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Boys, most of them from among the prisoners, contended in the short course, and in the long course above sixty Cretans ran while others were matched in wrestling, boxing, and the pancratium. It was a fine sight; for many entered the lists, and as their friends were spectators, there was great emulation. Horses also ran; and they had to gallop down the steep, and, turning round in the sea, to come up again to the altar. In the descent many rolled down; but in the ascent, against the exceedingly steep ground, the horses could scarcely get up at a walking pace. There was consequently great shouting and laughter and cheering from the people.

FIFTH, SIXTH, AND SEVENTH BOOKS.

The remaining three books must be condensed under hydraulic pressure. The task of thus expressing the sweet juice of the author's own personality, together with that of circumstance and detail, out of Xenophon's delectable narrative, in order to present our readers with the desiccated result— this unwelcome task we save ourselves, by giving here instead the excellent abstract furnished in Smith's "History of Greece." This is a book of some just pretensions to originality, though mainly a recast of Grote's more detailed and voluminous work. It is written in a better style than is that scholarly, enlightened, and philosophical, but prolix, and somewhat tedious history. Grote incorporates without much abridgment the whole Anabasis of Xenophon into his text. Besides these two books, there is an admirable volume on Xenophon in Lippincott's "Ancient Classics for English Readers." Let all see this who can. Fyffe's "Primer of Greek History" also is good. So, too, is the better analyzed primer of Dr. Vincent. But here is the concluding portion of the Anabasis, according to Dr. Smith, short, and as sweet as with such shortness consists:

"The most difficult part of the return of the Ten Thousand was now accomplished, but much still remained to be done. The sight of the sea awakened in the army a universal desire to prosecute the remainder of their journey on

that element. 'Comrades,' exclaimed a Thurian soldier, 'I am weary of packing up, of marching and running, of shouldering arms and falling into line, of standing sentinel and fighting. For my part, I should like to get rid of all these labors, and go home by sea the rest of the way, so that I might arrive in Greece outstretched and asleep, like Ulysses of old.' The shouts of applause which greeted this address showed that the Thurian had touched the right chord; and when Chirisophus, one of the principal officers, offered to proceed to Byzantium, and endeavor to procure transports for the conveyance of the army, his proposal was joyfully accepted.

"Meanwhile, the Ten Thousand were employed in marauding expeditions, and in collecting all the vessels possible, in case Chirisophus should fail in obtaining the requisite supply. That officer delayed to return; provisions grew scarce, and the army found itself compelled to evacuate Trapezus. Vessels enough had been collected to transport the women, the sick, and the baggage to Cer'asus, whither the army proceeded by land. Here they remained ten days, during which they were mustered and reviewed, when it was found that the number of hoplites still amounted to eightysix hundred, and with peltasts, bowmen, etc., made a total of more than ten thousand men.

"From Cerasus they pursued their journey to Co-ty-o'ra, through the territories of the Mosync'ci and Chalybes. They were obliged to fight their way through the former of these people, capturing and plundering the wooden towers in which they dwelt, and from which they derived their name. At Cotyora they waited in vain for Chirisophus and the transports. Many difficulties still stood in the way of their return. The inhabitants of Sin-o'pe represented to them that a march through Paph-la-go'nia was impracticable, and the means of a passage by sea were not at hand. After remaining forty-five days at Cotyora a sufficient number of vessels was

collected to convey the army to Sinope. A passage of twentyfour hours brought them to that town, where they were hospitably received and lodged in the neighboring sea-port of Ar'me-ne. Here they were joined by Chirisophus, who, however, brought with him only a single trireme. From Sinope the army proceeded to Her-a-cle'a, and from thence to Col'pe, where Chirisophus died. From Calpe they marched across Bithyn'ia to Chrysop'olis, a town immediately opposite to Byzantium, where they spent a week in realizing the booty which they had brought with them.

