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and at the fame time the fittest to diftinguish yourfelves by rafh fpeeches ; dare you, and that in the pre"fence of this auguft affembly, affert that we must "bestow a crown, at your interceffion, on the perfon "who has occafioned all the public calamities? And, "if this man fhall prefume fo far, will you fuffer it, "gentlemen, and fhall the memory of thofe great men, "who died in the field for their country, die with "them? I beg you, for a few moments, to convey "yourselves in imagination from the Roftra to the "theatre, and imagine you fee the herald advancing, "and proclaiming the crown decreed to Demofthenes. "On which occafion do you think, that the relations "of those citizens, who fpilt their blood for you, ought "to shed most tears, either for the tragical fate of

thofe heroes which I fhall reprefent to you by-and"by, or for the enormous ingratitude of the Atheni"ans? Do not lay open again the deep and incurable "wounds of the unhappy Thebans, who through De"mofthenes are become fugitives, and have been re"ceived by you into this city. But, fince you were "not prefent at their catastrophe, endeavour, at leaft, "to form fome image of it, and reprefent to yourselves "a city taken, walls levelled, houfes reduced to afhes, "mothers and children dragged into flavery; old men "and women forced to be servants at the end of their "days; drowned in tears, imploring your juftice, "breaking out into reproaches, not against the actors,

but againft the authors of the cruel vengeance, which "they felt; earnestly preffing you to be fo far from conferring any kind of reward upon the deftroyer of Greece, that you would preferve yourselves from "the curfe, the fatality, infeparable from his perfon. "Imagine then, gentlemen, when he fhall invite "the confidents and accomplices of this abject perfidy "to range themfelves around him, towards the clofe "of his harangue ; imagine then, gentlemen, on your "fide, that you see the antient benefactors of this com"monwealth drawn up in battle-array, round this "Roftra,

"Roftra, where I am now fpeaking, in order to re-"pulfe that audacious hand. Imagine you hear Solon, "who ftrengthened the popular government by fuch "excellent laws, that philofopher, that incomparable "legiflator, conjuring you with a gentlenefs and mo"defty becoming his character, not to fet a higher "value upon Demofthenes's oratorial flourishes than "upon your oaths and your laws. Imagine you hear "Ariftides, who made fo exact and juft a divifion of "the contributions impofed upon the Greeks for the "common caufe; that fage difpenfer, who left no other "inheritance to his daughters, but the public grati"tude, which was their portion; imagine, I fay, you' "hear him bitterly bewailing the outrageous manner "in which we trample upon juftice, and fpeaking to

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you in these words: What! becaufe Arthimus of "Zelia, that Afiatic, who paffed through Athens, "where he even enjoyed the rights of hofpitality, had "brought gold from the Medes into Greece; your "ancestors were going to fend him to the place of ex"ecution, and banished him, not only from their ci"ty, but from all the countries dependent on them; "and will you not blush to decree Demofthenes, who "has not indeed brought gold from the Medes, but "has received fuch fums of money f om all parts to "to betray you, and now enjoys the fruit of his trea"fures; will not you, I say, blush to decree a crown. "of gold to Demofthenes? Do you think, that The"mistocles, and the heroes who were killed in the "battles of Marathon and Platea, do you think, the

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very tombs of your ancestors, will not fend forth groans, if you crown a man, who, by his own con"feffion, has been for ever confpiring with Barba "rians to ruin Greece?

"As to myfelf, O Earth! O Sun! O Virtue! and "you, who are the fprings of true difcernment, lights both natural and acquired, by which we diftinguish "good from evil, I call you to witnefs, that i have "ufed all my endeavours to relieve the ftate, and to " plead

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plead her caufe. I could have wifhed my fpeech "had been equal to the greatnefs and importance of "the fubject; at least, I can fatter myself with hav"ing difcharged my duty according to my abilities, if "I have not done it according to my wishes. Do you,

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gentlemen, from the reasons you have heard, and "those which your wisdom will fuggeft; do you pro"nounce fuch a judgment, as is conformable to ftrict juftice, and the common good demands from you."

EXTRACTS OF DEMOSTHENES'S HARANGUE FOR CTESIPHON.

