May all the gods forbid that the event
should confirm my suspicions!
should confirm my suspicions!
Demosthenes - Leland - Orations
From
the same persuasion he now heaps his favours on
the Messenians and Argians. And this reflects the
greatest lustre on you, my countrymen; for by these
proceedings you are declared the only invariable
assertors of the rights of Greece; the only persons
whom no private attachment, no views of interest
can seduce from their affection to the Greeks.
And that it is with reason he entertains these
sentiments of you, and sentiments so different of the
Thebans and the Argians, he may be convinced, not
from the present only, but from a review of former
times: for he must have been informed, I presume
he cannot but have heard, that your ancestors, when,
by submitting to the king, they might have pur-
chased the sovereignty of Greece, not only scorned
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? 112 ORATIONS OF DEMOSTHENES.
to listen when Alexander,1 this man's ancestor, was
made the messenger of such terms, but chose to
abandon their city, encountered every possible diffi-
culty, and after all this performed such exploits as
men are ever eager to recite, yet with the just force
and dignity no man ever could express; and there-
fore, it becomes me to be silent on this subject; for
in reality their actions are superior to the power of
words. As to the ancestors of the Thebans and the
Argians, the one, he knows, fought for the Barba-
rian; the others did not oppose him. 2 He knew,
then, that both these people would attend but to their
private interest, without the least regard to the
common cause of Greece. Should he choose you
for allies, you would serve him so far only as justice
would permit; but, if he attached himself to them,
he gained assistants in all the schemes of his ambi-
tion. This it is that then determined him, this it is
that now determines him to their side rather than to
yours: not that he sees they have a greater naval
1 When Alexander, &c. ]--The reader may find the history here
alluded to in the eighth and ninth books of Herodotus. The expressions
in the original are as contemptuous as possible; b rovrwv, or, as some
editions have it, & rourwv -Kpoyovos, the ancestors of these wretches the
Macedonians; and then, not irpcaftevs, ambassador, but KHPTE, herald
or erier, the. slave or menial officer of his master Mardonivs. Avec le
titre d'ambassadeur (as Tourreil translates it) suggests the honourable
idea which Demosthenes takes such pains to keep out of view.
2 The one, be knows, fought for the Barbarian; the others did not
oppose him. ]--The readiness with which the Thebans granted earth and
water, the tokens of submission, to the Persian, the regret wiih which
they joined Leonid as at Thermopylae, their joining operily with Xerxes,
when his arms had the appearance of success, and other circumstances,
confirmed by the urnted testimony of historians, all warrant the assertion
of Demosthenes. The Argians were engaged to a neutrality by an arti-
fice of the Persians, who pretended to derive their descent from Per-
seus, the son of Acrisius, one of the kings of Argos. This pretence
how gross soever, was sufficient for a people who chose to be deceived,
and would not reflect that this monarchy had not the title of Persian till
the reign of Cyrus. Their infidelity to the cause of Greece they con-
cealed under the veil of ambition ; for they professed themselves ready
to concur in the common defence, provided that they were admitted to an
equal share of the command with Lacedemon: which proposal wu
rejected, as they desired. --Tourreil.
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? PHILIPPIC THE SECOND
force1 than we; or that, having gained the sovereignty
in the inland countries, he declines the command of
the seas and the advantages of commerce; or that
he hath forgotten those pretences, those promises
which obtained him the peace.
But I may be told--It is true, he did act thus; but
not from ambition, or from any of those motives of
which I accuse him; but as he thought the cause of
Thebes more just than ours. 2--This of all pretences
he cannot now allege. Can he, who commands the
Lacedaemonians3 to quit their claim to Messene, pre-
tend that, in giving up Orchomenus and Coronea to
the Thebans, he acted from regard to justice ? But
now comes his last subterfuge. He was compelled,
and yielded these places quite against his inclina-
tions, being encompassed by the Thessalian horse
and Theban infantry. Fine pretence! --Just so, they
cry, he is to entertain suspicions of the Thebans; and
some spread rumours of their own framing, that he
is to fortify Elatea. 4 Yes< these things are yet to
be, and so will they remain, in my opinion; but
his attack on Lacedaemon, in conjunction with the
Thebans and Argians, is not yet to be made. No:
1 A greater naval force, dec. ]--Athens, as a maritime power, waa impo-
rter to all the other Greeks. At the battle of Salamis, of the three hundred
vessels which composed the Grecian fleet, two hundred were Athenian.
Three hundred ships sailed from the port of Athens on the expedition to
Sicily; and their fleet was afterward increased to four hundred. --
Tourreil.
2 The cause of Thebes more just than ours. ]--The union of Philip
with the Thebans had a very plausible colour; that of espousing the
cause of Apollo, and punishing the sacrilegious profaners of his temple.
It was not convenient to display thia at large, and therefore he cuts it
short by one vague expression; for the art of an orator appears no less
hi suppressing such things as may prove unfavourable to his design, than
in dwelling on those points which may assist it. --Tourreil.
* Can he, who commands the Lacedaemonians, &c. ]--Because the
pretensions of each were of the same nature. Lacedaemon assumed
the supreme power in Peloponnesus. Thebes affected the like power in
Basotia.
* To fortify Elatea. ]--This was the most considerable city in Phocis,
and by its situation very well fltted to keep the Thebans in awe. So
that some years after, when Philip perceived that the Thebans were
growing cool tv Hub, bis first step was to take possession of Elatea. --
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? >>14 ORATIONS OF DEMOSTHENES.
he is actually detaching forces, supplying money, and
is himself expected at the head of a formidable
army. The Lacedaemonians, therefore, the enemies
of Thebes, he now infests. And will he then restore
the Phocians, whom he hath but just now ruined 1
Who can believe this ? I, for my part, can never
think, if Philip had been forced into those formei
measures, or if he had now abandoned the Thebans,
that he would make this continued opposition to their
enemies. No: his present measures prove that all
his past conduct was the effect of choice; and from
all his actions, it appears that all his actions are
directly levelled against this state: and there is in
some sort a necessity for this. Consider, he aims at
empire, and from you alone he expects opposition.
He hath long loaded us with injuries; and of this he
himself is most intimately conscious; for those of
our possessions which he hath reduced to his ser-
vice he uses as a barrier to his other territories: so
that, if he should give up Amphipolis and Potidaea,
he would not think himself secure even in Macedon.
He is therefore sensible that he entertains designs
against you, and that you perceive them. Then, as
he thinks highly of your wisdom, he concludes that
you must hold him in that abhorrence which he
merits: hence is he alarmed, expecting to feel some
effects of your resentment (if you have any favour-
able opportunity) unless he prevent you by his attack.
Hence is his vigilance awakened; his arm raised
against the state: he courts some of the Thebans,
and such of the Peloponnesians as have the same
views with him; whom he deems too mercenary to
regard any thing but present interest, and too per-
versely stupid to foresee any consequences. And
yet persons of but moderate discernment may have
some manifest examples to alarm them, which I had
occasion to1 mention to the Messenians and to the
? Which I had occasion to, &c. l--When Philip first began to interest
himself in the disputes between these states and Lacedsmon, the Atoe*
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? PHILIPPIC THE SECOND.
115
Argians. Perhaps it may be proper to repeat them
here.
"Messenians! " said I, "how highly, think ye,
would the Olynthians have been offended if any man
had spoken against Philip at that time when he gave
them up Anthemus,1 a city which the former kings of
Macedon had ever claimed 1 when he drove out the
Athenian colony, and gave them Potidaea ? when he
took all our resentment on himself, and left them to
enjoy our dominions ? Did they expect to have suf-
fered thus 1 had it been foretold, would they have
believed it 1 You cannot think it! Yet, after a short
enjoyment of the territories of others, they have
been for ever despoiled of their own by this man.
Inglorious has been their fall, not conquered only,
but betrayed and sold by one another: for those inti-
mate correspondences with tyrants ever portend mis-
chief to free states. "--" Turn your eyes," said I,
" to the Thessalians! think ye, that when he first
expelled their tyrants, when he then gave them up
Nicaea2 and Magnesia, that they expected ever to
have been subjected to those governors3 now im-
posed on them ? or that the man who restored them
to their seat in the amphictyonic council would have
deprived them of their own proper revenues ? yet,
nians sent an embassy to endeavour to weaken his interest in Pelopon-
nesus, and to dissuade the Messenians and Argians from accepting of
his interposition. On this occasion it was that Demosthenes made the
oration from which he now quotes this passage.
