were buried in all ages, those who had lost their lives in the field, except the warriors of Marathon, who, to immortalize their rare valour, were interred in the field of battle. Earth was afterwards laid over them, and then one of the citizens of the greatest distinction pronounced their funeral oration. Pericles was now appointed to exercise this honourable office. When the ceremony was ended, he went from the sepulchre to the tribunal, in order to be the better heard, and spoke the oration, the whole of which Thucydides has transmitted to us. Whether it was really composed by Pericles, or by the historian, we may affirm that it is truly worthy the reputation of both these great men, as well for the noble simplicity of the style, as for the just beauty of the thoughts, and the greatness of the sentiments which shine in every part of it. *After having paid, in so solemn a manner, this double tribute of tears and applauses, to the memory of those brave soldiers who had sacrificed their lives to defend the liberties of their country; the public who did not confine their gratitude to empty ceremonies and tears, maintained their widows, and all their infant orphans. This was a powerful † incentive to animate the courage of the citizens; for great men are formed where merit is best rewarded.

About the close of the same campaign, the Athenians concluded an alliance with Sitacles, king of the Odrysians in Thrace; and in consequence of this treaty his son was admitted a citizen of Athens. They also made an accommodation with Perdiccas, king of Macedonia, by restoring him the city of Thermæ ; after which they joined their forces, in order to carry on the war in Chalcis.

SECTION II.

THE PLAGUE MAKES DREADFUL HAVOC IN ATTICA, &c. &c.

THIRD YEARS OF THE WAR.

SECOND AND

IN the beginning of the second campaign, ‡ the enemy made an incursion into the country as before, and laid it waste. But the plague made a much greater devastation in Athens; the like having never been known. It is related that it began in Ethiopia, whence it descended into Egypt, from thence spread over Lybia, and a great part of Persia; and at last broke at once, like a flood, upon Athens. Thucydides, who himself was seized with that deadly disease, has described very minutely the several circumstances and symptoms of it, in order, says he, that a faithful and exact relation of this calamity may serve as an instruction to posterity, in case the like should ever happen. Hippocrates, who was employed to visit the sick, has also described it in a medical, and & Lucretius in a poetical way. This pestilence baffled the utmost efforts of art; the most robust constitutions were unable to withstand its attacks; and the greatest care and skill of the physicians were a feeble help to those who were infected. The instant a person was seized, he was struck with despair, which quite disabled him from attempting a cure. The assistance that was given them was ineffectual, and proved mortal to all such of their relations as had the courage to approach them. The prodigious quantity of baggage, which had been removed out of the country into the city, proved very noxious. Most of the inhabi

*Thucyd. 1. ii. p. 130.

† Αθλα γαρ οις κείται αρετής μέγιςα, τοις δε και ανδρες πολιτευουσι.

A. M. 3574. Ant. J. C. 430. Thucyd. l. ii. p. 13-147. Diod. p. 101, 102. Plut. in Pericl. p. 171.

Epidem. I. iii. c. 3.

§ Lib. ii. c. 47.

CHAP. III.

PERSIANS AND GRECIANS.

131

tants, for want of lodging, lived in little cottages, in which they could scarce breathe, during the raging heat of the summer, so that they were seen either piled one upon the other, the dead as well as those who were dying, or else crawling through the streets; or lying along by the side of fountains, to which they had dragged themselves, to quench the raging thirst which consumed them. The very temples were filled with dead bodies, and every part of the city exhibited a dreadful image of death; without the least remedy for the present, or the least hopes with regard to futurity. * The plague, before it spread into Attica, had made wild havoc in Persia. Artaxerxes, who had been informed of the mighty reputation of Hippocrates of Cos, the greatest physician of that or any other age, caused his governours to write to him, to invite him into his dominions, in order that he might prescribe to those who were infected. The king made him the most advantageous offers; setting no bounds to his rewards on the side The reader has already been of interest, and with regard to honours, promising to make him equal with the most considerable persons in his court. told the prodigious regard which was shown to the Grecian physicians in Persia; and indeed was it possible that so useful a man as Hippocrates could be too well rewarded? However, all the glitter of the Persian riches and dignities were not capable to corrupt him, nor stifle the hatred and aversion which was become natural to the Greeks for the Persians, ever since the latter had invaded them. This great physician therefore sent no other answer but this, that he was free from either wants or desires; that he owed all his cares to his fellow-citizens and countrymen; and was under no obligation to barbarians, the declared enemies of Greece. Kings Artaxerxes, therefore, in the highest transports are not used to denials. of rage, sent to the city of Cos, the native place of Hippocrates, and where he was at that time, commanding them to deliver up to him that insolent wretch, in order that he might be brought to condign punishment; and threatening, in case they refused, to lay waste their city and island in such a manner, that not the least footsteps of it should remain. However, the inhabitants of Cos were not under the least terror. They made answer, that the menaces of Darius and Xerxes had not been able to prevail with them to give them earth and water, or to obey their orders; that Artaxerxes' threats would be equally impotent; that, let what would be the consequence, they would never give up their fellow-citizen; and that they depended upon the protection of the gods.

