Plutarch's Lives Volume II Part 6

Cato in his earlier days, being a poor man, and always employed in service in the field, never complained of any thing that he ate, and thought it most disgraceful to quarrel with his servant for not having pleased his palate. Subsequently, however, as he became richer, he used to invite his friends and colleagues to dinner, and after the repast was wont to punish with the scourge those servants who had made mistakes or cooked the food badly. He always endeavoured to establish some quarrel amongst his slaves, so that they might plot against one another, instead of combining against himself; and when any of them appeared to have committed any crime deserving to be punished by death, the offender was formally tried, and if found guilty, was put to death in the presence of all his fellow-servants.

As Cato grew more eager to make money, he declared that farming was more an amus.e.m.e.nt than a source of income, and preferred investing his money in remunerative undertakings, such as marshes that required draining, hot springs, establishments for was.h.i.+ng and cleaning clothes, land which would produce an income by pasturage or by the sale of wood, and the like, which afforded him a considerable revenue, and one which, as he said, not Jupiter himself could injure, meaning that he was not dependent upon the weather for his income, as farmers are. He also used to deal in marine a.s.surance, which is thought to be a most dangerous form of investment, which he managed in the following manner. For the sake of security he made those who wished to borrow money form themselves into an a.s.sociation of fifty persons, representing as many s.h.i.+ps, and held one share in the undertaking himself, which was managed by his freedman Quintio, who himself used to sail in the s.h.i.+ps of the a.s.sociation and transact their mercantile business.

He used to lend money to his slaves, if they desired it. They used with the money to buy young slaves, teach them a trade at Cato's expense for a year, and then dispose of them. Many of these Cato retained in his own service, paying the price offered by the highest bidder, and deducting from it the original cost of the slave. When endeavouring to encourage his son to act in a similar manner, he used to say that it was not the part of a man, but of a lone woman, to diminish one's capital; and once, with an excessive exaggeration, he said that the most glorious and G.o.dlike man was he who on his death was found to have earned more than he inherited.

XXII. When he was an old man, Karneades the academic, and Diogenes the stoic philosopher, came as amba.s.sadors to Rome on the part of the Athenians, to beg that they might not be forced to pay a fine of five hundred talents which had been imposed upon them in consequence of an action at law, brought against the Athenians by the people of Oropus, before the people of Sikyon as judges, having been allowed to go against them by default. Such of the Roman youths as had any taste for literature frequented the society of these men, and took great interest in hearing their discussions. They were especially delighted with Karneades, a man of great and recognised ability, who obtained large and enthusiastic audiences at his lectures, and filled the whole city with his fame. Nothing was talked of except how a single Greek with wonderful powers of eloquence and persuasion had so bewitched the youth of Rome that they forsook all other pleasures, and plunged wildly into philosophic speculations. The greater part of the citizens were well pleased with this, and looked on with great satisfaction at their sons' study of Greek literature, and their intimacy with such celebrated men; but Cato, when the taste for philosophy first sprang up in Rome, was vexed at it, and feared that the young men might become more eager to gain distinction by fluent speaking than by warlike exploits. However, when the fame of the philosophers increased, and a distinguished man, Caius Acilius, at the general request, translated their first lectures to the Senate, Cato decided that the philosophers must at once be conducted with all due honours out of the city. He came to the Senate and made a speech, in which he blamed them for having allowed an emba.s.sy to remain so long at Rome without accomplis.h.i.+ng its purpose, although nothing was easier than for it to gain its point. He called upon them therefore, to decide as soon as possible and come to a vote upon the matter about which this emba.s.sy was come, in order that these philosophers might return to their schools and instruct the young men of Greece, while those of Rome might, as before, give their attention to the laws and the magistrates.