1 Anthemus. ]--This city of Macedon had been possessed by the an-
cestors of Philip from the earliest ages; for we learn from Herodotus,
b. v. , that about two hundred years before Amyntas made an offer of
Anthemus to Hipp'as the son of Pisistratus. --Tourreil.
2 Nicsea. ]--This city of Locris had been given up to Philip by Pha
lecus, at the conclusion of the sacred war. --Tourreil.
3 Those governors, &c. ]--The tyranny said to have been imposed by
Pbilip on the Thessalians is in the original of this passage called a
government of ten ; yet in the third Philippic it is styled a tetrarchy,
or government of four. Hence, therefare grounds to presume that an
error has crept into the ancient copies. Unless it be supposed that
Philip divided the country of Thessaly into four districts, and over each
of those established ten governors; if, by such a supposition, the au-
thority of the copies may be preserved.
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? 116 ORATIONS OF DEMOSTHENES.
that such was the event, the world can testify. In
like manner, you now behold Philip lavishing his
gifts and promises on you. If you are wise, you
will pray that he may never appear to have deceived
and abused you. Various are the contrivances for
the defence and security of cities; as battlements,
and walls, and trenches, and every other kind of
fortification; all which are the effects of labour, and
attended with continual expense. But there is one
common bulwark with which men of prudence are
naturally provided, the guard and security of all
people, particularly of free states, against the assaults
of tyrants. What is this? Distrust. Of this be
mindful: to this adhere: preserve this carefully,
and no calamity can affect you. "--" What is it you
seek ? " said I. " Liberty ? And do ye not per-
ceive that nothing can be more adverse to this than
the very titles of Philip? Every monarch, every
tyrant is an enemy to liberty, and the opposer of
laws. Will ye not then be careful lest, while ye seek
to be freed from war, you find yourselves his slaves V
But although they heard these things, and loudly
expressed their approbation; though the like points
were frequently urged by the ambassadors while I
was present, and probably were afterward repeated;
yet still they have no less dependence on the friend-
ship and the promises of Philip. But it is not strange
that the Messenians and some of the Peloponnesians
should act contrary to the dictates of nature, reason,
and reflection. Even you, who are yourselves fully
sensible, and constantly reminded by your public
speakers that there are designs forming against you,
that the toils of your enemies are surrounding you,
will, I fear, be plunged by your supineness into all
those dangers that threaten you; so prevalent is the
pleasure and indulgence of a moment over all your
future interests. --But as to the course necessary to
be pursued, prudence requires that this be debated
hereafter among yourselves. At present, I shall
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? PHILIPPIC THE SECOND.
Ill
propose such an answer to these ministers as may
be worthy of your concurrence 1
It would be just, Athenians, to call the men before
you who gave those promises which induced you to
conclude the peace: for neither would I have under-
taken the embassy, nor would you, I am convinced,
have laid down your arms, had it been suspected that
Philip would have acted thus when he had obtained
a peace. No: the assurances he then gave were
quite different from his present actions. There are
others also to be summoned. Who are these ? The
men who, at my return from the second embassy
(sent for the ratification of the treaty), when I saw
the state abused, and warned you of your danger,
and testified the truth, and opposed with all my
power the giving up Thermopylae and Phocis; the
men, I say, who then cried out that I, the water-
drinker, was morose and peevish; but that Philip, if
permitted to pass, would act agreeably to your de-
sires ; would fortify Thespia and Plataea; restrain
the insolence of Thebes; cut through the Chersone-
sus2 at his own expense; and give you up Euboea
and Oropus, as an equivalent for Amphipolis. --That
all this was positively affirmed you cannot, I am
sure, forget, though not remarkable for remembering
injuries. And, to complete the disgrace, you have
engaged your posterity to the same treaty, in full
dependence on those promises: so entirely have you
been seduced.
And now, to what purpose do I mention this ? and
1 Though none of our editors take notice of it, in this place the proper
officer must have proposed the orator's motion in form: unless we sup-
pose that this oration has descended to us imperfect; for, as the text
now stands, there is a manifest want of connexion between this sentence
and what follows. --Olivet.
2 Cut through the Chersonesus, ikc. J--When Cersobleptes had given
up tb Chersonesus to the Athenians, it became perpetually exposed to
the incursions of Thrace. The only way of putting a stop to them was
to cut through the isthmus, for the Thracians had no ships; and this
Philip promised to do in favour of the Athenians and their colonies. --
TourretL
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? 118 ORATIONS OF DEMOSTHENES.
why do I desire that these men should appear ? I
call the gods to witness, that without the least eva-
sion I shall boldly declare the truth ! Not that, by
breaking out into invectives,11 may expose myself
to the like treatment, and once more give my old
enemies an opportunity of receiving Philip's gold;
nor yet that I may indulge an impertinent vanity of
haranguing: but I apprehend the time must come
when Philip's actions will give you more concern
than at present. His designs, I see, are ripening. I
wish my apprehensions may not prove just: but I
fear that time is not far off. And when it will no
longer be in your power to disregard events; when
neither mine nor any other person's information, but
your own knowledge, your own senses will assure
you of the impending danger, then will your severest
resentment break forth. And as your ambassadors
have concealed certain things, influenced (as they
l Not that, by breaking out into invectives. ]--Wolfius, whom the
translator here follows, baa been severely censured for this interpreta-
tion by the Italian commentator, who renders the former part of (he sen-
tence thus : "Eos non ideo vocari velim, ut qui olim convitiis dehones-
tatus fui, segue nunc mini a vobis famam conciliem. "--IIop hptv ought
not to be rendered a vobis, but apud vos; or, as the translator, who fol-
lows Lucchesini's authority, has justly explained it in his note, in your
presence. But my objection to this interpretation does not arise from
grammatical nicety, but from a regard to the context, the surest com-
ment. If Demosthenes, instead of the disgraceful treatment he formerly
received, both from the partisans of Macedon and from the people, was
now to be received with applause, and to triumph over his opposers,
how could these have another opportunity of receiving Philip's gold?
Such wages were only paid when earned. They were bestowed, not on
ineffectual efforts, but real services; and these his friends could not
perform if disgraced and discouraged by the assembly. The whole
sentiment of the orator, as translated by Wolfius, is this: " I do not wish
that these men may appear, in order to indulge my indignation and
resentment against them, that so they may retort my accusations with
double virulence (as was the case when we first returned frorr1 our em-
bassy), and thus, by once more gaining your favour, and triumphing over
me, they may have an opportunity of boasting their services to Philip,
and obtaining their reward. " The passage manifestly alludes to the
transactions of the assembly, when the ten ambassadors returned who
had been sent to treat with Philip about a peace ; and which are par-
ticularly described by Demosthenes in his oration on the embassy: and
we may safely appeal to the reader who consults that oration, as to tbt
propriety of the present interpretation
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? PHILIPPIC 'iHE SECOND.
119
themselves are conscious) by corruption, 1 fear that
they who endeavour to restore what these men have
ruined may feel the weight of your displeasure; foi
there are some, I find, who generally point their
anger, not at the deserving objects, but those most
immediately at their mercy.
While our affairs, therefore, remain not absolutely
desperate--while it is yet in our power to debate--
give me leave to remind you all of one thing, though
none can be ignorant of it. --Who was the man1 that
persuaded you to give up Phocis and Thermopylae 1
which once gained, he also gained free access for his
troops to Attica and to Peloponnesus, and obliged us
to turn our thoughts from the rights of Greece, from
all foreign interests, to a defensive war, in these
very territories; whose approach must be severely
felt by every one of us: and that very day gave birth
to it; for had we 'not been then deceived, the state
could have nothing to apprehend. His naval power
could not have been great enough to attempt Attica
by sea; nor could he have passed by land through
Thermopylas and Phocis. But he must have either
confined himself within the bounds of justice, and
lived in a due observance of his treaty, or have
instantly been involved in a war equal to that which
obliged him to sue for peace.
Thus much maybe sufficient to recall past actions
to your view.