Hippocrates had said in one of his letters, that he owed himself entirely to his country. And indeed the instant he was sent for to Athens, he went thither, and did not once stir out of the city till the plague was quite ceased. He devoted himself entirely to the service of the sick; and to multiply himself, as it were, he sent several of his disciples into all parts of the country; after having instructed them in what manner to treat their patients, The Athenians were struck with the deepest sense of gratitude for this genThey therefore ordained, by a public decree, erous care of Hippocrates. that Hippocrates should be initiated in the most exalted mysteries, in the same manner as Hercules the son of Jupiter; that a crown of gold should be presented him, of the value of 1000 staters, † amounting to 500 pistoles French money; and that the decree by which it was granted him should be read aloud by a herald in the public games, on the solemn festi

* Hippocrat. in Epist.

The Attic stater was a gold coin weighing two drachms. It is the original χρυσών χιλίων.

val of Panathenæa: that the freedom of the city should be given him, and himself be maintained at the public charge in the Prytaneum all his lifetime, in case he thought proper: in fine, that the children of all the people of Cos, whose city had given birth to so great a man, might be maintained and brought up in Athens, in the same manner as if they had been born there.

In the mean time the enemy having marched into Attica, came down towards the coast, and advancing still forward, laid waste the whole country. Pericles still adhering to the maxim he had established, not to expose the safety of the state to the hazard of a battle, would not suffer his troops to sally out of the city: however, before the enemy left the plains, he sailed to Peloponnesus with 100 galleys, in order to hasten their retreat by his making so powerful a diversion; and after having made a dreadful havoc, as he had done the first year, he returned into the city. The plague was still there as well as in the fleet, and it spread to those troops that were besieging Potidæa.

66

:

The campaign being thus ended, the Athenians, who saw their country depopulated by two great scourges, war and pestilence, began to despond, and to murmur against Pericles; considering him as the author of all their calamities, as he had involved them in that fatal war. They then sent a deputation to Lacedæmonia, to obtain if possible, an accommodation by some means or other, firmly resolved to make whatever concessions should be demanded of them: however, the ambassadors returned back without being able to obtain any terms. Complaints and murmurs now broke out afresh; and the whole city was in such a trouble and confusion, as seemed to prognosticate the worst of evils. Pericles, in the midst of this universal consternation, could not forbear assembling the people; and endeavoured to soften, and at the same time to encourage them, by justifying himself. "The reasons," says he, "which determined you to undertake "this war, and which you approved at that time, are still the same; and are not changed by the alteration of circumstances, which neither you nor myself could foresee. Had it been left to your option to make "choice of peace or war, the former would certainly have been the more "eligible but as there was no other means for preserving your liberty, "but by drawing the sword, was it possible for you to hesitate? If we are "citizens, who truly love our country, will our private misfortunes make us neglect the common welfare of the state? Every man feels the evil "which afflicts him, because it is present; but no one is sensible of the good which will result from it, because it is not come. Have you forgot "the strength and grandeur of your empire? Of the two parts which form "this globe of ours, viz. the land and sea, you have absolute possession of "the latter; and no king or any other power is able to oppose your fleets. "It is now your duty to preserve this glory and this empire, or to resign it " for ever. Be not therefore grieved because you are deprived of a few 66 country houses and gardens, which ought to be considered no otherwise "than as the frame of the picture, though you would seem to make them "the picture itself. Consider, that if you do but preserve your liberty, 66 you will easily recover them; but that should you suffer yourselves to be "deprived of this blessing, you will lose every valuable possession with "it. Do not show less generosity than your ancestors, who, for the sake "of preserving it, abandoned even their city; and who, though they had not inherited such a glory from their ancestors, yet suffered the worst of evils, and engaged in the most perilous enterprises, to transmit it to you. I will confess that your present calamities are exceedingly grievous, and

"I myself, am duly sensible and deeply afflicted for them. But is it just "in you to exclaim against your general, merely for an accident that was "not to be diverted by all the prudence of man; and to make him respon"sible for an event, in which he has not the least concern? We must sub"mit patiently to those evils which heaven inflicts upon us, and vigorous"ly oppose such as arise from our fellow creatures. As to the hatred and "jealousy which attend on your prosperity, they are the usual lot of all "who believe themselves worthy of commanding. However, hatred and envy are not long lived, but the glory that accompanies exalted actions "is immortal. Revolve therefore perpetually in your minds how shameful " and ignominious it is for men to bow the neck to their enemies, and how glorious it is to triumph over them; and then, animated by this double "reflection, march on to danger with joy and intrepidity, and do not "crouch so tamely in vain to the Lacedæmonians; and call to mind, that "those who display the greatest bravery and resolution in dangers, acquire "the most esteem and applause."