XXIII. Cato acted thus, not as some writers imagine, from any private quarrel with Karneades, but because he disliked the philosophy altogether, and from a feeling of patriotism, regarded all Greek literature and methods of education with hatred and contempt. He used to say that Sokrates was a wordy and dangerous man, who endeavoured in his own way to make himself supreme in Athens, by destroying the best of the national customs and teaching the citizens to hold opinions at variance with the laws. He ridiculed Isokrates as a teacher of rhetoric, saying that his disciples stayed with him so long learning their profession, that they were only able to practice what they had learned in the court where Minos sat as judge in the next world. In his endeavours to dissuade his son from the study of Greek literature, he abused the privileges of old age so far as to utter a prophecy that the Romans would ruin their empire by too intimate an acquaintance with the arts of Greece. Time, however, has proved this to be a mere empty slander, seeing that since then Rome has risen to a wonderful height of power and glory, and yet is thoroughly familiar with Greek writings and studies. Cato not only disliked the Greek philosophers, but also looked with suspicion on the Greek physicians who then practised at Rome. He had heard some story about Hippokrates, who, when the king of Persia offered him a large sum of money if he would come to Persia, answered that he never would give his services to barbarians who were the enemies of Greece. Cato used to say that all Greek physicians had sworn an oath to act like Hippokrates, and warned his son never to have any dealings with any of them. He himself had a book full of recipes, according to which he used to physick and regulate the diet of any who fell sick in his house, being careful never to allow the patient to fast, but making him eat salad, with ducks, pigeons, and hares, which he said were light food, and suitable for sick persons, except that it often happened that those who ate of them suffered from nightmares. He used to declare that by following this regimen, he kept both himself and all his household in perfect health.

XXIV. He seems to have been justly rewarded for his quackery, for he lost both his wife and his son by sickness. He himself, however, being of an iron const.i.tution, made a second marriage, in spite of his advanced age, being led into it by the following circ.u.mstances. After the death of his wife he arranged a marriage between his son and the daughter of aemilius Paulus, who was the sister of Scipio. He himself meanwhile solaced himself by an intrigue with a maid-servant who visited him by stealth. However, in a small house with a daughter-in-law in it this could not be kept secret; and one day when this woman was insolently swaggering into his father's bedchamber, young Cato was observed by the old man to glance at her with bitter hatred and then turn away in disgust. As soon as Cato perceived that his conduct vexed his children, he said not a word, but went into the forum with his friends, as was his wont. Here one Salonius, who was one of his under-secretaries, met him and began to pay his respects to him, when Cato asked him in a loud voice whether he had provided a husband for his daughter. On the man's replying that he had not, and would not presume to do so without consulting him, Cato replied, "Well, I, by Jupiter, have found a very suitable person to marry her, unless his age be any objection: for he is very pa.s.sable in all respects except that he is very old." As Salonius upon this bade him carry out his intention and marry the girl to whomsoever he pleased, seeing that she was his client[31] and he was her patron, Cato without a moment's delay told him that he wished to marry the girl himself.

This proposal at first, as might be expected, astonished the secretary, who had thought that a man at Cato's time of life was very unlikely to marry, and had never dreamed that his humble family would be allied with a house which could boast of consulates and triumphs; but as he saw that Cato was in earnest he gladly accepted his offer.

While the preparations for the marriage were in progress, young Cato, taking his relatives with him, went and inquired of his father whether he had reproached or annoyed him in any way, that he was putting a mother-in-law over him. Cato at this question cried out aloud, "Hush, my son; I approve of all that you have done, and find no fault with you: I only desire to leave behind me more sons of my race, and more citizens to serve the state." It is said that this remark was first made by Peisistratus, the despot of Athens, when, although he had sons grown up, he married Timona.s.sa of Argos, by whom we are told that he had two sons, Iophon and Thessalus. Cato also had a son by his second marriage, whom he named Salonius after his mother. His eldest son died during his praetors.h.i.+p. Cato often mentions him in his writings as having been a brave and good man, but is said to have borne his loss with philosophic resignation, and to have taken as keen an interest in politics as before. He did not, as was afterwards done by Lucius Lucullus or Metellus Pius, abandon public life when he grew old, and think that it was a burden to take part in politics; still less did he imitate Scipio Africa.n.u.s, who some years before had proudly turned his back on the people who grudged him the glory he had won, and spent the rest of his life in ease and retirement. Some one is said to have told Dionysius of Syracuse that an absolute monarchy is the best thing for a man to die in, and so Cato seemed to think that political life was the best for him to grow old in, while he amused himself in his leisure moments by writing and farming.