May all the gods forbid that the event
should confirm my suspicions! for I by no means
desire that any man should meet even the deserved
punishment of his crimes, when the whole commu-
nity is in danger of being involved in his destruction.
1 Who was the man, &c. ]--The person pointed at is Machines,
These two statesmen accused each other when the bad consequences a
this treaty came to be universally felt and acknowledged.
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? THE ORATION ON THE STATE OF THE
CHERSONESUS:
PRONOUNCED IN THE ARCHONSHIP Of SOS1GENES, TWO YEAR! AJTEK
THE SECOND PHILIPPIC.
INTRODUCTION.
In the foregoing oration the vehemence of Demosthenes determined
the Athenians to oppose the attempts of Philip; and his representations
to the Argians and Messenians inspired them with suspicion, and at
length detached them from all connexions with Macedon. When Philip,
therefore, found his practices in Peloponnesus unsuccessful, he began to
turn his thoughts toother enterprises; to pursue his conquests in Thrace,
and cross the Athenian interest in the Chersonesus. This peninsula
had, with some little interruption, been for many years in the hands of
the Athenians. Cotis, as king of the country, had lately wrested it from
them, and left it in succession to his son Cersobleptes. But be, being
unable to support himself against the power of Philip, resigned it again
to the Athenians ; and they, according to cnstom, sent in a colony, which
the inhabitants received, and freely shared their lands and habitations
with their new guests. The people of Cardia, the principal city, how-
ever, still asserted their independence; and when Diopithes, the com-
mander of the Athenian colony, would have reduced them by force of
arms, had recourse to Philip, who immediately detached a body of forces
to their support. Diopithes considered this proceeding as an act of hostility
against Athens: without waiting for instructions from his state, raised a
considerable force; and, while Philip was engaged in war in the inland
of Thrace, entered the maritime parts (which were his territories)
fire and sword, and brought off a great booty, which he lodged safe in
the Chersonesus. Philip was not at leisure to repel this insult: he there-
fore contented himself with complaining by letters to the Athenians'of
this conduct of their general. The pensioners which he had at Athens
Immediately exerted themselves for their master. They inveighed loudly
against Diopithes; accused him of violating the peace which then sub-
sisted between them and Philip; of involving the state ih war; of exac-
tion, rapine, and piracy; and pressed for his being recalled.
Demosthenes, judging that at such a juncture the public interest was
connected with that of Diopithes, undertakes his defence in the following
oration; throws the whole blame of the exactions and piracies he is ac-
cused of on the Athenians themselves; turns their attention to Philip
and his hostilities; and concludes, that whoever opposes or distresses
him in any manner does a service to the state; and that, instead of dis-
avowing what Diopithes had done, or directing him to dismiss his army,
they should reinforce him, and show the King of Macedon they know
how to protect their territories, and to maintain the dignity of their
country as well as their ancestors.
It appears, from the beginning of this oration, that before Demos-
thenes arose the affair had been violently contested in the assembly.
Possibly the heat of opposition added to the natural fire of the orator; for
the style of the oration is, in my opinion, remarkably animated ; and we
find an extraordinary degree of severity and indignation breaking out in
? very part of it.
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? THE ORATION ON THE STATE OF
THE CHERSONESUS.
It were to be wished, Athenians, that they who
epeak in public would never suffer hatred or affection
to influence their counsels; but, in all that they
propose, be directed by rnbiassed reason; particu-
larly when affairs of state, and those of highest mo-
ment, are the object of our attention. But since
there are persons whose speeches are partly dictated
by a spirit of contention, partly by other like motives,
it is your duty, Athenians, to exert that power which
your numbers give you, and in all your resolutions
and in all your actions to consider only the interest
of your country.
Our present concernment is about the affairs of
the Chersonesus, and Philip's expedition into Thrace,
which hath now engaged him eleven months : but
most of our orators insist on the actions and designs
of Diopithes. As to crimes objected to those men
whom our laws can punish when we please, I, for
my part, think it quite indifferent whether they be
considered now or at some other time; nor is this a
point to be violently contested by me or any other
speaker. But when Philip, the enemy of our coun-
try, is now actually hovering about the Hellespont'
with a numerous army, and making attempts on our
dominions, which, if one moment neglected, the loss
may be irreparable; here our attention is instantly
demanded: we should resolve, we should prepare
1 Hording about the Hellespont. ]--By toe Hellespont we are to un
derstand not the strait itself that separates Europe from Asia, but tb*
cities and countries all along the coast.
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? 122
ORATIONS OF DEMOSTHENES.
with all possible expedition, and not run fiom our
main concern in the midst of foreign clamours and
accusations.
I have frequently been surprised at assertions made
in public; but never more than when I lately heard
it affirmed in the senate,1 that there are but two ex-
pedients to be proposed--either absolutely to declare
war, or to continue in peace. The point is this: if
Philip acts as one in amity with us; if he does not
keep possession of our dominions contrary to his
treaty; if he be not every where spiriting up enemies
against us, all debates are at an end; we are un-
doubtedly obliged to live in peace, and I find it per-
fectly agreeable to you. But if the articles of our,
treaty, ratified by the most solemn oaths, remain on
record, open to public inspection; if it appears that
long before the departure of Diopithes and his colony,
who are now accused of involving us in a war, Philip
had unjustly seized many of our possessions (for
which I appeal to your own decrees); if, ever since
that time, he has been constantly arming himself
with all the powers of Greeks and Barbarians to de-
stroy us--what do these" men mean who affirm we
are either absolutely to declare war, or to observe
the peace ? You have no choice at all; you have
but one just and necessary measure to pursue, which
they industriously pass over. And what is this?
To repel force by force. Unless they will affirm,
that, while Philip keeps from Attica and the Piraeus,"
1 In the senate. 1--Into which Demosthenes had been admitted 111 the
archonship of Themistoctes, a little after the taking of Olynthus; and (if
we may believe Machines) not in the regular manner, but by intrigue and
bribery.
2 The Piraeus. 1--This is the first time the orator mentions this cele-
brated port of Athens. It was at first detached from the city, but after-
ward joined to it by two long walls, which the Greeks called the Legs of
the Flrreus; and from that time, by the advice of Themistocles, tho
Athenians made this their principal harbour. It could contain four hun-
dred ships of war; was well fortified, and furnished with a market, to
which all the trading part of Greece resorted. Historians call it the triple
fort, for it really contained three: the first called Kavdapos, frorn a hero
of that name; the second AOfw&etoo, from two temples of Venus that
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? ON THE STATE OF THE CHERSONESTJS. 123
he does our state no injury, makes no war against
us. If it be thus they state the bounds of peace and
justice, we must all acknowledge that their senti-
ments are inconsistent with the common rights of-
* mankind--with the dignity and the safety of Athens
Besides, they themselves contradict their own ac
cusation of Diopithes. For shall Philip be left at full
liberty to pursue all his other designs, provided he
keeps from Attica; and shall not Diopithes be per-
mitted to assist the Thraciansl And if he does,
shall we accuse him of involving us in a war? --But
this is their incessant cry: " Our foreign troops com-
mit outrageous devastations on the Hellespont:
Diopithes, without regard to justice, seizes and plun-
ders vessels! These things must not be suffered. "
Be it so: I acquiesce ! but while they are labouring
to have our troops disbanded, by inveighing against
that man whose care and industry support them (if
they really speak from a regard to justice), they
should show us, that if we yield to their remon-
strances Philip's army also will be disbanded: else
it is apparent that their whole aim is to reduce the
state to those circumstances which have occasioned
all the losses we have lately suffered. For be
assured of this, that nothing hath given Philip such
advantage over us as his superior vigilance in im-
proving all opportunities. For, as he is constantly
surrounded by his troops, and his mind perpetually
engaged in projecting his designs, he can in a mo-
ment strike the blow where he pleases. But we
wait till some event alarms us; then we are in
motion ; then we prepare. To this alone I can im-
pute it, that the conquests he hath lately made he
now enjoys in full security; while all your efforts
are too late, all your vast expenses ineffectual: your
attempts have served only to discover your enmity
and inclination to oppose him; and the consequences
were erected near it; the third Zca, because it was the mart for corn --
Tourreil.
Vol. I. --K
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? 124 ORATIONS OF DEMOSTHENES.
of your misconduct are still further aggravated by
the disgrace.
