the polity of the athenians and the lacedaemonians-第5节
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e exemptions and abstentions from military service'10' which call for adjudication; or in connection with some other extraordinary misdemeanour; some case of outrage and violence of an exceptional character; or some charge of impiety。 A whole string of others I simply omit; I am content to have named the most important part with the exception of the assessments of tribute which occur; as a rule; at intervals of five years。'11'
'7' Adopting the emendation of Kirchhoff; who inserts the sentence in brackets。 For the festivals in question; see 〃Dict。 of Antiq。〃 〃Lampadephoria〃; C。 R。 Kenney; 〃Demosth。 against Leptines;〃 etc。; App。 vi。
'8' For the institution called the {dokimasia}; see Aristot。 〃Constitution of Athens;〃 ch。 lv。
'9' See Dem。 〃against Midias;〃 565; 17; 〃against Apholus〃 (1); 814; 20。
'10' See Lys。 〃Or。〃 xiv。 and xv。
'11' See Grote; 〃H。 G。〃 vi。 p。 48; Thuc。 vii。 78; i。 96; Arist。 〃Wasps;〃 707; Aristot。 〃Pol。〃 v。 8。
I put it to you; then: can any one suppose that all; or any; of these may dispense with adjudication?'12' If so; will any one say which ought; and which ought not; to be adjudicated on; there and then? If; on the other hand; we are forced to admit that these are all fair cases for adjudication; it follows of necessity that they should be decided during the twelve…month; since even now the boards of judges sitting right through the year are powerless to stay the tide of evildoing by reason of the multitude of the people。
'12' Reading with Kirchhoff。 Cf。 for {oiesthai khre}; 〃Hell。〃 VI。 iv。 23; 〃Cyr。〃 IV。 ii。 28。
So far so good。'13' 〃But;〃 some one will say; 〃try the cases you certainly must; but lessen the number of the judges。〃 But if so; it follows of necessity that unless the number of courts themselves are diminished in number there will only be a few judges sitting in each court;'14' with the further consequence that in dealing with so small a body of judges it will be easier for a litigant to present an invulnerable front'15' to the court; and to bribe'16' the whole body; to the great detriment of justice。'17'
'13' See Grote; 〃H。 G。〃 v。 514; 520; Machiavelli; 〃Disc。 s。 Livio;〃 i。 7。
'14' Reading with Sauppe; {anagke toinun; ean me} 'for the vulgate {ean men oliga k。t。l。}' {oliga poiontai dikasteria; oligoi en ekasto esontai to dikasterio}。 Or; adopting Weiske's emendation; {ean men polla poiontai dikasteria k。t。l。} Translate; 〃Then; if by so doing they manage to multiply the law courts; there will be only a few judges sitting;〃 etc。
'15' Or; as Liddell and Scott; 〃to prepare all his tricks。〃
'16' {sundekasoi}; 〃to bribe in the lump。〃 This is Schneider's happy emendation of the MS。 {sundikasai}; see Demosthenes; 1137; 1。
'17' Reading {oste}; lit。 〃so as to get a far less just judgment。〃
But besides this we cannot escape the conclusion that the Athenians have their festivals to keep; during which the courts cannot sit。'18' As a matter of fact these festivals are twice as numerous as those of any other people。 But I will reckon them as merely equal to those of the state which has the fewest。
'18' Lit。 〃it is not possible to give judgment〃; or; 〃for juries to sit。〃
This being so; I maintain that it is not possible for business affairs at Athens to stand on any very different footing from the present; except to some slight extent; by adding here and deducting there。 Any large modification is out of the question; short of damaging the democracy itself。 No doubt many expedients might be discovered for improving the constitution; but if the problem be to discover some adequate means of improving the constitution; while at the same time the democracy is to remain intact; I say it is not easy to do this; except; as I have just stated; to the extent of some trifling addition here or deduction there。
There is another point in which it is sometimes felt that the Athenians are ill advised; in their adoption; namely; of the less respectable party; in a state divided by faction。 But if so; they do it advisedly。 If they chose the more respectable; they would be adopting those whose views and interests differ from their own; for there is no state in which the best element is friendly to the people。 It is the worst element which in every state favours the democracyon the principle that like favours like。'19' It is simple enough then。 The Athenians choose what is most akin to themselves。 Also on every occasion on which they have attempted to side with the better classes; it has not fared well with them; but within a short interval the democratic party has been enslaved; as for instance in Boeotia;'20' or; as when they chose the aristocrats of the Milesians; and within a short time these revolted and cut the people to pieces; or; as when they chose the Lacedaemonians as against the Messenians; and within a short time the Lacedaemonians subjugated the Messenians and went to war against Athens。
