Polity Athenians and Lacedaemonians Part 8

(1) I.e. "the Thirty." See "Ages." i. 7; "h.e.l.l." III. iv. 2; Plut.

"Ages." 6 (Clough, iv. 6); Aristot. "Pol." ii. 9, 29.

(2) For these {oi omoioi}, see "Cyrop." I. v. 5; "h.e.l.l." III. iii. 5.

(3) Lit. "supplies and necessaries."

But I will resume at a somewhat higher point and describe the manner in which the king sets out on an expedition. As a preliminary step, before leaving home he offers sacrifice (in company with (4) his staff) to Zeus Agetor (the Leader), and if the victims prove favourable then and there the priest, (5) who bears the sacred fire, takes thereof from off the altar and leads the way to the boundaries of the land. Here for the second time the king does sacrifice (6) to Zeus and Athena; and as soon as the offerings are accepted by those two divinities he steps across the boundaries of the land. And all the while the fire from those sacrifices leads the way, and is never suffered to go out. Behind follow beasts for sacrifice of every sort.

(4) Lit. reading {kai oi sun auto}, after L. Dindorf, "he and those with him."

(5) Lit. "the Purphuros." See Nic. Damasc. ap. Stob. "Fl." 44, 41; Hesych. ap. Schneider, n. ad loc.

(6) These are the {diabateria}, so often mentioned in the "h.e.l.lenica."

Invariably when he offers sacrifice the king begins the work in the gloaming ere the day has broken, being minded to antic.i.p.ate the goodwill of the G.o.d. And round about the place of sacrifice are present the polemarchs and captains, the lieutenants and sub-lieutenants, with the commandants of the baggage train, and any general of the states (7) who may care to a.s.sist. There, too, are to be seen two of the ephors, who neither meddle nor make, save only at the summons of the king, yet have they their eyes fixed on the proceedings of each one there and keep all in order, (8) as may well be guessed. When the sacrifices are accomplished the king summons all and issues his orders (9) as to what has to be done. And all with such method that, to witness the proceedings, you might fairly suppose the rest of the world to be but bungling experimenters, (10) and the Lacedaemonians alone true handicraftsmen in the art of soldiering.

(7) I.e. "allied"? or "perioecid"?

(8) {sophronizousin}, "keep every one in his sober senses."

(9) See Thuc. v. 66.

(10) {autoskhediastai, tekhnitai}. See Jebb, "Theophr." x. 3.

Anon the king puts himself at the head of the troops, and if no enemy appears he heads the line of march, no one preceding him except the Sciritae, and the mounted troopers exploring in front. (11) If, however, there is any reason to antic.i.p.ate a battle, the king takes the leading column of the first army corps (12) and wheels to the right until he has got into position with two army corps and two generals of division on either flank. The disposition of the supports is a.s.signed to the eldest of the royal council (13) (or staff corps) acting as brigadier--the staff consisting of all peers who share the royal mess and quarters, with the soothsayers, surgeons, (14) and pipers, whose place is in the front of the troops, (15) with, finally, any volunteers who happen to be present. So that there is no check or hesitation in anything to be done; every contingency is provided for.

(11) Or, "who are on scouting duty. If, however, they expect a battle," etc.

(12) Technically, "mora."

(13) {ton peri damosian}. See "h.e.l.l." IV. v. 8; vii. 4.

(14) See "Anab." III. iv. 30; "Cyrop." I. vi. 15; L. Dindorf, n. ad loc.

(15) Schneider refers to Polyaenus, i. 10.

The following details also seem to me of high utility among the inventions of Lycurgus with a view to the final arbitrament of battle.

Whensoever, the enemy being now close enough to watch the proceedings, (16) the goat is sacrificed; then, says the law, let all the pipers, in their places, play upon the pipes, and let every Lacedaemonian don a wreath. Then, too, so runs the order, let the s.h.i.+elds be brightly polished. The privilege is accorded to the young man to enter battle with his long locks combed. (17) To be of cheery countenance--that, too, is of good repute. Onwards they pa.s.s the word of command to the subaltern (18) in command of his section, since it is impossible to hear along the whole of each section from the particular subaltern posted on the outside. It devolves, finally, on the polemarch to see that all goes well.

(16) See Plut. "Lycurg." 22 (Clough, i. 114); and for the goat sacrificed to Artemis Agrotera, see "h.e.l.l." IV. ii. 20; Pause. IX.

xiii. 4; Plut. "Marcell." 22 (Clough, ii. 264).

(17) See Plut. "Lycurg." 22 (Clough, i. 114). The pa.s.sage is corrupt, and possibly out of its place. I cite the words as they run in the MSS. with various proposed emendations. See Schneider, n. ad loc.

{exesti de to neo kai kekrimeno eis makhen sunienai kai phaidron einai kai eudokimon. kai parakeleuontai de k.t.l.} Zeune, {kekrimeno komen}, after Plut. "Lycurg." 22. Weiske, {kai komen diakekrimeno}. Cobet, {exesti de to neo liparo kai tas komas diakekrimeno eis makhen ienai}.

(18) Lit. "to the enomotarch."

When the right moment for encamping has come, the king is responsible for that, and has to point out the proper place. The despatch of emissaries, however, whether to friends or to foes, is (not) (19) the king's affair. Pet.i.tioners in general wis.h.i.+ng to transact anything treat, in the first instance, with the king. If the case concerns some point of justice, the king despatches the pet.i.tioner to the h.e.l.lanodikai (who form the court-martial); if of money, to the paymasters. (20) If the pet.i.tioner brings booty, he is sent off to the Laphuropolai (or sellers of spoil). This being the mode of procedure, no other duty is left to the king, whilst he is on active service, except to play the part of priest in matters concerning the G.o.ds and of commander-in-chief in his relations.h.i.+p to men. (21)

(19) The MSS. give {au}, "is again," but the word {mentoi}, "however,"

and certain pa.s.sages in "h.e.l.l." II. ii. 12, 13; II. iv. 38 suggest the negative {ou} in place of {au}. If {au} be right, then we should read {eph.o.r.en} in place of {basileos}, "belongs to the ephors."

