ATT 
law, it was immediately engraven on tablets, that the mem¬ 
bers when they came next might be prepared to I'pealc to 
it. At the fubfeqitent allembly the epilhites opened the 
matter, after which every fenator that pleafed delivered 
Jiis fentinients ; then any of the prytaneans drew up the 
decree, and repeated it aloud : after which they proceed¬ 
ed to vote, and, if there was a majority of white beans, 
then it became pfephifma , and was afterwards propounded 
to the people : if they approved it, it became a law ; o- 
therwife it was of no force longer than the fenate who de¬ 
creed it fubfifted. The power of the fenate was very 
great : for they took the account of the niagiftrates at the 
expiration of their offices; they directed the provifions 
made for poor citizens out of the public treafure; they 
had the fuperintendency of public prifons, and a power 
of punifliing Inch as committed afts morally evil, though 
not prohibited by any law ; they had the care likewife of 
tfite fleet ; and betides all thefe they had many other 
branches of authority, which it is not neceftary for us to 
mention. Before they took their feats, they were con¬ 
firm ned to undergo a very ftrift examination, wherein the 
whole courfe of their lives was inquired into ; and, if the 
lead dur on their reputation appeared, they were fet adde. 
When this examination was over, they took an oath, w here¬ 
by they bound themfelves to promote in all their coitnfels 
the public good, to advife nothing contrary to the Jaws, 
and to execute their functions exactly. The highed fine 
the fenate could impofe was 500 drachms ; if they thought 
the offender deferved a heavier mulct, they then tranf- 
mitted the caule to the thefmothetre, who puniffied them 
as they thought fit. The fenators, when their year was 
out, gave an account of their management to the people : 
but, that they might have the lei’s to do, they always pu- 
nifhed Inch of their number as they found had offended 
by expullion; and in this they were mighty exa£f. Yet 
an expelled fenator was notwithftanding eligible to any 
other office, the molt trivial omiflion being fufficient to 
occalion a difiniffion from the fenatorial dignity ; and there¬ 
fore, when the tribes chofe their fenators, they alfo chofe 
a certain number of fubfidiaries, out of which, when a 
fenator was expelled, another was fubftituted in his place. 
Each fenator was allowed a drachm every day ; for it was 
a conftant rule with the Athenians, that the public ought 
to pay for every man’s time ; and therefore fuch of the 
poor Athenians as thought fit to demand it, had three 
oboli for going to the alfembly. If during their adminif- 
tration any (hips of war were built, the fenators had crowns 
decreed them ; but, if not, they were forbid to fue for 
them. Next to the fenate was the court of Areopagus, 
for a defeription of which fee that article. 
The chief magiftrates of Athens were archons, and in¬ 
ferior to them there were many others ; of whom it will 
be necelfary to mention fome. In the firft place they had 
nomophylaces, who were alfo called the eleven, becaufe 
they were fo many in number, one chofen out of each 
tribe, and a clerk or fecretary who made up the eleventh. 
Their duty was to look to the execution of the laws : they 
had authority to feize robbers and other capital offenders; 
and, if they confelfed, to put them to death. Dr. Potter 
thinks they refembled our ffierifts. The phylarchi were 
the prefidents of the Athenian tribes ; but in time this be¬ 
came a military title. The philobafelius was an officer in 
each tribe, who did the fame things within his.jurifdifilion 
as the bafileus did with refpedt to the ftate. The demarchi 
were the principal magiftrates in wards. The lexarchi 
were fix in number, and were bound to take care that the 
people came duly to the affemblies : in their cuftody was 
the public regiffer of the citizens names. They had under 
them toxota, who were lirtors or bailiffs ; they were 
fometimes 1000 in number ; thefe men were necelfary ; 
but, like molt of their fort, were in a manner infamous, 
as may be gathered from the comedies of Ariftophanes ; 
they were generally Scythians, raw-boned brawny fel¬ 
lows, ready to execute whatever they were commanded. 