XXV. He compiled works on various subjects, especially on history.

Farming he applied himself to when very young, on account of his poverty, for he himself tells us that he had only two sources of income, farming and frugality. In later life he derived both amus.e.m.e.nt and instruction from watching the operations of agriculture, and he has written a farmer's manual, in which there is even an account of how to cook cakes and preserve fruits, so desirous was he to show a thorough knowledge of every subject. His table was never so well served as when he was in the country; for he used to invite all his friends and acquaintances from the neighbourhood, and make himself very agreeable to them, as he was a pleasant companion not only to men of his own age, but also to the young, having in the course of his long life seen and heard from others much that was interesting and curious. He regarded the table as the best means of forming friends.h.i.+ps, and when dining used to praise the good without stint, but never would allow the names of worthless men to be mentioned, either by way of praise or blame, at his entertainments.

XXVI. The last of his political acts is said to have been the destruction of Carthage. This was actually brought to pa.s.s by Scipio the Younger, but it was chiefly owing to the counsels of Cato that the war was begun. His reason for insisting on its destruction was this.

He was sent on a mission to Africa to investigate the grounds of a quarrel which existed between the Carthaginians and Masinissa, the king of the Numidians. Masinissa had always been the friend of Rome, whereas the Carthaginians, after their defeat by Scipio, had been subjected to hard conditions, having lost their sovereignty over the neighbouring tribes, and having been compelled to pay a large sum as tribute to Rome. Cato, however, found the city, not, as the Romans imagined it to be, crushed by its recent overthrow, but full of young men, overflowing with wealth, well provided with arms and munitions of war, and, as may be expected, full of warlike spirit. He concluded that it was no time for the Romans to arbitrate about the grievances of Masinissa and his Numidians, but that, unless they at once destroyed a city which bore them an undying hatred and which had recovered its strength in an incredibly short s.p.a.ce of time, they would have as much to fear from Carthage as ever. He quickly returned home, and pointed out to the Senate that the former defeats and misfortunes suffered by the Carthaginians had not really broken their strength so much as they had dissipated their overweening self-confidence, and that in the late war they had not lost so much in strength as they had gained in experience and skill. Their present difference with the Numidians was, he urged, merely a prelude to an attack upon Rome, with which city they kept up the fiction of a peace which would soon upon a suitable opportunity be exchanged for war.

XXVII. After these words it is said that Cato threw down in the senate house some ripe figs which he had brought on purpose; and when the senators admired their size and beauty, he remarked that "the country which produced this fruit is only three days' sail distant from Rome."

Another and a more violent method of forcing the Romans to attack them was his habit, when giving his opinion on any subject whatever, to append the words, "And I also am of opinion that Carthage must he destroyed." On the other hand, Publius Scipio, called Nasica, used to end all his speeches with the words, "And I further am of opinion that Carthage should be left alone." Scipio's reason for this was that he perceived that the lower cla.s.ses in Rome, elated by success, were becoming difficult for the Senate to manage, and practically forced the State to adopt whatever measures they chose. He thought that to have this fear of Carthage kept constantly hanging over them would be a salutary check upon the insolence of the people, and he thought that although Carthage was too weak to conquer the Romans, yet that it was too strong to be despised by them. Cato, on the other hand, thought it a dangerous thing that, at a time when the Romans were giddy and drunk with power, they should leave in existence a city which always had been important, and which now, sobered by defeat, was biding its time and lying in wait for a favourable opportunity to avenge itself. He argued that it was better to set the Romans free from any fear of foreign states, in order that they might be able to devote themselves uninterruptedly to the task of political reform.

