a calm and clear address, when the speaker has no 

 unfair advantages of person or of manner, and calls to his aid none of 

 .ho tricks of rhetoric, this is what Cicero calls the oratory of Doinot- 

 henes, the ideal model of true eloquence. (' Orations,' c. 7.) Most 

 of the speeches of Demosthenes on political affairs, as wo now possess 

 .hem, are laboured compositions, which have evidently been frequently 

 corrected by the author before he brought thorn into that slat- in 

 wl.ich they now appear. Notwithstanding the easy flow of the Ian- 

 piage, the art and industry of the orator are visible in almr>t every 

 ine ; and in nothing are they more apparent than in the admirable 

 skill by which he makes almost every period produce its effect, and i:i 

 the well-judged antithesis which gives such force and precision to hi* 

 expression, that it seems as if no other words and no other order of 

 words could be so appropriate as those which h; has chosen. 

 style of many of the orations on civil matters which were delivered 

 before the courts of justice, is very different ; there U au air of easy 

 negligence about them, and an absence of that laboured accuracy 

 which characterises his other compositions. It is not unusual to find 

 sentences that might bo called grammatically incorrect But these 

 orations are invaluable as specimens of what we now call >tatin^ a 

 cose, and well worth the attentive study of those who would make 

 ihemselves acquainted with the social condition of Athens at that 

 time. 



The orations of Demosthenes may be divided into two great classes, 

 political and judicial, and this la*t again into those delivered in 

 public and those in private causes the distinction between publif 

 md private causes being roughly that which in English law exwta 

 between criminal and civil cases. 



Those of the first clais which are extant were delivered in tho 

 following order: The oration on the Symmoria-, n.c. 3;"J ; fur th<- 

 Megolopolitann, B.C. 353 ; the 1st Philippic, n.c. 352 : for the Kh. 

 B.C. 351 ; the three Olyuthiacs, also called the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th 

 Philippics, ii.c. 349; the 5th Philippic (which form* part of the 1st 

 in our present copies), BO. 347; the 6th Philippic, also call. 

 oration on the Peace, B.C. 346 ; the 7th Philippic, ii.c. 344 ; the 8th 

 Philippic, also called the oration concerning Halonnesua. B.C. 343 ; the 

 9th Philippic, also called the oration on tho Chersonesus, tho 1 (Ith 

 and llth Philippics (also called the 3rd and 4th), all iu 11 c. 341 ; the 

 12th Philippic, also called the oration against the Lette. 

 the Funeral oration, B.C. 338 ; and the oration on the treaty with 

 Alexander, after B.C. :i4. Of these, that concerning Halonnesus, thu 

 llth Philippic, also called the 4th, and that against the Letter, are 

 decided to bo of doubtful authority, as is also the oration on the 

 Contribution (v<p! nurro{<a>s), which is of doubtful date, that on the 

 treaty with Alexander, and the Funeral oration. 



Of tho fintt division in the second class, we find those against 

 Androtion and Leptines, B.C. 355 ; that against Timocrate.% B.C. 353 ; 

 that against Aristocrates, B.C. 352; that against Midia-s u c. 348 ; that 

 on Malversation iu the Embassy, B.C. 343 ; that against Neiera, ulmut 

 B.C. 340; that against Theccriues, after n.c. 336; tho two against 

 ArUtogiton, after B.C. 338 ; that on the Crown, ii.r. 3110. Those who 

 are carious respecting tho date of the last-mentioned orations, may 

 refer to Clinton (' Fasti Hellen.,' p. 361), from whom these dates ore 

 taken. 



Of the second division are the three against Aphobus, the two 

 again/it > 1 that against Callippus, nil iu n.c. 



against Polycles, and on the Naval Crown, after n.c. 'M\ ; that again*! 

 Tim thcus, before IM . '-".!: that against Energus nnd Mnesiljulu -, 

 after B.C. 356 ; that against Zcnothemis, after IM-. H55 ; thoso against 

 IkcotuB and for Phormio, B.C. 350; the two ngniust Staphanii.-, 

 nst Bccotus about the dowry, no. 347 ; that u 

 Pautnuetus, after n.r. 347 ; that against Eubulides, aft. 

 that against Conon, after B.C. 343 ; that against Olympiodorus, after 

 l : that in tho causa of Phormio, after 'Im 1 - against 



Diitnysodorus, nfter B.C. 331. To theoe must be added. tl.nl 

 Ap. turiu*: that in the cause of Lncritua ; th 



:iud XenopitliM; those against 8pudia. Phii-ni|.pn*, Mac.irtatns. 

 Ix.-och.ires, Nioostnitus, and Calliclo.*. Of these iu the second clasx 

 doubt* are entertained regarding the authenticity of those against 

 Neiera, Thoocrines, Aristogiton, Ouetor, Tirnotheus, Kucrun 

 Mne*ibulus, Stcphanus, Kubuliden. PliL-nippus, nnd Nicostrntus; but 

 of the o Schaiiin < for thoao against Timotheug and 



Kubulides. 



The orations of Demosthenes were edited ton times in the ICth 

 century, and twice in the 17th. They have b i l.y Taylor. 



Relske, thn Abl< Auger, Schn-for. Bokkcr, and Dindorf. The t 

 B -kker, which is now th- standard, is found, d on a careful collation 

 of tin- niiiimscriptd. Of separate orations, F. A. Wolf has given nu 

 edition of th.it again -t LeptincH : Umligerof that on tho Peaoa, of the 

 fimt Philippic, and the three Olynthiacs ; Huttinan and Illume of the 

 Midi, . ::,1 of the Philippics. 



Tho orations of DcmotthcnoH and -Kschincs ware translated jnlo 