Know then, Athenians, that all our orators allege
at present are but words, but idle pretences. Their
? whole designs, their whole endeavours are to confine
u within the city; that, while we have no forces
the field, Philip may be at full liberty to act as he
pleases. Consider the present posture of affairs.
Philip is now stationed in Thrace, at the head of a
large army, and (as we are here informed) sends for
reinforcements from Macedon and Thessaly. Now,
should he watch the blowing of the Etesian winds,
march his forces to Byzantium, and invest it; in the
first place, can you imagine that the Byzantines
would persist in their present folly; or that they
would not have recourse to you for assistance ? I
cannot think it. No : if there were a people in whom
they less confided' than in us, they would receive
even these into their city rather than give it up to
him, unless prevented by the quickness of his attack.
And should we be unable to sail thither, should
there be no forces ready to support them, nothing
can prevent their ruin. --" But the extravagance and
folly of these men exceed all bounds. "--I grant it.
Yet still they should be secured from danger; for
this is the interest of our state. Besides, it is by no
means clear that he will not march into the Cher-
sonesus itself. On the contrary, if we may judge
from the letter which he sent to you, he is deter-
mined to oppose us in that country. If then the
I If there were a people in whom they less confided, &c. ]--In the third
year of the 105th Olympiad the Byzantines entered into a league with
Chios, Coa, and Rhodes, against the Athenians, and withdrew them-
selves trom their dominion. This is what Demosthenes calls their/b/Zy
and extravagance. They had reason to think the Athenians would
regard them as rebellious subjects, and treat them with the resentment
of offended sovereigns. " However," says the orator, " if they were re-
duced to the alternative of either submitting to Philip, or having recourse
to you for protection, they would without hesitation choose the latter. "
The event confirmed his prediction. Philip besieged Byzantium, the
Byzantines had recourse to the Athenians, and Phocion at the head of
their army obliged Philip to raise the siege. --TourTeiX!
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? ON THE STATE OF THE CHERSONESUS. 125
forces stationed there be still kept up, we may de-
fend our own dominions, and infest those of our
enemy; if they be once dispersed and broken, what
shall we do if he attempt the Chersonesus 1--" Bring
Diopithes to a trial. "--And how will that serve us ?
--" No: but we will despatch succours from hence. "
--What if the winds prevent us 1--" But he will not
turn his arms thither. "--Who will be our suretj for
this 1 Consider, Athenians, is not the season of the
year approaching in which it is thought by some that
you are to withdraw your forces from the Hellespont,
and abandon it to Philip ? But suppose (for this too
merits our attention) that at his return from Thrace
he should neither bend his force against the Cher-
sonesus nor Byzantium, but fall on Chalcis or Me-
gara, as he lately did on Oreum;' which would be the
wiser course, to oppose him here, and make Attica
the seat of war, or to find him employment abroad 7
1 think the latter.
Let these things sink deep into our minds; and
let us not raise invidious clamours against those
forces which Diopithes is endeavouring to keep up
for the service of his country, or attempt to break
them: let us rather prepare to reinforce them; grant
their general the necessary supplies of money, and in
every other instance favour his designs with a hearty
zeal. Imagine this question proposed to Philip:--
" Which would be most agreeable to you, that
the forces commanded by Diopithes"--of whatever
kind they be, for I shall not dispute on that head--
" should continue in full strength and good esteem at
Athens, and be reinforced by detachments from the
city; or, that the clamours and invectives of certain
persons should prevail to have them broken and dis-
banded ? " I think he would choose this latter. And
are there men among us labouring for that which
1 As he lately did on Oreum. ]--In the third Philippic -we shall find a
particular account of the manner in which he reduced this city to his
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? 126 ORATIONS OF DEMOSTHENES.
Philip would entreat the gods to grant him? and if
so, is it still a question whence our distresses have
arisen ?
Let me entreat you to examine the present state
of Athens with an unbiassed freedom; to consider
how we are acting, and how our affairs are conducted.
We are neither willing to raise contributions, nor do
we dare to take the field, nor do we spare the public
funds, nor do we grant supplies to Diopithes, nor do
we approve of those subsidies he hath procured him-
self; but we malign him, we pry into his designs,
and watch his motions. Thus we proceed, quite re-
gardless of our interests; and while in words we
extol those speakers who assert the dignity of theii
country, our actions favour their opposers. --It is
usual, when a speaker rises, to ask him, " What are
we to do ? " Give me leave to propose the like ques-
tion to you : " What am I to say V For, if you nei
ther raise contributions, nor take the field, nor spare
the public funds, nor grant subsidies to Diopithes,
nor approve of those provisions he hath made him
self, nor take the due care of our interests, I have
nothing to say. If you grant such unbounded license
to informers as even to listen to their accusations
of a man for what they pretend he will do, before it
be yet done, what can one say ?
But it is necessary to explain to some of you the
effect of this behaviour. ' (I shall speak with an un-
' But H is necessary to explain to some of you the effect of this bo
nanourJ--To the same purpose nas the sentence been translated by
Wolfius and Tourreil. But this interpretation, which is acknowledged con-
sonant to grammatical rules of construction, has yet been stigmatized as a
total perversion of the author's reasoning and the sense of the context.
Clamours had been raised against an Athenian general, who had exacted
contributions from the islanders and Grecian settlements alone the coast
of Asia. Demosthenes appears as his advocate. He proceeds, as it is
observed, to show that it had ever been the custom of other commanders
to raise the like contributions. Hence it is inferred, that the meaning of
the phrase here quoted must be, that the general is warranted by justice
and custom to aci as he had done. The orator, indeed, doth proceed to
give instances of this custom. But this conclusion I cannot admit; for
whatever deference and respect the writers who have adopted it may
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? ON THE STATE OF THE CHERSONESUS. 127
daunted freedom, forin no other manner can I speak. )
--It has been the constant custom of all the com-
manders who have sailed from this city (if I advance
a falsehood let me feel the severest punishment) to
take money from the Chians, and from the Ery-
thrians, and from any people that would give it; I
mean of the inhabitants of Asia. They who have
but one or two ships take a talent; they who com-
mand a greater force raise a larger contribution: and
the people who give this money, whether more or
less, do not give it for nothing (they are not so mad):
no; it is the price they pay to secure their trading
vessels from rapine and piracy, to provide them with
the necessary convoys, and the like; however they
may pretend friendship and affection, and dignify
those payments with the name of free gifts. It is
therefore evident, that as Diopitbes is at the head of
a considerable power, the same contributions will be
granted to him. Else, how shall he pay his soldiers 1
how shall he maintain them, who receives nothing
from you, and has nothing of his own ? From the
skies ? No ; but from what he can collect, and beg,
justly claim, a greater deference and respect is due to the original, where
we find a conclusion of a different nature, deduced in express terms. "It
has been the constant custom," says Demosthenes, " of all the com-
manders who have sniled from this city (if I advance a falsehood let mo
feel the severest punishment) to take money from the Chians, and from
the Erythrians, and from any people that would give it; I mean, of the
inhabitants of Asia. They who have but oneor two ships take a talent;
they who command a greater force raise a larger contribution : and the
people who give this money, whether more or less, do not give it for
nothing (they are not so mad): no; it is the price they pay to secure their
trading vessels from rapine and piracy, to provide them with the neces-
sary convoys, and the like; however they may pretend friendship and
affection, and dignify those payments with the name of free gifts. Il is
therefore evident, that as Diopilhes is at the head of a considerable
Cwer, the same contributions will be granted to htm. Else, how shall
pay his soldiers ? how shall he maintain them, who receives nothing
from you, and has nothing of his own 1 From the skies ? No; but from
what he can collect, and beg, and borrow. " Then follows the conclusion
from the whole : Ovlt OYN aXXo iroioveiv ol Kariiyopovvrcs tvviiiv^n
vpoXcyjvtriv liirairt, ifcc. So that the whole scheme of his accusers (or
the whole effect of tbelr accusations) is to warn nil people to grant him
nothing, &c. This is the meaning (or this Is the tendency) of their
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? 128 ORATIONS OF DEMOSTHENES.
and borrow. So that the whole scheme of his ac-
cusers is to warn all people to grant him nothing; as
he is to suffer punishment for crimes yet to be com-
mitted, not for any he hath-already committed, or in
which he hath already assisted. This is the mean-
ing of their clamours. " He is going to form sieges!
the same persuasion he now heaps his favours on
the Messenians and Argians. And this reflects the
greatest lustre on you, my countrymen; for by these
proceedings you are declared the only invariable
assertors of the rights of Greece; the only persons
whom no private attachment, no views of interest
can seduce from their affection to the Greeks.