(20) Technically the {tamiai}.

(21) See Aristot. "Pol." iii. 14.

XIV (1)

Now, if the question be put to me, Do you maintain that the laws of Lycurgus remain still to this day unchanged? that indeed is an a.s.sertion which I should no longer venture to maintain; knowing, as I do, that in former times the Lacedaemonians preferred to live at home on moderate means, content to a.s.sociate exclusively with themselves rather than to play the part of governor-general (2) in foreign states and to be corrupted by flattery; knowing further, as I do, that formerly they dreaded to be detected in the possession of gold, whereas nowadays there are not a few who make it their glory and their boast to be possessed of it. I am very well aware that in former days alien acts (3) were put in force for this very object. To live abroad was not allowed. And why?

Simply in order that the citizens of Sparta might not take the infection of dishonesty and light-living from foreigners; whereas now I am very well aware that those who are reputed to be leading citizens have but one ambition, and that is to live to the end of their days as governors-general on a foreign soil. (4) The days were when their sole anxiety was to fit themselves to lead the rest of h.e.l.las. But nowadays they concern themselves much more to wield command than to be fit themselves to rule. And so it has come to pa.s.s that whereas in old days the states of h.e.l.las flocked to Lacedaemon seeking her leaders.h.i.+p (5) against the supposed wrongdoer, now numbers are inviting one another to prevent the Lacedaemonians again recovering their empire. (6) Yet, if they have incurred all these reproaches, we need not wonder, seeing that they are so plainly disobedient to the G.o.d himself and to the laws of their own lawgiver Lycurgus.

(1) For the relation of this chapter to the rest of the treatise, see Grote, ix. 325; Ern. Naumann, "de Xen. libro qui" {LAK. POLITEIA} inscribitur, p. 18 foll.; Newmann, "Pol. Aristot." ii. 326.

(2) Harmosts.

(3) "Xenelasies," {xenelasiai} technically called. See Plut. "Lycurg."

27; "Agis," 10; Thuc. ii. 39, where Pericles contrasts the liberal spirit of the democracy with Spartan exclusiveness; "Our city is thrown open to the world, and we never expel a foreigner or prevent him from seeing or learning anything of which the secret, if revealed to an enemy, might profit him."--Jowett, i. 118.

(4) Lit. "harmosts"; and for the taste of living abroad, see what is said of Dercylidas, "h.e.l.l." IV. iii. 2. The harmosts were not removed till just before Leuctra (371 B.C.), "h.e.l.l." VI. iv. 1, and after, see Paus. VIII. lii. 4; IX. lxiv.

(5) See Plut. "Lycurg." 30 (Clough, i. 124).

(6) This pa.s.sage would seem to fix the date of the chapter xiv. as about the time of the Athenian confederacy of 378 B.C.; "h.e.l.l." V.

iv. 34; "Rev." v. 6. See also Isocr. "Panegyr." 380 B.C.; Grote, "H. G." ix. 325. See the text of a treaty between Athens, Chios, Mytilene, and Byzantium; Kohler, "Herm." v. 10; Rangabe, "Antiq.

h.e.l.len." ii. 40, 373; Naumann, op. cit. 26.

XV

I wish to explain with sufficient detail the nature of the covenant between king and state as inst.i.tuted by Lycurgus; for this, I take it, is the sole type of rule (1) which still preserves the original form in which it was first established; whereas other const.i.tutions will be found either to have been already modified or else to be still undergoing modifications at this moment.

(1) Or, "magistracy"; the word {arkhe} at once signifies rule and governmental office.

Lycurgus laid it down as law that the king shall offer in behalf of the state all public sacrifices, as being himself of divine descent, (2) and whithersoever the state shall despatch her armies the king shall take the lead. He granted him to receive honorary gifts of the things offered in sacrifice, and he appointed him choice land in many of the provincial cities, enough to satisfy moderate needs without excess of wealth. And in order that the kings also might camp and mess in public he appointed them public quarters; and he honoured them with a double portion (3) each at the evening meal, not in order that they might actually eat twice as much as others, but that the king might have wherewithal to honour whomsoever he desired. He also granted as a gift to each of the two kings to choose two mess-fellows, which same are called Puthioi. He also granted them to receive out of every litter of swine one pig, so that the king might never be at a loss for victims if in aught he wished to consult the G.o.ds.

(2) I.e. a Heracleid, in whichever line descended, and, through Heracles, from Zeus himself. The kings are therefore "heroes,"

i.e. demiG.o.ds. See below; and for their privileges, see Herod. vi.

56, 57.

(3) See "Ages." v. 1.

Close by the palace a lake affords an unrestricted supply of water; and how useful that is for various purposes they best can tell who lack the luxury. (4) Moreover, all rise from their seats to give place to the king, save only that the ephors rise not from their thrones of office.

Monthly they exchange oaths, the ephors in behalf of the state, the king himself in his own behalf. And this is the oath on the king's part: "I will exercise my kings.h.i.+p in accordance with the established laws of the state." And on the part of the state the oath runs: "So long as he (5) (who exercises kings.h.i.+p) shall abide by his oaths we will not suffer his kingdom to be shaken." (6)

(4) See Hartman, "An. Xen. N." p. 274; but cf. "Cyneget." v. 34; "Anab." V. iii. 8.