These are said to have been Cato's reasons for urging his countrymen to begin the third and last Punic war. He died as soon as the war was begun, leaving a prophecy that it would be finished by a young man who was then serving as military tribune, and who had given remarkable proofs of courage and generals.h.i.+p. Cato, on hearing of his exploits is said to have quoted Homer's line--

"He alone has solid wisdom; all the rest are shadows vain."

This opinion Scipio soon confirmed by his actions.

Cato left one son by his second wife, who, as has been said, was named Salonius, and one grandson, the child of his eldest son who was dead.

Salonius died during his praetors.h.i.+p, but his son Marcus became consul.

This man was the grandfather of Cato the Philosopher, who was one of the foremost men of his day in courage and ability.

FOOTNOTES:

[Footnote 26: Cf. Livy, xxix. ch. 19, _sqq_.]

[Footnote 27: See vol. i., 'Life of Themistokles,' ch. x.]

[Footnote 28: Lictors were attendants granted to Roman magistrates as a mark of official dignity. See vol. i., 'Life of Romulus,' ch. xxvi.]

[Footnote 29: Spain was divided by the Romans into two provinces, of which this out was that which was nearer to Rome.]

[Footnote 30: The inhabitants of the town of Firmum, in Picenum; now _Fermo_.]

[Footnote 31: On the nature of these relations, see 'Smith's Dict. of Ant.,' s.v.]

COMPARISON OF ARISTEIDES AND CATO.

Now that we have related all the important events of each of these men's lives, it will be seen that the points in which they differ are very trifling when compared with those in which they agree. If, however, we are to take each of their qualities separately, as one would in comparing two speeches or two pictures, we observe that they both agree in having begun life in a humble station, and having won political distinction and power by sheer ability and force of character. It is true that Aristeides rose to power at a period when Athens was poor, and when the orators and generals whom he attacked were men whose means were little superior to his own; for the men of greatest incomes at that time were a.s.sessed as having five hundred bushels of wet or dry produce a year, while the next cla.s.s, that of the knights, had three hundred, and the lowest, or those who could afford to keep a yoke of oxen, had only two hundred. Cato, on the other hand, came from an obscure village and a rustic mode of life, and boldly launched himself upon the turbid sea of Roman politics, although the days of Curius, Fabricius and Atilius were long past, and Rome was not accustomed to find her magistrates and party leaders in labouring men fresh from the plough or the workshop, but in men of n.o.ble birth and great wealth, who canva.s.sed extensively, and bribed heavily; while the populace, insolent with the consciousness of power, were growing ripe for a revolt against the governing cla.s.s.

It was a very different thing for Aristeides to have only Themistokles for an antagonist, a man of no birth or fortune (for it is said that he only possessed between three and five talents when he first embarked on politics) and for Cato to contend for the mastery with men like Scipio Africa.n.u.s, Sergius Galba, and t.i.tus Quintius Flamininus, with nothing to help him but his eloquent voice and his good cause.

II. Furthermore, Aristeides, both at Marathon and at Plataea, acted as general with nine colleagues, while Cato was elected one of the two consuls and afterwards one of the two censors, though there were many other candidates for both offices. Aristeides never conspicuously distinguished himself, as the credit of the victory at Marathon belongs to Miltiades, and that of Salamis to Themistokles, while Herodotus tells us that Pausanias obtained the most glorious success of all at Plataea, and even the second place is disputed with Aristeides by Sophanes, Ameinias, Kallimachus, and Kynaegyrus, all of whom won great glory in those battles. On the other hand, Cato not only when consul gained the greatest credit, both by his wise conduct, and his personal prowess in the Spanish war, but, when at Thermopylae he was acting as tribune under another person's command as consul, contributed mainly to winning the victory by his flank movement, by which he established himself in the rear of Antiochus while that prince was intent upon the enemy in his front. This victory, which was so manifestly due to Cato, had the important result of driving the Asiatic troops out of Greece back to their own country, and so of preparing the way for Scipio's subsequent invasion of Asia.