And that it is with reason he entertains these
sentiments of you, and sentiments so different of the
Thebans and the Argians, he may be convinced, not
from the present only, but from a review of former
times: for he must have been informed, I presume
he cannot but have heard, that your ancestors, when,
by submitting to the king, they might have pur-
chased the sovereignty of Greece, not only scorned
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? 112 ORATIONS OF DEMOSTHENES.
to listen when Alexander,1 this man's ancestor, was
made the messenger of such terms, but chose to
abandon their city, encountered every possible diffi-
culty, and after all this performed such exploits as
men are ever eager to recite, yet with the just force
and dignity no man ever could express; and there-
fore, it becomes me to be silent on this subject; for
in reality their actions are superior to the power of
words. As to the ancestors of the Thebans and the
Argians, the one, he knows, fought for the Barba-
rian; the others did not oppose him. 2 He knew,
then, that both these people would attend but to their
private interest, without the least regard to the
common cause of Greece. Should he choose you
for allies, you would serve him so far only as justice
would permit; but, if he attached himself to them,
he gained assistants in all the schemes of his ambi-
tion. This it is that then determined him, this it is
that now determines him to their side rather than to
yours: not that he sees they have a greater naval
1 When Alexander, &c. ]--The reader may find the history here
alluded to in the eighth and ninth books of Herodotus. The expressions
in the original are as contemptuous as possible; b rovrwv, or, as some
editions have it, & rourwv -Kpoyovos, the ancestors of these wretches the
Macedonians; and then, not irpcaftevs, ambassador, but KHPTE, herald
or erier, the. slave or menial officer of his master Mardonivs. Avec le
titre d'ambassadeur (as Tourreil translates it) suggests the honourable
idea which Demosthenes takes such pains to keep out of view.
2 The one, be knows, fought for the Barbarian; the others did not
oppose him. ]--The readiness with which the Thebans granted earth and
water, the tokens of submission, to the Persian, the regret wiih which
they joined Leonid as at Thermopylae, their joining operily with Xerxes,
when his arms had the appearance of success, and other circumstances,
confirmed by the urnted testimony of historians, all warrant the assertion
of Demosthenes. The Argians were engaged to a neutrality by an arti-
fice of the Persians, who pretended to derive their descent from Per-
seus, the son of Acrisius, one of the kings of Argos. This pretence
how gross soever, was sufficient for a people who chose to be deceived,
and would not reflect that this monarchy had not the title of Persian till
the reign of Cyrus. Their infidelity to the cause of Greece they con-
cealed under the veil of ambition ; for they professed themselves ready
to concur in the common defence, provided that they were admitted to an
equal share of the command with Lacedemon: which proposal wu
rejected, as they desired. --Tourreil.
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? PHILIPPIC THE SECOND
force1 than we; or that, having gained the sovereignty
in the inland countries, he declines the command of
the seas and the advantages of commerce; or that
he hath forgotten those pretences, those promises
which obtained him the peace.
But I may be told--It is true, he did act thus; but
not from ambition, or from any of those motives of
which I accuse him; but as he thought the cause of
Thebes more just than ours. 2--This of all pretences
he cannot now allege. Can he, who commands the
Lacedaemonians3 to quit their claim to Messene, pre-
tend that, in giving up Orchomenus and Coronea to
the Thebans, he acted from regard to justice ? But
now comes his last subterfuge. He was compelled,
and yielded these places quite against his inclina-
tions, being encompassed by the Thessalian horse
and Theban infantry. Fine pretence! --Just so, they
cry, he is to entertain suspicions of the Thebans; and
some spread rumours of their own framing, that he
is to fortify Elatea. 4 Yes< these things are yet to
be, and so will they remain, in my opinion; but
his attack on Lacedaemon, in conjunction with the
Thebans and Argians, is not yet to be made. No:
1 A greater naval force, dec. ]--Athens, as a maritime power, waa impo-
rter to all the other Greeks. At the battle of Salamis, of the three hundred
vessels which composed the Grecian fleet, two hundred were Athenian.
Three hundred ships sailed from the port of Athens on the expedition to
Sicily; and their fleet was afterward increased to four hundred. --
Tourreil.
2 The cause of Thebes more just than ours. ]--The union of Philip
with the Thebans had a very plausible colour; that of espousing the
cause of Apollo, and punishing the sacrilegious profaners of his temple.
It was not convenient to display thia at large, and therefore he cuts it
short by one vague expression; for the art of an orator appears no less
hi suppressing such things as may prove unfavourable to his design, than
in dwelling on those points which may assist it. --Tourreil.
* Can he, who commands the Lacedaemonians, &c. ]--Because the
pretensions of each were of the same nature. Lacedaemon assumed
the supreme power in Peloponnesus. Thebes affected the like power in
Basotia.
* To fortify Elatea. ]--This was the most considerable city in Phocis,
and by its situation very well fltted to keep the Thebans in awe. So
that some years after, when Philip perceived that the Thebans were
growing cool tv Hub, bis first step was to take possession of Elatea. --
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? >>14 ORATIONS OF DEMOSTHENES.
he is actually detaching forces, supplying money, and
is himself expected at the head of a formidable
army. The Lacedaemonians, therefore, the enemies
of Thebes, he now infests. And will he then restore
the Phocians, whom he hath but just now ruined 1
Who can believe this ? I, for my part, can never
think, if Philip had been forced into those formei
measures, or if he had now abandoned the Thebans,
that he would make this continued opposition to their
enemies. No: his present measures prove that all
his past conduct was the effect of choice; and from
all his actions, it appears that all his actions are
directly levelled against this state: and there is in
some sort a necessity for this. Consider, he aims at
empire, and from you alone he expects opposition.
He hath long loaded us with injuries; and of this he
himself is most intimately conscious; for those of
our possessions which he hath reduced to his ser-
vice he uses as a barrier to his other territories: so
that, if he should give up Amphipolis and Potidaea,
he would not think himself secure even in Macedon.
He is therefore sensible that he entertains designs
against you, and that you perceive them. Then, as
he thinks highly of your wisdom, he concludes that
you must hold him in that abhorrence which he
merits: hence is he alarmed, expecting to feel some
effects of your resentment (if you have any favour-
able opportunity) unless he prevent you by his attack.
Hence is his vigilance awakened; his arm raised
against the state: he courts some of the Thebans,
and such of the Peloponnesians as have the same
views with him; whom he deems too mercenary to
regard any thing but present interest, and too per-
versely stupid to foresee any consequences. And
yet persons of but moderate discernment may have
some manifest examples to alarm them, which I had
occasion to1 mention to the Messenians and to the
? Which I had occasion to, &c. l--When Philip first began to interest
himself in the disputes between these states and Lacedsmon, the Atoe*
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? PHILIPPIC THE SECOND.
115
Argians. Perhaps it may be proper to repeat them
here.
"Messenians! " said I, "how highly, think ye,
would the Olynthians have been offended if any man
had spoken against Philip at that time when he gave
them up Anthemus,1 a city which the former kings of
Macedon had ever claimed 1 when he drove out the
Athenian colony, and gave them Potidaea ? when he
took all our resentment on himself, and left them to
enjoy our dominions ? Did they expect to have suf-
fered thus 1 had it been foretold, would they have
believed it 1 You cannot think it! Yet, after a short
enjoyment of the territories of others, they have
been for ever despoiled of their own by this man.
Inglorious has been their fall, not conquered only,
but betrayed and sold by one another: for those inti-
mate correspondences with tyrants ever portend mis-
chief to free states. "--" Turn your eyes," said I,
" to the Thessalians! think ye, that when he first
expelled their tyrants, when he then gave them up
Nicaea2 and Magnesia, that they expected ever to
have been subjected to those governors3 now im-
posed on them ? or that the man who restored them
to their seat in the amphictyonic council would have
deprived them of their own proper revenues ? yet,
nians sent an embassy to endeavour to weaken his interest in Pelopon-
nesus, and to dissuade the Messenians and Argians from accepting of
his interposition. On this occasion it was that Demosthenes made the
oration from which he now quotes this passage.
