CG 
ANCIENT GREEK AND ROMAN FIELD SPORTS. 
[Nature and Art, August 1, 1866. 
highly gratified by the reception he had met with, 
and remarked on the different customs of nations, 
saying, “ That, while in Greece to drink wine 
unmixed was considered an improper thing, his 
oavii countrymen, on the contrary, always took it 
so ; and that both sexes, indeed, not only drank it, 
but poured it over their garments, thinking they 
were thus engaging in a tasteful occupation.* But 
tell me, 0 Xenophon,” he asked, “ what kind of 
game is to be found in this neighbourhood V’ “ Fine 
sport can we show thee, 0 Scythian guest,” the 
veteran responded ; “ we have hares, wild hoars, 
chamois, f and stags. Mount Pholoe, close at hand, 
is a rare wood for game. To-morrow we must try 
for a stag, as we want meat for the larder. Slave, 
another cyathus of wine, and we will drink success 
to hunting.” 
After this manner the evening at Scillus was 
spent pleasantly and good-humouredly by all the 
party, till each retired to his room for the night. 
Let us glance at the spot where Xenophon lived 
for so many years. He had been allowed by the 
Lacedaemonians — the masters of the country for 
the time being — to settle at Scillus, and had pur- 
chased land there, with spoil-money gained in his 
Asiatic expedition. His dwelling, an unpretend- 
ing structure of wood, brick, and stone, with a 
flat roof, on which persons could walk when so 
inclined, was built for convenience, and not for 
show, according to the rules he has laid down hi 
his “ (Economics,” and, in the main, after the 
fashion of the Greek houses of the period. The 
outer door, facing the north, led into a passage, 
on the left side of which was the porter’s lodge, 
and on the right the stables. In these were five 
horses, in -separate stalls. At the end of the 
passage was a rectangular space called the peristyle, 
or hall of the Andronitis, or men’s apartment, 
with dining-rooms, parlour, and store-rooms, form- 
ing the sides of the rectangular hall. The opposite 
or south end of the house was appropriated to the 
Women. Here Philesia, Xenophon’s wife, and her 
domestics, spun wool and attended to their daily 
household duties. This part was called the 
Gynceconitis ; it was of nearly similar form to the 
Andronitis, with which it w T as connected by means 
of a passage, closed by a door or curtain. The 
house was pleasantly situated among trees of various 
kinds. The spot had been selected by Xenophon, 
on account of certain resemblances to the site of 
the Ephesian temple. A small river, called the^ 
Selinus, abounding in fish, flowed hard by. There 
was another of the same name, near the temple of 
Ephesus. In the grounds and near the house were 
to be seen a chapel, an altar, and a statue of the 
goddess Artemis, made of cypress wood — all of 
them copies, on a reduced scale, of the great temple 
and golden statue at Ephesus. A column, with 
carefully engraved Greek characters, was to be seen 
amongst the buildings. The inscription ran as 
* The words of Plato. De Legibus, i. 637. 
t The original word is BopicaSeg, Perhaps chamois are 
the antelopes denoted. 
follows : “ Whoever has this property and gathers 
its fruits, must sacrifice a tithe every year to the 
goddess, and out of the remainder keep the chapel 
in repair. If any should omit to perform these 
duties, the goddess will herself see to the matter.” 
An orchard of various fruit-trees lay contiguous to 
the chapel ; and, altogether, the landscape offered 
a charming vai’iety of woodland, meadows, and 
hills. Mount Pholoe, noted for game, reared its 
head conspicuously a few miles off. With excellent 
pasturage for stud and stock, and plenty of sport 
at hand ; with leisure for writing treatises on the 
management of horses, the breeding of dogs, and 
the excitements of the chase ; what more could a 
Greek gentleman require? We doubt not that 
Xenophon spent the happiest years of his life hi 
this pleasant retreat, free from political turmoil, 
and from the anxieties that attend active military 
service. 
We have already stated that once every year 
Xenophon held a grand festival in honour of 
Artemis, the expenses of which were paid out of the 
tithe of the fruits of the property. It was a feast 
of great solemnity. Booths were erected for the 
visitors, and refreshments supplied at the expense of 
the landowner. The more solid portions of the 
entertainment were provided for by the Grand 
Hunt, on the occasion of which the guests previously 
mentioned had been specially invited. The first 
thing the party did after the early breakfast on the 
morning of the 21st was to visit the stables, which, 
as we have seen, formed a portion of an ancient 
Greek dwelling-house. Gryllus and Diodorus were 
the directors of the chase, and selected the company 
that was to join in the pursuit ; they themselves 
rode, the majority of sportsmen going a-foot. As 
the horses were led out of the stables they were 
pronounced fine animals, with their strong limbs, 
small heads, glistening eyes, and round solid hoofs 
as hard as flint. As the practice of shoeing was un- 
known in those days, a good hoof was most indis- 
pensable in a horse. By the marks in their teeth 
the ages of the animals were rising five.’" They 
had been bred and broken under Xenophon’s in- 
structions. When Gryllus’s steed was brought out 
he showed signs of restiveness. “ That’s what I 
like ! ” joyously said the youth, “I want something to 
conquer.” Upon this he vaulted on its bare back 
with the activity of a practised athlete, while the 
horse reared and plunged in a fashion of his own. 
“ By Equestrian Neptune ! ” cried Gryllus, “ but I 
will tame you ! ” “ Hold them ! ” called out his 
father, with the decision of a commander of cavalry ; 
“ do you not see that the animal is frightened 1 You 
must exercise patient forbearance, not violent oppo- 
sition.” Saying this the old soldier went quietly 
up to the animal, and, seizing the bridle, stroked 
him gently on the neck and head, using soothing 
words, which by degrees dissipated the animal’s 
fears, and induced him to a willing submission. 
* It is dear, from Xenophon’s “ Treatise on Horseman- 
ship,” that the ancient Greeks knew how to judge of the 
age of a horse from his teeth. 