1 he nomothetje were 1000 in number; their bu fine Is was 
Vol. II. No. 87, 
I C A. 
to watch over and infpeft into the laws. There were two 
forts of orators in the fervice of the ftate. Some were 
appointed to defend an old law, when a motion was made 
to repeal it; thefe had their fee from the ftate, but the 
fame man was incapable of being elected twice. Belides 
thefe, there were ten fettled orators called rketcres, elett¬ 
ed by lot; their bufinefs was to plead public caufes in the 
fenate-houfe. For this they had their (fated fees; and, with 
refpett to their qualifications, the law ran thus : “ Let 
no one be a public orator who hath (truck his parents, de¬ 
nied them rnaintainan'ce, or ftiut them out of his doors ; 
who hath refufed to. ferve in the army ; who hath thrown 
away his fliield ; who hath been additted fo lewd women, 
notorioufly effeminate, or hath run out his,patrimony. If 
any man who hath been guilty of thefe crimes dare to de¬ 
liver an oration, let him be brought to trial on the fpot. 
Let an orator have children lawfully begotten, and an ef- 
tate within Attica ; if in his oration lie talks impertinently, 
makes idle repetitions, aff'eCfs an unbecoming raillery, 
digreifies from the point in queftion, or, after the affeinbly 
is over, abides the prefident, let the proedr; fine him fifty 
drachms ; and, if that is not thought enough, let hint be 
brought before the next affemhly and fined again.” 
We dial! conclude this draught of the Athenian govern¬ 
ment with an account of their courts of juftice, which, 
exclufive of the areopagus, were ten in number ; four 
had cogitifance of criminal and fix of civil caufes. Thefe 
ten courts were numbered with the ten firft letters of the 
alphabet, and were thence lived, alpha, beta, gamma, &c. 
When an Athenian was at leilure to hear caufes, lie wrote 
his own name, that of his father, and the ward to which 
he belonged, upon a tablet; this he prefented to the thef- 
mothetac, who returned it again to him with another tab¬ 
let, with the letter which fell to his lot ; then he went to 
the crier of the court, who prefented him a feeptre, and 
gave him admiffion. When the caufes were over, every 
judge went and delivered his feeptre to the prytanes, and 
received a dated fee for every caufe that was tried. But 
as this was intended only to compenfate their lofs of time, 
fo that there might be no appearance of covetoufnefs, a 
man was forbid to lit in two courts on the fame day. The 
firft criminal court after the areopagus was that of the 
ephetee. It conlifted of fiity-ene members, all upwards of 
fifty-one years old. Draco gave it a very extenlive jurif- 
didlion ; but Solon took away from them the power of 
judging in any other caufes than thofe of manflaughfer, 
accidental killing, and lying in wait to deftroy : the bafi¬ 
leus entered all caufes in this court. The fecond criminal 
court was called delphinium, becaufe it was held in the 
temple of Apollo Delphinius ; it had cognifance of fuch 
murders as were confelfed by the criminal, but at the fame 
time juftified under fome pretence or other. The prylaneum 
was the third criminal court. It held plea of fuch cafes 
where death enfued from inanimate things : caufes were 
heard here with the fame f’olemnity as in other courts ; 
and, on judgment given, the thing, whatever it was, that 
had occafioned the death of the man, was thrown out of 
the territory of Athens. The laft criminal court was 
ftyled pkreatum. It fat in a place not far from the fea- 
fhore ; and fuch perfons were brought before this court 
as had committed murders in their own country and fled 
to Attica : the proceedings of this court were fo fevere, 
that they did not permit the criminal to tome on fhore, 
but obliged him to plead his caufe in his veffel ; and if he 
was found guilty, he was committed to the mercy of the 
u inds and feas. 
Of the judicatures for hearing civil caufes, the firft was 
the parabaflon, fo called as fome think, becaufe in it no 
matter could be heard if the caufe of aftion was above 
one drachm. The caniov , or new court, was the fecond 
tribunal. The third was ftyled t he court of Iycus, becaufe it 
aflembled in a temple dedicated to that hero, whole flatus, 
reprefented with the face of a wolf, was fet up in all 
courts of juftice. The trigovon was fo called, becaufe it 
was triangular in its form. The court metidius derived its 
6 X appellation 