1 Anthemus. ]--This city of Macedon had been possessed by the an-
cestors of Philip from the earliest ages; for we learn from Herodotus,
b. v. , that about two hundred years before Amyntas made an offer of
Anthemus to Hipp'as the son of Pisistratus. --Tourreil.
2 Nicsea. ]--This city of Locris had been given up to Philip by Pha
lecus, at the conclusion of the sacred war. --Tourreil.
3 Those governors, &c. ]--The tyranny said to have been imposed by
Pbilip on the Thessalians is in the original of this passage called a
government of ten ; yet in the third Philippic it is styled a tetrarchy,
or government of four. Hence, therefare grounds to presume that an
error has crept into the ancient copies. Unless it be supposed that
Philip divided the country of Thessaly into four districts, and over each
of those established ten governors; if, by such a supposition, the au-
thority of the copies may be preserved.
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? 116 ORATIONS OF DEMOSTHENES.
that such was the event, the world can testify. In
like manner, you now behold Philip lavishing his
gifts and promises on you. If you are wise, you
will pray that he may never appear to have deceived
and abused you. Various are the contrivances for
the defence and security of cities; as battlements,
and walls, and trenches, and every other kind of
fortification; all which are the effects of labour, and
attended with continual expense. But there is one
common bulwark with which men of prudence are
naturally provided, the guard and security of all
people, particularly of free states, against the assaults
of tyrants. What is this? Distrust. Of this be
mindful: to this adhere: preserve this carefully,
and no calamity can affect you. "--" What is it you
seek ? " said I. " Liberty ? And do ye not per-
ceive that nothing can be more adverse to this than
the very titles of Philip? Every monarch, every
tyrant is an enemy to liberty, and the opposer of
laws. Will ye not then be careful lest, while ye seek
to be freed from war, you find yourselves his slaves V
But although they heard these things, and loudly
expressed their approbation; though the like points
were frequently urged by the ambassadors while I
was present, and probably were afterward repeated;
yet still they have no less dependence on the friend-
ship and the promises of Philip. But it is not strange
that the Messenians and some of the Peloponnesians
should act contrary to the dictates of nature, reason,
and reflection. Even you, who are yourselves fully
sensible, and constantly reminded by your public
speakers that there are designs forming against you,
that the toils of your enemies are surrounding you,
will, I fear, be plunged by your supineness into all
those dangers that threaten you; so prevalent is the
pleasure and indulgence of a moment over all your
future interests. --But as to the course necessary to
be pursued, prudence requires that this be debated
hereafter among yourselves. At present, I shall
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? PHILIPPIC THE SECOND.
Ill
propose such an answer to these ministers as may
be worthy of your concurrence 1
It would be just, Athenians, to call the men before
you who gave those promises which induced you to
conclude the peace: for neither would I have under-
taken the embassy, nor would you, I am convinced,
have laid down your arms, had it been suspected that
Philip would have acted thus when he had obtained
a peace. No: the assurances he then gave were
quite different from his present actions. There are
others also to be summoned. Who are these ? The
men who, at my return from the second embassy
(sent for the ratification of the treaty), when I saw
the state abused, and warned you of your danger,
and testified the truth, and opposed with all my
power the giving up Thermopylae and Phocis; the
men, I say, who then cried out that I, the water-
drinker, was morose and peevish; but that Philip, if
permitted to pass, would act agreeably to your de-
sires ; would fortify Thespia and Plataea; restrain
the insolence of Thebes; cut through the Chersone-
sus2 at his own expense; and give you up Euboea
and Oropus, as an equivalent for Amphipolis. --That
all this was positively affirmed you cannot, I am
sure, forget, though not remarkable for remembering
injuries. And, to complete the disgrace, you have
engaged your posterity to the same treaty, in full
dependence on those promises: so entirely have you
been seduced.
And now, to what purpose do I mention this ? and
1 Though none of our editors take notice of it, in this place the proper
officer must have proposed the orator's motion in form: unless we sup-
pose that this oration has descended to us imperfect; for, as the text
now stands, there is a manifest want of connexion between this sentence
and what follows. --Olivet.
2 Cut through the Chersonesus, ikc. J--When Cersobleptes had given
up tb Chersonesus to the Athenians, it became perpetually exposed to
the incursions of Thrace. The only way of putting a stop to them was
to cut through the isthmus, for the Thracians had no ships; and this
Philip promised to do in favour of the Athenians and their colonies. --
TourretL
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? 118 ORATIONS OF DEMOSTHENES.
why do I desire that these men should appear ? I
call the gods to witness, that without the least eva-
sion I shall boldly declare the truth ! Not that, by
breaking out into invectives,11 may expose myself
to the like treatment, and once more give my old
enemies an opportunity of receiving Philip's gold;
nor yet that I may indulge an impertinent vanity of
haranguing: but I apprehend the time must come
when Philip's actions will give you more concern
than at present. His designs, I see, are ripening. I
wish my apprehensions may not prove just: but I
fear that time is not far off. And when it will no
longer be in your power to disregard events; when
neither mine nor any other person's information, but
your own knowledge, your own senses will assure
you of the impending danger, then will your severest
resentment break forth. And as your ambassadors
have concealed certain things, influenced (as they
l Not that, by breaking out into invectives. ]--Wolfius, whom the
translator here follows, baa been severely censured for this interpreta-
tion by the Italian commentator, who renders the former part of (he sen-
tence thus : "Eos non ideo vocari velim, ut qui olim convitiis dehones-
tatus fui, segue nunc mini a vobis famam conciliem. "--IIop hptv ought
not to be rendered a vobis, but apud vos; or, as the translator, who fol-
lows Lucchesini's authority, has justly explained it in his note, in your
presence. But my objection to this interpretation does not arise from
grammatical nicety, but from a regard to the context, the surest com-
ment. If Demosthenes, instead of the disgraceful treatment he formerly
received, both from the partisans of Macedon and from the people, was
now to be received with applause, and to triumph over his opposers,
how could these have another opportunity of receiving Philip's gold?
Such wages were only paid when earned. They were bestowed, not on
ineffectual efforts, but real services; and these his friends could not
perform if disgraced and discouraged by the assembly. The whole
sentiment of the orator, as translated by Wolfius, is this: " I do not wish
that these men may appear, in order to indulge my indignation and
resentment against them, that so they may retort my accusations with
double virulence (as was the case when we first returned frorr1 our em-
bassy), and thus, by once more gaining your favour, and triumphing over
me, they may have an opportunity of boasting their services to Philip,
and obtaining their reward. " The passage manifestly alludes to the
transactions of the assembly, when the ten ambassadors returned who
had been sent to treat with Philip about a peace ; and which are par-
ticularly described by Demosthenes in his oration on the embassy: and
we may safely appeal to the reader who consults that oration, as to tbt
propriety of the present interpretation
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? PHILIPPIC 'iHE SECOND.
119
themselves are conscious) by corruption, 1 fear that
they who endeavour to restore what these men have
ruined may feel the weight of your displeasure; foi
there are some, I find, who generally point their
anger, not at the deserving objects, but those most
immediately at their mercy.
While our affairs, therefore, remain not absolutely
desperate--while it is yet in our power to debate--
give me leave to remind you all of one thing, though
none can be ignorant of it. --Who was the man1 that
persuaded you to give up Phocis and Thermopylae 1
which once gained, he also gained free access for his
troops to Attica and to Peloponnesus, and obliged us
to turn our thoughts from the rights of Greece, from
all foreign interests, to a defensive war, in these
very territories; whose approach must be severely
felt by every one of us: and that very day gave birth
to it; for had we 'not been then deceived, the state
could have nothing to apprehend. His naval power
could not have been great enough to attempt Attica
by sea; nor could he have passed by land through
Thermopylas and Phocis. But he must have either
confined himself within the bounds of justice, and
lived in a due observance of his treaty, or have
instantly been involved in a war equal to that which
obliged him to sue for peace.
Thus much maybe sufficient to recall past actions
to your view.
May all the gods forbid that the event
should confirm my suspicions! for I by no means
desire that any man should meet even the deserved
punishment of his crimes, when the whole commu-
nity is in danger of being involved in his destruction.