'19' I。e。 〃birds of a feather。〃
'20' The references are perhaps (1) to the events of the year 447 B。C。; see Thuc。 i。 113; cf。 Aristot。 〃Pol。〃 v。 3; 5; (2) to 440 B。C。; Thuc。 i。 115; Diod。 xii。 27; 28; Plut。 〃Pericl。〃 c。 24; (3) to those of 464 B。C。; followed by 457 B。C。; Thuc。 i。 102; Plut。 〃Cimon;〃 c。 16; and Thuc。 i。 108。
I seem to overhear a retort; 〃No one; of course; is deprived of his civil rights at Athens unjustly。〃 My answer is; that there are some who are unjustly deprived of their civil rights; though the cases are certainly rare。 But it will take more than a few to attack the democracy at Athens; since you may take it as an established fact; it is not the man who has lost his civil rights justly that takes the matter to heart; but the victims; if any; of injustice。 But how in the world can any one imagine that many are in a state of civil disability at Athens; where the People and the holders of office are one and the same? It is from iniquitous exercise of office; from iniquity exhibited either in speech or action; and the like circumstances; that citizens are punished with deprivation of civil rights in Athens。 Due reflection on these matters will serve to dispel the notion that there is any danger at Athens from persons visited with disenfranchisement。
THE POLITY OF THE LACEDAEMONIANS
I
I recall the astonishment with which I'1' first noted the unique position'2' of Sparta amongst the states of Hellas; the relatively sparse population;'3' and at the same time the extraordinary power and prestige of the community。 I was puzzled to account for the fact。 It was only when I came to consider the peculiar institutions of the Spartans that my wonderment ceased。 Or rather; it is transferred to the legislator who gave them those laws; obedience to which has been the secret of their prosperity。 This legislator; Lycurgus; I must needs admire; and hold him to have been one of the wisest of mankind。 Certainly he was no servile imitator of other states。 It was by a stroke of invention rather; and on a pattern much in opposition to the commonly…accepted one; that he brought his fatherland to this pinnacle of prosperity。
'1' See the opening words of the 〃Cyrop。〃 and of the 〃Symp。〃
'2' Or; 〃the phenomenal character。〃 See Grote; 〃H。 G。〃 ix。 320 foll。; Newman; 〃Pol。 Arist。〃 i。 202。
'3' See Herod。 vii。 234; Aristot。 〃Pol。〃 ii。 9; 14 foll。; Muller; 〃Dorians;〃 iii。 10 (vol。 i。 p。 203; Eng。 tr。)
Take for exampleand it is well to begin at the beginning'4'the whole topic of the begetting and rearing of children。 Throughout the rest of the world the young girl; who will one day become a mother (and I speak of those who may be held to be well brought up); is nurtured on the plainest food attainable; with the scantiest addition of meat or other condiments; whilst as to wine they train them either to total abstinence or to take it highly diluted with water。 And in imitation; as it were; of the handicraft type; since the majority of artificers are sedentary;'5' we; the rest of the Hellenes; are content that our girls should sit quietly and work wools。 That is all we demand of them。 But how are we to expect that women nurtured in this fashion should produce a splendid offspring?
'4' Cf。 a fragment of Critias cited by Clement; 〃Stromata;〃 vi。 p。 741; 6; Athen。 x。 432; 433; see 〃A Fragment of Xenophon〃 (?); ap。 Stob。 〃Flor。〃 88。 14; translated by J。 Hookham Frere; 〃Theognis Restitutus;〃 vol。 i。 333; G。 Sauppe; 〃Append。 de Frag。 Xen。〃 p。 293; probably by Antisthenes (Bergk。 ii。 497)。
'5' Or; 〃such technical work is for the most part sedentary。〃
Lycurgus pursued a different path。 Clothes were things; he held; the furnishing of which might well enough be left to female slaves。 And; believing that the highest function of a free woman was the bearing of children; in the first place he insisted on the training of the body as incumbent no less on the female than the male; and in pursuit of the same idea instituted rival contests in running and feats of strength for women as for men。 His belief was that where both parents were strong their progeny would be found to be more vigorous。
And so again after marriage。 In view of the fact that immoderate intercourse is elsewhere