Neither of them were ever defeated in battle, but in political matters Aristeides was overcome by his rival Themistokles, who drove him into exile by ostracism, while Cato held his own against all the greatest and most influential men in Rome to the end of his life without once being overthrown by them. He was often impeached, and always acquitted, while he frequently succeeded in his impeachments of others, using, both as a bulwark to defend himself and as a weapon to attack others, his power of speaking in public, which indeed is a quality more to be relied upon than good fortune to protect a man from suffering wrong. Antipater, in the account which he wrote of the philosopher Aristotle after his death, observes that besides his other qualities and accomplishments this man had the power of persuasion.

III. It is generally admitted that political virtue is the highest to which a man can aspire, and of this, most think domestic virtue to be a very important part; for as a city is merely a collection of houses, the public virtue of the state must be increased if it contain many well-regulated households. Lykurgus, when he banished silver and gold from Sparta, and gave his countrymen useless iron money, did not wish to discourage good household management among them, but he removed the dangerous seductions of wealth out of their reach, in order that they all might enjoy a sufficiency of what was useful and necessary. He saw, what no other legislator appears to have seen, that the real danger to a commonwealth arises from the poor and desperate rather than from the excessively rich.

Now we have seen that Cato was as well able to manage his household as to govern the state; for he improved his fortune and became a teacher of household management and husbandry to others, by collecting much useful information on these matters. On the other hand, Aristeides made his poverty a reproach to justice, which by his example was made to seem a ruinous virtue which brought men to want, and was totally useless to those who practised it. Yet the poet Hesiod, when encouraging men to act justly and manage their household affairs well, blames idleness as the origin of injustice, and the same idea is well stated in Homer's lines:--

"Work was never my delight, Nor household cares, that breed up children bright; But ever loved I s.h.i.+ps with banks of oars, And arrows keen, and weapons for the wars,"

where we see that the same men neglect their duties at home, and gain their living by injustice and piracy abroad. The physicians tell us that oil is most useful, outwardly used, and most harmful when taken inwardly; but it is not true of the just man that he is most useful to his friends, but useless to himself. It seems to me to be a blot on Aristeides' fame, if it be true that he could not even provide money for his daughters' dowry or for his own funeral expenses. The family of Cato for four generations, supplied Rome with praetors and consuls, for his grandchildren, and their children too, all rose to the highest offices in the state; while the hopeless poverty of Aristeides, though he was the foremost man of his time in Greece, reduced some of his family to the disreputable profession of interpreting dreams, and forced others to live on public charity, putting it quite out of their power to emulate the glorious actions of their ancestor.

IV. Some, indeed, may dispute this; for it is true that poverty is no disgrace in itself, but only when it is a proof of indolence, extravagance, or folly. The poverty of a laborious, upright, temperate statesman combines well with his other virtues, and shows true greatness of mind: for a man whose attention is given to little things, can never succeed in doing great ones; nor can a man help others if he is in need of help himself. A statesman requires, not wealth, but contentment, in order that his attention may not be diverted from public affairs by his own cravings for useless luxuries.

G.o.d alone is entirely without wants, and we approach nearest to the divine ideal when we can reduce our wants to the fewest possible. Just as a healthy man requires neither excess of clothing or of food, so a man's life and that of his family, if properly regulated, can be maintained at a trifling cost. His income, however, must exactly tally with his requirements; for we cannot call that man contented who earns much, and spends little. He is a foolish man if he troubles himself to ama.s.s what he cannot enjoy; while he must be a miserable man if he is able to enjoy the use of wealth, and yet through meanness of spirit forbids himself its use.