1 Who was the man, &c. ]--The person pointed at is Machines,
These two statesmen accused each other when the bad consequences a
this treaty came to be universally felt and acknowledged.
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? THE ORATION ON THE STATE OF THE
CHERSONESUS:
PRONOUNCED IN THE ARCHONSHIP Of SOS1GENES, TWO YEAR! AJTEK
THE SECOND PHILIPPIC.
INTRODUCTION.
In the foregoing oration the vehemence of Demosthenes determined
the Athenians to oppose the attempts of Philip; and his representations
to the Argians and Messenians inspired them with suspicion, and at
length detached them from all connexions with Macedon. When Philip,
therefore, found his practices in Peloponnesus unsuccessful, he began to
turn his thoughts toother enterprises; to pursue his conquests in Thrace,
and cross the Athenian interest in the Chersonesus. This peninsula
had, with some little interruption, been for many years in the hands of
the Athenians. Cotis, as king of the country, had lately wrested it from
them, and left it in succession to his son Cersobleptes. But be, being
unable to support himself against the power of Philip, resigned it again
to the Athenians ; and they, according to cnstom, sent in a colony, which
the inhabitants received, and freely shared their lands and habitations
with their new guests. The people of Cardia, the principal city, how-
ever, still asserted their independence; and when Diopithes, the com-
mander of the Athenian colony, would have reduced them by force of
arms, had recourse to Philip, who immediately detached a body of forces
to their support. Diopithes considered this proceeding as an act of hostility
against Athens: without waiting for instructions from his state, raised a
considerable force; and, while Philip was engaged in war in the inland
of Thrace, entered the maritime parts (which were his territories)
fire and sword, and brought off a great booty, which he lodged safe in
the Chersonesus. Philip was not at leisure to repel this insult: he there-
fore contented himself with complaining by letters to the Athenians'of
this conduct of their general. The pensioners which he had at Athens
Immediately exerted themselves for their master. They inveighed loudly
against Diopithes; accused him of violating the peace which then sub-
sisted between them and Philip; of involving the state ih war; of exac-
tion, rapine, and piracy; and pressed for his being recalled.
Demosthenes, judging that at such a juncture the public interest was
connected with that of Diopithes, undertakes his defence in the following
oration; throws the whole blame of the exactions and piracies he is ac-
cused of on the Athenians themselves; turns their attention to Philip
and his hostilities; and concludes, that whoever opposes or distresses
him in any manner does a service to the state; and that, instead of dis-
avowing what Diopithes had done, or directing him to dismiss his army,
they should reinforce him, and show the King of Macedon they know
how to protect their territories, and to maintain the dignity of their
country as well as their ancestors.
It appears, from the beginning of this oration, that before Demos-
thenes arose the affair had been violently contested in the assembly.
Possibly the heat of opposition added to the natural fire of the orator; for
the style of the oration is, in my opinion, remarkably animated ; and we
find an extraordinary degree of severity and indignation breaking out in
? very part of it.
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? THE ORATION ON THE STATE OF
THE CHERSONESUS.
It were to be wished, Athenians, that they who
epeak in public would never suffer hatred or affection
to influence their counsels; but, in all that they
propose, be directed by rnbiassed reason; particu-
larly when affairs of state, and those of highest mo-
ment, are the object of our attention. But since
there are persons whose speeches are partly dictated
by a spirit of contention, partly by other like motives,
it is your duty, Athenians, to exert that power which
your numbers give you, and in all your resolutions
and in all your actions to consider only the interest
of your country.
Our present concernment is about the affairs of
the Chersonesus, and Philip's expedition into Thrace,
which hath now engaged him eleven months : but
most of our orators insist on the actions and designs
of Diopithes. As to crimes objected to those men
whom our laws can punish when we please, I, for
my part, think it quite indifferent whether they be
considered now or at some other time; nor is this a
point to be violently contested by me or any other
speaker. But when Philip, the enemy of our coun-
try, is now actually hovering about the Hellespont'
with a numerous army, and making attempts on our
dominions, which, if one moment neglected, the loss
may be irreparable; here our attention is instantly
demanded: we should resolve, we should prepare
1 Hording about the Hellespont. ]--By toe Hellespont we are to un
derstand not the strait itself that separates Europe from Asia, but tb*
cities and countries all along the coast.
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? 122
ORATIONS OF DEMOSTHENES.
with all possible expedition, and not run fiom our
main concern in the midst of foreign clamours and
accusations.
I have frequently been surprised at assertions made
in public; but never more than when I lately heard
it affirmed in the senate,1 that there are but two ex-
pedients to be proposed--either absolutely to declare
war, or to continue in peace. The point is this: if
Philip acts as one in amity with us; if he does not
keep possession of our dominions contrary to his
treaty; if he be not every where spiriting up enemies
against us, all debates are at an end; we are un-
doubtedly obliged to live in peace, and I find it per-
fectly agreeable to you. But if the articles of our,
treaty, ratified by the most solemn oaths, remain on
record, open to public inspection; if it appears that
long before the departure of Diopithes and his colony,
who are now accused of involving us in a war, Philip
had unjustly seized many of our possessions (for
which I appeal to your own decrees); if, ever since
that time, he has been constantly arming himself
with all the powers of Greeks and Barbarians to de-
stroy us--what do these" men mean who affirm we
are either absolutely to declare war, or to observe
the peace ? You have no choice at all; you have
but one just and necessary measure to pursue, which
they industriously pass over. And what is this?
To repel force by force. Unless they will affirm,
that, while Philip keeps from Attica and the Piraeus,"
1 In the senate. 1--Into which Demosthenes had been admitted 111 the
archonship of Themistoctes, a little after the taking of Olynthus; and (if
we may believe Machines) not in the regular manner, but by intrigue and
bribery.
2 The Piraeus. 1--This is the first time the orator mentions this cele-
brated port of Athens. It was at first detached from the city, but after-
ward joined to it by two long walls, which the Greeks called the Legs of
the Flrreus; and from that time, by the advice of Themistocles, tho
Athenians made this their principal harbour. It could contain four hun-
dred ships of war; was well fortified, and furnished with a market, to
which all the trading part of Greece resorted. Historians call it the triple
fort, for it really contained three: the first called Kavdapos, frorn a hero
of that name; the second AOfw&etoo, from two temples of Venus that
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? ON THE STATE OF THE CHERSONESTJS. 123
he does our state no injury, makes no war against
us. If it be thus they state the bounds of peace and
justice, we must all acknowledge that their senti-
ments are inconsistent with the common rights of-
* mankind--with the dignity and the safety of Athens
Besides, they themselves contradict their own ac
cusation of Diopithes. For shall Philip be left at full
liberty to pursue all his other designs, provided he
keeps from Attica; and shall not Diopithes be per-
mitted to assist the Thraciansl And if he does,
shall we accuse him of involving us in a war? --But
this is their incessant cry: " Our foreign troops com-
mit outrageous devastations on the Hellespont:
Diopithes, without regard to justice, seizes and plun-
ders vessels! These things must not be suffered. "
Be it so: I acquiesce ! but while they are labouring
to have our troops disbanded, by inveighing against
that man whose care and industry support them (if
they really speak from a regard to justice), they
should show us, that if we yield to their remon-
strances Philip's army also will be disbanded: else
it is apparent that their whole aim is to reduce the
state to those circumstances which have occasioned
all the losses we have lately suffered. For be
assured of this, that nothing hath given Philip such
advantage over us as his superior vigilance in im-
proving all opportunities. For, as he is constantly
surrounded by his troops, and his mind perpetually
engaged in projecting his designs, he can in a mo-
ment strike the blow where he pleases. But we
wait till some event alarms us; then we are in
motion ; then we prepare. To this alone I can im-
pute it, that the conquests he hath lately made he
now enjoys in full security; while all your efforts
are too late, all your vast expenses ineffectual: your
attempts have served only to discover your enmity
and inclination to oppose him; and the consequences
were erected near it; the third Zca, because it was the mart for corn --
Tourreil.
Vol. I. --K
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? 124 ORATIONS OF DEMOSTHENES.
of your misconduct are still further aggravated by
the disgrace.