66

66

The motives of honour and fame, the remembrance of the great actions of their ancestors, the soothing title of sovereigns of Greece, and above all the jealousy of Sparta, the ancient and perpetual rival of Athens, were the usual motives which Pericles employed to influence and animate the Athenians, and had hitherto never failed of success. But on this occasion, the sense of the present evils prevailed over every other consideration, and stifled all other thoughts. The Athenians indeed did not design to sue the Lacedæmonians any more for peace, but the sight and presence only of Pericles was insupportable to them. They therefore deprived him of the command of the army, and sentenced him to pay a fine, which, according to some historians, amounted to 15 talents,* and according to others 50.

However, this public disgrace of Pericles was not to be very lasting. The anger of the people was appeased by the first effort, and had spent itself in this injurious treatment of him, as the bee leaves its sting in the wound. But he was not now so happy with regard to his domestic evils; for, besides his having lost a great number of his friends and relations by the pestilence, feuds and divisions had long reigned in his family. Xanthippus, his eldest son, who was himself extremely profuse, and had married a young wife no less extravagant, could not bear his father's exact economy, who allowed him but a very small sum for his pleasures. This made him borrow money in his father's name. When the lender demanded his debt of Pericles, he not only refused to pay, but even prosecuted him for it. Xanthippus was so enraged, that he inveighed in the most heinous terms against his father, exclaiming against him in all places, and ridiculing openly the assemblies he held at his house, and his conferences with the Sophists. He did not know that a son, though treated unjustly, which was far otherwise in his case, ought to submit patiently to the injustice of his father, as a citizen is obliged to suffer that of his country.

The plague carried off Xanthippus. At the same time Pericles lost his sister with many of his relations and best frieuds, whose assistance he most wanted in the administration. But he did not sink under these losses; his strength of mind was not shaken by them; and he was not seen to weep or show the usual marks of sorrow at the grave of any of his relations till the death of Paralus, the last of his legitimate children. That rude stroke quite amazed him, though he did his utmost to preserve his

*15 or 50,000 French crowns.

But

usual tranquility, and not show any outward symptoms of sorrow. when he was to put the crown of flowers upon the head of his dead son, he could not support the cruel spectacle, nor stifle the transports of his grief which forced its way in cries, in sobs, and a flood of tears.

Pericles, misled by the principles of a false philosophy, imagined, that bewailing the death of his relations and children, would betray a weakness that no way suited the greatness of soul he had ever shown; and that on this occasion, the sensibility of the father would sully the glory of the conqueror. Exceeding error! childish illusion! which either makes heroism consist in wild and savage cruelty, or, leaving the same grief and confusion in the mind, assumes a vain outside of constancy and resolution, merely to be admired. But does martial bravery extinguish nature? Is a man dead to all human sentiments because he makes a considerable figure in the state? Antoninus the emperor, had a much juster way of think ing, when, on occasion of Marcus Aurelius' lamenting the death of the person who had brought him up, he said, "Suffer him to be a man, for neither philosophy nor sovereignty renders us insensible.*"

Fickleness and inconstancy were the prevailing characters of the Athenians; and as these carried them on a sudden to the greatest excesses, they soon brought them back again within the bounds of moderation and gentleness. It was not long before they repented the injury they had done Pericles, and earnestly wished to see him again in their assemblies. By dint of suffering they began to bear patiently their domestic misfortunes, and to be fired more and more with a zeal for their country's glory; and in their ardour for re-instating its affairs, they did not know any person more capable than Pericles of the administration. Pericles at that time never stirred out of his house, and was in the utmost grief for the loss he had sustained. However, Alcibiades and the rest of his friends entreated him to go abroad, and show himself in public. The people asked him pardon for their ungrateful usage of him; and Pericles, moved with their entreaties, and persuaded that it did not become a good man to harbour the least resentment against his country, resumed the govern

ment.

About the end of the second campaign, some ambassadors had set out from Lacedæmon, in order to solicit the king of Persia's alliance, and engage him to furnish a sum of money for maintaining the fleet. This reflected great ignominy on the Lacedæmonians, who called themselves the deliverers of Greece, since they thereby retracted or sullied the glorious actions they had formerly achieved in her defence against Persia. They went by the way of Thrace, in order to disengage, if possible, Sitacles from the alliance of the Athenians, and prevail with him to succour Potidæa. But, they here met with some Athenian ambassadors, who caused them to be arrested as disturbers of the public peace, and afterwards to be sent to Athens, where, without suffering them to be heard, they were put to death the same day, and their bodies thrown into the open fields, by way of reprisal on the Lacedæmonians, who treated all who were not of their party in the same inhuman manner. It is scarce possible to conceive how two cities, which a little before were so strongly united, and ought to have showed a mutual civility and forbearance for each other, could contract so inveterate an hatred, and break into such cruel acts of violence, as infringe all the laws of war, humanity, and nations; and prompted them

* Permitte illi ut homo sit: neque enim vel philosophia vel imperium tollit afffectus. Jul. Capitol. in vit. Antonini Pii.