I would willingly put this question to Cato: "If we ought to enjoy our wealth, why do you make a virtue of simplicity of living when you are a rich man? If, on the other hand, it is a n.o.ble thing, as no doubt it is, to eat common bread, to drink the same wine as our servants and farm labourers do, and not to want fine clothes or comfortable houses, then Aristeides and Epameinondus, Manius Curius and Caius Fabricius were to be applauded for their neglect of the wealth, whose use they rejected." Surely it was not necessary for a man who thought turnips made a delicious meal, and who used to boil them himself while his wife baked the bread, to write so much about how to save a penny, and how a man might most quickly make a fortune. The great advantage of simplicity and contentment is, that it prevents our wis.h.i.+ng for superfluities, or even thinking about them. Aristeides, when cited as a witness during the trial of Kallias, is said to have observed that those who were poor against their will, ought to be ashamed of it, but that those who, like himself, were poor from their own choice, gloried in their poverty. It would be absurd to suppose that the poverty of Aristeides was not voluntary, when, without doing any criminal act, he might by stripping the body of one dead Persian, or by plundering one tent, have made himself a rich man. But enough of this.

V. As to their campaigns, those of Cato added but little to the already vast empire of Rome, while Aristeides was present at Marathon, Salamis, and Plataea, the most glorious of all Grecian victories. We cannot compare Antiochus with Xerxes, nor the destruction of the walls of the Spanish cities by Cato, with the tremendous slaughter of the barbarians by the Greeks, both on sea and land. Aristeides was present at every action of importance, although he gave up his share of glory and rewards, even as he did with gold and silver, to those who needed them more than himself. I cannot blame Cato for always glorifying himself and claiming the first place for himself, although he says in one of his books that it is absurd for a man either to praise or to blame himself; still I think that he who does not even wish for the praises of others, is a more perfect character than he who is always exalting himself. An indifference to popular applause does much to soften the bitterness of political controversy, while on the other hand a love of distinction often leads men to be ill-natured and spiteful to others, a fault which Aristeides entirely avoided, and to which Cato was peculiarly liable. Aristeides saved Athens by supporting the authority of Themistokles on several critical occasions, and even acting as his subordinate; while Cato by his opposition, nearly ruined Scipio's famous expedition to Carthage, in which he defeated the hitherto invincible Hannibal. Nor did he cease his intrigues against Scipio until by calumnious and false accusations he drove him out of Rome, and stigmatized his brother with the disgraceful charge of embezzling the public money.

VI. Self-denial, upon which Cato has bestowed such lavish praise, was practised in its purest and brightest form by Aristeides, while Cato seems to have forfeited all claim to this virtue by his unsuitable and unseasonable second marriage. It could not be to his honour, when he was of such a great age, to marry the daughter of his own servant, a man who acted as a public clerk, and to bring her into the house to act as mother-in-law to his son, who was now himself grown up and married. Whether he acted thus from natural inclination, or to spite his son for his behaviour about his mistress, the marriage and the motives which led to it are equally discreditable to him. The sarcastic explanation of it which he gave to his son is utterly untrue; for had he wished to beget other children as n.o.ble as his son, he ought to have married a well-born lady at once, and not to have been satisfied with a low intrigue until it was detected, and then to have chosen as his father-in-law, the man whom he could most easily influence, rather than some one whose alliance would bring him honour and advantage.

LIFE OF PHILOPMEN.