"The satrap Pharnabaʼzus was desirous that the Greeks should evacuate Asia Minor; and, at his instance, Anaxib'ius, the Lacedæmonian admiral on the station, induced them to cross over by promising to provide them with pay when they should have reached the other side. But instead of fulfilling his agreement, Anaxibius ordered them, after their arrival at Byzantium, to proceed to the Thracian Cher'son-ese, where the Lacedæmonian harmost Cy-nis'cus, would find them pay; and during this long march of 150 miles they were directed to support themselves by plundering the Thracian villages. Preparatory to the march they were ordered to muster outside the walls of Byzantium. But the Greeks, irritated by the deception which had been practiced on them, and which, through want of caution on the part of Anaxibius, became known to them before they had all quitted the town, prevented the gates from being closed, and rushed in infuriated masses back into the city, uttering loud threats and bent on plunder and havoc. The lives and property of the citizens. were at their mercy, for at the first alarm Anaxibius had retired with his troops into the citadel, while the affrighted inhabitants were either barricading their houses, or flying to the ships for refuge. In this conjuncture Xenophon felt that the destruction of a city like Byzantium would draw down upon the army the vengeance not merely of the Lacedæmonians, but of all Greece. With great presence of mind,

and under color of aiding their designs, he caused the soldiers to form in an open square called the Thracian, and by a well-timed speech diverted them from their designs.

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Shortly afterward the army entered into the service of Seuʼthes, a Thracian prince, who was anxious to recover his sovereignty over three revolted tribes. But after they had accomplished this object, Seuthes neglected to provide the pay which he had stipulated, or to fulfill the magnificent promises which he had made to Xenophon personally, of giving him his daughter in marriage, and putting him in possession of the town of Bi-san'the.

“The army, now reduced to 6,000, was thus again thrown into difficulties, when it entered on the last phase of its checkered career by engaging to serve the Lacedæmonians in a war which they had just declared against the satraps Tissaphernes and Pharnabazus. Xenophon accordingly conducted his comrades to Perʼgamus, in Mysia, where a considerable booty fell into their hands by the capture of a castle not far from that place. Xenophon was allowed to select the choicest lots from the booty thus acquired, as a tribute of gratitude and admiration for the services which he had rendered.

"Shortly after this adventure, in the spring of B. C. 339, Thim'bron, the Lacedæmonian commander, arrived at Pergamus, and the remainder of the Ten Thousand Greeks became incorporated with his army. Xenophon now returned. to Athens, where he must have arrived shortly after the execution of his master, Socrates. Disgusted, probably by that event, he rejoined his old comrades in Asia, and subsequently returned to Greece along with A-ges-i-la'us, as we have already related."

So we take farewell of Xenophon's Anabasis. The foregoing condensation, from Dr. Smith's History, is well done; but our readers may judge what they would have lost had the whole work been disposed of in this summary manner.

IX.

HOMER.

1. THE ILIAD.

AFTER Xenophon's Anabasis, it is usual for the preparatory student to take up next in order the Iliad of Homer. Sometimes it is the Od'yss-ey instead of the Iliad.

Homer's Iliad is, as every body knows, one of the masterpieces of human genius. It is, indeed, beyond dispute the most famous among poems. The literature that has accumulated in all languages about it makes its pre-eminence permanent and secure. It is hardly possible to imagine any mutations in human affairs that can dislodge the Iliad of Homer from its position as the leading poem of the world.

HOMER.

This is here said without any implication intended as to the right of the Iliad to occupy the position. In literature, as in other spheres, often it is might that makes right. Possession is nine points in the law. And possession, in Homer's case, establishes his title to his fame. The title will never be successfully disputed. Any challenge of the fame serves but to confirm the fame. For the fame consists largely in the literature of discussion, of criticism, of translation, of annotation, of allusion, and even of sheer skepticism, that has been built up, and still continues to be built up, scarce less actively now than ever, about this remarkable name. The fact that Greek is virtually a dead language-virtually, we say, for the Greek language nominally lives still, in the mouths of the people of Greece, and virtually dead, we call it, nevertheless, since as yet, though there are omens which we have already alluded to, of imminent change, no great productions of the human mind get themselves uttered in it

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