"I begin with intreating all the gods and all the "goddeffes, that they would infpire you, gentlemen, "in this caufe with a benevolence towards me, pro"portionate to my conftant zeal for the common"wealth in general, and for every one of you in par"ticular afterwards (which is of the utmoft confe

quence to your perfons, your confciences, and your "honour) I crave of the fame deities, that they would "fix you in the resolution of confulting upon the man- · "ner of hearing me, not my accufer (for you could "not do that without partiality;) but your laws and 66 your oaths, the form of which, among other terms, "(all dictated by juftice) is as follows Hear both par"ties equally; which obliges you to come with an un"biafled mind and heart to the tribunal, and to al"low each of the parties to draw up his reafons and proofs, in whatever manner he fhall think fit ".

Now gentlemen, among the many disadvantages "on my fide in this caufe, there are two particularly, "and two very terrible ones, which make my con"dition much worfe than his. The firft is, that we run very unequal rifques; for now I hazard much more in lofing your good-will, than he does, fhould "he fail to make good the charge; fince I am to...

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Æfchines pretended to point out the order which Demofthenes was to obferve in his pleading.

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"But I will not fuffer one word to fall from me in the "beginning of my difcourfe, that prefages any thing "finifter. He, on the contrary, attacks me through "wantonnefs, and without any neceffity for fo doing. "The other disadvantage I lie under, is, that all men "are naturally inclinable to hear an accufer with plea"fure; while, on the other hand, they hear those who "boaft or magnify themfelves with indignation. He "therefore acts a part that pleafes univerfally; whereas "almost every thing, which falls to my lot, is what "generally makes every man an enemy. But if, on "one hand, the fear of incurring indignation, which "is infeparable from felf-applaufe, fhould oblige me to "be filent on my own actions; it will be thought, that "I can neither refute him who reproaches me with "crimes, nor justify the perfon who decrees rewards "for me. On the other, if I fhould difcufs the fer"vices I have done during my adminiftration, I shall "be forced to fpeak of myfelf frequently. I fhall "therefore endeavour, in this dangerous dilemma, to "behave with all poffible moderation; but, whatever "the neceffity of my own defence may extort from "me, this ought in juflice to be imputed only to the "aggreffor, who voluntarily impofed it upon me.

But in fpite of thefe facts, incontestable, and cer"tified, as it were, by the mouth of truth itself, Æ"fchines has fo far renounced all fhame, that, not con"tent to proclaim me the author of fuch a peace as he "has mentioned, he is fo audacious as to tax me like

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wife with preventing the commonwealth from con"certing it with the general affembly of the Greeks. "... But did you, Ŏ!.... (what title fhall I give "you?) did you betray the leaft fhadow of displeasure "against me, when I broke the cords of that harmony in your prefence, and difpoffeffed the com"monwealth of the advantages of that confederacy, which you now magnify fo much, with the loude it "trains of your theatrical voice? Did you afcend the Æfchines had been a comedian, es Roftrum ?

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"Roftrum? Did you denounce, or once explain those "crimes, with which you are now pleased to charge me? Surely then, if I could have forgot my duty "so far as to fell myself to Philip, in order to exclude "the Greeks from participating in that peace; you "ought then to have explained, protefted, and dif"covered my prevarications to thofe who now hear

me; but you never did any thing of this kind, nor "did any perfon living hear you fay one fyllable tend "ing this way . . . .

"But if Philip was conftantly depriving all states, without exception, of their honour, prerogatives, "liberty, or rather fubverting as many common"wealths as he could; did not you, gentlemen, form "thofe very arguments, which undoubtedly were the "moft glorious to you, through your regard for my

advice? Tell us, fchines, how Athens fhould "have behaved in Philip's fight, when he fet all engines at work, to eftablifh his empire and tyranny "over the Greeks? Or what counsels and refolutions

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fhould I, who was the minifter, have proposed; "especially in Athens (for the circumftances of place "require a particular attention ;) I, who was intimate"ly fenfible, that my country had at all times, even "till the day I firft afcended the tribunal, perpetually "fought for fuperiority, for honour and glory; and "that it alone had, through a noble emulation, fa"crificed more men and money for the general good “of the Greeks, than any other of the Grecian states "had ever facrificed for their own private advantage; "I, who befides faw this fame Philip with whom "we contended for fovereignty and empire; faw him, "though covered with wounds, his eye beat out, his "collar-bone broken, his hand and leg maimed, ftill "refolved to plunge himself amidst dangers, and rea"dy to give up to fortune whatever other part of his "body the fhould require, provided he could live ho"nourably and gloriously with the remainder? Now, "certainly no man dares to fay, that a Barbarian

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