I. In the city of Mantinea there was a citizen named Kleander, of one of the first families, and of great influence. Nevertheless he was so unfortunate as to be forced to leave his native city, and take refuge in Megalopolis, to which he was chiefly attracted by Kraugis, the father of Philopmen, a man eminent in every respect, and an especial private friend of Kleander. While Kraugis lived, Kleander wanted for nothing, and after his death endeavoured to repay the debt which he owed him by devoting himself to the education of his orphan son, just as Homer tells us that Achilles was nurtured by the exile Phnix. The child, who always was of a n.o.ble and commanding spirit, grew under his care into a youth of great promise. As he came near to manhood Ekdemus and Megalophanes, two citizens of Megalopolis, took charge of his education. These men had studied in the Academy with Arkesilaus, and more than any others brought the lessons of philosophy to bear upon politics and the daily affairs of life. They freed their own country of the despot Aristodemus by secretly contriving his a.s.sa.s.sination, drove out the despot Nikokles from Sikyon, with the help of Aratus, and, at the request of the people of Kyrene, whose state was a prey to revolution, they went to that country and restored order and respect for the laws. They themselves, however, reckoned their most important work to have been the education of Philopmen, because by bringing him up in the precepts of true philosophy they made him a benefactor to all Greece. And truly Greece loved him exceedingly, as the last great man born of her old age, after so many great and famous men of former times. A Roman speaking in his praise called him the last of the Greeks, as though he thought that Greece had never after him produced any son worthy of herself.

II. His appearance was not repulsive, as some think; for we can see the statue of him which exists at Delphi at this day. The mistake of his Megarian hostess seems to have arisen from his good-nature and simplicity. She, when she heard that the commander-in-chief of the Achaeans was coming to her house, was in a great state of excitement about the preparation of dinner, her husband happening to be away.

Meanwhile, Philopmen entered, dressed in a coa.r.s.e cloak, and she, supposing him to be a servant sent on in advance, ordered him to help her to get things ready. He at once threw off his cloak and began to split up firewood. While he was thus engaged his friend the master of the house came in, and seeing him, said, "What is this that you are doing, Philopmen?" "Why," answered he in the Doric dialect, "I am suffering for my ugly face." t.i.tus, also, when jesting upon his bodily shape, said, "Philopmen, what fine hands and legs you have; but you have no belly," as indeed he had a very small waist. However, the jest was directed more against his power, for though he had plenty of good infantry and cavalry he was frequently in great distress for money to pay them. These are the common anecdotes which are current about Philopmen.

III. His love of distinction was not entirely unmixed with feelings of rivalry and pa.s.sion. He desired to emulate the fame of Epameinondas, but though he imitated that great man in energy, good sense, and contempt of money, yet he was unable in political struggles to maintain his calm unruffled good-nature, but was often betrayed by his fiery temper into sallies more befitting a soldier than a statesman.

Indeed, from a child he had always been fond of war, and eagerly devoted himself to soldier-like exercises, such as fighting in complete armour and riding on horseback. He was thought to be a good wrestler, and was invited by his friends to contend with them in that sport, but he asked them whether the practice would not impair his efficiency as a soldier, when they answered truly that the body and the life of an athlete differs from that of a soldier in every respect, more particularly in diet and exercise. The athlete takes long sleep, frequent meals, regular exercise and intervals of rest, being likely to be put out of condition by the least change of his accustomed routine, while the life of a soldier makes him accustomed to all kinds of change and diversity of life, especially to enduring hunger and want of sleep. On learning this Philopmen not only himself avoided wrestling and ridiculed it, but when he was in command of an army took every means in his power to bring every kind of athletic exercise into contempt, as likely to unfit the best men's bodies for the most important struggles in battle.

IV. On leaving his schoolmasters he took part in the incursion made by his fellow citizens into the Laconian territory for the purpose of plunder. In these raids it was his wont always to be first in the attack, and last in the retreat. In time of peace he would exercise his body, and make it both swift and strong, either by hunting or by tilling the ground. He possessed a fine estate about twenty furlongs from the city: to this he would walk after his morning or evening meal, and sleep there on any bed he could find, like one of the farm labourers. Then he would rise early, help the vine-dressers or cattle-herds to do their work, and, returning to town, take part in public business. The profits arising from the plunder gained in the forays he used to spend on horses, arms, and the redeeming of captives, while he endeavoured to increase his income by the skilful cultivation of his farm, considering the most just way of making money, and his strict duty to be, so to manage his fortune as to avoid the temptation of wronging others. He used to listen to conversation and to read treatises upon philosophy, yet not all, but only those which he thought would teach him to be virtuous. He also devoted much time to reading those pa.s.sages of Homer which stir up and excite manly courage, His other reading consisted chiefly of Evangelus's treatise on military tactics, and of the history of Alexander the Great; but he always thought that reading, unless it led to action, was a useless waste of time. In his studies of tactics he used to disregard the diagrams in the books and consider what could be done in the field itself, observing the slopes and inequalities of the ground, the direction of brooks and water-courses, and the effect which they would have upon a body of troops advancing in line or in column. These reflections he was wont to make during his walks, and to exercise the minds of his companions by questions about them; for he devoted his whole mind to the study of military matters, regarding war as the widest arena for the display of virtue, utterly despising those who were not soldiers, as useless members of society.