Know then, Athenians, that all our orators allege
at present are but words, but idle pretences. Their
? whole designs, their whole endeavours are to confine
u within the city; that, while we have no forces
the field, Philip may be at full liberty to act as he
pleases. Consider the present posture of affairs.
Philip is now stationed in Thrace, at the head of a
large army, and (as we are here informed) sends for
reinforcements from Macedon and Thessaly. Now,
should he watch the blowing of the Etesian winds,
march his forces to Byzantium, and invest it; in the
first place, can you imagine that the Byzantines
would persist in their present folly; or that they
would not have recourse to you for assistance ? I
cannot think it. No : if there were a people in whom
they less confided' than in us, they would receive
even these into their city rather than give it up to
him, unless prevented by the quickness of his attack.
And should we be unable to sail thither, should
there be no forces ready to support them, nothing
can prevent their ruin. --" But the extravagance and
folly of these men exceed all bounds. "--I grant it.
Yet still they should be secured from danger; for
this is the interest of our state. Besides, it is by no
means clear that he will not march into the Cher-
sonesus itself. On the contrary, if we may judge
from the letter which he sent to you, he is deter-
mined to oppose us in that country. If then the
I If there were a people in whom they less confided, &c. ]--In the third
year of the 105th Olympiad the Byzantines entered into a league with
Chios, Coa, and Rhodes, against the Athenians, and withdrew them-
selves trom their dominion. This is what Demosthenes calls their/b/Zy
and extravagance. They had reason to think the Athenians would
regard them as rebellious subjects, and treat them with the resentment
of offended sovereigns. " However," says the orator, " if they were re-
duced to the alternative of either submitting to Philip, or having recourse
to you for protection, they would without hesitation choose the latter. "
The event confirmed his prediction. Philip besieged Byzantium, the
Byzantines had recourse to the Athenians, and Phocion at the head of
their army obliged Philip to raise the siege. --TourTeiX!
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? ON THE STATE OF THE CHERSONESUS. 125
forces stationed there be still kept up, we may de-
fend our own dominions, and infest those of our
enemy; if they be once dispersed and broken, what
shall we do if he attempt the Chersonesus 1--" Bring
Diopithes to a trial. "--And how will that serve us ?
--" No: but we will despatch succours from hence. "
--What if the winds prevent us 1--" But he will not
turn his arms thither. "--Who will be our suretj for
this 1 Consider, Athenians, is not the season of the
year approaching in which it is thought by some that
you are to withdraw your forces from the Hellespont,
and abandon it to Philip ? But suppose (for this too
merits our attention) that at his return from Thrace
he should neither bend his force against the Cher-
sonesus nor Byzantium, but fall on Chalcis or Me-
gara, as he lately did on Oreum;' which would be the
wiser course, to oppose him here, and make Attica
the seat of war, or to find him employment abroad 7
1 think the latter.
Let these things sink deep into our minds; and
let us not raise invidious clamours against those
forces which Diopithes is endeavouring to keep up
for the service of his country, or attempt to break
them: let us rather prepare to reinforce them; grant
their general the necessary supplies of money, and in
every other instance favour his designs with a hearty
zeal. Imagine this question proposed to Philip:--
" Which would be most agreeable to you, that
the forces commanded by Diopithes"--of whatever
kind they be, for I shall not dispute on that head--
" should continue in full strength and good esteem at
Athens, and be reinforced by detachments from the
city; or, that the clamours and invectives of certain
persons should prevail to have them broken and dis-
banded ? " I think he would choose this latter. And
are there men among us labouring for that which
1 As he lately did on Oreum. ]--In the third Philippic -we shall find a
particular account of the manner in which he reduced this city to his
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? 126 ORATIONS OF DEMOSTHENES.
Philip would entreat the gods to grant him? and if
so, is it still a question whence our distresses have
arisen ?
Let me entreat you to examine the present state
of Athens with an unbiassed freedom; to consider
how we are acting, and how our affairs are conducted.
We are neither willing to raise contributions, nor do
we dare to take the field, nor do we spare the public
funds, nor do we grant supplies to Diopithes, nor do
we approve of those subsidies he hath procured him-
self; but we malign him, we pry into his designs,
and watch his motions. Thus we proceed, quite re-
gardless of our interests; and while in words we
extol those speakers who assert the dignity of theii
country, our actions favour their opposers. --It is
usual, when a speaker rises, to ask him, " What are
we to do ? " Give me leave to propose the like ques-
tion to you : " What am I to say V For, if you nei
ther raise contributions, nor take the field, nor spare
the public funds, nor grant subsidies to Diopithes,
nor approve of those provisions he hath made him
self, nor take the due care of our interests, I have
nothing to say. If you grant such unbounded license
to informers as even to listen to their accusations
of a man for what they pretend he will do, before it
be yet done, what can one say ?
But it is necessary to explain to some of you the
effect of this behaviour. ' (I shall speak with an un-
' But H is necessary to explain to some of you the effect of this bo
nanourJ--To the same purpose nas the sentence been translated by
Wolfius and Tourreil. But this interpretation, which is acknowledged con-
sonant to grammatical rules of construction, has yet been stigmatized as a
total perversion of the author's reasoning and the sense of the context.
Clamours had been raised against an Athenian general, who had exacted
contributions from the islanders and Grecian settlements alone the coast
of Asia. Demosthenes appears as his advocate. He proceeds, as it is
observed, to show that it had ever been the custom of other commanders
to raise the like contributions. Hence it is inferred, that the meaning of
the phrase here quoted must be, that the general is warranted by justice
and custom to aci as he had done. The orator, indeed, doth proceed to
give instances of this custom. But this conclusion I cannot admit; for
whatever deference and respect the writers who have adopted it may
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? ON THE STATE OF THE CHERSONESUS. 127
daunted freedom, forin no other manner can I speak. )
--It has been the constant custom of all the com-
manders who have sailed from this city (if I advance
a falsehood let me feel the severest punishment) to
take money from the Chians, and from the Ery-
thrians, and from any people that would give it; I
mean of the inhabitants of Asia. They who have
but one or two ships take a talent; they who com-
mand a greater force raise a larger contribution: and
the people who give this money, whether more or
less, do not give it for nothing (they are not so mad):
no; it is the price they pay to secure their trading
vessels from rapine and piracy, to provide them with
the necessary convoys, and the like; however they
may pretend friendship and affection, and dignify
those payments with the name of free gifts. It is
therefore evident, that as Diopitbes is at the head of
a considerable power, the same contributions will be
granted to him. Else, how shall he pay his soldiers 1
how shall he maintain them, who receives nothing
from you, and has nothing of his own ? From the
skies ? No ; but from what he can collect, and beg,
justly claim, a greater deference and respect is due to the original, where
we find a conclusion of a different nature, deduced in express terms. "It
has been the constant custom," says Demosthenes, " of all the com-
manders who have sniled from this city (if I advance a falsehood let mo
feel the severest punishment) to take money from the Chians, and from
the Erythrians, and from any people that would give it; I mean, of the
inhabitants of Asia. They who have but oneor two ships take a talent;
they who command a greater force raise a larger contribution : and the
people who give this money, whether more or less, do not give it for
nothing (they are not so mad): no; it is the price they pay to secure their
trading vessels from rapine and piracy, to provide them with the neces-
sary convoys, and the like; however they may pretend friendship and
affection, and dignify those payments with the name of free gifts. Il is
therefore evident, that as Diopilhes is at the head of a considerable
Cwer, the same contributions will be granted to htm. Else, how shall
pay his soldiers ? how shall he maintain them, who receives nothing
from you, and has nothing of his own 1 From the skies ? No; but from
what he can collect, and beg, and borrow. " Then follows the conclusion
from the whole : Ovlt OYN aXXo iroioveiv ol Kariiyopovvrcs tvviiiv^n
vpoXcyjvtriv liirairt, ifcc. So that the whole scheme of his accusers (or
the whole effect of tbelr accusations) is to warn nil people to grant him
nothing, &c. This is the meaning (or this Is the tendency) of their
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? 128 ORATIONS OF DEMOSTHENES.
and borrow. So that the whole scheme of his ac-
cusers is to warn all people to grant him nothing; as
he is to suffer punishment for crimes yet to be com-
mitted, not for any he hath-already committed, or in
which he hath already assisted. This is the mean-
ing of their clamours. " He is going to form sieges!