V. When he was thirty years old Kleomenes, the king of the Lacedaemonians, made a night attack upon Megalopolis, forced his way through the guard on the wall and reached the market-place. Philopmen came to the rescue, but was not able to dislodge the enemy, although he a.s.saulted them with the greatest spirit. However, he gained time for the citizens to leave the town, while he bore the whole brunt of the attack of Kleomenes, so that at last he had great difficulty in extricating himself, as he had lost his horse and was wounded. The citizens of Megalopolis escaped to Messene, whither Kleomenes sent to offer them their town and territory again. Philopmen, when he saw his fellow-citizens eager to embrace this offer, restrained them from accepting it by pointing out that Kleomenes did not really offer them their city back again, but meant to get the citizens as well into his power, in order to be able to hold it more securely for the future; because he could not remain there guarding naked walls and empty houses, but would be compelled to leave them and go his way. By these arguments he withheld the Megalopolitans from coming to terms, but gave Kleomenes a pretext for destroying a great part of the city, and carrying away a great booty from it.

VI. When King Antigonus some time after this joined the Achaean forces in a campaign against Kleomenes, they came upon his army advantageously posted so as to command the defiles near Sellasia.

Philopmen was among the cavalry that day with his fellow-citizens, and next to him were posted the Illyrians, numerous and warlike, who covered the flank of the allies. Their orders were to remain in reserve until they saw a red flag raised upon a pike by king Antigonus on the other wing. The generals of the allies attacked the Lacedaemonians with the Illyrian troops, but Eukleides, the brother of Kleomenes, perceiving that by this movement the foot were completely severed from the horse, sent the swiftest of his light-armed troops to outflank them and cut them off. When this was done, and the Illyrians were thrown into great disorder, Philopmen saw that the cavalry could charge the Lacedaemonian light troops with great effect, and pointed this out to Antigonus's generals. Meeting with a scornful refusal, as his reputation was not yet sufficiently great to warrant his suggesting such a manuvre, he collected his own fellow-countrymen and charged with them alone. At the first onset he threw the light-armed troops into confusion, and presently routed them with great slaughter.

Wis.h.i.+ng to encourage the allies and to come more quickly to blows with the retreating enemy, he dismounted, and with great difficulty, enc.u.mbered by his heavy horseman's cuira.s.s and accoutrements, pursued over a rough piece of ground full of water-courses and precipitous rocks. While struggling over these obstacles he was struck through both thighs by a javelin with a strap attached to it, a wound which was not dangerous, though the javelin struck him with such force as to drive the iron head quite through. This wound for the time rendered him helpless, as it bound both his legs as if with a chain, while the strap made it hard to pull the javelin out again through the wound. As his friends hesitated, not knowing what to do, while the battle now at its height, excited his courage, and made him long to take part in it, he violently strained one leg forward and the other back, so as to break the javelin in the middle, after which the pieces were pulled out. Being thus set free, he drew his sword, ran through the first of the combatants and attacked the enemy, animating all his men and setting them on fire with emulation. After the victory was won Antigonus enquired of the Macedonians why the cavalry had charged without orders. They answered that they were forced to charge against their will by a young citizen of Megalopolis, who attacked on his own account. Antigonus smiled, and answered, "That young man acted like a veteran commander."